Rebecca wants to head-smack some sense into these writers!
Well, that was a disappointment. I had so been looking forward to tonight's new NCIS (we didn't get one last week, because of the election) but man, this episode really pushed all of my dislike buttons.
Review of episode 10x16 Shell Shock: Part 1
Writer: Nicole Mirante-Matthews (The Good Son)
- Ugh, that opening. I didn't like the lighting or the camera angles. And what were those bad guys supposed to be? Ninja thugs who magically appear and disappear out of the night? (Haha, cut to Leonardo saying, "Well, there's this sorta clan of ninja thieves" in The Secret of the Ooze. I can't help it if I have that movie memorized!) Right from the beginning, it felt obvious to me that none of it was real, but only happening in Westcott's mind.
- Ziva didn't seem to get what Tony meant when he said this neighbor wasn't "that kind of screamer." I rolled my eyes so hard. Remember back in Untouchable, when Ziva outright told Tony that she was "that kind of screamer"? Yes, it was seven seasons ago, but having her not get it was a sign of how much Ziva has been scaled back, and how the writers don't care about consistency and can't remember events from previous episodes. Ugh!
+ I did like Ziva and McGee making fun of Tony's boarding school photo, and Tony's reaction -- "McSnoop Dogg," lol! And did you notice that when Gibbs came in and broke them up, he seemed to keep the photo? Haha, I think the Tony/Gibbs shippers will be writing fanfics about what he does with it.
- McGee put Tony's old school photo on the monitor instead of the suspect's. Okay, that wasn't funny; it was mean. It's one thing to make fun of Tony on his own time, but not when they're in the middle of working a case! McGee deserved a head-smack for that, but lately, Gibbs doesn't seem to be head-smacking anyone but Tony. Alas.
- Ziva calling Tony "still a homely little boy." Ugh! I really hate it when Ziva says mean stuff to Tony like this. Some writers have her do it a lot (while others have them get along so well) and I honestly can't tell if they're anti- or pro-Tiva. Ziva's insulting Tony, so you would think anti, but then, Mirante-Matthews has dropped Tiva anvils in the past, which suggests pro. Perhaps she thinks that insults are a form of endearment, in which case, I feel sorry for her.
+/- Tony grilling Mathis in interrogation was good, but I didn't like his reaction when Mathis said his alibi was the strip club. Hasn't Tony matured past that by now?
+ Tony pushing Gibbs to talk to Westcott again. I liked how he stood up to the boss. It become very obvious that there was more going on with Westcott when his brother arrived.
- Gibbs interviewing Westcott at his hotel room -- ugh x 100! Westcott's behavior was bizarre and nonsensical; it did nothing to get viewers interested in or sympathetic to him. This scene was when my liking for this episode seriously started to wane.
+/- The scene between Gibbs and Ducky in autopsy had its ups and downs. I did like that Gibbs went to Ducky for advice, and Ducky quoting Oscar Wilde. "Man is least himself when he talks in his own person, but give him a mask, and he will tell you the truth" -- it sounded like a quote they'd end an episode of Criminal Minds with.
- "It's not unusual for one trauma to invoke strong memories of another" -- except on this show, where we never reference an arc after it's over.
+ I liked Tony and Ziva being concerned for Gibbs together and realizing that he never went home the night before. I'm a little concerned myself now.
+ "After more Caf-Pow than the recommended daily allowance" -- haha! Geez, Abby, isn't that how much Caf-Pow you always drink? As an aside, Sara and I have an ongoing debate about exactly what kind of drink Caf-Pow is. I always imagined it as a bright pink soda; she pictured it as a frosted coffee drink.
- Tony and Gibbs finding Westcott carving letters into a fence -- I can understand the writers wanting to do a story about a soldier suffering from PTSD, because it is a real, important issue, but can't they write it in a way that's dramatic? Or at least interesting?
- Gibbs making sure that Westcott got the help he needed was nice, but it also felt out-of-character to me. Can you see Gibbs doing this with anyone on his team, besides Abby? I can't; I see him telling them to dust their shoulders off and keep on movin' (no doubt the same advice Mike Franks gave him). On the other hand, maybe it's easier to do stuff like this with people who aren't so close to you. Westcott's dad's reaction really rubbed me the wrong way, too. "I'm the mean old family patriarch who refuses to admit he has feelings! I don't want my war-scarred son to get the help he needs! Now I'm going to bang my fist on the table and stomp around!"
- Tony showing Ziva the photo of his mother -- while it had a few good bits (it was nice learning where Tony's love of movies comes from), for the most part, I really, really didn't like this scene. It was too cheesy and too much of a Tiva anvil for me.
+ So Kersey really was in Afghanistan all along? That was a good twist that I didn't see coming.
- McGee didn't go when the team went to pick up Kersey! This bothered me so much, especially since the same thing happened just recently at the end of when they went to pick up a suspect at the end of Recovery. WHY is McGee being left out like this? He's a field agent, just like Tony and Ziva, and there's NO reason for him not to go! Some writers just seem to love keeping him chained to his desk.
In other news, there's very little to report on the real-life front, except that the weather has suddenly turned very cold (blegh!), and I have less than a month left before my turn to be the lay leader at services! Holy Moses, what a scary thought! I need to really knuckle down.
Review of episode 10x16 Shell Shock: Part 1
Writer: Nicole Mirante-Matthews (The Good Son)
- Ugh, that opening. I didn't like the lighting or the camera angles. And what were those bad guys supposed to be? Ninja thugs who magically appear and disappear out of the night? (Haha, cut to Leonardo saying, "Well, there's this sorta clan of ninja thieves" in The Secret of the Ooze. I can't help it if I have that movie memorized!) Right from the beginning, it felt obvious to me that none of it was real, but only happening in Westcott's mind.
- Ziva didn't seem to get what Tony meant when he said this neighbor wasn't "that kind of screamer." I rolled my eyes so hard. Remember back in Untouchable, when Ziva outright told Tony that she was "that kind of screamer"? Yes, it was seven seasons ago, but having her not get it was a sign of how much Ziva has been scaled back, and how the writers don't care about consistency and can't remember events from previous episodes. Ugh!
+ I did like Ziva and McGee making fun of Tony's boarding school photo, and Tony's reaction -- "McSnoop Dogg," lol! And did you notice that when Gibbs came in and broke them up, he seemed to keep the photo? Haha, I think the Tony/Gibbs shippers will be writing fanfics about what he does with it.
- McGee put Tony's old school photo on the monitor instead of the suspect's. Okay, that wasn't funny; it was mean. It's one thing to make fun of Tony on his own time, but not when they're in the middle of working a case! McGee deserved a head-smack for that, but lately, Gibbs doesn't seem to be head-smacking anyone but Tony. Alas.
- Ziva calling Tony "still a homely little boy." Ugh! I really hate it when Ziva says mean stuff to Tony like this. Some writers have her do it a lot (while others have them get along so well) and I honestly can't tell if they're anti- or pro-Tiva. Ziva's insulting Tony, so you would think anti, but then, Mirante-Matthews has dropped Tiva anvils in the past, which suggests pro. Perhaps she thinks that insults are a form of endearment, in which case, I feel sorry for her.
+/- Tony grilling Mathis in interrogation was good, but I didn't like his reaction when Mathis said his alibi was the strip club. Hasn't Tony matured past that by now?
+ Tony pushing Gibbs to talk to Westcott again. I liked how he stood up to the boss. It become very obvious that there was more going on with Westcott when his brother arrived.
- Gibbs interviewing Westcott at his hotel room -- ugh x 100! Westcott's behavior was bizarre and nonsensical; it did nothing to get viewers interested in or sympathetic to him. This scene was when my liking for this episode seriously started to wane.
+/- The scene between Gibbs and Ducky in autopsy had its ups and downs. I did like that Gibbs went to Ducky for advice, and Ducky quoting Oscar Wilde. "Man is least himself when he talks in his own person, but give him a mask, and he will tell you the truth" -- it sounded like a quote they'd end an episode of Criminal Minds with.
- "It's not unusual for one trauma to invoke strong memories of another" -- except on this show, where we never reference an arc after it's over.
+ I liked Tony and Ziva being concerned for Gibbs together and realizing that he never went home the night before. I'm a little concerned myself now.
+ "After more Caf-Pow than the recommended daily allowance" -- haha! Geez, Abby, isn't that how much Caf-Pow you always drink? As an aside, Sara and I have an ongoing debate about exactly what kind of drink Caf-Pow is. I always imagined it as a bright pink soda; she pictured it as a frosted coffee drink.
- Tony and Gibbs finding Westcott carving letters into a fence -- I can understand the writers wanting to do a story about a soldier suffering from PTSD, because it is a real, important issue, but can't they write it in a way that's dramatic? Or at least interesting?
- Gibbs making sure that Westcott got the help he needed was nice, but it also felt out-of-character to me. Can you see Gibbs doing this with anyone on his team, besides Abby? I can't; I see him telling them to dust their shoulders off and keep on movin' (no doubt the same advice Mike Franks gave him). On the other hand, maybe it's easier to do stuff like this with people who aren't so close to you. Westcott's dad's reaction really rubbed me the wrong way, too. "I'm the mean old family patriarch who refuses to admit he has feelings! I don't want my war-scarred son to get the help he needs! Now I'm going to bang my fist on the table and stomp around!"
- Tony showing Ziva the photo of his mother -- while it had a few good bits (it was nice learning where Tony's love of movies comes from), for the most part, I really, really didn't like this scene. It was too cheesy and too much of a Tiva anvil for me.
+ So Kersey really was in Afghanistan all along? That was a good twist that I didn't see coming.
- McGee didn't go when the team went to pick up Kersey! This bothered me so much, especially since the same thing happened just recently at the end of when they went to pick up a suspect at the end of Recovery. WHY is McGee being left out like this? He's a field agent, just like Tony and Ziva, and there's NO reason for him not to go! Some writers just seem to love keeping him chained to his desk.
In other news, there's very little to report on the real-life front, except that the weather has suddenly turned very cold (blegh!), and I have less than a month left before my turn to be the lay leader at services! Holy Moses, what a scary thought! I need to really knuckle down.