Being spoiled with the pictures prior to the premiere of NCIS season 8 does not mean that you will not enjoy its first offering this season. I was indeed satisfied with this episode.
For further review, here is the comment of TV Fanatic!
Gibbs is his father’s son. Executive producer Shane Brennan drilled that point into our heads all summer, but true fans already knew it beforehand. Jackson Gibbs said it best Tuesday on NCIS’ season premiere, “Spider and the Fly,” when told that he’s just like Jethro:
“No, ma’am, he’s just like me.”
Despite the precarious situation we left him in last May, you knew the elder Gibbs wasn’t going out like some punk. About thirty seconds into season eight, he proved us right.
After Jackson thwarted Paloma’s attempt to kill him in the store, we fast forward several months to find him still living with his son under around-the-clock security detail.
Jethro suspected Reynosa would return to finish the job, and he was right. Having gone rogue for months, Mike Franks had the same gut feeling and showed up to help.
Watching Gibbs, his father and his mentor all plotting together was a real treat. Their line reading is always pitch perfect and we learn much about our hero through them.
Together, they devised a plan to draw out and trap their adversaries, and with a little help from Vance and Alejandro’s lust for revenge, this fishing expedition was a success.
Paloma’s hot-headed brother must have been delusional to think he could pull one over on Vance, and sure enough, the team used his own bug to funnel misinformation.
The bogus note Tony handed Vance, then left for Alejandro to find was the final clue. Well executed by NCIS, but a bit far-fetched that he’d fall for it hook, line and sinker.
“Spider and the Fly” refers to Paloma walking right into Gibbs’ trap, in this case a safe house. Again, how would they know Alejandro would shoot the place up from outside?
In any case, we liked that Gibbs & Co. never had to shoot anybody. Gibbs already killed Pedro Hernandez. Merely outfoxing his offspring was a fitting resolution decades later.
In addition to Mark Harmon, Rocky Carroll was terrific in this episode, particularly when Vance got in Alejandro’s face, then carried out the team’s incredibly risky ruse to snare him.
Vance remains a complex, intriguing character. If there were any questions about where his loyalties lie, however, they were largely answered in the closing sequence Tuesday night.
His burying of Abby’s report on the Hernandez case in the warehouse was reminiscent of the classic ending of Raiders of the Lost Ark, and hopefully keeps Gibbs’ secret safe for good.
With nuanced acting, sharp writing and some high-powered action, this was a solid episode of NCIS, wrapping up last season’s long-running story arc appropriately and dramatically.
Next week, we’ll hopefully return to more traditional episodes with heavier doses of Tony, Ziva, McGee, Abby and Ducky, all of whom were great, but in ancillary roles last night.
So what do you expect on the second episode?
You can check NCIS Season 8 Reviews and Spoilers HERE.
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