ShareThisThere's no question that CBS's "NCIS" became a hit because of the camaraderie of the characters and the relationships that have developed among them. Executive producer Shane Brennan is clearly working the same formula in "NCIS: Los Angeles" (9 p.m. EDT Tuesday), the spin-off series that introduced its characters in a two-part May episode of the original "NCIS."
There's been some tinkering in the interim as characters were deleted (bye-bye, Louise Lombard!) and added (welcome, Linda Hunt!). Tuesday night's series premiere shows a greater emphasis on characterization and building a team that bonds through generic teasing and banter.
When last we saw the Los Angeles branch of NCIS, special agent Sam Hanna (LL Cool J) was holding his partner, G. Callen (Chris O'Donnell), who had been shot. Callen survived (of course) and Tuesday night's episode begins on his first day back at the office, which has moved into a Spanish-style former mission -- imagine the apartment complex on "Melrose Place" as an NCIS HQ.
O'Donnell and LL Cool J form an easy alliance that's filled with lighter moments of humor even as they investigate a plot that's decidedly obvious and unsurprising.
The addition of Hunt is welcome for the quirk factor of seeing the diminutive Oscar-winner stare up at LL Cool J. She appears to be playing some sort of cross between Q in the James Bond films and an officious office manager -- and she deserves more screen time than she gets this week.
With no real boss in Los Angeles, this new NCIS team reports to director Leon Vance (guest star Rocky Carroll), who appears on a monitor in the L.A. HQ via satellite. Other team members include psychologist Nate Getz (Peter Cambor), special agent Kensi Blye (Daniela Ruah) and fount of historical minutiae Dominic Vail (Adam Jamal Craig).
It's a decent team of diverse but largely expected types. "NCIS: Los Angeles" will rise or fall in the coming weeks depending on how well the writers build on what are essentially blank-palette characters.
(Contact TV editor Rob Owen at rowen(at)post-gazette.com.)
(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, www.scrippsnews.com.)
Must credit Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
I say fall!
I admit it, I’ve enjoyed NCIS-LA’s characters, the action, and the landscapes – our city is awesome! However, I now have had 3 weeks to consider how I really feel about what bother me so much from day one.
According to the show, in the largest metro in the United States (LA), Hispanics clearly fit in one of very few categories; gangsters, gardeners, or mob-bosses. Hey, I’ve never been one to cry foul or use the race card, but enough is enough! It’s hard enough to convince Angelenos that there are educated, traveled, well-read Hispanics among them – even when their Mayor is an obvious example. There’s many of us. Maybe not in Alabama, but we’re here.
What’s so annoying is that in a city where 52% of the population is Hispanic, and 70%+ of the police force is minority, NCIS producers couldn’t cast a Latino -- even as a secretary? Ironically, CSI-Miami just added its 3rd Hispanic to the cast. I’m not asking for our very own show, I just want some fair play. If not, I’m going to make noise until I’m heard.