S12.E12: The Enemy Within

[FormerMod-a1]

The NCIS team searches for a home-grown terrorist after a rescue mission in Syria reveals an American was involved in the capture of a social worker. Meanwhile, McGee and Bishop question DiNozzo’s unusual behavior.

 

 

[NYGirl]

Yay Tony!!!!!  I'm so happy.  I thought they had good chemistry the first time she was on.

 

I knew the hostage was involved the minute they said an American was one of her captors.  Once you've seen enough of these types of shows you could practically write the script yourself..

 

What I didn't know was why ..so I was in the dark too.

[camussie]

I like Tony & Zoe as long as it stays in the background.  The reason I like them?  Because she actually seems to both like him and respect him as a person and a fellow LEO. It is a welcome change of pace.  

[sinkwriter]

A part of me was hoping for a little twist, where Tony wasn't actually dating anyone and he was messing with his team for being so nosy. But I do like the connection they seem to have, so for now I'm good with it.

 

I didn't trust that hostage "victim" from her very first scene. Probably have seen too many NCIS episodes to believe anything at first glance anymore, LOL. But like NYGirl said, I didn't know why, so I was still pretty curious. The moment when they hauled her out, as she's screaming at the poor guy, I felt so bad for him. It was an effective moment that showed her lunacy. Yikes.

Edited January 14, 2015 by sinkwriter

[mtmjr]

I really liked the way they dealt with Diane's death.  The stuff with Fornell was actually pretty moving.  Well, no surprise, I guess, because Joe Spano is a fantastic actor, and I'm a fan since Hill Street Blues.  I actually teared up during the final scene at the elevator.

 

And I totally second the "yeah" for Tony and Zoe.  God knows the poor man deserves a little adult happiness. I hated the way Ziva was written out, though I understand that with the actress's abrupt departure, they were left with limited choices. But I think the way they've handled Tony's reaction to her departure has been quite convincing.  He mourned for a while, went through some serious personal readjustments, and now he's ready to be happy again.  More power to him!

[catray]

I'm happy that Tony and Zoe are together and enjoying what appears to be a healthy, adult relationship. I like them together.

Nice to see Fornell again-- and he got some good scenes with Gibbs.

Totally called the girl trying to assassinate the iman; but then the title of the episode gives it away. I kind of felt this episode was a let down after last week, but that's probably not surprising. I did like Gibbs, Fornell, and Vance having some morose bonding over their shared circumstances.

[twoods]

Gibbs is losing his touch- that hostage was totally fishy and definitely teared up when she found out her friend had died. And nobody got the connection as to why the guys were there when the girl mentioned she wanted to meet the imam? I hate it when the writers dumb down everyone to move the plot along.

Good for Tony. I like Zoe, but hope their relationship is secondary instead of eating up screen time now that everyone knows about them. I hope this doesn't mean that there is a future storyline where she dies since almost everyone else's significant female loved one is either dead or paralyzed.

Speaking of which, where is Ducky's girlfriend? Or did they decide not to be together?

Edited January 14, 2015 by twoods

[Mars477]

Really pedantic, but when Gibbs, Tony and Bishop were confronting that ex-Army guy, they had him sandwiched and were pointing guns at him.  This is a serious gun safety no-no, since both groups of agents could shoot past (or through) the target and hit the other.

[Rickster]

Gibbs is losing his touch- that hostage was totally fishy and definitely teared up when she found out her friend had died. And nobody got the connection as to why the guys were there when the girl mentioned she wanted to meet the imam? I hate it when the writers dumb down everyone to move the plot along.

Yeah, it was so obvious, that I was expecting at a minimum they had her under surveillance at the imam meeting and were going to grab her, not that it was pure luck they caught her in time. Failing that, maybe a scene of introspection afterwards where they discuss how they could have missed it. But no.

[MyAimIsTrue]

I didn't like seeing Joe Spano with a shaved head as it made him look sickly.  Does anyone know the real reason behind it other than him saying on the show that it was done because he was working deep undercover?

 

Sarah was super creepy.  Well played by the actress.

[roomtorome]

That was embarrassingly obvious from the second she was shown on screen, I knew - not sure why but I knew before they even mentioned one was an American - bad writing there and the team did end up looking like fools for not seeing what was right in front of them.  

 

I do like the show so much better without Ziva  - I enjoy the dynamics now where one team member is not devouring the entire show (not the actresses' fault, just that they (show runners) just put Ziva far too much front and center all the time - for me, anyway.  Seems more nicely balanced now.

[Autumn]

I am OK with Tony and Zoe and I am OK that she isn't playing that big of a role and is kind of in the background.  It's been over a year since Ziva left and she is still alive out there.

 

The plot was kind of silly but kind of frightingly similar to current world events, and yes, they should have figured out the hostage was the one in on it long before.  At least Vance got to do something other than be a target of an assasin.

 

I thought the Ellie and Fornell scene was interesting.  I wouldn't have put those two together in a scene but I liked that she was able to give thoughtful and helpful advice about Emily in a way that would have come across as too touchy feely if Abby had been the one to do it.

 

The scene with Fornell telling Tim that he knew he and Diane were close and Tim saying, "not really" was kind of awkward but that is kind of like real life.  People do say really awkward things when talking to someone after a death.  I thought it was really sad that Fornell was still really in love with Diane and thought they had another chance with each other.

[fireice13]

I wish they had put in subtitles for when characters were speaking Arabic. I want to know what everyone was saying, especially what Sarah was yelling at the end. I knew she was in on it from the beginning and who her target was as well. 

 

I'm also really enjoying the show without Ziva. I felt that it just got to be so tedious with Mossad and terrorists and so on. They still have terrorists, but it's not all about Ziva now and it's all the characters dealing with what's happening. I thought that Tim and Ziva could be cruel to Tony at times and Tony could be very childish and that's changed too. Tim and Tony seem to have a good friendship and Tony is being shown as a competent agent.

[sinkwriter]

Even though it was a little silly, I loved when Abby saw Fornell for the first time since his absence and hugged him, and he's all, "Um... we're in the middle of an interview." LOL.

[stonehaven]

Yeah the whole hostage girl was a contrivance but it gave Vance a chance to save the day...I thoughtthat was cool..YAYfor Tony...and I love the chemistry the entire team has.

I love Fornell..and hope we get him soon but Diane's death puts the hilarity on hold and that's what Iwill miss...

[St. Claire]

I think Fornell still manages to have some wonderfully subtle humor. When asked about how things were with Emily, and he mentioned that Diane's mother had come into town to help out. "You remember Mo,  don't you Gibbs?" followed by the cringing was a like a vintage Tobias/Jethro exchange.

[catray]

I definitely think the Gibbs/Fornell backstory retcon was an inspired change by TPTB-- even if it is a bit ridiculous that they have the same ex-wife, it definitely allows for some great moments between those two characters.

[HurricaneVal]

Oh yeah.  That shared history the two characters had was great.  Except, now that Diane is dead, it will devolve into mother-in-law humor.  Which is way too Everybody Loves Raymond for me.  I hope they do more with the Emily/Gibbs dynamic.  I think that has lots of potential.

[MortysCleaningLady]

I think Fornell still manages to have some wonderfully subtle humor. When asked about how things were with Emily, and he mentioned that Diane's mother had come into town to help out. "You remember Mo,  don't you Gibbs?" followed by the cringing was a like a vintage Tobias/Jethro exchange.

It was fine until they dissed goulash.  I make a goulash that people actually request.  It's not just a flavor of hamburger helper!

 

I also totally suspected the hostage since the beginning.

[itsmeyousee]

I didn't like seeing Joe Spano with a shaved head as it made him look sickly.  Does anyone know the real reason behind it other than him saying on the show that it was done because he was working deep undercover?

 

Sarah was super creepy.  Well played by the actress.

I read that Joe Spano was starring in a play about a man who has cancer and that's why he has that look.

 

 

As for the ep it was good especially Fornell and Gibbs but was  heavy handed in some parts. The Vance and Fornell have "things in common"  too much. The "handcuffs" with Tony and Zoe too much and McGee supposedly spilling the coffee and not cleaning it up and Tony doesn't notice let alone is overly calm about it too much.

 

I did like Tony and McGee with the Dog chick , the bit in the Lab when McGee and Bishop came in and Gibbs being grumpy cause he knows about Tony just not why Tony hasn't said anything.

 

Love all of Fornell, really liked him and Bishop. It seemed odd at first until i remembered Bishop did help save Emily and her being younger i think appeals to Fornell someone responsible but still young enough that Emily would feel comfortable talking to Bishop. I loved the ease yet unease between Gibbs and Fornell, so much to say but neither of them will, It all said so much. Loved Tony hugging Fornell and Abby as well, just all really well done.

 

As for the case everyone could see something was up with the chick but no one could quite put their finger on what , so they were all expecting it to be the normal trauma. I liked the Mum of the guy, she knew something was wrong with him and she wanted her son back not this new guy he had become.

[pally]

I definitely think the Gibbs/Fornell backstory retcon was an inspired change by TPTB-- even if it is a bit ridiculous that they have the same ex-wife, it definitely allows for some great moments between those two characters.

It was a total retcon though to be fair it was done very early on.  If you remember Episode 1 Yankee White Gibbs and Fornell appeared not to know each other but Episode 3 Seadog they were suddenly old friends.  Joe Spano did his usual kick ass job in Yankee White and they knew they had gold in making him an on-going character.

[slothgirl]

It was a total retcon though to be fair it was done very early on.  If you remember Episode 1 Yankee White Gibbs and Fornell appeared not to know each other but Episode 3 Seadog they were suddenly old friends.  Joe Spano did his usual kick ass job in Yankee White and they knew they had gold in making him an on-going character.

Thanks for clearing that up for me. I always wondered about it since I've never seen the early seasons in episode order. I remembered that Fornell comes onboard "not-AF1" at the point when they are arguing over the body, and he doesn't know Gibbes.

 

But later they have the same x-wife and I wondered if Fornell supposedly didn't know during episode 1 that the guy on the plane was the "Jethro" that Diane probably talked about. Or if he married Diane AFTER that (but the daughter seemed too old even the first time we saw her.. granted, I'm not sure what season that was)

 

It's always bugged me a little, and I'm glad to learn that they simply retconned it and it shouldn't make sense to me within the continuity of the show.

[Julia]

It was fine until they dissed goulash.  I make a goulash that people actually request.  It's not just a flavor of hamburger helper!

Well, yeah, but then, goulash? Rich. Lamb? Rich. I think lamb goulash would make my gall bladder try to escape my body.

[Sharpie66]

I laughed when Tony and Zoe were busted at the end, and when Tony asked if everyone knew, they all said (loudly), "YES!!", including Gibbs.

[Sarnia]

I am from France and this episode about home-grown djihad terrorists hit a little bit too close to home, so it was rather uncomfortable to watch.

But it was also uncomfortable because there was a lot of things I just couldn't believe. I thought the hostage was in on it as soon as I saw her and I'm surprised it didn't occur to any of the agents (aren't they trained to think of things like this?). I also couldn't believe that Tony's behavior would change as radically just because he is in love. I'm glad for him he seems to be in a happy adult relationship, but this Tony was boring and I hope they bring back snarky Tony. And I also couldn't believe that an agent such as Fornell would still do undercover work at this point in this career. I'm really glad to hear though that the look is due to another role Joe Spano is in, and not to the actor being actually sick (because he looked really sick).

[Packerbrewerbadger]

Besides "Gut Gibbs" not picking up on Sarah Goods reaction to learning of her terroist friend's death, why or why didn't Abby just tell Gibbs on the phone that Sarah was working with the terrorists instead of making him come all the way down to her lab and make him watch the video ...why waste all that time?

[sinkwriter]

Great point, Packerbrewerbadger! I wondered the same thing. It was like, this is a terrorist they need to go catch! Not some cute little piece of evidence she can show off that she found cleverly and wants to take the time to demonstrate to Gibbs in exchange for a Caf-Pow. Time is of the essence!

[Ohmo]

It was a total retcon though to be fair it was done very early on.

 

This is one retcon that I totally adore.  I handwave it all day long because it gave us the awesome Fornell courtesy of Joe Spano.  No, Fornell it should definitely NOT have been you!  I would gladly throw Diane under the bus (or drive over her with the bus) in order to save Fornell!  While it was nice to see Vance and Fornell bonding, I'm having a hard time feeling sorrow about Diane.  It has been conveyed that Gibbs deeply loved Shannon.  Shannon also seemed to be a good person (from what we know about her.)  Jackie Vance was awesome.  We saw that she and Leon had a strong marriage.  Diane was a bitchy harpy of a shrew 90% of the time.  The "you're my Shannon" moment wasn't enough to soften her in my opinion, and I didn't see her with Emily enough to convince me that Diane wasn't a selfish person.  So, yeah, if the choice is Diane or Fornell, Diane's roadkill in my book.

 

I am from France and this episode about home-grown djihad terrorists hit a little bit too close to home, so it was rather uncomfortable to watch.

 

With the situation in Russia and now the terrorism in France, it does strike me as creepy how "on point" with real life that NCIS has been this season.

[roseha]

This is one retcon that I totally adore.  I handwave it all day long because it gave us the awesome Fornell courtesy of Joe Spano.  No, Fornell it should definitely NOT have been you!

 

 

Oh, please I don't ever want to see the show lose Fornell, I don't think I could watch again.  But also, this episode struck me as more than a little weird.  Never mind the case, it didn't make sense, it was clear that Gibbs suspected the woman even as he gave her his card, so why didn't he follow up?  Is he supposed to be distracted by Diane's death?  If so I didn't see it.  Joe Spano was as always amazing as Fornell, but really why is he feeling the guilt and apparently not Gibbs?  I know it's a natural reaction on Fornell's part but if they want to be "realistic" I think maybe there should be a scene with Emily blaming Gibbs for not being able to save her mother, even if she knows he tried to.  Or maybe Gibbs expecting that she will feel that way.  I don't know if they will do it, but given what they've already written I could see it on an emotional level.

 

I also didn't like the bit with Tony and Zoe and the handcuffs, what was that about?  However I doubt Tony's snark will be on hold long.  I did like Vance getting to save the day though I don't think he needed to keep saying "Excuse me" as he pushed through the crowd!

Edited January 18, 2015 by roseha

[Betweenthisandthat]

I liked that Fornell and Gibbs don't have any residual tension about Diane's murder.  I love Fornell and would like to see him and Emily some point in the season.  

 

With the situation in Russia and now the terrorism in France, it does strike me as creepy how "on point" with real life that NCIS has been this season.

 

It's weird how that keeps happening on the show.  

 

I liked Tony and Ziva for a long time, but it's so great to see Tony with someone else who likes him.  I liked Zoe in her first episode, and I still do.  I love seeing Tony content and acting like a fairly well-adjusted adult.  I hope there's a way for that to continue.  

[Julia]

I'm not a huge fan of Bishop, but I'm kind of hoping they will put her in some kind of relationship with Emily. I can see her awkward earnestness working well for that, and it would mean more Emily and Fornell.

[Ohmo]

I'm not a huge fan of Bishop, but I'm kind of hoping they will put her in some kind of relationship with Emily. I can see her awkward earnestness working well for that, and it would mean more Emily and Fornell.

 

I like Bishop, and I think Emily having Bishop as a female figure in her life would be great.

 

Zoe and Tony are fine, as long as they stay in the background.  I'm really liking how relationships are happening on NCIS these days.  With the exception of Vance and Gibbs, all of the major characters have one, and they all seem to fit with each character.  The thing with Zoe and Tony going out for drinks with the others is what people do IRL.  It's completely plausible to me.

 

Oh, please I don't ever want to see the show lose Fornell,

 

Yes, Fornell should be placed on the Don't EVER KillThis Character List.  I would be inconsolable.

[itsmeyousee]

 

 

Zoe and Tony are fine, as long as they stay in the background.  I'm really liking how relationships are happening on NCIS these days.  With the exception of Vance and Gibbs, all of the major characters have one, and they all seem to fit with each character.  The thing with Zoe and Tony going out for drinks with the others is what people do IRL.  It's completely plausible to me.

 

 

 

I think they really really really need to keep the "romances" out of the office literally. One of the best things about Tony and Jeanne was seeing them out of NCIS and one of the worse things and McGee and Delilah was never seeing them out of the office. I liked the way we meet Jake but i don't want to meet him again cause we need a lawyer from the NSA, just him and Bishop out at dinner when she gets called in is fine by me.

[statsgirl]

I thought the main story was interesting enough but rather superficial as to why they became terrorists, but this is NCIS and not PBS.

 

When McGee and Bishop were hiding behind partitions like six year olds trying to figure out why Tony was different, I remembered why I had stopped watching this show.  Doesn't anyone ever grow up on this show?  Not even Tony, who tried to keep his relationship with Zoe hidden.

 

I liked Bishop with Fornell in their scenes. He's always been Gibbs' person which made it all boring after a few seasons.  I'm still sad they killed off Diane because I thought she was the better recurring character just because she was so different than all the men.

[roseha]

I hope the powers that be didn't kill off Diane just to build up Bishop's role relative to the Fornells.  I would find that annoying in the extreme if that was the intent.

 

ETA:  I really love Fornell and would like more Emily too, I just don't like them going where they did to get where they are now.

Edited January 21, 2015 by roseha

[Betweenthisandthat]

I think they really really really need to keep the "romances" out of the office literally. One of the best things about Tony and Jeanne was seeing them out of NCIS and one of the worse things and McGee and Delilah was never seeing them out of the office.

 

That's an interesting point.  I thought we saw too much of Tony and Jeanne's private life, but that was part of his mission so it was work-related in the end.  I did like the idea of seeing glimpses of them with Tony physically out of the office.  Even when we met Jake, it was initially not work related. I liked that.  It makes it feel like these characters have a life that doesn't revolve around what's going on at work.