Easily one of the best episodes of this season. I'd say it was on par with the sixteenth episode, which was the 'Bête Noire' episode. As a season finale, it was different than what I was expecting, but in a good way. I guess I was expecting something big to happen, and the season, ending on a cliffhanger, and the former was somewhat the case, depending on how you look at it. There wasn't a cliffhanger, though; again, depending on how you look at it.
My biggest takeaway had nothing to do with the episode itself, per se. I've mentioned it a couple of times (https://trakt.tv/comments/414091, https://trakt.tv/comments/442756) previously. I saw the few beginning seconds of what I've been thinking was this episode. It had the NCIS signature black-and-white flashes with the camera clicking noise, and I'm pretty sure it was a recap of a previous episode. Here's the thing: it wasn't this episode. All this time, I thought that episode was this one. I must've assumed it was this season finale, not fully noticing that it wasn't, I guess. Awkward.
Anyway, the prediction I made in my review of the sixteenth episode was correct. Ari Haswari IS a Mossad agent, just not a former one. I guess it makes sense that he was/is undercover. At the same time, that throws a wrench into the works. If he's not a full-on antagonist, the conflict with him and our main characters being seemingly over, what will cause 'that' to happen in the second season, and then, him, subsequently hunted down for it?
I'm 90% sure the reason he gets hunted down is because of 'that' event, but I could be wrong. Given that he's, in actuality, an undercover Mossad agent, I'm just curious to know what prompts 'that' event. He could end up siding with those he's supposed to be taking down from the inside. Then again, I think 'that' event was a deception. So, my main prediction is that he was willing to help with it, even at the expense of himself. Who knows. It could be a combination of him "becoming" a "bad guy" and genuinely caring enough to assist. I'm pretty sure I don't know all the details on 'that' event other than the pivotal point.
We saw a much different side of Gibbs. A side we saw for the first time. According to the characters and how Tony didn't seem taken aback, this must not have been the first time he's been that angrily fixated. It's new to us, though. Mark Harmon's performance as Gibbs in this episode was decent.
I was surprised that Marta was working with Ari. I guess it makes sense, in hindsight. Ari had all the cards in this episode. If he wasn't undercover or if he didn't intend to abide by his job, this would've been the end of the show. He would've won.
I liked the appearance by Agent Fornell. I'm interested to know more about his relationship with Gibbs. I'm assuming it's that they've crossed paths before, and the writers may not have intended there to be more to that. But it seems more than that, regardless of the initial intentions. And this is the type of show where anything personal concerning the characters is pretty much unknown, so they can have Fornell and Gibbs having known each other since they were young, or anything, at some point.
This season's finale was good. It didn't end on a cliffhanger, and it ended with a literal bang, almost. The ending was pretty straightforward, and the episode itself was pretty good. As far as being the season finale is concerned, and even though it somewhat seemed lackluster, I don't think that mattered too much. It was entertaining, and I'm pretty sure the storyline with Ari Haswari isn't "concluded" for good yet, so I'm interested to see what else will happen regarding him in the second season.
Review by LineageBlockedParent2022-02-05T20:11:47Z
"Rule Number 7, always be specific when you lie."
Easily one of the best episodes of this season. I'd say it was on par with the sixteenth episode, which was the 'Bête Noire' episode. As a season finale, it was different than what I was expecting, but in a good way. I guess I was expecting something big to happen, and the season, ending on a cliffhanger, and the former was somewhat the case, depending on how you look at it. There wasn't a cliffhanger, though; again, depending on how you look at it.
My biggest takeaway had nothing to do with the episode itself, per se. I've mentioned it a couple of times (https://trakt.tv/comments/414091, https://trakt.tv/comments/442756) previously. I saw the few beginning seconds of what I've been thinking was this episode. It had the NCIS signature black-and-white flashes with the camera clicking noise, and I'm pretty sure it was a recap of a previous episode. Here's the thing: it wasn't this episode. All this time, I thought that episode was this one. I must've assumed it was this season finale, not fully noticing that it wasn't, I guess. Awkward.
Anyway, the prediction I made in my review of the sixteenth episode was correct. Ari Haswari IS a Mossad agent, just not a former one. I guess it makes sense that he was/is undercover. At the same time, that throws a wrench into the works. If he's not a full-on antagonist, the conflict with him and our main characters being seemingly over, what will cause 'that' to happen in the second season, and then, him, subsequently hunted down for it?
I'm 90% sure the reason he gets hunted down is because of 'that' event, but I could be wrong. Given that he's, in actuality, an undercover Mossad agent, I'm just curious to know what prompts 'that' event. He could end up siding with those he's supposed to be taking down from the inside. Then again, I think 'that' event was a deception. So, my main prediction is that he was willing to help with it, even at the expense of himself. Who knows. It could be a combination of him "becoming" a "bad guy" and genuinely caring enough to assist. I'm pretty sure I don't know all the details on 'that' event other than the pivotal point.
We saw a much different side of Gibbs. A side we saw for the first time. According to the characters and how Tony didn't seem taken aback, this must not have been the first time he's been that angrily fixated. It's new to us, though. Mark Harmon's performance as Gibbs in this episode was decent.
I was surprised that Marta was working with Ari. I guess it makes sense, in hindsight. Ari had all the cards in this episode. If he wasn't undercover or if he didn't intend to abide by his job, this would've been the end of the show. He would've won.
I liked the appearance by Agent Fornell. I'm interested to know more about his relationship with Gibbs. I'm assuming it's that they've crossed paths before, and the writers may not have intended there to be more to that. But it seems more than that, regardless of the initial intentions. And this is the type of show where anything personal concerning the characters is pretty much unknown, so they can have Fornell and Gibbs having known each other since they were young, or anything, at some point.
This season's finale was good. It didn't end on a cliffhanger, and it ended with a literal bang, almost. The ending was pretty straightforward, and the episode itself was pretty good. As far as being the season finale is concerned, and even though it somewhat seemed lackluster, I don't think that mattered too much. It was entertaining, and I'm pretty sure the storyline with Ari Haswari isn't "concluded" for good yet, so I'm interested to see what else will happen regarding him in the second season.