It’s rare that a series spin off will last long past a few
seasons. It’s even rarer when that spin off matches the quality of the original
series. NCIS LOS ANGELES has done that in spades. The show continues to combine
action, espionage and humor to make it one of the best series on TV.
The creators of the series NCIS made a smart decision in making each of the spin off series different from the original. Each still involves the office of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service but they all come at it from different perspectives. While the original series focused mostly on criminal activities and murders of servicemen and woman, LOS ANGELES has always focused more on terrorist style investigations. This has led the team members to roam the world and in particular the Middle East at times.
As with the other series this one has moved along allowing characters and actors that were at one time a smaller part of the machine take center stage to move up a notch. In this case tech whiz Eric Beale (Barrett Foa) is sent undercover in one episode. His character also faces issues when co-worker and love interest Nell Jones (Renee Felice Smith) faces issues of her mother’s illness and possibly leaving the team.
The team faced issues as well with the disappearance of leader Henrietta “Hetty” Lange (Linda Hunt). And accident in real life led to her having to cut back her appearances on the show. The writers used that to their advantage having temporary replacements come in and potentially threaten the team’s make up. What could have been a major upset turned into a plotline that was well used.
Romance is in the air for others as well. While agents Kensi Blythe (Daniela Ruah) and Marty Deeks (Eric Christian Olsen) are now married and own a bar on the side, team leader G. Callen (Chris O’Donnell) finds the love of his life Anastasia "Anna" Kolcheck (Bar Paley) back safe and sound. And his partner Sam Hanna (LL Cool J) may have a new love interest in the form of Katherine Casillas (Moon Bloodgood) an insurance investigator.
By the end of the season the team recruits a new member in
the form of FBI agent Devin Roundtree (Caleb Castille). While his entrance may
not seem to make him the best choice he fits in well with the rest of the team.
Season 12’s opening episode has already aired and he looks like a perfect fit
for the group.
As I said earlier one of the things that has made this show
different from the rest is the amount of humor involved. Be it the banter back
and forth between Sam and G or the off the cuff comments of Marty Deeks these
light hearted moments blend in well with the action taking place that takes
center stage. They are a relief valve put in place that helps move things
forward.
Season 11 brought with it a few minor changes and a lot of action like all the seasons preceding it have done. It shows that a series spun off from another can and does stand on its own. Let’s hope that this one can last as long as the original and move past their record.
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