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NCIS: Episode 22:4: “Sticks & Stones”

" One Man’s Faith Can Make a Difference "

Content: -1 Caution advised for older children, including teenagers, and sensitive adults.
Entertainment Quality:
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Language
Violence
Sex
Nudity

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What You Need To Know:

NCIS: “Sticks & Stones” is a superlative episode in the popular series. In the episode, Agent Parker and his NCIS team refuse a direct order from the Acting President. The President, Vice President and Speaker of the House are unable to communicate. So, the President Pro Tem of the Senate is Acting Commander in Chief. However, he wants to use tactical nuclear weapons to take out some ballistic missiles ready to launch against Europe by Belarus, Russia’s proxy in the war with Ukraine. Parker and his team refuse to obey the order.

NCIS: “Sticks & Stones” is excellent. It has lots of exciting tension and funny humor. There’s even a little romance between the medical examiner, Jimmy, and Agent Jessica Knight. NCIS: “Sticks & Stones” has a strong Christian worldview. One major character’s Christian faith solves the conflict over launching the tactical nukes. The character says he’s guided by his faith. He recalls his father preaching the Gospel and his mother leading the church choir. NCIS: “Sticks & Stones” does have some light foul language, though. So, MOVIEGDUIDE® advises caution for older children.

Content:

(CCC, BBB, PPP, LL, V, M):

Dominant Worldview and Other Worldview Content/Elements:
Very strong Christian, moral worldview about Navy and federal law enforcement officials dealing with a national security, international crisis that may start a nuclear war when a Russian ally decides to fire missiles into Ukraine and Europe, and a man’s Christian faith solves the plot problem and resolves the major conflict over the crisis in the story, plus a man says “Godspeed,” and a man says he’s guided by his Christian faith and recalls his father preaching the Gospel in church and his mother leading the choir every Sunday and another man upon hearing this makes a reference about being concerned that someday his soul will be judged on Judgment Day;

Foul Language:
Four a** words, six “h” words, two “d” words, one bastard, and no profanities;

Violence:
People are arrested and handcuffed and held at gunpoint by FBI officers, man subdues his captor off screen and is shown hiding the conscious man (who’s tied up) in a drawer used for corpses in a medical examiner’s facility, two men have to break down a wall to take back control of their federal facility and give their forensics colleague a chance to decode an encrypted message;

Sex:
No sex scenes but a man and a woman discuss the future of their romantic relationship (they broke up because the woman was away for a few months across the country doing a new job in federal law enforcement, but she’s ended that job and has returned to Washington, DC but her career may take her away again, and the man wants more stability and already heads his federal medical examiner facility in the office and doesn’t want to leave Washington, DC), plus a dating app refers to phone calls between members as a “joy jingle”;

Nudity:
No nudity;

Alcohol Use:
No alcohol use;

Smoking and/or Drug Use and Abuse:
No smoking or drugs; and,

Miscellaneous Immorality:
Some jokes about two nerdy federal agents wearing costumes because of suddenly being called out of a Dungeons and Dragons game to help solve an international crisis (a reference is made to one agent collecting “healing potions” for the game), plus jokes are made about people using a dating app to communicate secretly when the FBI arrests them for disobeying orders.

More Detail:

NCIS: “Sticks & Stones” is a superlative episode in the popular series and features a plot where Agent Parker and his NCIS team refuse a direct order from the Acting President who wants to use tactical nuclear weapons to destroy some ballistic missiles aimed at Europe by Belarus, as part of a secret plot by the Russians against NATO. NCIS: “Sticks & Stones” offers a tense and exciting drama, laced with some funny humor, and has a strong Christian, moral, patriotic worldview where one man’s Christian faith saves the day.

The episode begins with the team leader, Agent Parker, waking up Agent McGhee early in the morning to assemble the team to deal with a crisis developing in Belarus, a Russian proxy. An algorithm created by one of the team’s computer experts has detected a Belarus transmission about launching a bunch of mobile ballistic missiles at Europe. It’s part of the fallout being caused by Russia’s continuing, troubled invasion of Ukraine. The National Security Administration picked Parker’s team to handle the crisis because their man, Hubley, created the algorithm. The transmission contains locations of the Belarus missile launchers, and Kasie, the team’s forensics expert, is busy decoding that part of the transmission, with help from Hubley.

However, the President and the Speaker of the House are on Air Force One, which is having communications problems. Also, the Vice President is in the hospital getting an emergency coloscopy. So, the President Pro Tempore of the Senate is now the Acting President, and he wants to launch some tactical nukes at the launch sites in Belarus.

Parker is extremely concerned that such a nuclear attack could start World War III. So, when Kasie and Hubley finally get the missile launcher locations, the Acting President orders Hubley to send the locations to the Pentagon. Parker intervenes and orders Hubley not to send the locations. The Acting President orders Agent McGee to arrest Parker, but McGee refuses.

At that point, Hubley cuts the video feed to the Pentagon and the Acting President. Parker and McGee start to discuss their next move when their office is invaded by FBI Agents, led by Deputy Director Sweeney. Sweeney supports the Acting President’s order. So, he orders his agents to arrest and handcuff Parker and McGee and anyone else who interferes.

The rest of the episode becomes a battle of wits and wills between Parker and Sweeney. Who will win that battle?

NCIS: “Sticks & Stones” is an excellent episode. It has lots of exciting tension and conflict, laced with some funny humor. There’s also a little romance when Agent Parker orders the lead medical examiner, Jimmy, to fetch Agent Jessica Knight. Jessica has taken a few days off to go camping. She and Jimmy had been dating, but they’ve taken a break from their relationship. That’s because Jessica wants to pursue other opportunities in federal law enforcement, which could take her away from the NCIS team’s offices in Washington, DC, while Jimmy wants to stay in DC.

NCIS: “Sticks & Stones” is also a special episode because one major character’s Christian faith solves the episode’s conflict over launching the tactical nuclear weapons. The character says he’s a man guided by his Christian faith and his faith eventually told him to side with Agent Parker. He also tells Parker he recalls his father preaching the Gospel and his mother leading the church choir every Sunday. Parker replies, “One day my soul will be judged, too.”

NCIS: “Sticks & Stones” does have some light foul language, though. So, MOVIEGUIDE® advises caution for older children.


Watch NCIS: Episode 22:4: "Sticks & Stones" →
Quality: - Content: -1

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Watch NCIS: Episode 22:4: "Sticks & Stones" →
Quality: - Content: -1