Throughout its massive airing on TV networks, NCIS brought together a long list of defining moments. While NCIS is a procedural TV show that focuses on the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, decades of NCIS The characters are at the center of the series and their stories serve as milestones in the franchise’s journey. The series’ ability to create genuinely shocking moments while introducing new personalities on and off the show NCIS the story makes it all work, from Sasha Alexander’s Kate Todd to Mark Harmon’s Leroy Jethro Gibbs.
The team NCIS season 22’s lineup – Katrina Law’s Jessica Knight, Gary Cole’s Alden Parker, Wilmer Valderrama’s Nick Torres – could take over the TV series because their predecessors were cast out with intent and purpose, allowing audiences to justify a new setup of special agents. Many of NCIS’ Defining moments are those in which characters’ positions are in fluxprovoking the team’s collective processing and honest conversations about change, the backbone of the series’ longevity. The fluid rotation of familiar faces defines the series, allowing it to have a lasting impact.
10
Ari kills Kate Todd
NCIS Season 2, Episode 23, ‘Twilight’
One of the most pivotal moments in the overall story is Kate’s shocking death in NCIS season 2. Kate is targeted by Ari Haswari (Rudolf Martin), a rogue Mossad double agent who is holding Kate, Ducky (David McCallum) and Gerald (Pancho Demmings) hostage in NCIS season 1. After their initial meeting, Ari orchestrates several run-ins with Kate, tormenting her while exuding charm and refusing to admit he’s the villain.
At the end of season 2, Just when it looks like Ari is going to shoot Gibbs, he redirects and kills Kate while she’s on the roof with her NCIS partners. Ari puts a bullet into Kate’s forehead, killing her instantly and leaving viewers stunned. Alexander wanted to leave the series due to its demanding production schedule and rather than give Kate a lackluster exit. NCIS established that no character was safe.
Her death and Ari Haswari’s storyline cleverly ushers in Cote de Pablo’s Ziva David – Kate’s replacement. Ziva could have been a guest character who appeared in a few episodes and was never seen again. Instead of, NCIS intertwined Ziva’s story with Kate Todd’s departure as Ari’s half-sister, who finally deals him the fatal blow that redeems Kate’s death, shooting the most important NCIS antagonist in Gibbs’ basement to protect the agent in charge.
9
NCIS reveals Leroy Jethro Gibbs’ past
NCIS Season 3, Episodes 23 and 24, “Hiatus Part I” and “Hiatus Part II”
In NCIS season 3, the series reveals critical elements of the Navy’s past when Leroy Jethro Gibbs is in a coma in the double episode of “Hiatus”. After suffering an explosion aboard a Navy ship, Gibbs is unresponsive in the hospital. The team worries for the life of their fearless leader while Gibbs remains unconscious. Details of his life and experiences then begin to come together, adding a new layer of complexity to Harmon’s brash supervisory character.
Revealing what happened to Gibbs’ wife and daughter in NCIS changed the entire story of the shooter, leaving an indelible impact on the series and establishing the NCIS: Origins prequel.
In “Hiatus Part II”, Jenny Shepard (Lauren Holly) reveals that Gibbs had a wife and child, Kelly and Shannon, who he lost after a horrific murder. Gibbs’ family agreed to testify against a drug dealer named Pedro Hernandez, who killed Shannon and Kelly’s bodyguard while he was driving, with both mother and daughter dying from injuries sustained in the accident. Revealing what happened to Gibbs’ wife and daughter in NCIS changed the entire history of scout snipe, leaving an indelible impact on the series and establishing the NCIS: Origins prequel.
8
Major Case Response Team Loses Director Jenny Shepard
NCIS Season 5, Episodes 18 and 19, “Judgment Day Part I” and “Judgment Day Part II”
In NCIS Season 5, the Major Case Response Team (MCRT) loses its director, Jennifer Shepard. Jenny is an empathetic leader who works well with the team, but examples from the director’s past haunt the character. In NCIS Season 5, Episode 18, ‘Judgment Day Part I,’ Jennifer Dies when she is outnumbered 5 to 1 in a shootout that takes place at an unknown restaurant in the Mojave Desert while she is in California for a funeral related to her murder.
Jenny’s death is a defining moment in the series because it leads to a significant shift in power. Rocky Carroll character Leon Vance takes over as temporary director of NCIS in season 5 while Jenny is hunting La Grenouille, and he officially takes Jher’s place in season 6 after his death. Vance’s entry into the series was directly related to a connection between Rocky Carroll and Mark Harmon before NCIS. The actors were on the CBS medical drama Chicago Hope before Harmon joined the police procedural in 2003.
7
Assassins kill Eli David and Jackie Vance
NCIS Season 10, Episode 11, ‘Shabbat Shalom’
In “Shabbat Shalom”, assassins hired by Ilan Bodnar (Oded Fehr) carry out the assassination of Mossad director Eli David (Michael Nouri) and kill Leon Vance’s wife, Jackie Vance (Paula Newsome). Jackie and her husband are having dinner with Ziva and her father, and Ziva leaves to talk to Gibbs. She hears gunshots coming from inside the house and runs after the killer.
Jackie and Eli’s deaths remind audiences that NCIS agents and their families are always in danger.
When she returns, Gibbs and Tony have arrived, and when Ziva inspects the crime scene, she finds her father mortally wounded. Ziva screams”Tab,” which means father, and runs to the director’s side. Ziva crying, cradling her father’s body in the corner, is a frightening and defining moment for the series. The deaths of Jackie and Eli remind the audience that NCIS agents and their families – especially someone like Eli David – are always in danger.
6
Ziva leaves NCIS
NCIS Season 11 Episode 2 ‘Past, Present and Future’
In season 11, Cote de Pablo left NCIS, and the series said goodbye to her character. Ziva has a strong background at MCRT, working with Gibbs’ team of NCIS seasons 3 to 11. Ziva’s exit in “Past, Present, And Future” is memorable because, after years of on-and-off romance between them, Ziva and Tony kiss before Ziva boards a plane. The moment creates an epic romance story for the couple, even though it was the last time they were on screen together in NCIS.
Ziva NCIS The departure is significant because it leaves a huge gap in the team. Tony is close to Ziva, but so are Gibbs, Abby (Pauley Perrette) and McGee (Sean Murray). His departure shakes the team as they deal with his permanent absence, preventing others from using his desk. While Emily Wickersham replaced Ziva as Eleanor Bishop, there was a huge Ziva-shaped hole in the MCRTwhich marked Tony’s departure a few years later.
5
Tony discovers he has a daughter
NCIS Season 13, Episode 24, ‘Family First’
The season 13 finale also sets up the story with Michael Weatherly NCIS come out like Tony DiNozzo. Tony discovers that Ziva’s family was attacked and that his former partner is gone. Mossad director Orli Elbaz (Marina Sirtis) arrives at the Naval Shipyard to personally tell Tony that he has a daughter named Tali. The storyline was a huge shock and a nice send-off for Weatherly’s character.
Elbaz explains that Ziva assured her that Tony is Tali’s father and turns her son over to NCIS for Tony to raise. Feeling the weight of pain and responsibility of his new role as a father, Tony decides to step out of the line of fire to take care of Tali. He plans to move to Paris and says goodbye to the team, leaving a lasting mark on the series as NCIS says goodbye to one of the original members of MCRT do NCIS pilot.
4
Ducky reduces his duties as a doctor
NCIS Season 15, Episode 3, “Exit Strategy”
When Ducky reduces his medical examiner duties to NCIS In the 15th season, the entire team feels this, leaving a mark on the franchise. Ducky has a worthy replacement in Brian Dietzen’s Jimmy Palmer. That said, his successor has trouble with the reality of Dr. Mallard’s new opportunities in the “Exit Strategy.” While Ducky’s arc in the episode initially appears to be the character’s departureit simply prepares you to step away from your ME duties. McCallum continues with the series as NCIS historian.
When Ducky takes another step back NCIS season 19, episode 5, ‘Face the Strange’, Jimmy has another adverse reaction. Palmer talks about how everyone is abandoning him, but Ducky takes the time to remind him that change is the essence of life. It’s one of Ducky’s best quotes in NCIS and spoke perfectly of his permanent departure from the series a few years later, when David McCallum passed away at age 90.
3
Abby Sciuto moves to London
NCIS Season 15, Episode 22, ‘Two Steps Back’
Another great moment for NCIS was the departure of the team’s Chief Forensic Scientist, Abby Sciuto. After Abby and Clayton Reeves (Duane Henry) are robbed at gunpoint on the street, they suffer brutal gunshot wounds, killing Reeves and leaving Abby in the hospital. It turns out it was all a deliberate attack on the scientist, planned by Robert King (Peter Jason) to murder Abby.
Deeply affected by Reeves’ death, Abby moves to London to develop a charity linked to her former colleague. Perreta NCIS the departure was monumental for the series for several reasons. First, Perrette was with NCIS 16 years ago, and his absence is as significant as Gibbs’ or Ziva’s. “Two Steps Back” and the events leading up to the episode also define NCIS because it reminds you of Mark Harmon and Pauley Perrette NCIS rivalry, which greatly influenced his choice to leave the series.
2
MCRT discovers that Ziva is alive
NCIS Season 16, Episode 24, ‘Daughters’
After his reported death, one of the most memorable moments NCIS Until now it was news that Ziva David was alive. After the attack on her family’s farm, Ziva faked her own death. Node NCIS In the season 16 finale, the agent appears in Gibbs’ basement after it is heavily implied that she is alive in NCIS season 16, episode 13, ‘Her’.
Ziva’s survival changed everything for NCIS. It brings back one of its saddest stories, Tony’s departure from the series. After Ziva resolves her affairs and returns for some outings in season 17, the former Mossad agent exits the series again, leaving to reunite with her daughter and the father of her child. Ziva’s return to NCIS set up Tony and Ziva NCIS spinoff story, which will be available to stream on Paramount+ next year.
1
Leroy Jethro Gibbs retires
NCIS Season 19, Episode 4, ‘Great Wide Open’
However, the most decisive moment in the last few seasons of the series is the retirement of the central defender. NCIS character Leroy Jethro Gibbs. After playing the character for nearly two decades of his life, Harmon left NCIS in season 19. After a case takes Gibbs and McGee to Alaska, the agent in charge decides to retire and remain in Naktok Bay.
Impressively, one of the most fluid and expertly executed transitions in NCIS that’s when Gary Cole’s Alden Parker replaces Gibbs. The laid-back FBI agent is a stark contrast to Harmon’s reserved, silent type. The difference in personality creates minimal basis for comparison, and Cole has been a fantastic replacement. Furthermore, although Harmons’ story was no longer continued in the original, NCIS explores his story in a prequel about Gibbs’s beginnings at NIS, the NCIS: Origins derived story.