The problem with the burgeoning cast of a long-running series is that there’s never enough screen time for everybody.
Thankfully, that wasn’t the case on NCIS: Los Angeles Season 14 Episode 11, which made for an engaging change of pace.
Kilbride had assigned Sam, Callen, and Deeks to a joint task force, the inside-joke buzzword for the recent NCIS crossover.
The ready solution was to pull in a handful of fan-favorite recurring characters as substitutes on a mission with the regular characters who remained available.
So Lance took over the Sam role of the rugged military man while Sabatino inhabited the Callen role as the wisecracking man of mystery.
What does it say about Deeks that no one was needed to replace him?
That’s not totally fair. While Eric Christian Olsen wasn’t there, David Paul Olsen, Eric’s brother, and Daniela Ruah’s husband, returned as Tom Olsen, Sam’s old SEAL buddy.
So there was an Olsen featured in the episode. Just no Deeks.
Centering the episode around Tom, last seen on NCIS: Los Angeles Season 11 Episode 8, was ingenious. It offered an excuse to bring in Lance Hamilton from DOJ and Vostanik Sabatino from the CIA (or whatever his cover is in this episode).
Sure, it would have been better to have an emotionally invested Sam involved in the case. Just like it would have been better to have more Callen (and any Anna) on the recent Arkady episode (NCIS: Los Angeles Season 14 Episode 9).
But the crossover rightfully took priority, as it would draw fans of all three series in the franchise as well as curious looky-loos.
NCIS: Los Angeles had taken a six-week holiday hiatus, so it needed to get back on the air; however, that happened. If that meant missing an essential character or two for a handful of episodes, so be it.
Whatever the motivation, the episode worked, partly by having one pair of agents that were sympatico and in part by having a couple of agents that clashed.
Then there was the usual weekly tension between Rountree and Kilbride in Ops. A member of the Greatest Generation, Kilbride will never understand those in the younger generations. Nor does he even care to try. You can almost hear, “You kids get off my lawn.”
Lance and Kensi have successfully paired already on NCIS: Los Angeles Season 11 Episode 2. So theirs was already a comfortable partnership despite its infrequency.
Kensi felt reassured enough around Lance almost to bring up the topic of Lance dating again after the death of his wife (shades of Sam). Lance picked up on her unspoken question and answered it honestly.
They spoke of their respective “children,” Kensi’s foster daughter Rosa and Lance’s Rottweiler Francis (how appropriate).
Kensi and Lance also worked well together in the field, which was essential since they were outnumbered by a shifting number of opponents with no idea of Tom’s status. But they didn’t have an unspoken shorthand such as she and Deeks do.
The inside jokes were enjoyable, such as Kensi fawning over Tom’s writing and being able to interpret Daniela Ruah’s native Portuguese.
Not surprisingly, Fatima and Sabatino never reached any such comfort level. Instead, she eventually learned to tolerate Sabatino, who remains an acquired taste.
Of course, Fatima confronted him because she’s a talker and can’t handle silence. So she asked him point blank why he was so quiet around her.
That resulted in their spirited discussions of the various generations, in which they concluded that there’s always another generation to dislike. That discussion got even better when Sabatino looped in junior “Red Hat” Luke. It was like Luke was channeling Kilbride.
And let’s find a way to get Lesley Boone’s Nina a scene each week. She’s been the dazzling star of the last two episodes. She made Sabatino squirm, no mean feat. Then she bullied Fatima and Sabatino into crewing her food truck while she stepped away to acquire the intel they sought.
But hey, they, along with Rountree, worked together well in the field as they breached the shooters’ cabin. Then Fatima skillfully used the hijacked drone to take out the remaining shooters who had her teammates and Tom pinned down.
Poor Tom. Doing the publicity for his books had made him a target for a man who blamed the SEALS for his brother’s death.
It’s a shame that this adventure screwed up Kensi’s plans for a weekend alone with Rosa. It certainly sounded like the two of them needed some time together apart from their busy lives.
Kensi still appears to be struggling with being a mother. But she shouldn’t blame herself. She sounds like many mothers who can’t find time to connect with their children.
Rosa appreciated the critical work that Kensi does (she likely would never have escaped from her violent country if not for Kensi’s assistance). So Rosa rightfully cuts Kensi some slack when her job gets in the way of their plans.
It was also sweet of Kilbride to hang out with Rosa while Kensi was flying home. He does care for his people in his own gruff way. It also gave him a chance to see if he’d make a better grandfather than he was a father.
To revisit past appearances by Lance and Sabatino, watch NCIS: Los Angeles online.
Which was your favorite pairing: Kensi/Lance, Fatima/Sabatino, or Rountree/Kilbride?
Did you enjoy seeing Tom again?
How did you like an episode without three of the top four agents?
Comment below.
Dale McGarrigle is a staff writer for TV Fanatic. Follow him on Twitter.
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