From
the moment details of the season nine finale were released, there was a lot of
fan-hype which increased as the promo and then sneak peeks became available, alongside a worrying quote from show runner Scott Gemmill. Sam will be shot, Kensi and Deeks seem to be
splitting up and Callen will keep his pledge to find Mosley’s son - even if it
kills him. Intense season finales are
not new to NCIS: Los Angeles
The
latter part of the season has dropped numerous hints that the finale would
feature the search for Mosley’s son Derrick.
She’s reluctantly confided in Callen which led to a reduction in the
tension between them and has actually caused Mosley to soften somewhat. She has sought advice from Hetty and begun to
trust the team. Unfortunately this
progression becomes unravelled very quickly when a suspect the team has
arrested reveals the contact for his arms dealer is Spencer Williams, Mosley’s
ex.
The
pre-opening credits begin with the team in the middle of a gun fight. Callen is
suited so was presumably undercover, the rest in tactical gear. They are under heavy fire, out gunned and pinned
down. Kensi and Callen cover Sam and then Deeks who enters another area of the
building. Individually, Sam and Deeks
gradually press forward as the bad guys slowly retreat. The choreography of the scene sets the tone
for the rest of the episode. The gunfire
is relentless with the pressure building.
There is an intensity and seriousness not usually seen (complete with a
glimpse of a disembowelled body - yes, you can tell Frank Military wrote this
one). This time the team do not
miraculously leave the scene unscathed as Sam is shot in the upper thigh; an
omen of what is to come. Even after this
mini-movie of an opening sequence there is a brief interrogation scene during
which Spencer Williams’ name is revealed and repeated again, with Mosley
observing. And roll the opening credits.
The
season finale bravely follows a path not previously taken. The team dynamics change as they are placed
in situations outside their comfort zone. There is insubordination, challenges, stubbornness, arguments and hard
conversations. The catalyst for this is
Mosley. The moment she gets a lead on
Spencer Williams and by association Derrick, Mosley is purely focused on retrieving
him - whatever the cost. From this moment,
it only takes her ten minutes of screen time to beat the suspect, order ops to
illegally wiretap a phone (threatening to fire Eric), question the integrity of
Callen’s character and fire Deeks. She
is blatantly out of control and has already made them complicit in her illegal
activities. She is prepared to take the
team down with her if it means finding her son.
It’s like a switch has been flipped.
Mosley has changed from a calculating control freak who lives by the
book, to an unhinged, desperate woman who is using her power and position for,
as Callen rightly said, a custody battle.
Mosley’s
behaviour pushes the characters to react in ways not usually seen. Callen rarely lays down the law, yet he orders
Kensi and Deeks to tail Mosley whilst not revealing reasons why, later
asking them to hold the beaten suspect until the bruises heal. Their reactions reveal the differences in the
team members. They both try to challenge
the latter order however when Callen refuses to give reasons why, Kensi relents
and states she trusts him. Deeks on the
other hand needs to know the reasons and presses the point. It is usually Callen and Deeks who challenge orders
and neither have a military background unlike Sam or Kensi (meaning they are more likely to follow orders regardless). If Mosley had not been present, Deeks would
most likely have lost his temper with Callen.
Deeks has already voiced his displeasure of Mosley’s beating the suspect
and every subsequent action now snowballs until he reaches breaking point and loses
his temper, the trigger being Mosley questioning Callen’s character. When he challenges her motives and methods,
she fires him.
Deeks
is on such a roll that he cannot be stopped.
Sam tries to warn him and Kensi tries to dissolve the situation but is
too late. It could be their level of
discipline as agents, or a realisation that Deeks has been tipped over the edge
that prevents them from intervening. Deeks gives an emotional response whereas the agents are all relatively
composed. This is a pattern which has
emerged over the seasons. Deeks tends to
respond to certain situations with anger and violence. Mosley has beaten a suspect to find out where
Spencer Williams is. Deeks water boarded
a cleric to find out where Kensi was being held. Deeks also killed his bent LAPD partner for
trying to kill a young prostitute. But Deeks
does not incriminate anyone else. He also
struggles with his conscience - although he has admitted he would do the same
again. His reaction to Mosley’s beating
of the suspect could be construed as either double standards or more likely
disgust at self-recognition of his own actions.
Something similar could be said of Callen, who may not have
demonstrated the same penchant for violence as Deeks but has demonstrated a
ruthless streak where his family are concerned.
Callen goes rogue to protect others and he distances himself from his
team. Whether he wants to or not, the
team always has his back. In subsequent
scenes Callen repeatedly questions the legality of Mosley’s actions and
consequences for the team. Mosley
clearly feels she needs Callen more than Deeks. The atmosphere created feeds in to other
scenes. Sam has discharged himself from
hospital and he and Callen exchange heated words about the Sam's ability to go tactical.
Deeks
seems to be in a state of denial about his sacking and when he is escorted from
the building, he is not in a good place mentally. He has already suggested to Kensi that this
could be their last case before they leave NICS and the conversation continues
in the car park when she realises he is serious. They
are both caught in the heat of the moment and Deeks’ emotional state of mind. Passion, anger and spur of the moment
ultimatums combine to place a spot light on his relationship with Kensi. For a while, Deeks has been questioning the
validity of their jobs compared to the future they could have together. They had an in depth conversation during the
season 8 premiere when Kensi said being an agent is who she is and she doesn’t
know when she’d be ready to give it up. Earlier this season in Assets, Deeks spoke to
Kensi about quitting to start a family, at which point he said he would never
ask her to give up her job (although that seemed to be where the conversation
was leading). This was picked up again
in The Silo, when Kensi risked her life to prevent the launch of nuclear
weapons from US
This
of course creates an atmosphere between them during their later scenes and
there are several noticeable instances. Deeks
suggests he lures Derrick out with a horse riding lesson which is the best of
the bad ideas. Callen agrees but wants
Kensi to go in as the instructor - a female being less threatening and her Spanish
is convincing. Deeks’ facial expression
says he’s just sent Kensi to her death. Later,
when Kensi is held captive by Williams, Deeks loses control of his emotions and
when Callen doesn’t respond with a plan, he attempts to rush in, eventually heeding Callen’s order to stop.
Lastly, the pair see Mosley and Derrick safely board the helicopter and Deeks
tells Kensi to take the last place, he’ll return for Callen and Sam. Gallant though such an action was, Kensi
naturally refuses stating they stay together.
She
is just as capable as the men and with half the team in trouble, why would she
get on the helicopter?
Once
again Hetty has some key scenes with Mosley. They have several one on one conversations where
Hetty tries to help her, making her understand she has powerful assets (the
team) at her disposal and needs their support to retrieve her son. Mosley’s
actions have made the case personal to them both and Hetty counters Mosley’s
statement that she would do anything to get her son back, by revealing her own
reasons for trying to keep Callen out of Mosley’s unhinged plans; that he’s as
close to a son as she’s ever had. Hetty
also has the most amusing line...
Mosley: When were you gonna tell me that Deeks was
in Mexico
Hetty: He is?
Mosley: Yes.
Hetty: He's such a rascal.
The second part of the finale does not have the same intensity as the first
half, mostly as Mosley has been removed from the equation. The team have flown to Mexico Mexico
Along with the originality, unfortunately
there are also a number of clichés which include Callen’s quad bike not
starting when they have to make a quick escape and Sam and Callen emerging
through the smoke riding horses and wearing gas masks. In the first half, after a chase scene where
Sam is of little use, Callen assumes Sam is now going with him to Mexico Mexico
There
are several distinct styles in the finale; as previously mentioned the opening
gunfight sequence felt like a movie, and the rescue of Derrick in Mexico had
very much a western feel. Two elements of Frank Military’s direction
stood out. Firstly the handheld camera
during Callen’s chase scene was very jarring, with the effect of seasickness
(that may just be personal to me)! It is
not the established look of the show which is why it was noticeable, however it does
lend a sense of urgency to the chase in an almost documentary style, coupled by the lack of background
music. Usually such scenes have an
abundance of energetic music (sometimes overwhelming) yet this shows that less
can definitely be more. The other
standout scene is the very low key and subtle background music when team are driving
to plane; Kensi in the passenger seat suppressing tears. The skies are grey and the team (at this point
without Deeks) is muted and subdued, about to embark on a mission they know is
half baked and not their battle. When
Deeks does join them on the plane, the atmosphere could be sliced with a
knife. This follows from another key
scene with Hetty and Mosley where the former threatens to ground the plane due
to Mosley’s actions. This time Mosley
counters, stating she’s studied the history of the team and knows where the
bodies are buried, threatening to call the FBI which would lead to arrests
and prison time for some team members. It
has long been referenced that the team operate outside the usual conventions of
their agency (initially by Granger, then the DOJ investigation of Hetty and
Duggan’s desire to shut down OSP during the mole debacle). Remember Mosley has stated her official mission
is to dissolve the team...
The
season finale (with the clichés and questions avoided), was an excellent
mixture of action, drama and tension, particularly built up from the opening seconds
of the first part. Characters are placed
in situations not previously seen which allows the dynamics to change, yet
there is enough consistency for their reactions to be believable, possibly with
the exception of Hidoko’s extremely brief appearance and subsequent action. This is definitely a finale to remember and it will be intriguing to see how this is managed in the season ten premiere.
