Review: NCISLA “MWD” (S13E16)

Hello everybody! Good to be back in the review chair again. There are so many storylines running around in the episode that I was intrigued as to where they all would take us. While Deeks is in court giving a deposition, Roundtree is still grappling with his experience of police racism, Sam is dealing with an aging parent and Callen is still trying to make sense of the Drona project, not to mention his deep fake scares that are plaguing him. Glad Nate Getz is back in the shrink seat again because these guys are going to need him! With Deeks off this week, and no Densi, I’ll probably keep this review short, but it’s important to document all these little moments in the lives of these characters for future episodes. R. Scott Gemmill put pen to paper for this episode and Suzanne Saltz has returned for her second job this season in the director’s chair.

This week’s case has to do with a kidnapped former military working dog named Master Sergeant Boomer. Peter Cambor’s character, Nate Getz, has been given a story arc so he could return to help members of the team for a few more episode, including the next two. It gives the show back some of the balance that was taken away when we lost a few of the old regulars, including Hetty. (I have to wonder if she will ever return.) Watching Cambor is liked being wrapped in a warm, comforting blanket.  I miss his fulltime presence in OPS.

Let’s talk first about some of those special moments I mentioned above.  I think they are all important and may take us down some rabbit holes moving forward.  We first find out that Roundtree is still traumatized over his experience with the LAPD but refuses to admit it. He probably thought, as a law enforcement agent himself that he would never have to be subjected to this sort of racial profiling, but it happened and the best way in his mind to move forward is to move on. I chuckled when Roundtree moaned that Deeks was trying to help him ‘move on’ by forcing him to watch the musical Hair and sing along with the songs. I can just see Deeks doing this, thinking he’s helping. But I think I have to side with Roundtree on this one…. sounds like it could be quite traumatizing. I think a session with Nate will be much more productive!  Deeks’ heart was in the right place though.  

The old familiar Callen/Sam bromance is back and their banter transported me again to early times when the two could really go at it. Each gives as good as they take and it was fun watching them razz each other again. Unfortunately, Sam has harder life problems to solve than fighting with Callen. His dad is facing cognitive problems and Sam needs him to move in with him, which means selling his beloved boat, Michelle. Not an easy decision to make but Sam knows it’s the right one.

Callen is facing his own set of personal family mysteries when he finds out from Kilbride his request for information from the government has been denied due to national security. Kilbride knows about the Drona program that Callen was subjected to as a child but he’s not able to help him, and Hetty is still mysteriously missing in action. Although, the Feds are trying to help him get to the bottom of his deep fakes stalkings, this problem has still not been resolved. So for this and all of the other traumas Callen is facing, Kilbride wants him to meet with Nate. Since Nate has been working with Hetty, Kilbride suggests that Callen may find meeting with Nate could be illuminating in more ways than one. Callen is amused by Nate’s spa-like office but gets right down to business by asking about Hetty in Syria. Loved the Shakespeare/Sherlock Holmes references, keeping Hetty as mysterious as ever. Nate is still concerned over the deep fakes by Katya and suggests that what is going on with Hetty could be related. By the end, Callen hasn’t been assured by his visit with Nate and wonders what else he has to worry about as Nate presses him on the Drona project. Nate’s assessment is poignant, and touching. He believes Callen should know the truth of his existence and agrees to help him uncover his childhood memories. Maybe we will finally get to the bottom of Callen’s problems, so I’m really looking forward to where all this is leading to.

There was a case in there interspersed through all these character insights…. Boomer the former military police dog has been kidnapped and the team was called in to follow all the leads and break open the case.  Whether they were dealing with a sarcastic ex-boyfriend or drug traffickers trying to get the dog off the streets, the team goes through their paces and finds the criminals that have put a bounty on the dog. Fortunately, the dog is found alive and well or this would have been a very hard review to write. But instead, it ended with an exciting rescue and a sweet jab from Kensi about her own furry mate.  Case closed.

It looks like we have a new agent in OPS now. Is Shyla Dahr going to become a regular and if so, do we really need her? She seems to effortlessly fit in with the other team members and showed just the right amount of intensity. She also seems to know how to work Kilbride, which is a plus. Not sure what itch she will fill at this point, so I guess we will just have to wait and find out what the future hold for this new member of OSP.

This was really an episode of special moments (as Dave Kalstein used to call them) delving into the lives of these characters that we have come to know and love.  The case was just window dressing to help link the storyline together.  We have had a few shows like this over the years and I enjoyed finding out more about what’s going on inside the crew, which is so often overshadowed by the case storylines. I enjoyed seeing Gemmill filling in some of those blanks.

So what did you think of this episode?  Let us know down in the comments and don’t forget to return this week for Deeks’ Surf Log and Kensi’s Journal. See you next week!