SPOILER ALERT: The following contains spoilers for NCIS: Origins Season 3, Episode 4.
NCIS: Origins Season 3, Episode 4 is an example of good character-driven storytelling, and how well-rounded the CBS show is. What’s made the prequel stand on its own two feet is that it tells the origin stories of so many different characters, not just Gibbs. “Shimmy Shimmy Ya,” while awkwardly titled, is really the origin story for a character who’s not with NCIS at all.
The plot involves Gibbs’ boat-making being interrupted by a kid hiding out in the shed, who turns out to be the ne’er do well son of a general. Jack Hale has stumbled into a murder plot, and it’s up to NCIS and the FBI to get him out of it, while also dealing with Jack’s parental issues. This case of the week is only sort of military-related; the killer is an ex-gang member who severed a few heads, then murdered the cleaning lady who took photos of him, and is now after Jack for processing said photos. But NCIS: Origins makes it work, because of the effort put into developing Jack and the character dynamics around him. By the time he shares a reunion hug with his estranged dad, it may be obvious, but the audience is happy to see it anyway.
There are a lot of different parts to play with that the script finds ways to connect together. The surprise of the FBI turning up means that Hannah Barefoot gets more than a cameo appearance as Jo Swanson, and Sean Harmon also returns as her partner Casey Bloom. Both actually have a decent role to play in the plot, plus the relationship between Swanson and Mike Franks is further developed. One of the best asides in the whole hour is when Bloom, unprompted, decides to announce to Swanson and Franks that he’s supportive of their relationship. Harmon plays it perfectly.
Yet there’s also Lala Dominguez paying another visit to Flaco so they can briefly remind each other about the Manny situation, and the scene doesn’t exist just for that; he actually names the killer for Lala and Franks. And Lala has a great scene with Jack in the darkroom, in which she encourages his interest in photography by giving him her camera. Even Cliff Wheeler has his moment when Origins reminds viewers that as a father, Wheeler has a different perspective on Jack’s situation than anyone else does. If Episode 4 had Herm and Gary Callahan, it would have everything.
Ultimately, though, this is Jack’s story and guest actor Freddie O’Donahue is the real star. The pivotal moment in the fourth act is when Jack escapes custody, which is well-written because NCIS: Origins plays into the fact that audience knows that’s going to happen. The script has Gibbs pick up on it almost immediately, which means the viewers don’t waste time waiting for the characters to catch up. And Jack’s choice to use himself as bait to catch the killer is stupidly noble; it’s a bad idea but it shows an awful lot of growth from the smart-alec kid whom Gibbs first caught in the shed. (Amusingly, one of the episode’s few missteps happens early when Gibbs doesn’t quickly catch on to the fact that Jack isn’t a 22-year-old realtor, which fans also immediately know. But the escape scene makes up for that.)
“Shimmy Shimmy Ya” thus captures the real magic of NCIS: Origins. It’s everyone’s beginning, whether it’s Gibbs (who is motivated by Jack to call his own father), Jack, or even the beginning of the Franks and Swanson romance. Guest characters and supporting characters are not props just to move a story along. Everyone matters.
The only thorn in the episode’s side has less to do with the episode and more with its marketing. Origins has settled into the formula of having scenes with present-day Gibbs bookending each story, doing out clues about its 2026 mystery, and that works. Ellie Bishop returns in this hour and her asking about Lala is a brief but appreciated way to tie the two stories together. The issue is that the promos before this episode focused entirely on Gibbs’ reunion with Bishop. It’s the biggest example yet that there has to be a middle ground between the NCIS cast returns and the Origins part, because this show deserves better than only promoting the guest stars, even if they are welcome returns. Hopefully, CBS will work out a more well-rounded approach going forward, because the episode itself is very well-rounded indeed.
NCIS: Origins airs Tuesdays at 10:00 p.m. ET/PT on CBS. Photo Credit: Courtesy of CBS.
Article content is (c)2020-2026 Brittany Frederick and may not be excerpted or reproduced without express written permission by the author. Follow me on Twitter at @BFTVTwtr and on Instagram at @BFTVGram. For story pitches, contact me at tvbrittanyf@yahoo.com.
