NCIS 9.10: Almost One Agent Short

We're "one agent short" - that's what McGee says to DiNozzo, who's sidelined in tonight's episode 9.10 of NCIS, for the very good reason that his father (DiNozzo, Sr.) is the chief suspect in the case at hand.

Robert Wagner is back playing Sr, as bon vivant and altogether excellent as ever.  But the evidence against him is impressive - finger prints on the bottle murder weapon, an angry argument caught on video with the victim, and no memory of what happened during the crucial hours.

The key to the whudunnit resides in Morgan Hunt (played by David Rees Snell of The Shield fame), the helpful exec who is quick to volunteer the incriminating tape.  But with Abby hard at work, the attempt to frame Sr won't stick - she finds that he was given a roofie  (and he, irrepressible, is almost flattered about that) and that his finger prints were only on the middle not the neck of the bottle.  But that was the part the murderer would have grasped, swinging the deadly bottle. As Abby points out, it's "conveniently wiped clean".  Good to see her play such a crucial role again.

Junior breaks the rest of the case, discovering the woman who drugged Sr, which leads the team to Hunt (she was working for him, but didn't quite know she was framing someone for murder).  The moral of this part of the story is the team indeed needs DiNozzo, which is no great revelation - we already knew this - but you can't see it too many times.

Gibbs once again plays the emotionally stabilizing role, not only stopping Sr. being taken away when Abby steps up with some of the further evidence, but arranging for the DiNozzos to spend their first Thanksgiving together in who knows how long.   Junior needs you as a father, Gibbs tells Sr., not your money, bringing home the point that NCIS is as much about family this year as fighting bad guys.

See also NCIS 9.1: Unpacking Partial Amnesia ... NCIS 9.2: Lying to Yourself ... NCIS 9.3: McGee's Grandmother ... NCIS 9.4: Turkey Vulture as Explained by DiNozzo ... NCIS 9.5: Behrooz's Mother ... NCIS 9.6: Too Good to be True ... NCIS 9.7: "You Were My Shannon, Leroy" ... NCIS 9.8: Intersections with Reality ... NCIS 9.9: Twists and History

And see also NCIS Back in Season 8 Action ... NCIS 8.2: Interns! ... NCIS 8.3: Tiff! ... NCIS 8.4: Gary Cooper not John Wayne ... NCIS 8.5: Dead DJ, DiNozzo Hoarse, and Baseball ... NCIS 8.6: The Written Woman ... NCIS 8.7: "James Bond Movie Directed by Fellini" ... NCIS 8.8: Ziva's Father ... NCIS 8.9: Leon's Story ... NCIS 8.10: DiNozzo In and Out ... NCIS 8.11: "The Sister Went Viral" ... Bob Newhart on NCIS 8.12 ... NCIS 8.13: The Wife or the Girlfriend ... NCIS 8.14: Kate ... NCIS 8.15: McGee and DiNozzo's Badges ... NCIS 8.16: Computer Games ... NCIS 8.17: Budget Cuts ... NCIS 8.18: Gibbs vs. the Kid ... NCIS 8.19: The Deadly Book ... NCIS 8.20: CIRay ... NCIS 8.21: Mask and Eye ... NCIS 8.22: "I'd Rather Have a Lead" ... NCIS 8.23: Answers and Questions ... NCIS Season 8 Finale

And see also NCIS  ... NCIS 7.16: Gibbs' Mother-in-Law Dilemma ... NCIS 7.17: Ducky's Ties ... NCIS 7.18: Bogus Treasure and Real Locker ... NCIS 7.21: NCIS Meets Laura ... NCIS Season 7 Finale: Retribution

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The Plot to Save Socrates

"challenging fun" - Entertainment Weekly

"a Da Vinci-esque thriller" - New York Daily News

"Sierra Waters is sexy as hell" - curled up with a good book

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NCIS 8.7: "James Bond Movie Directed by Fellini"

A"James Bond movie directed by Fellini".  That's what DiNozzo says as he looks at his father - Anthony DiNozzo, Sr. (played by Robert Wagner) - on his way up to a high-stakes mission in a soiree, Ziva in sleek, elegant black on his arm, to smoke out the arms dealer on his way to acquiring an American nuke found in a plane that crashed years ago.

Fathers play important roles in the infracture of NCIS, in particular Gibbs', Ziva's, and DiNozzo's.  Anthony Sr is every bit as suave as his son, with as keen an eye for the ladies.   But he has extravagant tastes which, coupled with his penchant for bankruptcy, had made for difficult times for him and Tony.  Indeed, he manages to run up a huge bill on behalf of his NCIS mission in episode 8.7, but Gibbs, pleased with the happy ending, says it was well worth it (and Vance agrees).

There were some good tense moments near the end of the cocktails, as the Turkish arms dealer recognizes Ziva (she was accompanying Anthony Sr as his colleague, Sophia - close to Sophie, one of her other aliases) to the point of knowing her whole story - father in charge of Mossad, Ziva now an American operative (a probie, as Tony and McGee remind her, but happily in possession in this episode of her first American passport).   NCIS prevailed tonight, but the mention of Ziva's father sets the stage for next week's episode, which will follow up on what we saw at very end of the first episode this season.

Tonight story ended, though, with a great scene between Tony and his father in which they finally draw a little closer.   Gibbs has reconciled with his father, now Tony with his.   Next we'll see happens with Ziva and hers.   I have a feeling it won't go too smoothly....  Parent/child relationships are tough enough when they're not on separate continents, now working for separate governments.

See also NCIS Back in Season 8 Action ... NCIS 8.2: Interns! ... NCIS 8.3: Tiff! ... NCIS 8.4: Gary Cooper not John Wayne ... NCIS 8.5: Dead DJ, DiNozzo Hoarse, and Baseball ... NCIS 8.6: The Written Woman

And see ee also NCIS  ... NCIS 7.16: Gibbs' Mother-in-Law Dilemma ... NCIS 7.17: Ducky's Ties ... NCIS 7.18: Bogus Treasure and Real Locker ... NCIS 7.21: NCIS Meets Laura ... NCIS Season 7 Finale: Retribution

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The Plot to Save Socrates


"challenging fun" - Entertainment Weekly

"a Da Vinci-esque thriller" - New York Daily News

"Sierra Waters is sexy as hell" - curled up with a good book