On NCIS this week, Tony and Gibbs revisited a cold case when the code name of their former op came up in connection with the murder of a Navy lieutenant and a prostitute.
Below, you can join TV Fanatic panelists David Taylor, Tanya Moat, Christine Orlando, Kathleen Wiedel and Douglas Wolfe as they weigh in on all of the above and plenty more.
Ready to jump into the fray? Let's do this!
How would you describe this week’s episode in a few words or a sentence?
David: Forty years of nothin'....and then it all comes back in one day.
Tanya: Clap, Clap, Clap. Boo.
Christine: So many egos.
Kathleen: It's not all about you... except when it is.
Doug: Immaturity 'r Us.
What’s your take on Tony and Bishop’s “couples’ intimacy class”?
David: Well, it certainly provided the episode's most humorous moments, and maybe they even learned a thing or two about themselves, but "the play" went nowhere.
Tanya: Like David mentioned, it was slightly humorous but also pointless. So it fit right in with an episode that felt a little bit all over the place. And I had a similar response to Gibbs' "I can't watch this." Me neither.
Christine: Yeah, I expected it to be funnier…or for Bishop to take off those glasses. The way it played out it kind of went nowhere.
Kathleen: A few laughs, but in the end it goes nowhere, does nothing. Sigh.
Doug: Looks like we're unanimous on this one. The premise had so much promise - but they didn't bother to follow through. I wanted to know exactly what went on in that couples' therapy room, and why Bishop felt a need to shower afterward.
David: Ducky and Palmer trying to best each other was great. We don't usually see that kind of sniping from these two so I got a huge kick out of it.
Tanya: I honestly don't have one. At best, how serious Tony and Gibbs got when the name Lex Talionas popped up made me think we were in for an intense episode, which never came to fruition in my opinion.
Christine: I loved Ducky putting Palmer in his place and Tony adding commentary along the way. As someone who has had to sit through Frozen many times, Tony’s “Let it go, Elsa” to Palmer made me laugh.
Kathleen: Ducky and Palmer really are quite entertaining. Jimmy does manage to put his foot in his mouth, doesn't he?
Doug: I started to sit and up and really take notice when Gibbs brought Eddie "Collarbone" Rosario in for interrogation. We almost never see anyone stand up to Gibbs in that room the way he did. The man just chewed it all up and spat it out. I can tell you that in acting classes, this is the kind of scene you live for - a true confrontation that gets both guys' adrenaline pumping. What a treat to watch!
What, if anything, didn’t work for you?
David: Well, as I mentioned before, seeking out the family member (the facilitator of the intimacy class) yielded nothing except some laughs for us.
Then there's the DNA matching thing--the DNA on the bomb from 2 years ago matched the sample in the purse as Orlando so the 40- year-old bomb is also a match because the bombs were similar? Then Orlando provides his own DNA and now it's not a match? What'd I miss?
Then there's the ID of the real culprit (Luna), a complete unknown and a rather convenient, and rushed, resolution.
Tanya: Ditto to everything David said. It seemed a bit half-baked to me. Like they took a bunch of possible stories ideas and cobbled them together into one, even if it didn't really make sense. Why would a drug dealer bomb an airport? I love both McGee and Tony, but it also felt like we traveled back in time. Tony implies McGee isn't up to snuff; McGee pouts. It worked in season 3 but not so much in season 12.
Christine: The intimacy class really disappointed me. There was so much potential there but very little payoff.
Kathleen: McGee, McGee, McGee... The guy acted like a petulant middle-schooler. "Wah, Gibbs chose Tony to be on his team first!" Seriously?!
Doug: I'm with you guys on everything you said. This was a frustrating episode to watch. There was so much potential in everything, yet they only touched the surface on all of it.
And that hurt little baby nuance exhibited by both McGee and Abby! Man, I can't tell you how much that bugged me. Ugh. I hope they never go down that road again. It was disgusting.
Mark Harmon has been all over our TV screens since the mid-1970s but long before he was our beloved Leroy Jethro Gibbs on NCIS he was Fielding Carlyle on the prime time sudser Flamingo Road.
We know him now as Frank Reagan on Blue Bloods and Jesse Stone and who doesn't remember him as '80s icon Magnum P.I? But did you know that Tom Selleck was once Jed Andrews on The Young & the Restless?
The Crazy Ones are over and we'll never forget her as Buffy the Vampire Slayer but did you know that Sarah Michelle Gellar was once Erica Kane's long lost daughter on All My Children?
Long before we knew his as mystery writer Richard Castle or Captain Mal on Firefly he was Joey Buchanan, who slept with his mom's arch enemy on One Life to Live.
You may know her now as the most dynamic and dangerous First lady on Scandal, but if you were a fan of NBC's soap Another World, you may have noticed Bellamy as Dr. Courtney Evans.
Claire Dunphy is the mom who makes us laugh (and sometimes cry) on Modern Family but Julie Bowen had a long career before becoming one of the Dunphys. As a matter of fact she started out on the ABC soap Loving in the early 1990s.
Long before we knew him as Anthony DiNozzo on CBS' hit show NCIS, Michael was known as the Preppy Killer on Guilding Light. In the mid-'90s he was also Cooper Alden on The City (formerly Loving).
We couldn't imagine The Good Wife without Diane Lockhart, one of our favorite kick-ass attorneys. But did you know that some of Christine's first roles on TV were Beverly Tucker on Another World and Jewel Maniscalo on All My Children?
She's currently the executive producer for Devious Maids and we all remember Eva from Desperate Housewives but she once played a Brenda Barrett look-a-like on General Hospital and graced the screen of The Young and the Restless as Isabella Brana Williams.
We all know Ed as the cranky but lovable Jay Pritchett on Modern Family and no one's going to forget him as Al Bundy from Married with Children but did you that he started out on the soaps. He was once on All My Children in the '70s and then played Lenny on Another World in the early '80s.
Halle Berry has been all over the big screen from James Bond's Die Another Day to the X-Men: Days of Future Past. TV Fanatics have been fascinated by her portrayal of Molly Woods on Extant but do you remember her from her six episodes as Debbie Porter on the night-time sudser Knots Landing?
Who doesn't love the Haley's antics on Modern Family but Sarah's been in the business since she was four-years-old. She started off on Another World as Rain Wolfe, later played Karen on All My Children, Alison McDermott Stewart (#4?) on As the World Turns and Heather on Once Life to Live.
Who hasn't seen Mariska as Detective Olivia Benson on Law & Order: SVU and some fans may remember her as Dr. Greene's girlfriend Cynthia Hooper on ER but did you know that way back in 1988 she played Carly Fixx on the primetime sudser Falcon Crest?
We are having such fun watching Cam Gigandet as the sexy Roy Raydor on the CBS summer hit Reckless but observant fans might remember him as Kevin Volchok on The O.C. and Daniel Romalotti from The Young and the Restless.
Fans have adored this Supernatural hottie for years and although many remember him as Jason Teague on Smallville and C.J from Dawson's Creek, soap fans will always know him as Eric Brady from Days of Our Lives.
Long before we knew him as Stefan on The Vampire Diaries, PFC Logan Atwater on Army Wives or even Tommy Callahan on Everwood, Paul Wesley started out as Sean McKinnon on Another World and then Max Nickerson on Guiding Light.
We love her as Hanna Marin on Pretty Little Liars but long before that, she could be seen as Jack and Jennifer's beloved daughter Abigail Devereaux on Days of Our Lives.
Seamus is now half of our favorite bromance as Det. Kevin Ryan on Castle but before he started solving murders, he diagnosed patients as Dr. Ian Devlin on General Hospital.
Where would Castle be without his mother to keep him grounded? But long before Susan Sullivan played Martha Rodgers, Broadway Diva, she was a star on the '80s night time soap Falcon Crest and before that she could be seen as Lenore Moore Curtin Delaney on Another World.
Long before we knew her as Capt. Victoria (Iron) Gates on Castle or even as First Lady Sherry Palmer on 24, she spent some time in the mid-'80s as Debbie on General Hospital.
Hayden starred on two daytime soaps at a very young age. She was Sarah Victoria "Flash" Roberts from 1994-1997 on One Life to Live and Lizzie Spaulding on Guiding Light from 1998-2000.
Like his Nashville co-star, Jackson started on a soap as Lucky Spencer (Luke and Laura's son!) on General Hospital in 1996 and ran on and off in the role until 2011.
Long before appearing on The Following the six degrees of Kevin Bacon began when he played Todd Adamson on Search for Tomorrow and TJ "Tim" Werner on Guiding Light from 1981-82.
Long before he was Dawson's dad on Dawson's Creek or Henry Allen on The Flash (or Barry, for that matter), Shipp was a soap STAR. He started out on As the World Turns but became THE GUY on Guiding Light, Kelly Nelson (in a dual role, he also played Victor Lazlo) from 1980-84. He did, indeed, cross paths with Kevin Bacon's Tim Werner. Six degrees, people!
Before Private Practice, Murder in the First or his turn on The Good Wife, Diggs shared his megawatt smile on The Guiding Light as music mogul Sugar Hill in 1997.
Nick and Sharon are celebating 25 years on The Young and the Restless. Guess who was his first Sharon?! Monica Potter orginated the role in 1994. She shared with Craig Ferguson that she got fired because she was "terrible" and had to dance around in a bikini with a fake tan. Soaps are hard!
Back in the early 90s Janney plaid Ginger, one of the Spaulding's maids on Guiding Light. She has always had a way of tickling the funny bone making her current turn as Bonnie on Mom just perfect for her!
David: I'm not sure anyone comes off looking particularly good, but if forced to pick someone, I'd say Gibbs for getting the ambassador to spill her guts. BTW, did anyone notice the look of paternal pride on Gibbs's face as he admired his team during the final fade-out? Say it with me now: "Awwwwwwwwwwww...…."
Tanya: I'll say "Awwww …" with you, David, and I agree there really wasn't an MVP this episode. Since NCIS is consistently good (and has a gazillion episodes under its belt), I'm sure this is an aberration and hopefully the few remaining episodes will be stellar.
Christine: Yeah, I really did love Gibbs as he looked on over his little family. It was very sweet but there really wasn’t one stand out character in this episode. That’s not necessarily a bad thing as everyone was able to have their little moments along the way.
Kathleen: Gibbs is awesome. If there were an award for Least Valuable Player for this episode, though, it would go to McGee and his insecurities.
Doug: I second that, Kathleen!
My vote for MVP would be Tony. First, because of his silent communication with Gibbs near the start, before they headed to MTAC. Second because of his refereeing of the Palmer-Ducky spat. Third because of the way he effectively handled McGee's petulant immaturity. And fourth because of his understated yet effective interrogation techniques opposite Tomas Orlando.
