S18.E09: Winter Chill

[thewhiteowl]

NCIS dives into the competitive world of food trucks after finding a man frozen to death in the back of one.

[Callietwo]

The poem, touching.  But I'm not at all sad about the outcome.  One fornell down.. one to go.

Fornell sr was always a favorite character but they've ruined him.  Maybe this will either put an end to that if they can't write a better, more interesting storyline for him.

[Grizzly]

I realize this show is not a comedy, but does it have to be such a downer? Won't miss Emily, but as they panned to each character, I remembered their losses past and present. Kudos to the actors for making me feel. Would prefer Tobias and Emily be in Costa Rica.

[secnarf]

Well, I did appreciate that Fornell didn't threaten any of the doctors with a gun this time. That one act irreparably ruined his character for me. I think I am more upset that the writing staff thought it was an acceptable action for him to take, but I digress. Joe Spano did a great job, though.

I had a feeling they were going to kill Emily off as soon as Fornell was talking about her being "squared away". In November, two of my high school classmates (we graduated >10 years ago) died of overdoses. One of them was very publicly in recovery for a couple of years prior to his death. I have said before that I hate watching any addiction storylines, but those two recent losses have made it hit a little closer to home.

I wonder if something happened behind the scenes that led to Emily getting killed off, or if they are just doing this for plot reasons that have yet to be elucidated.

[DrScottie]

So, they killed Jimmy's wife and now after everything Tobias (and Gibbs) did to shut down that drug lord, Emily ends up overdosing anyway.

13 minutes ago, Grizzly said:

I realize this show is not a comedy, but does it have to be such a downer? Would prefer Tobias and Emily be in Costa Rica.

So would I.

Do they want us to just stop watching?

20 minutes ago, secnarf said:

I had a feeling they were going to kill Emily off as soon as Fornell was talking about her being "squared away". In November, two of my high school classmates (we graduated >10 years ago) died of overdoses. One of them was very publicly in recovery for a couple of years prior to his death. I have said before that I hate watching any addiction storylines, but those two recent losses have made it hit a little closer to home.

Sorry to hear that.

[NYGirl]

58 minutes ago, Callietwo said:

The poem, touching.  But I'm not at all sad about the outcome.  One fornell down.. one to go.

Fornell sr was always a favorite character but they've ruined him.  Maybe this will either put an end to that if they can't write a better, more interesting storyline for him.

I thought I was the only one who felt that way.  I used to love Tobias and his friendship with Gibbs.  However I never liked his wife, Diane nor his daughter. 

In fact I didn't even pay attention to the episodes about her being on drugs.

What's with these writers?  When things get dull let's kill a cast member, Vance's wife, Jenny, a couple of agents, Jimmy's wife...I'm sure there's more.

[MDL]

Wow...an okay case, but first Fornell is leaving... did he buy Jack's house in  Costa Rica?...Then Emily dies-and that poem......Wow

 

 

[Xeliou66]

Wow, so they killed off another recurring character in Fornell’s daughter? I’m getting sick of them killing off character, first they kill Palmer’s wife, now Fornell’s daughter. That being said, I never liked Fornell’s daughter, and they ruined Fornell for me a while back, I used to like when Fornell would appear and his friendship with Gibbs, but when they revealed Fornell buried a witnesses statement that could’ve affected a case and then tried to excuse it because the guy Fornell suspected was guilty anyway, I lost all respect for him. The incident where he pulled a gun at the hospital was just icing on the cake for me, so I don’t give a fuck about Fornell. But I don’t like how Gibbs keeps on losing people close to him. 

I did like the case of the week a lot, this show is usually at its best when they do regular murder cases of the week, and this one was good, although I did suspect the culprit because he got too much attention in his first scene for him not to play a role so it didn’t surprise me he was guilty. 

I liked the scenes between Palmer and Kasie a lot, and Palmer remains one of my favorites. 

Good case, but the way they kill off characters is cheap and I get sick of it. 

[laredhead]

I'm wondering if Jack really gave Kasie the elephant painting, or if Kasie just helped herself to it.  I thought Gibbs looked extremely surprised when he saw it in Kasie's lab, and perhaps Jack had given it to Gibbs, and he had not removed it from Jack's office yet.  Did anyone get that idea?

[Magnumfangirl]

51 minutes ago, laredhead said:

I'm wondering if Jack really gave Kasie the elephant painting, or if Kasie just helped herself to it.  I thought Gibbs looked extremely surprised when he saw it in Kasie's lab, and perhaps Jack had given it to Gibbs, and he had not removed it from Jack's office yet.  Did anyone get that idea?

I thought the same.  Boring episode, what was the point of killing off Emily?  This show has become nothing but tragedy porn.  

[twoods]

I didn’t think I would care that Emily died because I couldn’t stand her character, but Vance reading that beautiful poem broke me. I agree that the writers have gotten lazy with all the unnecessary deaths the past few seasons. Emily could have gone to Costa Rica and we would never have to see her again, now Fornell is going to be all alone mourning out there? Nobody wants that. I guess Kasie is next in line losing a loved one since her mom had a health scare, or is it going to be one of McGee’s kids? They have killed almost all the spouses or ex spouses on this show already. Sigh.

Edited March 10, 2021 by twoods

[Katy M]

It seems weird that they're killing of a bunch of secondary characters that we rarely see.   With Bishop's comment to Gibbs about losing all his friends, I'm wondering if this is some kind of set up for a breakdown for him.

And what was the point of Kasie's mom having a heart attack in the same epi  I realize that in RL these things happen all the time, but in tv there's usually a reason.

[MissLucas]

Show was not throwing any punches with that poem.

But I got to admit that I was first relieved at the thought of Fornell leaving (Joe Spano did great but I agree that the writing ruined the character) and when Emily died all I could think of was 'great now we get even more Fornell-in-crisis plots' - and we already had more than enough of these.

Bishop being all crazy about food trucks was a nice bit of character continuity. Also great call-back by Kasie to my favorite Palmer episode and lovely scenes between these two. Jimmy remains MVP.

I bet Jack left Gibbs her glass bowl with the lollipops.

Edited March 10, 2021 by MissLucas

[Callietwo]

1 hour ago, Katy M said:

With Bishop's comment to Gibbs about losing all his friends, I'm wondering if this is some kind of set up for a breakdown for him.

The previews seem to have him being arrested so a Gibbs centered episode next week.  

[Rambler]

One would think that since the video at food supply warehouse didn't show the body being loaded on the truck, they would check the security cameras around every stop the truck made once it left the warehouse. Someone at NCIS is getting lazy.

 

BTW the poem is “Epitaph” by Merrit Malloy

[eel21788]

13 hours ago, secnarf said:

I wonder if something happened behind the scenes that led to Emily getting killed off, or if they are just doing this for plot reasons that have yet to be elucidated.

Overdose deaths in teens and young adults have doubled during the pandemic. Still, I don't think this was the right platform for a PSA about it.

[HurricaneVal]

I do admire NCIS for trying to highlight the problems of addiction in our society to raise awareness in the mainstream demographic that is attracted to this show.  But I don't think the timing is right, or the character was right.  I liked Emily back when she was the exasperated pre-teen appealing to Uncle Gibbs to make it make sense.  I didn't like it when the writers were turning her into the second coming of Diane.  I also didn't like what they did to Fornell either.  Fornell should never have retired, I was OK with him descending into grief--his wife was killed, after all--but his complete checking out and sudden alcoholism seemed totally out of character for him.  Emily was still very young and Fornell was so protective of her in the past that for him to essentially abandon her was just so jarring and not at all the Fornell we remember.  If anything, that "Fornell completely loses it and drops into a black hole" plot line is more appropriate now that he's grieving both his wife and daughter.  Except I don't want to see that either, the world is bad enough right now.  I don't care to see a good actor do a tour de force performance of "utter devastation."  And that goes for Gibbs too.

The Palmer and Kasie scene was lovely.  I really like Palmer, and even though I love Ducky, I love that his absence is allowing the Palmer character to grow.  I've always liked Palmer when they didn't write him to be stupid, and it seems they're doing better at that.  I like how they're making him out to be very observant, which suits the position he's been in the background all this time.  He was Tony's friend and sounding board when Tony needed one, and I always liked that parallel of Gibbs to Ducky, and Tony to Palmer.  I also like Kasie when she's a little subdued.  I don't mean preoccupied and anxious subdued like she (understandably) was last night.  But sometimes it seems to me they want her to be more like Abby, and it crosses the line from enthusiasm for the job and into creepy imitation. 

And the way Gibbs kept looking at the "Elephant in the Room" definitely made me think that the painting means a lot more to him than he's ever let on, and that Jack probably did leave it to him and Kasie stole it.  But I can see him understanding how it gives comfort to Kasie, and letting it stay in the lab.  Continuity-wise, I'd love it if every time Gibbs visited the lab they show him giving the painting a significant glance, particularly if he's agitated about something and looking at it visibly calms him.  Keep the mystery going.  But for gawd's sake, reveal it at some point!

And that poem.  Man.

[enoughcats]

There are still back story characters that can be killed:

Vance has two children, now young adults (targets on their backs)

Abby's brother(s)

Mike Frank's extended family

Ari (did they kill him off?)

And, as ever, Dr. Ryan and her son.

Glancing through the IMDB cast database, I was surprised that Jack was in more episodes than Lauren Holly. Vance's wife only was in three episodes.  I'm not their target demographic, but I find the earlier character developments were the kind that I find memorable; the more recent ones may have had more screen exposure, but they just are bland and irritating. 

[Katy M]

31 minutes ago, enoughcats said:

I was surprised that Jack was in more episodes than Lauren Holly.

That surprises me alos.  I wasn't a fan of either character, but Jenny had more purpose and depth, IMO.  Again, nothing against the actresses.

[Aliconehead]

35 minutes ago, enoughcats said:

Ari (did they kill him off?)

Ziva killed him to save Gibbs at the beginning of her tenure on the show. 

[HurricaneVal]

1 hour ago, enoughcats said:

There are still back story characters that can be killed:

Vance has two children, now young adults (targets on their backs)

Abby's brother(s)

Mike Frank's extended family

Ari (did they kill him off?)

And, as ever, Dr. Ryan and her son.

You left off Senior.  I'd be in favor of killing him off.  Please.

[eel21788]

6 minutes ago, HurricaneVal said:

You left off Senior.  I'd be in favor of killing him off.  Please.

Probably won't happen until RJ himself dies.

Edited March 10, 2021 by eel21788

[Dr.OO7]

Good grief. It's been, what, two episodes since we learned Breanna was dead, now Emily too?

Once again, I ask why this show has such a sick fascination with killing off its women/love interests/family members. It's downright disturbing. I agree with whoever described it as "tragedy porn".

(Jeez. It's downright miraculous that Jake was still breathing when he left)

[Katy M]

1 hour ago, Dr.OO7 said:

(Jeez. It's downright miraculous that Jake was still breathing when he left)

Don't be silly. Jake's not a woman.  It's more miraculous that Abby was still breathing when she left.  Especially considering all the behind-the-scenes drama.

[Callietwo]

Personally, they could have killed off Fornell Sr. & sent Emily to go to college/live with relatives in another country and then we could've been rid of both without having killed off another female.  But of course, women are the most expendable.  🙄

Are any of us taking bets as to how long before the team learns that Sloane has been killed?  How many episodes;  season ender maybe?  Then Gibbs et al can run off to Afghanistan to avenge her death for a cliff-hanger. 

Calling it here, now.  

[MissLucas]

In their (weak) defense - they also killed off male character (who were more than mere redshirts: notably Reeves and Dorneget and Qasim Naasir.

But overall, yeah - the fridging is strong with this one.

[rr2911]

I'm going to be in the minority on this episode, but I actually liked it. There are many times that tragedy doesn't tap us on the shoulder and gives us a heads up. What happened to Emily does happen in real life. There are relapses. Sure, the writers could've had Emily going to Costa Rica, but that would've been the easy way out and predictable. No, I think the writers made the right move. Now, about all these deaths early in the season, I think that the show just wants to cut these characters loose, write them off the show. Only the writers know the reason why.

Jimmy is one of my favorite characters and always look forward to seeing him. Kasie......is another story. When she first came on board, she appeared shy. She barely said a word when Abby was showing her the lab. Now, it seems the writers are trying to squish some Abby in her and it just isn't working. I really wouldn't mind seeing her leave. Abby was certainly one of my favorites, and it just hasn't been the same without her. 

Another character I wouldn't mind leaving is Bishop. Again, Bishop was this weird girl who did her best work sitting on the floor because she could think better, according to her. Now, she's trying to be this tough Ziva wannabe. I really hope they don't have a Bishop and Torres romance. This was done already with Tony and Ziva.

[Magnumfangirl]

26 minutes ago, rr2911 said:

I think that the show just wants to cut these characters loose, write them off the show.

That's what makes it weird.  They aren't regular characters so why bother to kill them?  Most of them don't even have to be mentioned again unless the show wants to do another story about them.  So why slam the door on that possibility?  It's like they're only doing it for schlock.

[HurricaneVal]

Not gonna lie.  I'm still a little torn up over losing Dorneget.  I liked the actor and I liked the character, and I thought they were going interesting places with him.

[basiltherat]

This sure has been a depressing season, Show.  What are you trying to do to Gibbs and to us?  There's too much angst going around lately -- give us a break!  Brina dead, Emily dead, Fornell on the edge, Jack gone, Leon still missing his wife, McGee shot and almost dead, Ducky barely showing up . . . 

[eel21788]

1 hour ago, basiltherat said:

This sure has been a depressing season, Show.  What are you trying to do to Gibbs and to us?  There's too much angst going around lately -- give us a break!  Brina dead, Emily dead, Fornell on the edge, Jack gone, Leon still missing his wife, McGee shot and almost dead, Ducky barely showing up . . . 

At least we now know that DiNozzo's goldfish are still safe.

[ForReal]

5 hours ago, Magnumfangirl said:

That's what makes it weird.  They aren't regular characters so why bother to kill them?  Most of them don't even have to be mentioned again unless the show wants to do another story about them.  So why slam the door on that possibility?  It's like they're only doing it for schlock.

My thought on it at the end was, "What was the point?" I would like to think there is something coming in the future that will make this all make sense, but I was left shaking my head. I just don't love this show anymore. During the interrogations, I was reminded of Booth and Bones during interrogations, and that is not a compliment. They sometimes seemed a little cartoonish, and in this episode I got a whiff of that, too. Like when the perp says maybe it was this person who did it and the agents look at each other like a light bulb went off, and they go off to find that person. It just doesn't seem...realistic, knowing, of course, that this is a TV show. 

[maggiemae]

Not one new character has won my heart like Tony, Tony's Dad, Abby or even Ziva. 

I like Gibbs, McGee, Leon, Palmer and of course Ducky. And Grace. Also Reeves - he had potential.

But I find Bishop, Torres, Jack and Quinn boring. Oh, and Jenny as well when she was there.

And I am cold about Kasey - I agree, they are trying to make her into Abs but without the compassion and love Abby had for life inside and outside of the lab. Even down to Gibbs asking her what her favorite drink was.

 

[Gramto6]

Yeah rocky ground...so much to want to like and so much no to...

[LaylaGirl]

The writers are starting to treat Gibbs like Andy Sipowicz from NYPD Blue - killing off so many people who meant so much to him. So far, Andy had it worse than Gibbs, but how much tragedy can one character take?

I was so pleased and surprised to hear Merrit Malloy's poem. I used to read her poems obsessively in the 80's when I was young and dating all the wrong men.

[Starscream]

10 hours ago, MissLucas said:

In their (weak) defense - they also killed off male character (who were more than mere redshirts: notably Reeves and Dorneget and Qasim Naasir.

But overall, yeah - the fridging is strong with this one.

You're forgetting: Secretary Jarvis, Adam Eshel, Eli David, Tom Morrow and Mike Franks.  It's also a bit unfair to dismiss all the redshirts (like Pacci, Langer and E.J.'s underlings) because they're almost universally male.

 

I'm really not enjoying the show lately.  It's like they want the viewing audience to despair more than they are when faced with their current situations in real life.  Three episodes in a row now they've killed off a friend of NCIS and added in a main character departure to boot.  No more PSA episodes this season, please!  This show is in dire need of a Tony or a young McGee or a young Bishop, somebody to inject some nice heart into the program.  They're all becoming hardened like Gibbs.

[ForReal]

12 hours ago, Starscream said:

This show is in dire need of a Tony or a young McGee or a young Bishop, somebody to inject some nice heart into the program.

Well, it looks like they are trying. I read that a new male figure will be in an episode this season, and today I read that a new female figure will be introduced as well. It's like they are throwing characters at the show and hoping one will stick. 

I found myself wondering if they are trying to make Gibbs crack, or if he will continue to be the stalwart on whom everyone else relies. I can't even imagine how they will show Fornell getting over this, and yet I don't want the show to just gloss over him or forget about him.

You are so right, they need to inject some nice heart into the show.

[enoughcats]

46 minutes ago, ForReal said:

new female figure

Quote

Meet the new woman who's in for the last two episodes this season.

Katrina Law, recycled from Hawaii 50

The description:

  QUOTE

Law will appear in the last two episodes of Season 18 as NCIS REACT Special Agent Jessica Knight, a “formidable” woman whose specialty is hostage negotiations. Raised by a single mother, and married to a stay-at-home dad who is raising their infant son, Jessica is described as “sharp, athletic, tough” and “fiercely tenacious,” but she also possesses a “wry sense of humor.”

Maybe they should have just added a Fox Terrier.

I put this on the media page.

[buckboard]

On 3/10/2021 at 4:10 PM, basiltherat said:

This sure has been a depressing season, Show.  What are you trying to do to Gibbs and to us?  There's too much angst going around lately -- give us a break!  Brina dead, Emily dead, Fornell on the edge, Jack gone, Leon still missing his wife, McGee shot and almost dead, Ducky barely showing up . . . 

It's like using swear words.  An occasional f__k in conversation makes the point that this is a big deal, but when you sprinkle it in every third word, it doesn't have the same importance or make the same impression.  The same is true with all the death and life-threatening illness.  There are enough dead chief petty officers  in Norfolk (case of the week) in each episode that we don't have to sit in anticipation of which character from the recurring cast will die this week.  The writers should be growing our pleasure in tuning in each week, not make it seem like going to a wake for a friend. 

[Ohmo]

I thought the symmetry with Gibbs and Fornell was quite touching. Formell has lost Emily and Diane.  He and Diane weren't together, but underneath all of those angry words, they did seem to still love each other in some way. i also think that Fornell had respect for Diane as Emily's mother.

Gibbs, of all people, knows the weight of what Fornell's now carrying, and to see the hug in the hospital was lovely in Fornell's time of need.

I hope Fornell moves in with Gibbs for awhile.

Also liked the poem and the reference to Jackie.

[Mrs. Stanwyck]

22 minutes ago, Ohmo said:

Formell has lost Emily and Diane.  He and Diane weren't together, but underneath all of those angry words, they did seem to still love each other in some way.

I can't remember for sure if they were still together when she died, but Diane and Fornell did get back together after the divorce. and I think they were a couple when she died.

[LuvMyShows]

On 3/9/2021 at 10:28 PM, Xeliou66 said:

I liked the scenes between Palmer and Kasie a lot, and Palmer remains one of my favorites. 

I def had issues with that.  What Palmer said seemed very polyanna-ish, as though people can just work hard through anything, and flat out some people can't.  Also, the turnaround with Kasie's mother and the sister's job just felt too convenient, as though it solidified the worldview that everything will always get better...but in actuality, sometimes it just doesn't. 

On 3/9/2021 at 9:59 PM, NYGirl said:

I used to love Tobias and his friendship with Gibbs.  However I never liked his wife, Diane nor his daughter. 

I found it very odd that Tobias said to Gibbs "...Diane, Emily's mother".  Gibbs darn well knew who Diane was...I'm guessing they threw that in for the sake of any new viewers?

[crazycatlady58]

20 minutes ago, LuvMyShows said:

I def had issues with that.  What Palmer said seemed very polyanna-ish, as though people can just work hard through anything, and flat out some people can't.  Also, the turnaround with Kasie's mother and the sister's job just felt too convenient, as though it solidified the worldview that everything will always get better...but in actuality, sometimes it just doesn't. 

I found it very odd that Tobias said to Gibbs "...Diane, Emily's mother".  Gibbs darn well knew who Diane was...I'm guessing they threw that in for the sake of any new viewers?

I think Palmer's expression when he was going out the door showed that things were not getting better for him. I think the actor did a good job showing happiness that Kasie's mother was better but his pain would not go away.

[LuvMyShows]

3 minutes ago, crazycatlady58 said:

I think Palmer's expression when he was going out the door showed that things were not getting better for him. I think the actor did a good job showing happiness that Kasie's mother was better but his pain would not go away.

Yes, so I felt like he was being a bit inauthentic or disingenuous with her...maybe saying what he thought she would want to hear?

[crazycatlady58]

43 minutes ago, LuvMyShows said:

Yes, so I felt like he was being a bit inauthentic or disingenuous with her...maybe saying what he thought she would want to hear?

Could be, I did not get that feeling but I tend to accept what they show, I don't think that deeply about most T.V. shows.

[ForReal]

16 hours ago, LuvMyShows said:

Yes, so I felt like he was being a bit inauthentic or disingenuous with her...maybe saying what he thought she would want to hear?

Or maybe saying what he wishes were true?

[Daff]

Everyone is right, these episodes are not very up lifting. 
 

If Jimmy had expressed his surprise in the morgue (yes, ‘out loud’) Gibbs’s response would have been, “What the h- is a Yoda?”

I don’t believe for a moment that Kasie took the elephant picture unbidden, and, I agree the jar of lollipops is destined to land with Gibbs. My thought was that Jack never got around to sending an email to Gibbs, who relies upon everyone else for digital interpretation (probably wouldn’t read/respond anyway). After all, “Get ANOTHER app and find the truck!” was a surprise in the dialogue. 
If Jack returns within the show’s run, she’ll probably only reach out to connect with Gibbs and Vance. 

I foresee Carl adopting a transient life, spending a bit of time on everyone’s kitchen counter, in turns. At least you don’t have to supply sheets, blankets, or pillows. 

[maggiemae]

I think the show jumped the shark several years ago.

The humor with Tony and his flirting with Ziva...the always loving Abby, why does Palmer need to suffer now? And all the death that surrounds the show this year.

 

 

[jabRI]

On 3/11/2021 at 12:14 AM, maggiemae said:

And I am cold about Kasey - I agree, they are trying to make her into Abs but without the compassion and love Abby had for life inside and outside of the lab

I think this is totally wrong, to make her the 'new abby'.  she's a totally competent dramatic actress, and when they write those manic  scripts for her, she delivers, but it's totally a disservice.  She should be her own, thoughtful person.  Hopefully the writers are trying to move in that direction and realize you can't replace one character with a caricature of another. Let her evolve and have her own personality, she can have family issues and not be cheerful every day.

[Dr.OO7]

On 3/10/2021 at 4:17 PM, Katy M said:

Don't be silly. Jake's not a woman

Yes, but he was the love interest of a character and he was played by Jamie Bamber, who I'm certain has it written into his acting contract that he be killed off in half of the things he stars in. He should have been doomed. Frankly, I'm still certain that they intended Qasim's storyline for him, so he probably was.