S08.E16: Old Tricks

[MostlyC]

While investigating the kidnapping of a retirement home resident, the NCIS team discovers a pair of con artists who go from home to home scamming the elderly out of their money.

[marina to]

So we actually don't see Granger in this episode (unless I missed something). Nice way to exit though.

You can keep coming back though Nate. The more of you, the better. Love that Nell admitted that she wasn't doing well. She's right. They all need help.

[anna0852]

Loved Kensi accusing Nate of being CIA. Nice nod to those of us who thought he was the mole. And his observation that *none* of them should be at work was surprisingly spot on.

Also, while the fact that they *need* counseling isn't great, I'm delighted story-wise that Eric and Nell are both revealed to working with Nate. It's very believable that both of them would have trouble coming to terms with leaving Ops and starting to rack up body counts, along with being in physical danger.

Edited March 6, 2017 by anna0852

[betsyboo]

I loved the Granger ending. Some at TVLine had a problem with it, as if the show is pretending that MF isn't really gone. I didn't see it that way at all. I thought it was lovely to let Granger go out on his own terms. And I hope MF got to give some input into how he thought the storyline should go. 

Poor Eric and the seemed-like-an-eternity gutpunch of "I'm seeing Nate, too." <beat> "AS MY PSYCHOLOGIST."  

"Do YOU want to talk about Joelle?" "No." "Good. I don't want to talk about that bitch." hahahahahahahahah

I love Marsha Thomason. Bring her back instead of Talia, please. She would be a good foil for Callen. I could ship them in a hot minute. 

God bless Debra Jo Rupp and Martin Mull, who are just as delightful as ever. 

I heart Nate.

[betsyboo]

TVLine:

NCIS: Los Angeles Pays Tribute to the Late Miguel Ferrer, Writes Out Granger

[pally]

It must be terribly difficult to write a storyline for a character that you not only know is going to die at the end but with the actor, himself dying as well.  It would have been very easy and probably trite to have some big deathbed scene.  I am glad they wrote it like they did,  We all know he is going to die and I presume at some point Hetty will announce his death.  So good job to the writers and RIP Miguel

[frogprof]

Does anyone know who played Captain Westbrook in the veterans' retirement home? He wasn't credited in IMDB or on the show or anywhere that I can currently find. Wondering if it was Robert Conrad. (Capt. W was the one who took off in the wheelchair.)

[Bobbin]

2 hours ago, betsyboo said:

I thought it was lovely to let Granger go out on his own terms.

Very believable. Owen Granger wouldn't have it any other way. Many people hate good-byes of any kind.

I was afraid that Eric and Nell weren't going to hug each other, dancing around as they always do the deep affection they have for each other, relieved when they finally did.

I'm glad that Nate continues to be part of the team and that the agents are open about seeking his services. Many need to see the acceptance and value of getting professional help with life's curve balls.

Asking Nate if he's a CIA agent?? Why not? It seems like everyone else is!

Navy Yard seems top-heavy with overseers. Without Granger, I wonder if Vance will go to LA. He and the kids need a change.

[MissLucas]

Very good episode - I loved the con artists (Debra Jo Rupp is quite busy, she was just recently in Elementary). And the show definitely took a page out of the mothership's playbook by bringing in some interesting veteran characters. The meerkats had a really good scene together acknowledging the emotional toll of their jobs. And I miss Marsha Thomason on my screen so I enjoyed her part. Callen and Dad were pretty much removed from the main plot but I did not mind. It was high-time we returned to that dangling plot-line an Callen trying to emotionally connect to someone just after the whole Joelle debacle sounds like a good idea - probably healthier than attacking diner tables with a power tool.

The exit for Granger was perfect. And thanks betsyboo for the link. I had had no idea that the cover was by Ferrer himself.

[HurricaneVal]

That was a fantastic episode, really well done all around.  Any episode with Nate is fantastic, though it was missing a Nate/Hetty scene--those are the best.  I still crack up at the scene when the two of them went undercover at that funeral home!  

 

I admit I teared up at the end.  The look on Linda Hunt's face when she read the note....

 

But even better was the "I don't want to talk about that bitch" line.

[mtmjr]

I found this episode a little odd -- it seemed really disjointed, like a lot of little sub-plots that didn't really hang together.  That said, I really enjoyed the individual scenes and threads, so I give it a thumbs up :)

I loved all the scenes with Callen and his Dad, especially the reveal of the daughter's low-life baby daddy in the trunk, and the subsequent discovery that he was a CI.  Funny but with a real edge.  Callen's exchanges with his Dad were well-written and well-played, and the final scene with Alex was suitably hesitant, hopeful and restrained (although the little kid is a terrible actor.)

Kensi's first scene with Nate was great, and I loved the shout-out to those of us who had convinced ourselves that Nate was the mole (I"m really glad I was wrong :)  All the Kensi and Deeks stuff was fun and easy, and showed them getting their groove back.

I liked Sam and Marsha Thomason's character a lot, but I was a HUGE White Collar fan -- where she played a tough, snarky federal agent for five seasons -- so I found that a little disorienting.  It kind of played in my mind as an unacknowledged crossover.

Finally, the send off for Granger was terrific.  I got misty.  I love the idea of the character heading out to use his last months wrapping up loose ends.  I'd like to imagine him killing a few bad guys, springing a few friends from jail, and most importantly, fulfilling his promise to his daughter to help her locate her mother in North Korea (and forging a relationship with her as well).  I'd love it if we could here some rumours of his exploits from time to time.  I'm interested to hear what Hetty will tell the team about his whereabouts.

Even though there was much to like in this episode, I'm still hankering for a standard ep where the team all hangs out in the bullpen and the boatshed together and works a case together.  We literally haven't had that all season, and I miss it.

[greenbean]

I also loved the goodbye to Granger. It felt very fitting and was poignant without being overly done.

Nell and Eric were sweet together. I too am glad they had that conversation, it felt very real. There are quite a few nice nuances to their romance that elevates the relationship, which is good. And after everything that's happened, I'm glad the writing followed through and addressed the emotional state of the team.

I don't care about Callen's family, sorry but that whole storyline is boring to me. None of the other characters are interesting. I'm not fond of his father, and don't see where they can take the half-sister thing. 

Marsha Thomason was fun to see, she and Sam worked well together. It's great to have Nate back, the timing is right given how tense everything has been. And further to my comment about Callen's emotional issues, Nate could have an important role in such a storyline.

And I guess I'm alone in thinking Hetty's comment about Joelle was dumb. I just don't get the hostility towards her. If Joelle is a bitch, then what does that make Hetty given her flagrant duplicity over the years. She has betrayed Callen far more deeply than Joelle ever did imo.

[MostlyC]

My home was super dusty last night.  I think I'm still sniffly today.  Knock Knock Knockin' on Heaven's Door....

[Jaybird]

1 hour ago, greenbean said:

 

And I guess I'm alone in thinking Hetty's comment about Joelle was dumb. I just don't get the hostility towards her. If Joelle is a bitch, then what does that make Hetty given her flagrant duplicity over the years. She has betrayed Callen far more deeply than Joelle ever did imo.

You are not alone in any of the opinions you expressed, most especially that last one about Hetty.

[MissLucas]

1 hour ago, greenbean said:

And I guess I'm alone in thinking Hetty's comment about Joelle was dumb. I just don't get the hostility towards her. If Joelle is a bitch, then what does that make Hetty given her flagrant duplicity over the years. She has betrayed Callen far more deeply than Joelle ever did imo.

No, you're not - that was the one thing I didn't like about this episode. I don't mind Callen with all his trust issues taking this rather badly. But from a more objective point of view Joelle just performed an undercover assignment. I know that there was plenty wrong with that particular plot starting with the fact that a CIA operative was working on US soil but IIRC Joelle never knew that her handlers/COs had gone rogue. Hetty who's always portrayed as Mini-Machiavelli should have been able to see this.

I also agree with your opinion on Hetty. But even if you think Hetty's the most awesome boss ever her stoking Callen's anger like this makes no sense. Better send him to talk to Nate. I guess the 'bitch'-line was the writers' attempt to show Hetty's motherly side but it felt all wrong to me.

[callie lee 29]

11 minutes ago, Jaybird said:

You are not alone in any of the opinions you expressed, most especially that last one about Hetty.

Yep. That line felt really out of place and very hypocritical.

[Jillibean]

I think that is the best possible farewell they could have given Granger. Hetty acknowledged last week that he was ill, and it fits the character that he would slip out and take off on his own terms with the time he has left. To me, it was much more respectful than attempting to end the character's life offscreen. I cried. I'll admit it. Miguel did tremendous work on this show. I'm guessing they filmed that last scene with Linda Hunt at a later time and dropped it into this one, where it lined up pretty nicely. Beautiful work from her on that scene.

In other news, I'm glad Eric and Nell had a chance to discuss their emotional stakes in what they do, but I would still love more clarification on that relationship. 

Edited March 7, 2017 by Jillibean

[123BP]

7 hours ago, greenbean said:

And I guess I'm alone in thinking Hetty's comment about Joelle was dumb. I just don't get the hostility towards her. If Joelle is a bitch, then what does that make Hetty given her flagrant duplicity over the years. She has betrayed Callen far more deeply than Joelle ever did imo.

I can absolutely understand Hetty's hatred for Joelle. After all, Callen is probably closer to Hetty than any other person, and for him to have been deceived like that. Hetty and her agents have lied to people before in their jobs, but they probably haven't intentionally deceived anyone who wasn't involved in criminal activity.

[WickedStepMom]

20 hours ago, frogprof said:

Does anyone know who played Captain Westbrook in the veterans' retirement home? He wasn't credited in IMDB or on the show or anywhere that I can currently find. Wondering if it was Robert Conrad. (Capt. W was the one who took off in the wheelchair.)

I'd like to know as well who played Captain Westbrook on the NCIS: Los Angeles episode OLD TRICKS as I didn't see it in the opening or closing credits and can't find anything Online.  I thought he looked like William Smith.

[123BP]

5 hours ago, MissLucas said:

But from a more objective point of view Joelle just performed an undercover assignment. I know that there was plenty wrong with that particular plot starting with the fact that a CIA operative was working on US soil but IIRC Joelle never knew that her handlers/COs had gone rogue. Hetty who's always portrayed as Mini-Machiavelli should have been able to see this.

Joelle wasn't just performing an undercover assignment. She knew what she was doing was wrong; if she hadn't known that, she wouldn't have stopped when she started having strong feelings for Callen. You can't have it both ways.

7 hours ago, greenbean said:

And I guess I'm alone in thinking Hetty's comment about Joelle was dumb. I just don't get the hostility towards her. If Joelle is a bitch, then what does that make Hetty given her flagrant duplicity over the years. She has betrayed Callen far more deeply than Joelle ever did imo.

Hetty did betray Callen, but she did it to protect him--which is no excuse. Still, Callen seems to have forgiven her. I think Hetty's feelings are perfectly understandable because of the very protective feelings she still has for Callen. She has been his family for almost all of his adult life.

[123BP]

The ending was the best good-bye on a TV show I can remember. It was honest, sincere, and deeply moving--and perfectly in tune with the character of O.G. Linda was absolutely stellar in that scene--and I can only imagine how difficult that must have been. I didn't expect a "normal" episode with lots of action because there were so many loose ends to tie up, and the writer did a terrific job of bringing closure to a lot of them in a very short time. Loved seeing Nate again--wish we'd see him more often. The scenes with Callen and his dad--"you can't be a father from a distance." Glad he finally stood up to him. (The trunk scene was hilarious and showed the difficulty his dad has in adjusting to a different culture.) Kensi and Deeks brought lots of levity to the episode which was nice for them. The Eric-Nell scene was also a good way to show that this work affects everyone. (I also liked the flashabck to the family film from Reznikov, N. That seemed to bring Callen's family search full circle.)

Now, it's time for some action episodes, but I really like the character development that's happening this season.

[MissLucas]

7 hours ago, 123BP said:

Joelle wasn't just performing an undercover assignment. She knew what she was doing was wrong; if she hadn't known that, she wouldn't have stopped when she started having strong feelings for Callen. You can't have it both ways.

Hetty did betray Callen, but she did it to protect him--which is no excuse. Still, Callen seems to have forgiven her. I think Hetty's feelings are perfectly understandable because of the very protective feelings she still has for Callen. She has been his family for almost all of his adult life.

It's not professional to develop personal feelings on an assignment. The dialogue never clearly states that Joelle was breaking off with Callen because she knew her assignment was not right - just that she did it because she cared for him. The writing was murky at best but Joelle never clearly stated that she had been aware of the cabal to bring down NCIS (at least until the events of last episode) - she followed orders. All the talk of 'betrayal' by Hetty and Callen (and the writers) is pure overreaction.

Edited March 7, 2017 by MissLucas

[UncleChuck]

23 hours ago, greenbean said:

I'm not fond of his father, and don't see where they can take the half-sister thing. 

New characters are needed.  TPTB are running out of people to get abducted/kidnapped/tortured.

[123BP]

14 hours ago, MissLucas said:

The writing was murky at best but Joelle never clearly stated that she had been aware of the cabal to bring down NCIS (at least until the events of last episode) - she followed orders.

Agree the writing was murky, but for Joelle to simply say she "followed orders" doesn't absolve her of her actions. Why would she ever have agreed to spy on Callen in the first place? And if that was her assignment, why did she stop? What kind of an agent stops because she develops "feelings" for the mark? Not a very good one. Of course, she knew all along that Callen was a good guy and what she'd done was wrong. Nope. Joelle is, as Hetty stated, a bitch.

[callie lee 29]

How is it any different than Sam and Jada? Sam led her on, while married, and she fell in love with him. He also seemed to have feelings, if not love, for her. They're all spies essentially. They may go by "agents" but they're expected to put on an persona, a falsehood to those around them, including those they love. Sam, Michelle, and Callen all put on a front, albeit one she apparently knew about, for Joelle and she did the same. No one has clean hands, everyone was doing "their job", and all are pretty fucking hypocritical, but Hetty is the only one throwing "bitch" around. Personally, I think Hetty might need to look in the mirror a bit.

[KAOS Agent]

Did Sam or Callen actively work to kidnap and torture Joelle or Jada's good friends? Joelle had to have been well aware that Ferris was planning to torture Kensi by cutting off her leg and went along with it. That's not simply taking out an enemy. That's revenge torture for an act that was a genuine mistake. That more than qualitfies Joelle for the "bitch" label. 

[Bishop]

On 3/6/2017 at 2:39 PM, mtmjr said:

I loved all the scenes with Callen and his Dad, especially the reveal of the daughter's low-life baby daddy in the trunk, and the subsequent discovery that he was a CI.  Funny but with a real edge.  Callen's exchanges with his Dad were well-written and well-played, and the final scene with Alex was suitably hesitant, hopeful and restrained (although the little kid is a terrible actor.)

I agree completely.  I loved the Callen/father scenes, and it was everything you described.  I found myself laughing a lot with the dynamic of Callen and his Russian father who had the guy in the trunk.  Callen was both exasperated and frustrated, but as you stated, there was also very real emotion behind the words to his father - especially about not being allowed to father from a distance.   I love the Callen character and hope he is given more to do.

I know many love the dynamic with the characters on NCIS LA, but I hated how they turned the show into a lot of endless "cute" banter with the characters and got rid of real drama over the last few years.  I don't care AT ALL about Nell and Eric's relationship.  It's SO juvenile because Eric always acts like he's 15.  I'm glad that the show has toned down the Kensi/Deeks banter as well because it was nothing but cutsy moments with them as well.  I loved the show in the first few years when there was REAL drama with the characters, and it then became NCIS LA lite.  At least now, I'm seeing the show go back towards the drama end of things.  Deeks has been allowed to be more dramatic than just playing the lovable dumb boyfriend, and I'm seeing more drama with the characters as well.  Let's hope that continues.

[123BP]

14 hours ago, callie lee 29 said:

Sam, Michelle, and Callen all put on a front, albeit one she apparently knew about, for Joelle and she did the same. No one has clean hands

Don't be selective: Deeks and Kensi are every bit as guilty as Callen, Sam, and Michelle. In fact, Deeks lied to Kensi for a long time about the entire Boyle episode, so he might be the biggest hypocrite in the entire team because she was his partner AND girlfriend. None of the other team members have deliberately lied to anyone when they weren't undercover (when Callen began his relationship with Joelle, he lied to maintain his cover--as any of them would have done because that's their job).

10 hours ago, KAOS Agent said:

That more than qualitfies Joelle for the "bitch" label. 

Good explanation! lol

[greenbean]

On 07/03/2017 at 7:37 PM, UncleChuck said:

New characters are needed.  TPTB are running out of people to get abducted/kidnapped/tortured.

That's pretty much what I suspect will happen to the sister, because there's not much else you can do with her imo.

 

17 hours ago, KAOS Agent said:

Did Sam or Callen actively work to kidnap and torture Joelle or Jada's good friends? 

Did Joelle? From what we know she was working a job that turned sinister. She had no knowledge of the plot to kidnap Kensi. Once she found out that her op was not kosher she called things off with Callen to protect him. I don't know why she's now being called a bitch, other than the writers think it's funny. But it's a disproportionate level of hostility imo. It also highlights how the show has bungled Callen's story because they've done a poor job of portraying his emotional issues, and ignored Hetty's role in bringing them about. Yet they now expect the audience to think Joelle is the worst because she's hurt and betrayed Callen in some important way. It does not resonate. And even if it were true that she was part of the plot, so what? How would that even constitute a betrayal? Did Sullivan betray Kensi when it came to light he had been working an angle on her?

They're doing too much with Joelle, it was the same with Hunter, but I'll take this to the character threads because there is so much say.

Edited March 9, 2017 by greenbean

[123BP]

1 hour ago, greenbean said:

Once she found out that her op was not kosher she called things off with Callen to protect him.

So, she stopped spying on him, but if she knew the op was not kosher, why not tell him what was going on? She didn't do very much to protect him; she seemed more interested in protecting herself. Same with her actions in Payback. When they "rescued" her, why not come clean? All three mole episodes were, IMO, just a mess. The writers seem to have started off going in one direction and then changed course drastically. Some of the problems in the story lines may have been due to Miguel's illness, but writing is their job. Still, we don't know what the long term plans are for the team, so this may have been the best the writers could do on relatively short notice and still keep things on track for the season finale.

 

1 hour ago, greenbean said:

That's pretty much what I suspect will happen to the sister, because there's not much else you can do with her imo.

I honestly hope they don't do much with Alex and her son. I don't even care about seeing much more of Callen's dad. These characters have served their dramatic purpose; they've brought Callen from having no family to having a biological family, and I'm more interested in seeing how this affects his behavior than in seeing more of them. I would, however, like to see his love life develop--and have an episode with Arkady. That could be very funny.

[Jillibean]

19 hours ago, 123BP said:

Don't be selective: Deeks and Kensi are every bit as guilty as Callen, Sam, and Michelle. In fact, Deeks lied to Kensi for a long time about the entire Boyle episode, so he might be the biggest hypocrite in the entire team because she was his partner AND girlfriend. None of the other team members have deliberately lied to anyone when they weren't undercover (when Callen began his relationship with Joelle, he lied to maintain his cover--as any of them would have done because that's their job).

I was with you to a point--because I do think what Joelle did was wrong, even if it's hard to precisely quantify--but keeping a personal secret about something in your past that causes you grief and shame and that could also potentially make someone legally an accessory is really, really different from lying about aspects of your identity and entering into (and maintaining) an involved romantic relationship over a significant period of time under false pretenses. Deeks lied to Kensi because he had been keeping this secret for years and honestly had no idea what to do with it or how to handle it. He didn't pretend he loved her to keep an eye on her for a government agency or become her partner to spy on her, and he didn't lie to her about Boyle to put her or her agency at a professional disadvantage. Kensi was never his mark. If we start conflating people keeping personal secrets about their lives from significant others with whom they are in real relationships with people having fake relationships as part of a professional assignment to spy on criminals and government agencies, I think we just lose the thread entirely. 

That being said, Deeks and Kensi both have entered into relationships under false pretenses for their jobs to get information from a source--just off the top of my head, Deeks did this with his friend's ex-wife and also with that Monica lady, and Kensi has been used as a "honeypot" both on and offscreen. The only real difference between our team and Joelle is that generally the "marks" for our team are people engaged in criminal activity or very closely associated with it, while Callen was a member of a rival government agency. But yeah, I'm not entirely sure that you can differentiate Joelle setting up Callen from Deeks setting up Monica or Sam setting up Jada from a qualitative standpoint; the main X-variable was the quantitative factor of how long they kept up those pretenses with Joelle's obviously being by far the longest and most involved.  

[Jaybird]

11 minutes ago, Jillibean said:

I was with you to a point--because I do think what Joelle did was wrong, even if it's hard to precisely quantify--but keeping a personal secret about something in your past that causes you grief and shame and that could also potentially make someone legally an accessory is really, really different from lying about aspects of your identity and entering into (and maintaining) an involved romantic relationship over a significant period of time under false pretenses. Deeks lied to Kensi because he had been keeping this secret for years and honestly had no idea what to do with it or how to handle it. He didn't pretend he loved her to keep an eye on her for a government agency or become her partner to spy on her, and he didn't lie to her about Boyle to put her or her agency at a professional disadvantage. Kensi was never his mark. If we start conflating people keeping personal secrets about their lives from significant others with whom they are in real relationships with people having fake relationships as part of a professional assignment to spy on criminals and government agencies, I think we just lose the thread entirely. 

That being said, Deeks and Kensi both have entered into relationships under false pretenses for their jobs to get information from a source--just off the top of my head, Deeks did this with his friend's ex-wife and also with that Monica lady, and Kensi has been used as a "honeypot" both on and offscreen. The only real difference between our team and Joelle is that generally the "marks" for our team are people engaged in criminal activity or very closely associated with it, while Callen was a member of a rival government agency. But yeah, I'm not entirely sure that you can differentiate Joelle setting up Callen from Deeks setting up Monica or Sam setting up Jada from a qualitative standpoint; the main X-variable was the quantitative factor of how long they kept up those pretenses with Joelle's obviously being by far the longest and most involved.  

Excellent post.  

[Sake614]

On ‎3‎/‎6‎/‎2017 at 2:39 PM, mtmjr said:

liked Sam and Marsha Thomason's character a lot, but I was a HUGE White Collar fan -- where she played a tough, snarky federal agent for five seasons -- so I found that a little disorienting.  It kind of played in my mind as an unacknowledged crossover.

I had the same feeling lol! My first thought was "Diana! What are you doing in LA? And when did you start working for DHS?"

[HurricaneVal]

I think the fact that Joelle was a CIA agent participating in a CIA undercover op to surveil Callen merely because he was effective and dangerous agent for a rival/competing Federal Agency is the real point here, and really why Hetty called her a bitch.  Regardless of if Joelle participated in or was aware of the twisted plots against the team, she did knowingly maintain surveillance on Callen to report his activities back to her handlers at the CIA, and facilitated a relationship with Callen in order to do so.   I don't think it would have mattered if Joelle the schoolteacher were a completely different person, say a blonde Emily the barista, or an Asian Claire the surfer--I think Hetty was vehemently objecting to Joelle's role in the operation, not necessarily Joelle herself.  Though, some of that might have bled through...

[123BP]

13 hours ago, Jillibean said:

I was with you to a point--because I do think what Joelle did was wrong, even if it's hard to precisely quantify--but keeping a personal secret about something in your past that causes you grief and shame and that could also potentially make someone legally an accessory is really, really different from lying about aspects of your identity and entering into (and maintaining) an involved romantic relationship over a significant period of time under false pretenses. Deeks lied to Kensi because he had been keeping this secret for years and honestly had no idea what to do with it or how to handle it.

But Deeks did reveal his secret to Kensi eventually--before he was absolved of any wrongdoing or knew what to do about it--precisely because he loved her and couldn't continue to lie to her, and that put her in legal danger (as evidenced by her and Deeks's reactions when the threat of a subpoena was mentioned in Under Siege) , so I think that argument is weak.

8 hours ago, HurricaneVal said:

I think Hetty was vehemently objecting to Joelle's role in the operation, not necessarily Joelle herself.  Though, some of that might have bled through...

Agree. Joelle had no excuse for her role, for doing what she did--and Hetty also knew how vulnerable Callen was because he so seldom ever got close to people.

Edited March 10, 2017 by 123BP

[123BP]

On 3/9/2017 at 8:27 AM, Jillibean said:

If we start conflating people keeping personal secrets about their lives from significant others with whom they are in real relationships with people having fake relationships as part of a professional assignment to spy on criminals and government agencies, I think we just lose the thread entirely. 

I'm not sure, but you seem to be saying that lying to people we are involved with personally--a significant other--as Deeks did with Kensi re: the Boyle incident is somehow less objectionable than lying to people who are suspected of, targets of, or being used for investigations into criminal activity. If that is, in fact what you're saying, I couldn't disagree more. Personal relationships are built on trust and honesty; undercover work is intentionally--and by its very nature--built on deception.