Critic’s Rating: 4.5 / 5.0
4.5
No, no, no — what the hell was that, NCIS: Origins? After all that build-up, you’re just going to do that to the audience? (Trying to not give it away just yet)
Honestly, isn’t that kind of ending a little cliche at this point? It seems like nowadays, every single show pulls that move as a “Hail Mary.”
One thing is for sure: NCIS: Origins will never be the same again. While change is always inevitable, what form it takes, whether good or bad, remains to be seen.
It could be my imagination, but every CBS show this season seems to have the same kind of Finale. Did everyone see the Fire Country Finale? It seems like the network is cutting costs by cutting characters.
It wasn’t just that one particular thing at the end, either. Everything from the beginning to the end of “Cecilia” was one life-altering event after another.
NCIS: Origins Is Beginning the Transition to More Familiar Faces for NCIS Fans
I’m still processing the Finale, so please bear with me. It was so much in the span of just a few seconds, and I still can’t get the image out of my head.
Let’s kick it off with Gibbs. First, as soon as I heard Ruth’s voiceover, I did that thing where you involuntarily sob.
NCIS: Origins Season 1 Episode 10 was one of the best episodes of the entire season. It wasn’t packed with gunfire and action. There wasn’t a kidnapping, or a murder, or anything of that nature.
It was just Ruth helping to pull Gibbs out of the darkest time in his life. Just seeing everything Gibbs went through all at once really put things into perspective, especially how broken of a man he was.
The poor guy kept taking hit after hit on the show, from involuntarily making Lala an accomplice in his revenge. Finding out his support group leader was a serial killer, and finally, having all his pain laid bare so good ol’ Lara Macy can be JAG.
Speaking of the future members of the NCIS, that was quite the blast from the — well, not past, obviously, but a fun connection to the original show.
It makes me wonder if we’ll see her pop up more next season after the events of this episode.
The Finale stuck to the history of her investigating Gibbs, but there’s also the fact that she spent a decade or two protecting him without him ever knowing.
Side note: Does anyone else ever forget that NCIS is a spinoff of JAG? Somehow, it always slips my mind that NCIS: Origins is a spinoff of a spinoff of a spinoff — the buck stops here.
Lara Macy wasn’t the only callback — callforward? — in the Finale, either, with the writers working in one last little teaser for the future right there at the end. Oh, Diane.
To be fair, all these things, like being investigated and meeting Diane, were inevitable. At some point, I imagine we’ll catch up to the backdoor pilot NCIS episode of JAG if NCIS: Origins sticks around long enough.
Quick question for the die-hard NCIS fans out there: Did I miss something about Diane? I thought she worked for the IRS. Did she sell houses first? I must’ve missed something.
It’s fine either way. I’m just happy there is some hope for Gibbs’s future because things are looking bleak as hell at the NIS precinct.
Mike’s Team Is Growing Smaller by the Episode With one Member No Longer Willing to Risk His Life
First of all, I almost had to be held back during this episode. I was fully ready to reach through the screen and pull out Toby Huss’s (Fatal Attraction) Regional Director Ronald Barrett to beat his perverted ass.
Yes, my reaction is hostile, but that man is DISGUSTING. I could not believe what I was seeing and hearing. Did he really try that with Lala and then again with Mary Jo? Mary Jo??
Are you out of your mind? I could’ve killed that character — I really could have. However, the most heartbreaking thing was seeing how unfazed Mary Jo and Lala were.
You could see in their eyes that they were giving each other “The Look” that says, “Watch that man’s hands.”
He needs to go away. He can’t be there when NCIS: Origins Season 2 premieres. I can’t. I’ll throw something at my TV and shatter that poor thing.
Say what you will about Wheeler and his temper; at least he knew better than to ask Mary Jo about her skirt fifty times.
That whole precinct will be the saddest place in the world when the show returns.
Not to mention poor Randy. I agreed with Gibbs and Lala. They never should have told Randy what happened with Pedro Hernandez. He seemed completely shaken to his core.
I guess it will be a minute before we see the Randy from NCIS: Origins Season 1 Episode 8 that had a few of us wide-eyed and clutching our pearls at “Take No Prisoners” Randy.
After an incredible season of getting to know these wonderful characters, the ending was both amazing and horrible.
They couldn’t have killed Lala off during the first half of the season when we couldn’t stand her? It would’ve been the polite thing to do.
As Incredible as the Conclusion Was, It Was Still a Cliched Ending That the Writers Could Have Worked Around
Yep, I’m ready and raring to go. As a critic, that was a phenomenal finale to a premiere season. It solidified how high the stakes are for every character going forward.
The writers did a perfect job of building Lala into this complex character that viewers didn’t know what to do with.
Then, halfway through the season, they flipped the script on us by turning the whole plot on its head with the Gibbs revelation.
Suddenly, audiences couldn’t get enough of her — myself included.
Her reaction to Gibbs’s actions was a much-needed wake-up call. It allowed him to see that he already had a new family willing to be there for him, and he hadn’t even realized it.
I’ll just say it: This really was the story of her. Gibbs’s (Austin Stowell) entire life rested in Lala’s hands. She saved his life and future. So, of course, she had to be killed off, right? Wrong.
As an audience member, I found the conclusion dramatic and intense. It guaranteed that the NCIS: Origins Finale would still be floating through fans’ minds into the Fall.
Sure, we could use the “Gibbs never mentions her on NCIS” argument to explain why the show killed her off, but that is weak sauce.
I also don’t want “Then he never would have gotten with Diane, and the whole timeline would be messed up.” First off, this isn’t Avengers: Endgame.
There are a million different ways the show could have worked around Lala never being mentioned on NCIS. It’s called being creative. This truly felt like a cop-out.
Why did it have to be a random car crash? They had the perfect setup with Flaco when Lala pointed her gun at his mom. The first thing out of my mouth was, “Oh God, he’s gonna kill Lala later on.”
At least it wouldn’t have been a random accident, but Lord knows Gibbs doesn’t need yet another murder revenge plan on his hands.
To be honest, I’m mostly bitter boots because I really did come to love Mariel Molino’s (Promised Land) Lala as a character. She brought a necessary balance to Gibbs and Mike’s masculinity — not toxic. They’re just very manly.
NCIS: Origins Is a Series That Will Never Hold Back When It Comes to Crafting a Compelling Story — No Matter How Heartbreaking
Speaking of Mike, this might’ve been one of the only episodes that didn’t feel like “The Mike Franks Show.”
Also, Lala is great, but damn, what she said to Mike (Kyle Schmid) about Tish was a really, really low blow.
It seemed like those two were going to come to blows at some point. I don’t blame Gibbs for turning himself in after all that. The East Coast could hear Lala and Mike going at each other.
Honestly, those scenes made me suspicious that something was going to happen to Lala. It was like the writers wanted her to get out everything she needed to say before she died.
It’s so hard to get the image of the car rolling with Lala in it out of my head.
So, was the Finale brilliant writing? Without a doubt. Did I fully hate it? With every fiber of my being. It was beautiful and horrifying at the same time. Did anyone else cry?
Suffice it to say, despite the initial skepticism, CBS‘s NCIS: Origins stands out amongst its sister shows as a series that is not going to hold back from telling an incredible story.
I don’t know about you, but even after all the tears, I definitely still want NCIS: Origins to stick around for a long time.
Unless something happens to Mary Jo — then I’m out. Someone else will have to review the show because I will be too busy cussing the writers out.
So, let us bid NIS Agent Cecilia “Lala” Dominguez farewell. She will be missed by many viewers, and especially by the team she left behind.
Is it any wonder this is the story Gibbs never tells?
Unfortunately, there is still a lot of sadness yet to come as we will have to watch every character’s reaction to Lala’s death when CBS NCIS: Origins returns in the Fall.
Did you suspect Lala was going to get killed off?
Are you looking forward to seeing the start of Gibbs and Diane’s marriage?
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