Until
recent episodes, season 11 has been a little hit and miss. The first few
episodes were fine, but suffered from the distraction of the JAG characters and
a fragmented team with missing characters. Several have featured some peculiar
humour and the remaining ones have been of a notably higher
standard. Human Resources continues the trend and is an excellent episode,
featuring the whole team working on the same case and sharing scenes. The
case itself is clever with plenty of action as the team investigates the
disappearance of a Navy Lieutenant after a car crash, whose missing laptop is
accessed and confidential files of retired Navy SEALS stolen. There is
also a healthy dose of humour and some interesting reflections from an
unlikely source - all key ingredients for a great episode of NCIS: Los Angeles
It's
been a while since there has been an opening bull-pen scene that features both
sets of partners and it made a very welcome return this week. Deeks was in fine
form with another craze, a twenty day challenge of not complaining, which of
course became a running joke throughout with all characters getting in on the
act.
Kensi: You know what, I have an idea?
Deeks: Yeah?
Kensi: Why don't you try the 20-Day No Annoying
challenge?
Deeks: 20 days? Sweetheart, we ain't gonna
make it 20 minutes!
Deeks
continued his thread of crazy fun in the next scene, swinging his legs wildly
on outside gym equipment and throwing 'out of the box' scenarios to
explain what may have happened to the missing Navy Lieutenant. The other
stand-out humorous scene took place in a car rental office, between Kensi,
Deeks and the owner who was delightfully oblivious to, well, everything.
Callen: I mean, part of the reason we do this is to
protect those we care about, the very people that make us vulnerable.
Sam: Easier when you're operating solo.
Callen: Hell yeah. Nobody could hold anything over
me 'cause I had nothing. Now..
Sam: Having people you love makes it all the more
worth fighting for. What brought this on?
Callen: Hold on...
There
was little if anything in the way of humour from Sam or Callen, no pithy or
sarcastic comments from Callen for Sam to play off against. Instead there
was a very serious and reflective tone, particularly from
Callen. Conversations about suspect Zachary Vale frequently revolved
around his lone wolf status and coupled with Callen's sudden introspection, it
is possible this is foreshadowing events to come (maybe in 'Mother'
due to air on 1st December where Hetty's life is in danger)? Even Sam
questioned Callen's sudden one-man-army plan to avoid the risk of both of them
being blown up. The episode's closure provides a lovely bookend to
the opening bullpen scene with the team all together again, this time in
Deeks' bar, the Squid and Dagger. Callen seems to be the only one who likes his
Oyster based stout and is in a decidedly reflective mood, stating that he's
thankful for his very talented co-workers, an out of character comment
which is acknowledged verbally by Sam and through the facial expressions of
Kensi and Deeks.
Callen: I'm grateful that we took care of business
today. I am grateful for luxurious accommodations upstairs and then I
am grateful for my very talented coworkers.
Sam: Never heard you say that.
Callen: Well, I don't have to say it, 'cause I
think it.
Kensi: Well, here is to the thoughts of G. Callen.
The
case of the week was extremely well thought out and featured a twist where
the Navy Lieutenant's diabetes app was hacked to control his insulin
levels and leave him pliable to accessing the confidential data on his laptop.
It certainly was a fresh take on hacking and manipulation techniques.
There was also plenty of action, including the explosion of the pick-up truck
belonging to former SEAL Tom Olsen (Daniela Ruah's real life
husband and brother of Eric Christian Olsen) and a terrific fight scene
with Kensi, who aptly stated, (once she had successfully won the fight and
was cuffing the bad guy), 'that's why you don't fight girls'. The fight scene
took place whilst Sam and Callen were painstakingly clearing rooms in the
abandoned school of bombs, looking for Vale which was quiet and intense,
reflecting the real fear both field agents felt against an unstable and clever
opponent. For once there was no clear motivation for the villain's crimes,
with misdirections on both a Christian slant and his connections to Al
Qaeda. In a further twist, Vale was playing Al Qaeda - he was purely motivated
by greed. He was simply after the money he could collect by assassinating
former SEALs. It was also notable that the homeless witness was actually a
young man with autism and it was reassuring the misconceptions and stereotypes
associated with both autism and diabetes, were not played to with either
portrayal.
The
key characters of Hetty and Eric are still absent, yet with the rest of the
main cast used to their full potential in this episode, they were barely
missed. Both were referenced by Nell during conversations with the field
agents although there was no explanation as to where Hetty is, or a reminder of
Eric's 'freelancing' at a tech firm in San
Francisco
A Virtual Scrawl