S14.E08: Enemy Combatant

[betsyboo]

After NCIS Agent Bishop is sent to Gitmo to gather evidence for a Navy chaplain murder case, she questions her previous work at the NSA. Also, Bishop’s brothers, John and Robert (Jesse Bradford and Jesse Johnson), visit for the Thanksgiving holiday and pester her co-workers to find out who she is dating.

[betsyboo]

I'm wondering if no one has posted before now because this was a bit of a dud to me. I don't mind Ellie, but sometimes her eager earnestness gets to me. However, I have three older brothers, so I admit to laughing at the trope of it all.

I appreciated that they all recognized that Torres could have killed them in a hot second. Ha!

I absolutely did not see her new boyfriend as Qasim. But should have - they clearly had a moment last season.

Duane Henry is a dreamboat.

[GHScorpiosRule]

14 minutes ago, forumfish said:

I don't remember Qasim, but he seemed likeable in last night's episode. It was a fluff episode for the most part, but I did laugh at Bishop's brothers, and commented that I'd watch a sitcom with those three. But no Bishop. Maybe add them to the Gibbs-and-Fornell-Odd Couple reboot. They could play the wacky neighbors.

Neither do I.

Actor who played John was really cute and looked awfully familiar. What I would've given to have older brothers!

I loved Abby's program that had all those ?❤️?❤️?around Gibbs!??

[secnarf]

I found the brothers really annoying, so that took away from the episode a bit, and I could have done without the childish drama surrounding Bishop's love life. I only vaguely remembered Qasim but I liked him well enough.

What does Ellie want a new apartment for?! Hers is nice.

[twoods]

Yay Qasim! I thought they had a moment last year so glad that the writers remembered it. I was hoping it was Reeves but him overly flirting with Bishop was definitely a red herring. I hope we see of both of those guys more- love the eye candy.

I liked last night's episode- with Torres this season I feel as if there is definitely a lot more humor this season which I am liking a lot. Also, one of Bishop's brothers was the cutie in Bring It On and it doesn't look as if he's aged at all (he was a psychopath on Code Black so glad to see him back to normal).

[pally]

Typical Thanksgiving type episode.  I think they are still struggling to incorporate all the new folks.  I would be fine with them dumping Quinn.  She just seems like the odd man out and doesn't seem to have much chemistry with anyone.  

[laredhead]

Hardly any comments 24 hours after the episode, wow.  Maybe everyone is busy cooking turkey.  I don't remember Qasim.  Can anyone jog my memory?  Ducky is being seen less and less, so I wonder if David McCallum is beginning to feel his age and has asked to be phased out of the series.  My favorite Thanksgiving episode was a few years back with Ducky wanted everyone to gather at his house for dinner and what it took to make that happen was a good show.  This episode just seemed sort of thrown together as far as the team dynamics, but with so many new characters it is hard to get to know them.  I agree they could get rid of the new female character.    

[betsyboo]

3 hours ago, forumfish said:

 Maybe add them to the Gibbs-and-Fornell-Odd Couple reboot. They could play the wacky neighbors.

seconded!

[betsyboo]

3 hours ago, twoods said:

Yay Qasim! I thought they had a moment last year so glad that the writers remembered it. I was hoping it was Reeves but him overly flirting with Bishop was definitely a red herring. I hope we see of both of those guys more- love the eye candy.

I liked last night's episode- with Torres this season I feel as if there is definitely a lot more humor this season which I am liking a lot. Also, one of Bishop's brothers was the cutie in Bring It On and it doesn't look as if he's aged at all (he was a psychopath on Code Black so glad to see him back to normal).

Jesse Bradford - Swimtern from The West Wing. Because he was in Swimfan. I agree that Torres is funny.

As for Qasim, he was in the episode where Bishop and Gibbs had to go to Afghanistan and Super Ellie snuck into the Afghan compound and saved the Marine being held hostage.  Interpreter.  The Marines snuck him into the US because he had helped them and the Taliban had targeted him for death for helping the Americans. (I think. ) He thought he was going to be sent back to Afgh, but Gibbs pulled strings. 

[pcta]

One of the best things about NCIS in the past (preBishop) were their holiday themed episodes.  This one was the worst.  A mish mash of too many characters that I don't care about and way too little screen time for the characters I do care about. NO HEART in this episode.  Don't know what the show runners are thinking.  Felt more like the awful NCIS Los Angeles than the mother ship. NCIS has lost its heart.  They should have let it had a decent death at the end of last year and moved the actors who were interested to other parts of the franchise.  Really sad.

[Runningwild]

The show is becoming too preachy for my tastes. Last week it was immigration (of course the deportee was the most sympathetic, innocent victim ever). This week it's Gitmo (where the Muslim is the most innocent victim ever). Bishop didn't think Gitmo would be like that? Was she expecting Club Med?

Edited November 24, 2016 by Runningwild

[MissLucas]

I also felt a bit ideologically bludgeoned by this episode. Also - how often have we seen NCIS agents threaten terror suspects with Gitmo? And did we ever find out who was ultimately responsible for the altered transcripts? Looked to me like the show was once more using its favorite go-to villain when it decides to be a bit edgy: private defense contractors. They make great scape-goats it seems though in this case we did not even get to see the real culprit being served justice.

And the idea that Bishop and Gibbs were dating was ridiculous (sorry Abby but your algorithm sucks). The three brothers were funny but having the three Stooges in an episode dealing with an innocent who was jailed for 11 years without trial was jarring. This was weak for Thanksgiving offering.

[snuffles]

Since when does Abby go to crime scenes? At 2am no less, lol.

Love Clayton Reeves, but he's being written as such a puss now. He's a MI6, but can't lie to Ellie's brothers? The translator turned meditation guy got the upper hand on him?

[Packerbrewerbadger]

I thought the 3 brothers storyline was annoying and my husband was ready to turn off the TV!

Are these the same brothers that were in the episode with Lindsey Wagner as Bishop's mom?  I seem to remember them as big and burly .......

[GHScorpiosRule]

2 minutes ago, Packerbrewerbadger said:

I thought the 3 brothers storyline was annoying and my husband was ready to turn off the TV!

Are these the same brothers that were in the episode with Lindsey Wagner as Bishop's mom?  I seem to remember them as big and burly .......

Only George (bearded one) was in last year's episode. I'm still waiting to see Lee Majors Col. Steve Austin to show up as Bishop's dad!?

What?

[Raachel2008]

On 23/11/2016 at 8:06 PM, pally said:

I would be fine with them dumping Quinn.  She just seems like the odd man out and doesn't seem to have much chemistry with anyone.  

I've always loved Jennifer Esposito, but she is not working here. She just doesn't gel with the others, and the sooner they let her go, the better. Quinn is bland and adds nothing to the show. Suprisingly, Wilmer Valderrama works really well as Torres, which I wouldn't have expected in a million years, because, well, he is Wilmer Valderrama. He is not a great actor, but, he can do subtle humor and is more than decent at the more serious stuff.

All this time and I every time I look at Bishop I still cannot buy her as a NCIS agent. Girl just screams college freshman with a gun doing a stunt at a CW show. However, I appreciate that this episode asided, it is not all about her like it was a loooot of times with Ziva - and don't even get me started how the Ziva/Tony will-they-won't-they thing hijacked the show.

What is missing this season is a good long arc with some juicy drama where Gibbs is the center, as it should be.

Just my 2 cents.

[Clanstarling]

On 11/24/2016 at 1:56 AM, MissLucas said:

The three brothers were funny but having the three Stooges in an episode dealing with an innocent who was jailed for 11 years without trial was jarring.

I didn't even know that's part of what bothered me until you wrote it. It's one thing to have light comic relief, it's another to have it cut to the Three Stooges. Plus, their disrespect in the work place bugged me to no end - reading files on her desk, listening in on the briefing? Nu uh. I didn't have big brothers, and if that's what it's like, I didn't miss anything.

10 hours ago, Raachel2008 said:

I've always loved Jennifer Esposito, but she is not working here. She just doesn't gel with the others, and the sooner they let her go, the better. Quinn is bland and adds nothing to the show.

Agreed. She's a missed opportunity. I think maybe they don't know how to incorporate, or write for, a mature, experienced woman - at least on week to week  basis.

I immediately thought man-bun was the bad guy, on the basis of nothing but the bun. I was wrong (though not entirely) so, well done, show.

[marina to]

I came here after the episode aired but there was no thread and I couldn't be bothered to make one so thank you, @betsyboo.

I enjoyed it, except for the subplot of her brothers being asses at her workplace. I have three brothers and if they ever tried any of that shit they'd be kicked out of my apartment so fast they'd see stars. Luckily, only one is that ridiculously overbearing.

I liked that Bishop was seeing the flip side of her jobs at NSA. I liked that the show was willing to acknowledge that there are some people at Gitmo who were railroaded to be there. I was so happy to see Qasim again. Didn't guess him for the boyfriend but was extremely happy he was. I loved their chemistry last year. And it's nice in these times to see a mixed-race couple like them being accepted. Granted, the brothers were softened up after the Gibbs scare but still, that was heart-warming for me. 

I also didn't miss the mention of the brothers egging Jake's car, show. Still unhappy you took away Jamie Bamber with glasses from our screens. I still don't buy him cheating on her. Nice try though.

On 11/24/2016 at 5:06 AM, snuffles said:

Since when does Abby go to crime scenes? At 2am no less, lol.

Love Clayton Reeves, but he's being written as such a puss now. He's a MI6, but can't lie to Ellie's brothers? The translator turned meditation guy got the upper hand on him?

Second this. #letReevesbebadassagain

[BookWitch]

On 11/24/2016 at 9:28 PM, Raachel2008 said:

On 11/23/2016 at 3:06 PM, pally said:

I would be fine with them dumping Quinn.  She just seems like the odd man out and doesn't seem to have much chemistry with anyone.  

I've always loved Jennifer Esposito, but she is not working here. She just doesn't gel with the others, and the sooner they let her go, the better. Quinn is bland and adds nothing to the show.

Me too. I liked her character on Blue Bloods. She seemed competent and good at her job. She seems to be flailing here. They also need to stop dressing her like a homeless person. 

[Sake614]

16 minutes ago, BookWitch said:

They also need to stop dressing her like a homeless person. 

THIS. So much this! WTF is that? 

[MortysCleaningLady]

Late to the party, because I despised the episode.

First of all, it focused on the weakest actress in the group.   The less Ellie, the better.   If they got rid of her and focused on Jennifer Esposito a bit more, we could have a good group of intelligent agents.   Instead, we have Ellie, who as a wiser poster mentioned, thought Gitmo would be Club Med.  As a member of law enforcement, her job is to work a case, put together the logical case, and let the judicial process occur.   If Ellie can't trust the process, she needs to find a job elsewhere. 

Secondly, the plot was extreme.   I'm sure there are more than one innocent boy scout - reverends in prison, but that was overkill.  Good gracious.  I think it was to allow the introduction of Qasid as her boyfriend as 'shocking'. 

Third, while the brothers were entertaining comic relief, this isn't Ellie's first boyfriend.  She's a divorced woman working in law enforcement thousands of miles from her family.  She should periodically have to travel to ports of foreign call and undesirable locales for her job.  They can't protect her at this point.   They couldn't prevent Jake, so why start now.

Finally, Abby is becoming a ridiculous caricature of her old self.  Ellie and Gibbs?  Heck, no.   Gibbs likes redheads.  (Why, yes, I do look just like my avatar.) 

 

Did Tony leaving really kill the show?   I have to wonder.....

[pally]

13 hours ago, MortysCleaningLady said:

Did Tony leaving really kill the show?   I have to wonder.....

Micheal Weatherly leaving changed the dynamic for sure but I think the bigger problem is the direction they went with the new characters.  To many too fast.  We didn't get to get used to McGee as SFA or see the mental adjustments Gibbs had to make with DiNozzo gone.  Not only are we adjusting to the changes in the existing roles but now we have all these new people and the parts just aren't fitting yet.  Then we compound the problem with Gary Glassberg's untimely sudden death.  He was the man with the whole picture..he knew where he wanted this all to go.  I'm hoping in the 2nd half of the season some of this will start to come together.

[betsyboo]

FREE FORNELL

[Sake614]

2 hours ago, betsyboo said:

FREE FORNELL

 

yeah what happened with that? Weren't we supposed to see MORE of him, not less? Or did that die with Glassberg? :(

[JunebugWA]

On 11/23/2016 at 1:44 PM, secnarf said:

What does Ellie want a new apartment for?! Hers is nice.

I think because Tony's apartment is at DuPont Circle - very desirable and convenience. 

[GHScorpiosRule]

Dupont Circle ain't all that anymore, so I just roll my eyes whenever they wax poetic about the area.

[Notwisconsin]

The three brothers were too cartoonish. I miss the ex husband.