S12.E07: The Searchers

[catray]

The team uncovers a fradulent charity targeting those looking for missing military personnel.

[catray]

Another good episode and felt appropriate for airing on Veteran's Day. This had a more old school NCIS vibe to it, at least to me.

So.... Have TPTB actually started reading this forum? Or the defunct TWOP forum? They actually addressed Gibbs going easy on the ladies (well really just Bishop but I'm just going to use it retroactively for that desk)?! I am practically in shock. I wanted to applaud when Gibbs told Bishop to get off the floor and use her desk (to be fair though, she was at her desk several times in this episode and I actually really haven't noticed).

[camussie]

Thought this episode did a really good job of honoring Veteran's Day without being preachy or maudlin about it.  

 

I liked the Tony and the cat humor. It was funny without being mean spirited. It cracks me up he has 2 fish named Kate and Ziva.

 

Loved that Bishop didn't want Gibbs to go easy on her. It is a refreshing change from Ziva's entitlement. Related to that the implication that up until bishop Gibbs had been tough on his female agents made me literally scoff out loud at my TV. So not true.  I can name several times where he went easier on Kate and Ziva (particularly Ziva) than he would have the male agents.  Heck he and Ducky even talked about how he is old school in that regard.

Edited November 12, 2014 by camussie

[roseha]

Yes, I think America applauded when Gibbs told Bishop to go sit at her desk at the end.  I loved it by the way, when the Mothership team appeared on the NCIS: NOLA preview episodes last year and Bishop says "Is this floor clean?"  Like you can eat off the floor in the DC office?

 

I did like the storyline, especially the discovery of what happened to the missing soldier's body and how the Vietnamese boy had chosen to honor  him.  Seeing Hawkins' videotapes after his death was also very moving.

 

So do you think we will hear further about Tony's lost cat?  I also liked that they found a way to involve Jimmy Palmer in this one.  I was beginning to wonder if Brian Dietzen had gotten another part time role somewhere.
 

[MyAimIsTrue]

I hate it when NCIS makes me cry.  Or maybe I should say I love it.

[Julia]

Yes, I think America applauded when Gibbs told Bishop to go sit at her desk at the end.  I loved it by the way, when the Mothership team appeared on the NCIS: NOLA preview episodes last year and Bishop says "Is this floor clean?"  Like you can eat off the floor in the DC office?

 

I was so happy about that. Not just that they acknowledged the snowflakization of Bishop and Gibbs: nurturing cool dad last season, but that they plan to make it stop. Go, writers. 

[Linderhill]

 

Loved that Bishop didn't want Gibbs to go easy on her. It is a refreshing change from Ziva's entitlement. Related to that the implication that up until bishop Gibbs had been tough on his female agents made me literally scoff out loud at my TV. So not true.  I can name several times where he went easier on Kate and Ziva (particularly Ziva) than he would have the male agents.  Heck he and Ducky even talked about how he is old school in that regard.

This exactly.  I did think it was funny when Tony and Tim said that Ziva wouldn't tell them her score.  I do remember Gibbs giving both Kate and Ziva a pass when it came to screwing up.  I'm going to assume that the two agents he lost that sat at that desk are Kate and Paula since Ziva quit/ran away which is an entirely different thing than losing her. 

 

I very much enjoyed this episode.  Lots of things to love: competent Tony and Tim, Ducky reminiscing on a time we hadn't heard about and giving out advice, Gibbs insisting that the missing Marine's body was important.   Kudos! 

[camussie]

I was so happy about that. Not just that they acknowledged the snowflakization of Bishop and Gibbs: nurturing cool dad last season, but that they plan to make it stop. Go, writers

 

 

I am glad they plan to stop "daddy Gibbs" but that started LONG before last season which was the one misfire in last night's episode.  I hate it when long running TV shows act like I have only been watching for a season or 2.   I could watch almost any NCIS marathon on USA and come up with an example or two of him free passing the women on his team.  

[Packerbrewerbadger]

I'm enjoying this season a lot more than last season!

[twoods]

Damn this show for making me cry. The vet stuff was great. Also liked the Gibbs/Bishop conversation at the end. This season has been very good.

[Sharpie66]

This show's rapid escalation in quality in the past two years is why I'm still watching some other shows which have tanked in recent seasons (Criminal Minds, I'm looking at you!!). I keep hoping the goodness will spread to them.

[MortysCleaningLady]

I hate it when NCIS makes me cry.  Or maybe I should say I love it.

 

I love it and gosh was I crying!  Beautiful Veteran's Day episode!!

 

(And I agree with everyone's applauding of Gibbs telling Bishop to get off the floor.)

[itsmeyousee]

I'm disagreeing about Bishop and the floor. I get the context it was done in on the show but i never understood why it was such a deal in the first place. They all have their "thing" Gibbs coffee addict, Tony movies, McGee SciFi, Abs Goth, Ducky long stories, why Bishop can't a have a "thing" ? It's as strange as the character sucks cause people don't like the colour of her eyebrows, no idea why that matters either.

 

But i liked that Gibbs blamed himself cause he has lost everyone from that desk but not from the others. While he isn't to blame it makes sense that he would think it's his fault.. Loved that Bishop stood up to him and really really loved that she didn't want to be just like Gibbs, she also acknowledged Tony and McGee and wanting to be like them , just part of the Team. Not the normal only Gibbs walks on water routine.

 

Loved the scores and that Tony was the lowest. At first i thought not saying Ziva score was annoying but then i remembered when she became a "Probie" and her score wouldn't have been fair. Cause she was already working there for years and Gibbs already thought of her as a daughter. It wasn't balanced like Tony, McGee, Kate and Bishop were.

 

As for the Veterans part, liked that they showed the continued recovery of lost but i have never heard of the "Dog Tag" scam. I'm from Australia and maybe that hasn't happened to Families here or if it has it should be at the  forefront in the Media. Cause that is just disgusting , people have already lost they loved ones to then con them into thinking they have a piece of them, so great job NCIS at shining a light on that.

[jennifer6973]

I had a thought

 

Maybe Gibbs wasn't talking about Ziva, but Michelle Lee.  She did sit at that desk for a hot minute when she was part of Gibbs team.

[roseha]

I thought it was possible that Gibbs was also thinking about losing his daughter but didn't want to say that to Bishop.

[immortalfrieza]

 I also liked that they found a way to involve Jimmy Palmer in this one.  I was beginning to wonder if Brian Dietzen had gotten another part time role somewhere.

I honestly wonder why they even have the Palmer character on this show at all the way they've been using him. Palmer rarely ever actually appears in episodes and when he does he doesn't do anything but try to make awkward small talk until somebody shuts him up. Especially after he started wanting to get married he's basically had no actual purpose unless he was in a day in the limelight episode and even then he always ended up sharing most of his screen time with Ducky and not doing much of importance even then. Every once in a great while they will have an episode like this were he can actually contribute, but they are few and far between.

[pcta]

I still haven't warmed to Bishop so I really didn't care about that part of the episode - other than being relieved she will no longer be sitting on the floor. Wish they had found a way to have the family meet the Vietnamese man who had so lovingly cared for the remains of their family member

[Lebanna]

I loved this episode too. One little tiny thing that I really liked was that they gave a reasonable explanation of what Ducky was doing in Vietnam, after his time there was mentioned by his ladyfriend a few episodes ago. Annoying pedants like me were going 'He was in the British military, so he can't have been in 'Nam!' So it was awesome that they had actually thought it through and planned on explaining it later.

That's the kind of little callback stuff I adore about this show.

Edited November 14, 2014 by Lebanna

[GHScorpiosRule]

I'm SO behind. But I also loved, loved, loved this episode.

 

And not ashamed to admit, that by the end, I was crying.

 

BUT, I do have to say that Gibbs was wrong when he said he "lost two people" who sat at what was first, Kate's desk, then Ziva's. Yes, he did lose Kate (the way the scene was written and the inference that "lost" meant no longer living, at least to me), but Ziva? Please. She went off the reservation, so to speak, and decided not to come back. So he didn't lose her in the way I think Gibbs was saying, because she's still amongst the living.

 

Other than that, this episode was perfection.

 

What really had me bawling was Kun telling Gibbs that he had buried CJ next to his parents, because that was how he honored his friend. *sniff*

 

This episode is right up there with the Charles Durning one, for sure.

 

And I always thought of Tony as a dog lover. Haven't seen last night's episode, so I don't know if Rick Blaine returned or not.

[Runningwild]

I hope Rick Blaine returns!

[MyAimIsTrue]

This episode is right up there with the Charles Durning one, for sure.

 

That episode gets me every time.

[Sharpie66]

I showed the Durning ep to my dad (who doesn't watch scripted tv at all, just PBS and documentary stuff), and he was weeping by the end.

 

As for "The Searchers," I loved that they went to Vietnam in the ep. They actually found a set that looked vaguely correct, as well.

[Ohmo]

GHScorpiosRule, exactly how much time DO you spend in my head?  I'm behind in my episodes as well.

 

Agreed about Kate and Ziva.  Kate was killed in the line of duty.  Ziva made a decision to leave.  Vast difference there, IMO.

 

I loved both the change in Gibbs and the request by Bishop to be treated as McGee and Tony were.  I think the way that Bishop is being used is awesome.  Though her, we're getting to seeMcGee and Tony kick ass in the mentoring department, we get to see the process of Gibbs teaching, and we get to see recognition by Bishop that she's OK with toughness in her training.

 

Also loved the whole Vietnam story.  I was very young when Saigon fell.  Due to the politics of the war, it never seemed to be studied like World War II.  I don't know much about it, so it's nice to have a story about this era.  I thought that the soldier's burial next to that man's parents was the greatest sign of respect that he could offer.  While I certainly understand the desire for the family to bury their loved one, I thought the actions of the Vietnamese man were lovely and filled with grace and honor.

 

 

Maybe Gibbs wasn't talking about Ziva, but Michelle Lee.  She did sit at that desk for a hot minute when she was part of Gibbs team.

 

 

ETA: If that was the reference the writers were going for, they needed another line.  Something like.  "I lost two people from that desk.  One sat there for years, and the other not for that long."  Lee did sit at that desk, but I would have needed more context to get there.  When "last two" is said to me in reference to that desk, I think of Kate and Ziva.

Edited November 20, 2014 by Ohmo

[JessDVD]

I loved both the change in Gibbs and the request by Bishop to be treated as McGee and Tony were.  I think the way that Bishop is being used is awesome.  Though her, we're getting to see McGee and Tony kick ass in the mentoring department, we get to see the process of Gibbs teaching, and we get to see recognition by Bishop that she's OK with toughness in her training.

 

 

Totally agree! That has been the best aspect to the current season IMO, that we finally FINALLY (let me shout it a few more times) get to see competent Tony/Tim on a regular basis. I've been waiting for that for about 6 seasons.

[GHScorpiosRule]

GHScorpiosRule, exactly how much time DO you spend in my head?  I'm behind in my episodes as well.

Why I have moved in and taken place/rooted myself right there! Hee!

 

Agreed about Kate and Ziva.  Kate was killed in the line of duty.  Ziva made a decision to leave.  Vast difference there, IMO.

 

I loved both the change in Gibbs and the request by Bishop to be treated as McGee and Tony were.  I think the way that Bishop is being used is awesome.  Though her, we're getting to seeMcGee and Tony kick ass in the mentoring department, we get to see the process of Gibbs teaching, and we get to see recognition by Bishop that she's OK with toughness in her training.

 

Also loved the whole Vietnam story.  I was very young when Saigon fell.  Due to the politics of the war, it never seemed to be studied like World War II.  I don't know much about it, so it's nice to have a story about this era.  I thought that the soldier's burial next to that man's parents was the greatest sign of respect that he could offer.  While I certainly understand the desire for the family to bury their loved one, I thought the actions of the Vietnamese man were lovely and filled with grace and honor.

 

 

 

ETA: If that was the reference the writers were going for, they needed another line.  Something like.  "I lost two people from that desk.  One sat there for years, and the other not for that long."  Lee did sit at that desk, but I would have needed more context to get there.  When "last two" is said to me in reference to that desk, I think of Kate and Ziva.

Totally agree. Lee sat there for like, what? 4 episodes, if that? And totally agree with the rest of your posts above. Like I said, the minute Gibbs was taken to Kyun (sp?) and he said he would speak in English, I was a blubbering mess.

[slothgirl]

Agreed about Kate and Ziva.  Kate was killed in the line of duty.  Ziva made a decision to leave.  Vast difference there, IMO.

 

ETA: If that was the reference the writers were going for, they needed another line.  Something like.  "I lost two people from that desk.  One sat there for years, and the other not for that long."  Lee did sit at that desk, but I would have needed more context to get there.  When "last two" is said to me in reference to that desk, I think of Kate and Ziva.

 

I disagree with the idea that Gibbes can't feel a sense of loss over Ziva.

 

If a relationship ends and the other person moves on, typically there is a grieving period over the loss. People don't have to die for you to feel you lost them.