S12.E18: A Tale of Two Igors

[thewhiteowl]

Deeks is kidnapped by an associate of Kirkin’s in need of his help. NCIS investigates the shooting of a militarized dolphin equipped with a Russian microchip. Beale makes Nell an interesting offer and Hetty returns.

[NYGirl]

I actually enjoyed this show this evening.  Hollis summed it up for me when he said something about everyone's obsessions with the Russians on this show.

I'm glad we didn't end on a cliffhanger such as Blye being kidnapped and then finding out she's pregnant and I was so happy to see Hetty and I hope this means she's back.  But now I will miss Nell and her prissy dresses.  She did good as Operations Manager.

What was that pin that Hetty gave Nell?

 

[threebluestars]

I enjoyed Deeks and his Igors tonight lol. I was just glad not to have any "trying to have a baby" drama. Because I'd rather they didn't, the storyline is just ugh for me.

Seeing Hetty reminded me of why I loved the show initially - it was about deep cover. It's turned into "just a procedural" instead. I really wish we had more undercover cases like the show was pitched as. Hetty was the magician that turned them into their undercover personas. They kind of stripped away what made it stand out.

[Maverick]

 I felt like the show was finally going to deal with the MIA/do they still work here/why are they still in the credits if they don't work here trio.   

 They had me going thinking they were going to finally say Hetty is gone.  But since she had McBride putting her stuff back but told Bell she up to her ass in alligators I'm assuming it will be another season of the team playing Where's Hetty?   

 I thought they were going to have Nell finally take Hetty's job and stop this she quit but she's just back as a temp crap.   Then I thought they were going to end it just by having her go to Japan but then she tells Kensi she probably won't like it. So, she'll be back next season "filling in" because Hetty is dealing with those gators. 

 At least Eric seems to be gone for good.  But I'm sure he'll fly in from Tokyo 2 or 3 times next season because his new software can do... something. 

 Fatima's plot was boring and seemed shoehorned in to give her something to do.  Why the hell was this drivel in the season finale?   Did the have some extra melodrama left over from NOLA?  

[wlk68]

I enjoyed Deeks' two Igors as well. I'm also glad we finally have a resolution to the whole Nell and Eric thing. 

 The episode definitely had a series finale kind of feel to it. Do we know for certain that it's coming back next year?

[CheshireCat]

46 minutes ago, wlk68 said:

 The episode definitely had a series finale kind of feel to it. Do we know for certain that it's coming back next year?

Yes, it was renewed back in April.

[Sweet Tooth]

Confirmed that Nell left. But as has been pointed out, they talk about the "Nell says she'll probably be back" loophole.

This is not, however, necessarily the very end for either Eric or Nell. “There’s a little loophole in there, when Nell says she’s going to be alone in Tokyo with Eric, and she gives it ‘six weeks’ before she’s back,” Gemmill noted. “So, we’ll see what happens.”

Eric and Nell leaving

At least Nell's dress reached the peak of hideousness, so I think it will still be burned into our eyeballs next season.

The Two Igors was great and returned us to funny Kensi and Deeks.

So, Fatima just decides to swallow her grief and be a jerk to everyone once a year, every year, for the rest of her life? Like, she's developed no coping mechanisms or some kind of contingency plan other than, "I'll be an a$$hole, and people will just have to deal with it."

Girl, seek some counseling. Take a forgiveness workshop. Maybe do something proactive.

[wlk68]

1 hour ago, Sweet Tooth said:

So, Fatima just decides to swallow her grief and be a jerk to everyone once a year, every year, for the rest of her life? Like, she's developed no coping mechanisms or some kind of contingency plan other than, "I'll be an a$$hole, and people will just have to deal with it."

Girl, seek some counseling. Take a forgiveness workshop. Maybe do something proactive.

And maybe take a personal day that day because you know going in that it's going to be a rough day for you? That's what I do.      

[DavidWeis1]

What really annoyed me, and it’s something this show has been doing a lot of it this year, so it may be COVID, but other shows have managed to cope, is that all the teams were separated last night at the very end. Why couldn’t they have the teams come together and slap one another on the back? (Especially since Hetty might be back permanently. I mean that’s what Callan has been living for.) All season long this show has kept the teams separate. Why? Does no one like one bother?

(Look, I understand you can’t have everyone in each scene. But, c’mon.)

[milkyaqua]

Yes, agree.  Deeks and Kensi are more tolerable when they aren't wallowing in are we going to have a baby drama.

Fatima needs therapy or a wellness day but I'm glad she at least told Roundtree.

Won't miss Eric or his now gone mustache.  He was always annoying but he's been made interminable becoming a billionaire and Nell and those awful dresses.  Where did those come from and why?

Glad to see Hetty back.  Always good to see Gerald McRaney as McBride.

I sort of understand why they maybe wouldn't want to have everyone together at the same time but yes, it did seem a bit odd but yes, at least we didn't get any cliffhangers and everyone seemed to be in decent places.

[Linda956]

I'm glad Nell and Eric are gone for good.  She was MIA for about half the season and he for most.  Now they need to address Hetty.  What did she do? Maybe 2 episodes this year?  If she doesn't want to return full time, put her on recurring status (like Ducky on NCIS) and give her job to someone else.  Mentioning her name a dozen times an episode doesn't make up for her absence.  This whole show has gone off the rails for several years now and it's just getting worse.  They really need to rehaul it or cancel it.

[ymeagain]

not impressed with anything about this episode

• stupid, mind-numbing  story
• Kilbride was a grouch
• Fatima was annoying
• Beale wasn't Beale (but hasn't been for awhile)
• Nell's clothes remind me of a pioneer doll (maybe she'll find something decent in Tokyo)
• don't get why Hetty returned because she's just leaving again--let her retire
• not enough of the team (especially Callen & Sam) & too much of Kilbride (he's a guest actor, not a regular)

it feels like the writers are writing for middle school kids - high school sophomores

best thing was NO baby talk

 

[123BP]

Wow! Underwhelming. I get that this is a TV show, but Gemmill should just call it a comedy instead of pretending to be about any kind of federal agency or law enforcement. It turns out Kirkin didn't give up his life of crime (what a shock especially after seeing his butt ugly attempts at "fashion"), but he did leave his gang and fashion business to Deeks. Kirkin could never run any criminal gang and definitely not a Russian gang, and no gang will accept an outsider as their "leader" just because the dead leader had the hots for him. And Kilbride's grumpy but not too bright because only Callen has a real personal connection to a Russian (if Kirkin had been Canadian, Deeks would have had a connection to a Canadian, so his connection is to a man, not a nationality). Nobody else on the team has any connection to a Russian or Russia. Fatima is just a pain in the ass--a whiny little rich girl and the dumbest character on the show (former TV actor, now intelligence officer with expertise on terrorists who's going to work "undercover," but can't keep her phone secure). Beale isn't Beale anymore--and it's not just the mustache and the ridiculous car--so I'm glad he's gone. I liked the "original" version a lot better: surfer/gamer nerd who wore shorts & flip flops (Deeks seems to absorb a lot of traits from other characters like a body snatcher). And why is Hetty back? The team operates okay without her. It's way past her retirement age and what operation has she planned that's been a success in the last 5-6 years? Nell leaving is okay even if her relationship with Beale was confusing this season (she didn't even know he wasn't working for NCIS anymore when the season started, so they patched that up). Noticed in Callen's recap that he didn't mention Anna, but he didn't mention Joelle either, so that's a plus. lol

[Sweet Tooth]

15 hours ago, wlk68 said:

And maybe take a personal day that day because you know going in that it's going to be a rough day for you? That's what I do.  

That's an excellent idea.

It's been literal years, and yet her only plan of action is, "Screw them."

One thing about this group is that they all seem like a cohesive team, so yeah, them all being separated for the finale is really bizarro.

[LittlePeas3]

I finally saw the finale, it was pretty ordinary.  Hetty's arrival aside and shaving Beale's moustache, everything else was blah.  Who came up with that storyline?  As if a Russian crime mob would even consider a federal agent as their leader.  

Fatima bores me the more she is on the screen, and while I thought I was liking Roundtree, he doesn't seem to be doing much more.  I like seeing Sam and Callen together, and also Kensi and Deeks, when they are not moping and sad because of not being pregnant.  

To me, this episode really seemed like the end of the show, and then they got renewed by chance.  But then I realised, it wouldn't end without some interaction between Callen and Hetty.  I would have really liked a big send off for Nell and Beale.  They have been part of the show for so long, even if they haven't been on much together the last season and a bit. 

[123BP]

5 hours ago, LittlePeas3 said:

To me, this episode really seemed like the end of the show, and then they got renewed by chance.  But then I realised, it wouldn't end without some interaction between Callen and Hetty.  I would have really liked a big send off for Nell and Beale. 

I think Gemmill did intend this to be the series finale in case the show didn't get renewed, and not having a Hetty-Callen scene was shocking. I know he's been with the show forever, but he doesn't seem to really understand what makes the show tick and what made it unique. And then I watched the series finale of NCIS:NOLA and they had a BIG party scene. I don't understand why NCIS:LA couldn't have had at least a party/send off for Beale and Nell outdoors at the beach. I don't know what Gemmill was thinking with this mess of an episode (he and Harimoto wrote it), but he sure doesn't seem to do a very good job as the show runner.

[Maverick]

 I'm still trying to figure out if either LA or NOLA about their respective fates before the finales were produced.   I lean toward yes for NOLA because of the final scene.  But really nothing in the finale precluded another season and there have been plenty of finales written to go either way so who knows.

 I'm leaning toward LA not knowing.   It's like if this was it, they wanted to put Nell and Erik together but they left enough of a hedge to bring Nell back if they got renewed (given how little Beale was in this season, I assume he's out no matter what).  It also seems they wanted it to end with Hetty being back.  But I can't imagine Linda Hunt being back full time or anything close to it, so either they keep playing this game of she's running things but not there or they have her disappear again and Nell comes back to run things in the meantime (i.e. revert to the crap we've been dealing with the past few seasons).  

[CheshireCat]

2 hours ago, 123BP said:

I think Gemmill did intend this to be the series finale in case the show didn't get renewed,

I posted a link to an interview with him in the media thread; he explains that they did this finale because of the year that it has been. They had last year's finale planned but decided that all the drama would be unfair to the fans and opted for a feel-good one. (He does not say why they could not do a proper case but not end it on a cliffhanger. But maybe he felt this was a proper case?)

I'm glad we got a lot of Callen and Sam in this episode. I'm also glad that Hetty returned and I agree, that a scene between her and Callen would be nice.

What was up with Kilbride and what's up with the team-bashing and Hetty-bashing that suddenly seems to be going around? The brass seemed perfectly happy and content with what the team was doing and how they were operating in earlier seasons. As Callen said, they got the job done. (And unconventional and undercover is sort of their job). Why couldn't the Kilbride admit to even that? He was a team player and struck me as an ally when he first appeared. But this season, he suddenly turned into something else and I don't know why. I just know that I don't like it. Why do the "higher ups" always have to be against the team? Why can't they have an ally among them? I think it would be much more interesting since the "higher up adversary" has been done to death.

Likewise, what's up with the Callen was groomed by Hetty thing? He's been with the CIA and NCIS for how many years? And all of a sudden they have problem with his relationship with Hetty and his Russian heritage? The guy has access to top secret stuff and likely, some compartmentalized/need to know stuff, too. If they have a problem with that, they should have thought about that earlier. I find it annoying more than anything else, because why all the hint-dropping now? Why not last year? Or the year before that? Or when he started at NCIS? I hate when things suddenly pop up that have never been addressed before. That's just lazy writing and writing for drama's sake, in my opinion.

Likewise, Fatima and the accident. That, too, just popped up. Why? Just so she could be grouchy? Again, why? (I'm guessing, we'll see a story next season but again, why?)

Thank you, Nell! That mustache was overdue to go!

I hope that they can bring some structure back into the team next season. I've watched several reruns lately and I miss "Callen, the team leader". It's like everyone is doing everything nowadays and I hope that that'll change again next season. Have one or two designated tech people, have one boss who pulls the strings, have one team leader and a designated team out in the field, please.

And let Deeks and Kensi adopt a baby already. (I do like that she's not just getting pregnant considering her job, age and the injuries she's had. But, I too, was glad that there was no baby talk in this episode. It really does not have to be part of every or every other episode).

[mythoughtis]

I also really enjoyed the original Eric and the original Nell.  Of course they had to mature, but Nell trashed her fashion sense the last several years and Eric was unrecognizable once he got rich.  I have never been able to see Eric working for a big corporation.   Mustache had to go.

Fatima has grown from unlikeable to meh.... but they need to remove the clip of her basically sashaying with the gun in the opening credits.   Round tree is still unlikeable to me at this point.  
 

At least we did not see Anna or Joelle!

We saw Hetty!  I’m sure Linda Hunt is ready to retire but we aren’t ready to see her go. 

[CheshireCat]

I caught S9 reruns and now the Hetty-bashing makes even less sense. Hetty sure has unorthodox methods and yes, she did and does pursue personal agendas. But they're still always related to national security in one way or another and I don't think she has abused her power even once in 12 seasons the way Mosley abused her power in S9 when she was looking for her son.

Why did TPTB rewrite show history in such a way? Makes no sense.