Mark Harmon as Gibbs on NCIS. (Photo: Monty Brinton, CBS)
It’s time for another stroll down memory lane with our favorite very special agents! This week we’re traveling back to 2005 and the third season of NCIS. Some of the best “aww” moments of this series have come when Leroy Jethro Gibbs is forced to deal with the occasional youngster who crosses his path. Given the loss of his only child, it’s always a heart-tugger in some way, but usually heart-filling as well. Join me on the couch as we watch season three episode seven, Honor Code. (And bring some popcorn with you!)
We open at the park, the merry-go-round organ is piping out music as we see an adorable young tyke, maybe 5 or 6 years of age, enjoying some time with his father. Adorable Tyke rejects the balloons his dad gets — he’s far too old for such things — but believes cotton candy is good at any age. I concur on the latter. He’s off to do a solo run on the merry-go-round and tells Dad they can dive into that cotton candy as soon as he’s done. Dad’s all, “Well, if there’s any left,” and AT is all, “I’ll be watching you” and does an abbreviated “pointing at his eyes then pointing at Dad’s eyes” thing as he hands over his backpack and climbs up to get on the ride. We see AT belted onto his horse, waving at his dad as he swings by.
We also get a few Notes of Impending Doom as we get a brief glimpse of someone else watching the merry-go-round. Someone with black sunglasses and an earbud. AT sees the guy talking to his dad as he swings around again, and after another swing around, he doesn’t see the man or his dad. Another swing, no dad. And still no dad. We feel his panic, because who hasn’t been on one end or the other of that misplaced-family-member scenario in some fashion? Adrenaline punch like no other.
AT races off the merry-go-round in search of his dad. All he finds is his abandoned backpack, dropped cotton candy and that red balloon wafting skyward. Thump!
And we’re into the awesome theme song and opening credits. I love watching the older openings, seeing clips from the past, a happier Gibbs, and Tony looking like a youngster.
We open with the baby-faced McGee of yore entering the Bull Pen of Orangey Goodness, bringing in coffee and telling Tony how he’s been helping their new teammate, Ziva, find the best routes into work. Tony is a bit miffed that she asked McGee and not him, but immediately decides she didn’t ask him because she’s intimidated by his awesomeness. This belief is short-lived as Ziva has once again done the ninja stealth thing and is right behind his desk. He reminds her that he asked her not to do that, and she’s all, “Oh, I was so intimidated by your presence that I must have forgotten.” Heh. She apologizes for not asking him first, saying if she knew he’d feel so emasculated — checking with McGee that she has that word right — she’d have asked him first. He grins, leans closer and tells her it will take a little more than ninja moves and an exotic accent to emasculate him. She leans in even more and, with lips pursed, says, “Only a little more? How disappointing.” I forgot how playful they were in the beginning. Or the kind of playful they were, I guess. I do miss that.
Screenshot from season three episode Honor Code. Michael Weatherly as Tony and Cote de Pablo as Ziva. NCIS airs on CBS on Tuesdays.
And then we hear those two words that we know are coming. Gear up! (OK, so it’s not “Grab your gear!” yet. Early days, still. But it’s a step forward from the “Grab your stuff!” of our previous season one recaps.) He explains they have a missing person from the carousel at the park. Not the child, as Ziva initially presumes, but the father, a Navy commander. He’s been missing an hour, and their rapid response, he explains to Ziva, is because his 6-year-old son was the one who called NCIS and he’s alone at the park waiting for them. Tony wins the “you drive” key toss, but tosses them to McGee, who tosses them back. Tony is all, “Afraid you’re going to run over another fire hydrant? Because I’m sure that wasn’t our fault. Wait, that’s right it was!” Oh, how young they all once were. Ziva takes the keys as Gibbs tells them to chill or they all walk. Tony makes a thumbs-up gesture and Gibbs fakes a chop to the groin, which Tony immediately covers, sheepishly saying he deserved that.
We shift to the park and AT sitting glumly on a park bench with his backpack. Via flashback we know he’s thinking back over the events of that day as Tony approaches. He introduces himself, commends AT for calling them and says he wants him to be brave and think back about what happened that day. AT remains silent. Gibbs approaches, Tony tells him AT must be in shock, only to be immediately corrected by AT. He tells Gibbs he was just waiting on Agent DiNozzo to actually ask him questions. And we realize Tony didn’t actually ask him anything. Heh.
Screenshot from season three NCIS episode Honor Code. Michael Weatherly as Tony, Joseph Castanon as Zach Turner, aka Adorable Tyke, Mark Harmon as Gibbs. NCIS airs Tuesdays on CBS.
Gibbs sits on the bench next to AT and asks him what he saw. AT calmly tells them he thinks his dad has been kidnapped. He describes the men, saying, amongst other things, that they were about DiNozzo’s age, and that they had iPods. Tony sits on his other side and explains to Gibbs that iPods are like Walkmen. Like Gibbs even knows what that is. Ha! AT pulls his own iPod out and plugs one earbud in, saying they were only listening with one ear, like that. Gibbs immediately frowns and both men stand. Gibbs tells AT they’ll be back in a few moments, then he and Tony confer, with Tony thinking they were feds. Gibbs is all, “Do you think they’d arrest a man and leave his 6-year-old son alone in the park?” Tony wonders if maybe Commander Dad took a walk, talks about the time that Senior (before he was known as Senior) left him in a Maui hotel and didn’t know until he got the room service bill two days later.
McGee and Ziva confer with Gibbs. McGee found out from his bosses that Commander Dad was working on a top secret project for the DOD. Ziva got the park service security tape. And you don’t think 2005 was that long ago, but seeing VHS videotape cartridges sure do make you feel like it was. Gibbs tells them to get hold of AT’s mom, tell her she can pick her son up at NCIS. McGee follows him, tells him that AT’s mom was killed in a car accident four years earlier. Gibbs says to get his next of kin then, only McGee continues to hurry after him, saying there isn’t anyone else. We get a glimpse of AT on the bench, then back to Gibbs, whose shoulders slump a bit. (Aww. See? I knew it!)
We shift to the Screen of All Knowing back in the bull pen, as Tony, Gibbs and Ziva watch the security footage. The bad guys are clearly pros as they keep their faces turned from the camera. There was no struggle, and Commander Dad seemed to go with them without any fuss. Gibbs surmises the baddies might have threatened his son, and maybe him leaving as he did was what kept his son safe, and left behind. McGee gives a rundown on Commander Dad. Turns out he’s a brilliant guy, two PhDs, which prompts McGee to being to wax rhapsodic over one of Commander Dad’s thesis papers, only to have Gibbs cut him off short and we get back to the facts. (I forgot how “probie” McGee really was. The baby face he sported that season adds to that as well.) CD was working on some kind of defense software with the project name “Honor” but as it’s classified, McGee hasn’t gotten more than that. He placed a call to the head of security with the defense firm CD was working with, but no return call. He decides to head over there about the same time Gibbs tells him that’s where he should be heading.
Meanwhile, Ziva and AT come in, back from spending time with a sketch artist. She comments on the boy’s remarkable memory, then tells Gibbs someone has come from “social security” to pick him up. Heh. Gibbs corrects her, saying social security is for older people. Because that will clear it right up. Gibbs says he will talk to AT and gets her started on putting BOLOs out on the sketches.
Gibbs tells AT he did a great job on the sketches. The boy sees a woman talking to one of the NCIS employees and asks if that’s social services. Gibbs says they’re going to look after him until they get his dad back. AT tells Gibbs he can take care of himself, prompting a smile from Gibbs and a tousle of AT’s hair. He says he’s sure AT could. AT tells him he figures he has to go with social services anyway, and Gibbs tells him he’s right. AT asks Gibbs what happens if he doesn’t find his dad. Gibbs assures him he will. Then he crouches down, hands AT his card and says if he needs anything, or just wants to talk, he can call him. (Aww.)
Screenshot from season three episode Honor Code. Michael Weatherly as Tony, Susan Budde as Laura Osgood (aka Buxom) and Sean Murray as McGee. NCIS airs on CBS on Tuesdays.
Tony and McGee arrive at the defense contractor, who seems surprised to see them so quickly, given they just discovered the break-in themselves. Uh, what break-in? Tony, McGee and we find out that they didn’t realize they’d been compromised until they went to boot up their servers that morning for maintenance. Since then they’ve been tracking down the virus. They know the hackers wanted the “Honor” software, but the key for that program is stored off the server. In fact, it’s an asymmetric algorithm key that is memorized, not stored anywhere. The buxom secretary who greeted our dashing agent duo upon their arrival serves coffee while they explain that they’re not there because of the data breach. But first, uh, who happens to be the guy who has that key memorized? Yeah, that would be Commander Dad.
In his car, Gibbs is fumbling with the earbuds, trying AT’s iPod, only to get a sudden blast of music in his ear right (heh) at the same time his phone rings. He yanks the earbud away and answers his phone. Tony brings him up to speed, and we learn that the Honor program was devised to break pretty much any encryption code out there. And with CD’s kidnapping, it’s a good bet that program has been stolen. Gibbs says he’ll be right there as soon as he drops off AT’s “pod thing.”
Then we see AT at a pay phone. What? No, not that there would be such a thing on a street corner, though, yeah, times they keep a-changing. But wasn’t AT with child protective services? What happened to the “protective” part? He’s calling Gibbs, who asks him if he’s calling about the pod thing he left on Gibbs’ desk. He says no, he’s calling because he saw the guy who took his dad. AT ran out of the social worker’s office to call Gibbs when he saw the guy and when Gibbs tells him to stay put, he says he can’t. The guy is leaving and AT is worried the guy will get away, and he’s the one who knows where AT’s dad is. He tells Gibbs to hurry and runs off down the street after the guy, leaving the phone dangling and his backpack on the ground. Gibbs spikes the gas as we see AT looking around for the guy, just as a hand covers AT’s mouth. Fade to black and white. (Well, there’s one question answered from the season one recaps. When did that start? At least by season three!)
Screenshot from season three episode Honor Code. Mark Harmon as Gibbs. NCIS airs on CBS on Tuesdays.
Back from commercial, we see Gibbs racing in his car, squealing to a stop in front of the social worker’s office. He’s heading in when he spies the dangling phone and backpack just down the street. As he runs toward that, a black SUV comes up the street and pulls to the curb just as a guy comes out from behind a wall with a struggling AT, trying to put him into the SUV. AT’s screams alert Gibbs, who raises his gun, tells the man to let go of the kid. The man fires at Gibbs instead, making him jump for cover. He shouts again, and AT punches the guy in crotch. I like this kid. He runs for it as Gibbs and Baddie exchange a few shots. Gibbs is better at it, pinging the guy who leaps into the SUV and they swerve off as AT makes it to Gibbs and he pulls him to safety. Gibbs gets one last shot at the back of the SUV while AT looks both scared and upset that the men who took his dad got away.
In the next moment, we’re in the bull pen and Gibbs is making a surgical glove balloon for AT as Director Jenny Shepard looks on. (Hi, Jenny! We miss you!) Apparently, balloons are totally cool when Gibbs is making them, if AT’s smile is any indication. Gibbs puts DiNozzo on tracking down the SUV, which Tony comments is hard to do with no plate number, so naturally Gibbs assigns him the task of tracking down every black SUV in the area. Gibbs tells AT to keep an eye on Tony, and with his nod, heads upstairs to talk to the director. AT heads over to Tony’s desk and holds him in steady regard. Heh. Tony says he didn’t think Gibbs meant the whole “keep an eye on” quite so literally, then AT says he couldn’t remember when Gibbs asked him, but he thinks he remembers the plate number right. We get a quick flashback of AT covering his ears because of the gunfire, seeing the SUV swerve by, the plates flashing in front of him as it did. He was scared before, he says, but he’s pretty sure he remembers most of them. Tony’s all, “My man!” He puts his palm up, asks AT to give him five. AT simply continues with the whole steady regard thing. Heh.
Screenshot from season three episode Honor Code. Mark Harmon as Gibbs and Lauren Holly as Jenny Shepard. NCIS airs on CBS on Tuesdays.
Upstairs, Jenny says she’s always admired the way he gets along with kids, and how he should have some of his own. (Hmm … I guess their time working, uh, very closely together in the field, that never came out? I stink at timelines, so I don’t know when we viewers learned about Gibbs’ first wife and daughter. But I’m surprised Jenny doesn’t know, if not as a former partner, then as the director.) Gibbs asks her if that’s an offer, calling her Jen. She laughs, calls him Jethro, says it was merely an observation. He tells her that the reason he likes kids is when they lie, they don’t have the guile to get away with it. That last part, he’s looking directly at her, and let’s just say the comment is a bit pointed. Ouch.
She tells him she’s been on a conference call with every alphabet agency in town and the loss of the Honor system is crippling their intelligence-gathering ability. She says they all want jurisdiction, but she told them she has her best agent working on it. They’re speaking in hushed tones that are a lot more intimate than would otherwise be normal in a workplace. But then, you know. These two. She says it was the same men who took CD that came after AT. He says he doesn’t think CD turned on his country or went willingly. She wants to know if that’s his “famous gut” speaking. He says no. AT is the reason he doesn’t think CD turned. We flip over to Abby Lab as Gibbs comes in, hoping for some good news. She starts raving about how amazing the defense contractor’s security system is, and his patience for all the lingo is pretty much nonexistent. Abby says suffice to say, no one can get into their system. Only someone who knew the system could disable it. So, an inside job. I immediately flash to the buxom secretary. First, because she’s the one no one would suspect. And why? It’s amazing how easy it is to distract folks — and by folks, I mean men, but not only men — with your boobs. Especially if you make a point to make them about as in-your-face obvious as you can. Men drool, possibly fantasize a little. Or a lot. Women aren’t immune either, they’re like “wow, honey, really? Try using those buttons. They’re on your blouse for a reason.” But everyone is distracted by them if you want them to be. And then they have no clue about anything that might be going on above that area. Because one can’t have both boobs and a brain. You know, if they even gave it that much thought. Because … boobs. So maybe she’s the one? Just a theory.
Abby explains that with passwords and log-in info, anyone who did anything in the system is ID’d by their log-in. Someone put a virus into the system in the wee hours of the morning, but they’ll know who did it by who logged in when. Abby’s oddball lab partner guy tells Gibbs that what was done came from CD’s terminal. (I totally forgot about this guy! Oooh … foreshadowing.) This earns a glare from Gibbs, but the guy perseveres, saying the data is clear. Gibbs turns away from him and back to Abby. The shutdown lasted an hour, which was long enough to snag the program and introduce the virus. McGee tells Gibbs that every employee has a high-level background and has been thoroughly vetted. As has CD, Gibbs reminds them, but McGee says it’s not looking for the man.
Tony is finishing up interviewing the employees, and we see him giving Buxom a lingering goodbye that naturally involves his business card. You know, in case she thinks of anything else. Late at night. Ziva joins him as they head back to the bull pen and we get a little byplay with Tony and AT, once again proving Tony is sadly mistaken if he thinks he’s swayed AT in his direction. AT heads off to the bathroom, then Gibbs comes in and Ziva tells him that she called in a few favors and they figured out who one of the two men who took CD might be. He’s an Italian mercenary, black ops. The reason they tried to nab AT was for leverage to get CD to talk. Or, Ziva comments, CD could have set that up himself to deflect suspicion. Gibbs warns her to keep her voice down, and she leans in closer, but says that’s how she’d have done it, that they shouldn’t be looking for a kidnapping, but a traitor. Gibbs says that doesn’t feel right to him. She counters that it doesn’t have to feel right to be right.
Screenshot from season three episode Honor Code. Mark Harmon as Gibbs and Joseph Castanon as Zach. NCIS airs on CBS on Tuesdays.
We shift to afterhours, and we’re in Gibbs’ basement viewing the current boat construction, with him and AT, who is wearing an oversize Navy T-shirt and being even more adorable. He tells Gibbs that he went on a boat ride once with his dad and another commander. His dad got seasick, which the other commander found funny, being as CD is Navy and all. He asks Gibbs again if he’s going to find his dad, and Gibbs says he will. AT asks him to promise, and Gibbs does. He asks AT if he’ll give him a hand on the boat. AT says he doesn’t know how, doesn’t want to ruin it. Gibbs hikes him up so he’s on the frame. He tucks him between his arms, hands him the sander (lathe?) and explains how he has to go with the grain of the wood. With his hands over AT’s, he shows him. (Come on, can I get a group awwwwww!)
The following morning, Ziva comes into the bull pen and shows McGee CD’s bank statements. Apparently, he cleaned them all out before heading to the park with his son. Doesn’t look too good. McGee agrees, saying Gibbs won’t like it. Ziva’s all, “Are we solving this case to please him?” Tony has rushed in and over to his desk. With the help of AT’s partial plate recall, he’s found the SUV. No GPS monitoring, but Tony’s done one better. It has a Lojack system, so he’s locked it down. Gibbs comes in, gives McGee the pat on the back, much to Tony’s dismay, and they all head off to the SUV location. Ziva wants to know where AT is.
We find out as we head down to Ducky’s Digs. Heh. He’s showing AT a coin trick. He offers to teach him, but AT has already figured out where the coin is. In Ducky’s other hand. So it is. Abby smiles when Ducky comments on AT’s madd observational skillz. Abby asks if that reminds Ducky of anyone. AT is already trying to perform the trick, and doing pretty well. Heh.
Screenshot from season three NCIS episode Honor Code. Cote de Pablo as Ziva and Michael Weatherly as Tony. NCIS airs Tuesdays on CBS.
The rest of the team has arrived and verified — from a distance, using optics — that the SUV is the one they were looking for. What with the rear window being shot out and all, it’s not all that tricky. While Gibbs and McGee fan out, Tony spies one bad guy still in the vehicle. It’s the Italian mercenary. Tony asks Gibbs if he should take him out, but Gibbs responds that he’s almost in position and to hold off. Tony and Ziva have a little back and forth, and she’s all, “I’ve got your back” and he’s all, “If anyone has anyone’s back, I have yours,” but then Gibbs radios that he’s in place as is McGee and it’s time to take the bad guys down. They storm the car, guns drawn, fling open the passenger door … and out droops dead mercenary. Fade to black and white.
We’re back in Ducky’s Digs, only no AT this time. We have dead mercenary on the table instead, and Ducky welcoming Ziva to the room, along with Gibbs. Ducky says the baddie had a bullet in his shoulder, likely from Gibbs, but the killing blow was the bullet to the head. He starts to explain what the burn marks mean that surround the bullet wound, only Ziva jumps in, says that was caused by the silencer, likely used in a hurry by an amateur. She goes on to explain how she’d have done it, and the myriad ways to kill someone without the manner of death being so obvious and lists a few of those methods as well. Ducky is so enthused by this, he says he really must have her over to dinner, how his mum would love to talk to her. Ha! Gibbs is all business, saying whoever is behind this is “cleaning house” that he became a liability after being seen trying to grab AT. Ziva posits her theory once again that CD is behind the whole thing, giving a list of guilty actions that point squarely in CD’s direction. She thinks it all fits together quite well. Gibbs just gives her a brief, semi-indulgent smile and heads out. “Or not,” she says to Ducky as they watch Gibbs leave.
In Abby Lab, Gibbs wants to know about the weapon they recovered from the SUV. She tells him how AT is a mini Gibbs and Gibbs actually gets the Austin Powers reference. Heh. She verifies which bullets came from which weapon and also notes that Chip the Lab Guy shaved off his (creepy) mustache. Gibbs heads out, not caring. Nor do we. He has a brief elevator convo with Director Jen, and they do that intimate-standing-too-close-convo thing again. She thinks CD isn’t looking so good, he thinks she’s itching to get back out in the field and being nosy, she thinks maybe he’s too caught up in the whole fatherless child angle, but then McGee interrupts and we learn that one of the defense contractor guys is there. We learn his name, and it’s the same guy who went sailing with CD. He stopped by CD’s house to get things for AT, but couldn’t get in due to the investigation, so he bought AT a Nintendo DS. (Seriously, it feels like 20 years and it’s only been 10.) CD’s Commander Pal and work buddy is hoping to get an update from Gibbs. He says he’s heard the rumors that CD is a suspect and staunchly defends the guy. He tells Gibbs they should be looking at the civilian employees, not just the military ones, then says he can take AT home with him, but Gibbs tells him the boy is in protective custody, leading Commander Pal to gather that they are after AT as well. Gibbs assures him AT is being well looked after and CP heads off to say his goodbyes. Tony comes in with a burn phone found in the SUV, and lo and behold, the other guy we met from the defense contractor’s number is on the call history.
We shift to the contractor’s office as Tony hands over the search warrant. We hear from Other Defense Guy how he has been nothing but cooperative, then Tony mentions the burn phone call. McGee logs into the system and can tell that someone tried to wipe out the log-ins during the time the theft happened. ODG says that lots of files were wiped out due to the virus. McGee is taking the computers with him, and Tony is taking the cuffed ODG, as well. ODG tells Buxom to call their lawyers, while I marvel about that time before everyone used the cloud and not everything was stored on a hard drive. Seriously. We’re all old.
Back at HQ, night has fallen as Ziva puts an apple on McGee’s desk as a small gesture for his help in getting her settled in her new city. She’s run the background on Other Defense Guy and says he’s got no flags, he’s completely “spick and Spam.” Tony corrects her and she’s all, “Span? What’s span?” Tony starts to respond, then realizes he has no idea and is all, “Back to work.” (So, where does “spick-and-span” come from? Enlighten me, dear couchmates.) She feels ODG is not involved, and Tony is all, “Oh, I’ll tell Gibbs right away. He likes hearing all our opinions.” Heh. She thinks Gibbs is distracted by AT, and Tony assures her that Gibbs is never distracted. He tosses her a file to take to Gibbs, then snags the apple off McGee’s desk, ignoring her command to put it back, telling her he’s delivering it to McGee personally.
Screenshot from season three NCIS episode Honor Code. Pauley Perrette as Abby and Michael Bellisario as Chip Sterling. NCIS airs on CBS on Tuesdays.
Elevator opens to Abby Lab, and we see Tony spring to a stand from a pretend-there’s a-chair seated position before entering the room. Eating the apple. Of course. McGee tells him that he thinks ODG put a tracker in CD’s laptop, but the virus has fragmented the files so badly, he can’t scrape enough data together to show positive proof. He says they should just interrogate ODG, but he’s already lawyered up, so no go there. McGee is in the Ziva camp of thinking maybe Gibbs’ thoughts on CD are swayed by Adorable Tyke. He says maybe Gibbs is wrong this time, making Abby gasp. Blasphemer! Tony turns and chucks the now eaten apple in the trash, barely missing an inadvertent block by Chip the Stone-Faced Lab Guy. Tony wants to know if he played ball, and Chip says he did. Tony grins, thinking they’ve found common ground, and we hear from Abby how Tony played point guard for Ohio State. (So, is this when they stopped talking about Tony playing football, per early eps, and from now on it’s just about his madd round ball skillz? Viewers? Anyone? Bueller?) He wants to know what conference Chip was in, only Chip is all, Uh, we didn’t have a conference. He says it was more of an “intermural thing.” Oh, Chip.
Tony exits and Abby sends Chip home for the day, then tells McGee she’s too good at her job. He thinks not. She tells him she didn’t just look at the weapon for fingerprints, she also checked the chambered bullets and found three usable prints. McGee doesn’t get why that’s not a good thing. Well, that would be because the fingerprints belong to CD. Fade to black and white.
We come back to Gibbs and AT still at it on the boat-sanding. AT offers up his dad as a helper when he gets back. (Serious aww.) Enter Director Jenny, who gets a “hubba hubba” under Gibbs’ breath for the lovely curve-hugging, neckline-plunging sparkly dress she is wearing. He guesses White House dinner. She says it was just a date. He says it must be some guy for her to go to that trouble, and she replies he could just compliment the dress and let the rest go. He tells her he hasn’t decided about the dress yet. We both know he’s lying. I didn’t forget how good their chemistry was, but at the same time, I forgot how good their chemistry was. That has been missing with his future liaisons for the most part. Come on, casting department. Get it right. Jenny asks for a moment, and Gibbs sends AT up to get a soda.
Screenshot from season three NCIS episode Honor Code. Joseph Castanon as Zach. NCIS airs on CBS on Tuesdays.
Jen wants to know how long Gibbs is going to keep ODG locked up, mentions CD’s fingerprints being on the weapon. Gibbs stands by his feeling that CD is innocent. Jen doesn’t want to hear about his famous gut again. We see AT pop down the stairs. Little Big Ears. Jen thinks CD might try to get his son again, and Gibbs says if she’s right, he’ll be there waiting for him. AT pipes up that his dad didn’t do anything wrong. Both adults look up to where AT is on the basement stairs. Jen tells him that it’s complicated and he says it’s not, that he “knows in his stomach” that his dad didn’t do anything wrong. Gibbs tells him that there is evidence saying maybe he did. AT remains steadfast in his father’s defense, then gets tearful as he reminds Gibbs that he promised to bring his dad home. This earns Gibbs a look from Jen.
We cut to the next day, Gibbs entering the bull pen. He tells McGee that AT is at Ducky’s. McGee tells him that he spent the better part of the night going through ODG’s computer and there’s nothing. He thinks it’s time to accept that CD is the likely bad guy. Gibbs isn’t ready to accept any such thing. He says they have to look at it a different way. Ziva enters with info on a different way, courtesy of a favor owed to her by someone at the CIA. McGee wants to know how many favors she’s owed and she asks him how many dates does Tony go on in a month? Heh. She brings up a photo on the Screen of All Knowing of Kosovo freedom fighters and points out the guys AT saw at the park, one of whom is down in Ducky’s Digs. Turns out they worked for a warlord. Their specialty was in getting information out of folks, aka torture. She tells McGee to look beyond the evidence on CD, that this is a covert op, and CD was framed as a diversion. McGee thinks maybe CD held out, didn’t give them the code. Ziva is quick to explain to McGee how anyone can be made to talk, even Gibbs. A trained agent, like herself, could get that code in a matter of hours. CD has been with them for two days. Gibbs decides to put Ziva in with ODG and see what she can get out of him. He gives her 40 minutes. But Tony races in just then, having tracked down the convenience store where our dead bad guy bought his burner phone. Abby has the tape down in her lab. Tony snags a muffin off McGee’s desk, takes one bite — ew, poppy seed — and tosses it back to him as he jogs after Gibbs. Oh, Tony. He’s like the big brother you want to hate for being such a jerk to you, but then he’s so charming you can’t help loving him anyway. At least, that’s what my younger sisters tell me.
Screenshot from season three NCIS episode Honor Code. Cote de Pablo as Ziva, Mark Harmon as Gibbs and Sean Murray as McGee. NCIS airs on CBS on Tuesdays.
In Abby Lab, Gibbs has her pause the tape when they see a woman buying four phones. She’s wearing a hat, but Tony comes in and asks Abby to zoom in on the part of the face we can see. And HA! I told ya! Buxom is in on it. And she just happens to be ODG’s assistant. Off they go to the defense contractor, where massive shredding of documents is happening as they enter. Gibbs leans over her, turns off the shredder. She’s all smiles and “Why, what’s going on here?” Ziva pulls a phone from her purse as Gibbs relates how they know about the four phones she purchased that have been involved in a kidnapping and a murder. Ziva finds phone numbers that match the kidnapper’s phone, prompting Gibbs to whisper in her ear, “You’re done.” He tells her the only way to help herself now is to help them. She just asks for a lawyer. The three agents step aside and Gibbs comments to them that CD has been gone 47 hours. If he’s not dead already, he soon will be. McGee says they need to get Buxom to cooperate. Ziva is all, “Oh, I can get her to do more than that.” Gibbs asks her how long that will take, and she says, “Not long.” Gibbs smiles and invites McGee to go grab some coffee with him, leaving Ziva behind. She smiles as she closes the door and turns to Buxom. Ruh roh.
We shift ahead to Buxom repeating to Gibbs and McGee what she apparently already told Ziva. She was part of a three-person team, the one on the inside. They put a trace on CD’s computers to get his password, planted the virus using his log-in. Then the other two grabbed CD to get the access code. She doesn’t know who is behind it, says they were contacted separately. She doesn’t know where he’s being tortured. Ziva leans in, and Buxom cracks, says they will kill her, but in the end, she tells them where. Ziva takes Gibbs’ coffee as she leaves the room. Heh.
Screenshot from season three NCIS episode Honor Code. Susan Budde as Laura Osgood and Cote de Pablo as Ziva. NCIS airs on CBS on Tuesdays.
We shift to the garage were CD is being held. The remaining baddie gets a call saying the code checked out and to proceed as planned. Baddie says fine, hangs up and screws the silencer onto his gun. We see CD bloody and strung up to a jack. A sound outside alerts Baddie, and he grabs his assault weapon and kicks the door shut to the back room where he and CD are located just as our team of very special agents busts through the door to the main part of the garage. The team takes cover as he shoots multiple rounds through the wall. Baddie assumes he must have gotten them as he comes out of the door, brandishing his gun. Gibbs takes him down quickly. Now all that’s left is to find out if CD is still alive.
He is. Gibbs cuts him loose as CD tells them he had to give them the code because they had his son. Gibbs assures him his son is safe and in the care of NCIS. CD says they gave him proof and nods to the table where AT’s iPod is lying. Gibbs flashes back to Commander Pal stopping by NCIS HQ to give AT that Nintendo. Apparently, he lifted the iPod then to use as coercion leverage.
Cut to Gibbs, Ziva and McGee intercepting Commander Pal as he exits a building. Imagine CP’s surprise when Gibbs takes him straight down to the ground, gun pointed at his face. He immediately puts his hands up, says he’s not resisting, then assures them he’d have never hurt AT, it was strictly business. Tony says he’ll be sure to mention that.
Screenshot from season three NCIS episode Honor Code. Joseph Castanon as Zach, with a milk mustache. NCIS airs on CBS on Tuesdays.
Cut to HQ and the pensive face of AT as he stares out through the window into the night. Gibbs joins him, sipping at his coffee, and AT sips at, we assume, hot chocolate, given the foam mustache he’s sporting afterward. Gibbs bumps his hip against AT’s shoulder, asks him if he’s OK. He says he guesses so, but he’s sad that the guy who did it was his dad’s friend. He was AT’s friend, too. He said he should have known, shouldn’t have been fooled. Milk-mustache face, very old eyes. Gibbs kneels down, tells AT that sometimes really bad people are really good at fooling you. AT wants to know if anyone ever fooled Gibbs. He says sure, more than once, then wipes the mustache off AT’s face. AT says one day he’s going to find them all and put them in jail. Gibbs smiles, says he believes AT will do just that.
All together now … AWW!
They both share a smile, then finally, CD enters the room, bandaged up, arm in a sling, and AT drops his cup, a 6-year-old once again as he races into his father’s arms, crying, saying he knew his dad wouldn’t leave him. Gibbs picks up the cup, watches the reunion. He flashes back to AT helping him sand his boat, and then the imagery morphs into him helping a little girl sand that same boat, big grin on his face.
Screenshot from season three episode Honor Code. Mark Harmon as Gibbs and Mary Matilyn Mouser as Kelly. NCIS airs on CBS on Tuesdays.
Fade to black and white.
Is that the first time we learn about Kelly’s existence? Hmm … I’m sure someone can tell me. I (clearly) don’t have that kind of recall. I didn’t come to this show until season seven, then went back and hopscotched through all the earlier seasons over time, and all of that was a long time ago. So my linear knowledge, beyond which agents die in which order, is pretty much zilch. Of course, on the good side, that means watching these older shows really is like watching them for the first time for me! I was glad to see Director Jenny in this episode, and very early Ziva.
What did you think? Drop me your thoughts to donna@donnakauffman.com. And while you’re at it, you can enter this week’s giveaway! An autographed copy of my brand new release, Starfish Moon, is up for grabs! Drop me an e-mail to donna@donnakauffman.com with “It’s a Starfish Moon Summer!” in the subject line, and you’re in!
The winner of last week’s giveaway and the brand new owner of a signed copy of that very book AND a bookmark charm designed exclusively for my Blueberry Cove series by Joyce Taber at The Cotton Thistle is? Come on down, Michelle Huerta! Drop me an e-mail to donna@donnakauffman.com with your address, and your prize will go right out to you.
I hope you’ll join me on the couch again next Wednesday for another summer vacation throwback episode. Next up? Season four episode nine: Twisted Sister. You can catch it on USA Network at 2 p.m. ET tomorrow (Thursday, June 15). In the meantime, drop by my FB author page where I post updates on all things NCIS season 14, along with a weekly Mark Harmon Moment … and other giveaways have been known to happen! See you there!
Donna Kauffman is the USA TODAY bestselling author of over 50 titles. (Yes, really! Scouts honor!) Born in Washington, D.C., she now lives in the Blue Ridge Mountains in southern Virginia surrounded by wildlife that thankfully no longer has anything to do with what’s going on in our nation’s capital. You can check all that out for yourself at www.donnakauffman.com. Also? She loves to hear from her readers (and NCIS viewers!) Yes, even you.