"Gritty Prequel Introduction"
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What You Need To Know:
Like its predecessor, the first two episodes of NCIS: ORIGINS focus on conscientious military investigators looking for truth and justice. However, NCIS: ORIGINS immediately separates itself from its predecessor. The prequel makes it clear that ORIGINS will be a more serious program. Gone are the moments of absurdist humor from the side characters. Also, the two-part opening episode is marred by some crude foul language, references to drug abuse and possible occultism, and a bedroom scene between the team leader and his wife. So, MOVIEGUIDE® advises extreme caution.
Content:
More Detail:
NCIS ORIGINS is an exciting prequel to the popular NCIS series. This time, we follow Jethro Gibbs on his first day at the Naval Investigative Service, still in its infancy. Fresh off out of the service, the Jethro we meet is still reeling from the deaths of his wife and daughter. Thrust into the horrific realities of his NIS, we get the sense that there may be many more tragedies in store for the Agent Gibbs.
NCIS ORIGINS wastes no time distinguishing itself from its predecessor, abandoning the lighthearted, procedural nature for something far more serious and cinematic. The high production value, polished direction and weightier themes signal a marked shift in tone, as the show embraces a more dramatic, somber atmosphere. The performances across the cast are usually solid, especially from Kyle Schmid playing Mike Franks, but there are sometimes moments of inconsistency. The storyline of the first two episodes grapples with some occult symbolism linked to a murder victim. The victim is first thought to be involved in a cult, but she turns out to be just a quirky artist. However, the reason behind her art and its images is left unexplained. Also, the mature content in the first two episodes, which includes some crude language, drug references and a bedroom scene, raises concerns.
The plot of the pilot of NCIS: ORIGINS unfolds over the course of two episodes. We begin by seeing an older Jethro Gibbs in the woods, weary and looking off and telling us there are stories he doesn’t discuss. The scene transitions to Oceanside, California. The year is 1991, and Jethro wakes up in the middle of the night, with his hands and the side of his face bloodied. He drives to Camp Pendleton, where the soldier on guard is surprised they let him on base after last night’s fight at a local bar. It turns out this is Jethro’s first day at the Naval Intelligence Service (NIS), before the department was called the Naval Criminal Investigative Service or NCIS.
Jethro barely has a chance to settle into the new team before they’re called out to investigate a dead body found in a burned down house. Agent Lala, another of Jethro’s squad mates with a chip on her shoulder, is already at the crime scene. A woman’s dead body is found in a burned up house with numerous bones decorating the home. The victim’s head has been smashed by a beam. Upon seeing the gored body, Agent Gibbs runs out of the house to vomit, where he is then consoled by his boss, Mike Franks.
The program reveals that Franks got Jethro the job, despite failing his psyche evaluation, but this information is kept from Gibbs. Gibbs has just recently lost his wife and daughter after discovering them murdered coming back from a deployment. This distraught mental state led to the bar fight and is why Lala doesn’t trust Jethro being on the team.
Tensions continue to rise as the team questions suspects, including the victim’s boyfriend, Bugs, who turns out to be a drugged out meth addict. Just as leads are running cold, Jethro discovers evidence the female victim was assassinated by a professional sniper, with the housefire being set to cover the killer’s tracks.
The first episode ends with three more bodies turning up dead at a beach bonfire. The sniper has struck again, and things have escalated. Amidst the chaos, Jethro sees Lala and the older Jethro speak again in voiceover: “These are the stories I don’t talk about. This is the story of her.”
Episode two begins with a flashback to the day Agent Gibbs left his family as he kissed them goodbye for the last time, despite a sinking feeling he shouldn’t. In the present, the NIS fights to retain control of the crime scene when an FBI task force is dispatched onto the scene. The NIS are kicked off the beach and forced to back off the case.
The team continues looking for links between the victims of the two shootings. The press is now calling the killer “The Sandman.” The team continues to press for clues and question the victim’s grandmother.
Meanwhile, Jethro is surprised by an unexpected visit from his father. It’s clear there is distance here as his father is concerned about his wellbeing. At one point, Jethro’s father pushes him to tell what happened to the man who killed his family. Jethro replies that the man has “disappeared” and won’t be seen again. His father isn’t shy about expressing his doubts about Jethro’s new role on the NIS team.
Lala continues to pick fights with Franks and Gibbs. The team gets permission to search the male victims computer at work. While searching, they find more of the skeletal totems discovered in Marie’s (the female victim’s) house and conclude there is a link between the two. At the forensics lab, the team is able to recreate a series of VCR tapes Marie made before she died, implying someone wanted to kill her. Meanwhile, the team sees someone breaking into the hotel room where the sniper shot at the bonfire. They discovers Bugs, contemplating jumping from the window, implying someone else may kill him if not. They take him down and bring him into captivity.
Time is running short as several other government agencies head to take back their lead suspect. Franks starts his interrogation while the rest of the team tries to find a way to link the case back to the military. Their efforts are hampered because they don’t get respect from other agencies, which are unwilling to include them. Gibbs calls Marie’s grandmother and learns that Marie thought that Bug’s cousin was in the military. Perhaps this is the military link they need.
Like its predecessor, the first two episodes of NCIS: ORIGINS focus on conscientious military investigators looking for truth and justice. However, NCIS: ORIGINS immediately separates itself from its more procedural, lower budget parent series. The prequel makes it clear ORIGINS will be a more serious show, evidenced by its high production values and weighty subject matter. Gone are the moments of absurdist humor from characters like forensics expert Abby Sciuto from the original series. So far, ORIGINS prefers to keep the tone dark and dramatic. The cast delivers mostly serviceable performances across the board as the actors settle into their roles.
The first two episodes of NCIS: ORIGINS have a moral worldview with patriotic elements honoring crime investigators. However, this positive outlook is mixed with some other, darker content. For example, the led female character is concerned about her job and future promotions. She thinks her boss is sexist and favors the male investigators over her. Also, she and the other investigators on the team seem to have a secular attitude. As a result, the first two episodes are marred by some crude foul language. Also, the story involves references to drug abuse and some undeveloped references to occult paganism. Finally, there’s a bedroom scene between the team leader and his wife. So, MOVIEGUIDE® advises extreme caution.