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typingtess · 6 years

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NCIS: Los Angeles Season Nine Rewatch: "Party Crashers"

The basics: New season, new boss, retread of last new boss and the last new boss before that. Oh, there is a bomb in an ambulance.

Written by: R. Scott Gemmill wrote “The Only Easy Day”, “Brimstone”, “Breach”, “LD50”, “Found”, “Borderline”, “Absolution”, “Archangel”, “Tin Soldiers”, “Impostors”, “Cyberthreat”, “Honor”, “The Watchers” and both sides of the NCIS Los: Angeles/Hawaii Five-0 “Touch of Death” episodes, “Recruit”, “Free Ride”, “Wanted”, “Ravens and The Swans”, “Impact”, “War Cries”, both ends of the “Deep Trouble” season five finale/season six premiere, “Inelegant Heart”, “Praesidium”, “Traitor”, “Active Measures”, “Blame It On Rio”, “Internal Affairs”, “Matryoshka” part one, “Talion”, “High Value Target”, “Belly of the Beast”, “The Queens Gambit”, “Under Siege” and "Unleashed".

Directed by: John Peter Kousakis directed “Imposters”, “Sacrifice”, “San Voir” part one, “The Fifth Man”, “Parley”, “Inelegant Heart”, “Chernoff, K.”, “Active Measures”, “The Long Goodbye”, “Talion”, “Glasnost”, "Unleashed", all of the Afghanistan scenes from “Iron Curtain Rising” to “Zero Days” in season five and all of Kensi’s injury/recovery storyline scenes from “The Queen’s Gambit” to “Sirens” in season eight.

Guest stars of note: Patrick. St. Espirit on loan from SWAT returns as LAPD Lieutenant Roger Bates (last seen in "Internal Affairs"), Pamela Reed is back from "Sirens" as Roberta Deeks, Long Nguyen as Dang, Tro Shaw as Bar Manager, Tony Curtis Blondell as Guy, longtime series stuntman Omid Zader as Herbert Deiter and effective with this episode, Andrea Bordeaux recurs as Harley Hidoko and Nia Long co-stars as EAD Shay Mosley.

Our heroes: Get a new boss and a new co-worker as Sam returns and Hetty departs (for now).

What important things did we learn about:

Callen: Worried about the not working Sam, the suddenly retired Hetty and the recently dismissed Deeks. Sam: Still not working after Michelle's death. Kensi: Unhappy Deeks did not share their engagement news with his mom. Deeks: Let go from the Office of Special Projects for the first but not last time in season nine. Eric: Still awkward when greeting Sam. Nell: Did not get a contingency plan from the disappeared Hetty. Mosley: EAD-PAC Hetty: Looking for someone from her past.

What not so important things did we learn about:

Callen: Testing the new boss. Sam: Killing fish. Kensi: Liked more than Deeks by Deeks's mom. Deeks: Literally in the dog house with LAPD. Eric: Undercover Avocado. Nell: Poor empty cup drinker. Mosley: Passed Callen's test. Hetty: Sold most of her real estate holding.

Who's down with OTP: Kensi and Deeks are in a great place – jogging together, back working together after a several hour hiatus.

Who's down with BrOTP: Callen is the one working to bring his troubled partner back into the NCIS fold. It usually works the other way on this program.

Any pressing need for Harm and Mac: Nothing here is going to court.

Today in Harley Hidoko: Cheerfully professional, friendly, willing to work with Eric and Nell to make sure they don't get in trouble with the new boss.

Fashion review: Callen wears a blue-checked button down shirt to start the episode, a dark dress shirt after his trip to the Pacific. Black henley for Sam (lots of black henleys for Sam this season) after some that has to be custom-made diving gear to catch some food. A rare season nine sighting of the brown henley after the trip to the ocean. Great red and blue stripped shirt for Kensi after a jogging top and leggings for her morning run. Deeks wore a dark blue tee and lighter blue shorts to jog, dark blue v-neck tee to the different offices.

Light blue plaid dress shirt over a dark blue tee for Eric after his time in his avocado outfit. Red floral dress with a black blazer for Nell. Green military style field coat for Hetty with khaki pants. Grey pinstripe suit (pants) with a white blouse with tiny polka dots for Hidoko. Darker blue suit (skirt) with a pale blue blouse for Mosley.

Music: "Blown" by DNCE featuring Kent Jones is playing when Agent Park lands on the limo in the teaser. "Spin It" by V2P is playing at the bar in Vietnam.

Any notable cut scene: No.

Quote:

Mosley: "When I said that your team could be better, I meant it. My definition of a perfect mission is one where you achieve all of your objectives without any casualties, civilian or otherwise." Callen: "There is no such thing as a perfect mission." Mosley: "Well, I disagree. And even if there isn't, that's no excuse for not trying. Your unit has a reputation for using lethal force far above and well beyond any other unit in this agency." Callen: "Well, maybe our criminals here on the West Coast are just little more dangerous." Mosley: "Or maybe it's time you and your team start to take responsibility for your actions. Gone are the days where you shoot first and ask questions later."

Oh that conversation aged well with the season nine finale and all.

Anything else: Outside an LA hot spot, a large crowd is on hand watching the rich and famous pull up in their limos for a night of partying. As one couple exits their limo, a man lands on the vehicle's roof. Things do not end well for the man or the limo.

Cue new credits with Nia Long and without Miguel Ferrer. They did not keep the "San Voir" explosion, an error that is hopefully corrected in season ten.

Callen is dressed for work but at the beach near the water. Sam comes out of the water in his wetsuit with a spear gun and a good's day worth of fish. Sam asks if Hetty sent Callen – she did not. Callen explains he's there on his own because the office is really busy and he knows Sam is going to be really upset about all the fun cases he is missing.

Walking to Sam's RV, Callen is impressed. Sam thinks it is heaven – he plans to stay "one or two days past forever." Callen thought Sam was just taking some time off to be with his kids but Aiden has started Annapolis (home of the U.S. Naval Academy) and Kam is at Stockdale, which isn't Keating but sounds military (Adm. James Stockdale was a Medal of Honor winner in Vietnam, the president of the Citadel and Ross Perot's running mate). Callen wants to know what Sam is doing besides terrifying the fish.

Sam says he's happy but Callen knows he is not. The peaceful, quiet beach life is not Sam. Sam wants Callen to find a replacement for the "big hole" he left behind. Callen doesn't want to train anyone new – "it took long enough to train you." Sam stares at his wedding ring – he's not coming back. He is, however, making the two of them breakfast.

Kensi and Deeks are jogging on the beach. Deeks is a little more beardy than usual. Kensi wants to know when Deeks is telling his mom about their engagement. Deeks believes that with Kensi's mom regularly chatting with Deeks's mom, Roberta already knows. Kensi asks if his mother has said anything. She has not, leading Kensi to believe that Roberta is angry. Deeks thinks if his mom was angry, they'd know. Kensi is worried that Roberta may not like her. Deeks thinks Roberta likes Kensi more than she likes her own son. Kensi mostly agrees. Deeks calls his mom and leaves a voice message for "Bert". It is a non-descript message asking for a return call. Kensi is not pleased.

Nell is pretending to drink out of a cup of coffee (and doing it poorly) when she spots a man in an avocado costume in a park area near the ocean (this is a pretty spot – go back there more, show). She walks toward the avocado man before taking off in a full sprint, jumping onto and over a park bench and then tackling and beating Mr. Avocado

Mr. Avocado – Eric Beale.

Eric was undercover and Nell was trying to spot him. Since avocados are out of season – making the costume a cheap rental – Nell picked him out right away. She also thought undercover work really meant wearing a hat or sunglasses. Eric's phone goes off, so does Nell's. There is an all hands on deck alert.

Callen arrives at the office first. Harley Hideko, executive assistant to the EAD-PAC, introduces herself. Callen asks if she sent the alert. She did not, new EAD Shay Mosley did. She's been assigned by NCIS to replace Owen Granger and to find a new Operations Manager. Hetty has retired and is "probably halfway to Fiji" (right ocean, wrong hemisphere).

Mosley is surprised Hetty didn't tell Callen she was retiring. Callen is just surprised. The reason for the all hands alert was not Hetty "sailing into the sunset" but concerns that a missile will be fired at Los Angeles by the North Koreans.

Up in Ops, Callen, Kensi, Deeks, Eric and Nell start to talk about the North Korean threat but Callen is more worried about Hetty. Nell was not left a contingency plan and Nell is always left a contingency plan. Kensi thinks that maybe Michelle's death hit Hetty hard.

Mosley arrives with Hidoko. Mosley starts the brief but Hidoko is having a hard time running the big board with her tablet. The man on top of the limo was Defense Intelligence Officer Thomas Park. He was supposed to be in South Korea and not on top of a limo. While Eric tries to get Harley's tablet updated, Deeks tries and fails at small talk.

Once up on the screen, Agent Park is described as a bit of a wild card who arrived in LA without any luggage. He sent a cryptic text to his superiors before he died. The team is dismissive of the idea of an attack from North Korea – they don't have the technology to launch a missile across the Pacific.

Mosley is concerned because Park died sending that specific text. Hidoko provides the team with Park's files. Kensi is assigned to Callen for this case by Mosley since this is a National Security investigation and Deeks is LAPD, he should go back to LAPD.

With two boxes of stuff (versus one in “The Debt”) Deeks is not given a hero’s welcome with his return to LAPD. Bates wants to know what he did to "piss off Thumbelina". Deeks explains there is new boss at NCIS and he's back. Bates – in a terrible version of this character – moves Deeks to the office where the K-9 unit houses the dogs. The computer monitor on Deeks's desk looks like the season one to season 10 or so monitors at NCIS's Navy Yard. Deeks is not pleased.

Also not pleased – Callen and Kensi. Callen is frustrated Hetty is gone and not returning calls. Kensi is frustrated that Deeks is gone and she can't do anything about it. Eric calls. Every government agency on the West Coast has been warned about the North Korean threat by Mosley but are under strict orders to not share it with the public. Kensi thinks that makes sense – no need to cause panic. That's true but Nell tells Callen and Kensi that nobody has been able to confirm the threat is viable. Callen thinks it is a wild goose chase.

Eric confirms that Hetty did put in her retirement paperwork. Kensi thinks Hetty is trying to become the Assistant Director and this is a way to apply pressure. Nell disagrees. Hetty has sold three of her four major properties including the beach house, Calisto and the home where Nell killed Daniela Ruah's stuntman husband. The Hancock Park house is selling for a reasonable $6.75 million. The Lady H is not in its slip. Callen wants Eric and Nell to track it.

They would but Hidoko arrives with questions about why there is a security camera shot of a marina on their computers and the big screen. Eric and Nell do a terrible job lying about wanting to have a place to dock boat that sunk in Marina del Rey.

Hidoko is fine with Eric and Nell looking for a place to dock their fictional sunken boat but Mosley thinks using NCIS resources for personal interests is a fireable offense. Oh dear – how will Mosley’s career survive such rules based on the season finale. /snotty.

Just as they did in season one, episode six's "Keepin' It Real", Callen and Kensi are standing on the rooftop of a nightclub trying to figure out how Agent Park went off the roof. This rooftop bar has a high plexiglass wall that would be impossible to either climb over or be pushed/tossed from, unlike the season one bar.

Callen sees a storage area near the roof bar. Inside, Callen and Kensi find signs of a struggle and blood. Security footage shows Agent Park being murdered by two men. The bar manager recognizes one of the killer – Michael Lee. Lee is a Canadian who is working toward his Ph.D. in physics. He doesn't fit the profile of a killer, according to Eric and Nell. Kensi thinks the Canadian ID may be fake – it is easier to get into to the US from Canada than from other countries.

On the phone, Lt. Bates is acting like a dolt when Deeks enters his office. Deeks asks about the missile strike and Bates is really not helpful. Deeks is swinging by a crime scene before seeing his mom. Bates isn't sure why Deeks told him that. Deeks said that since he's back and part of the team again, he thought Bates would want to know. Deeks thought wrong.

Callen and Kensi go to Michael Lee's house. No one's home. Callen calls Mosley to see if they can break into the house – it is a test for Mosley. Mosley tells him to get into the house. She also wants to know if she passed Callen's test. Score one for Mosley here (not being snotty - she won this one and if you liked the character, you’d be rooting for her. But they wrote her as a shrew so no rooting for her allowed).

Lee’s house is empty and tidy. There is a cross-cut shredder in one of the bedrooms and the shredded material is being flushed down the toilet. Kensi goes through his trash and finds three different cell phones with receipts from three different stores. Callen thinks that's pretty good spy craft.

Deeks is surprised when a man in his boxer shorts opens his mom's front door. Deeks chases the man through his mother's apartment, tackling him on the bed an pulling his gun. Roberta arrives fresh from the shower wanting Deeks to put his gun down because he's scaring Guy. Horrified, Deeks realized what he's just walked in on.

With a beautiful ocean view from her living room/kitchen, Deeks and his mother have a talk about what just happened. He was trying to call her for days – OK, not days but that day. Roberta explains she was busy and Deeks wants no part of why she was busy. Deeks explains he was worried about her. Roberta thinks if he was worried about her, he might have called earlier to talk about his engagement. Kensi's mom did tell Roberta.

Roberta does a nice job milking Deeks's guilt – talking about him not wanting her involved and being an embarrassment. Deeks doesn't think these things. Roberta knows he does but she doesn't care because she has a wedding of her own to plan. "It is high time you had a new father." Deeks is horrified. Roberta is kidding – she and Guy are just friends….with benefits. Deeks leaves.

The two of them could have their own sitcom.

Callen finds a safe in one of Lee's bedrooms but can't open it. Kensi finds an EMT uniform in the bedroom just a Lee and a second man return home. The second man has a high powered military-style gun. He shoots at both Callen and Kensi before murdering Lee.

Deeks arrives to cover LAPD's end of Lee's murder. He mentions to Kensi that he saw his mom and is now permanently scarred. Callen arrives, saying they could have used him in the shoot-out. Deeks tells Callen to talk to his boss. Callen intends to.

Kensi and Deeks take Lee's computer back to "the Wonder Twins" while Callen calls in the day's events to Sam. Sam is sharpening his knife outside of his trailer. He tosses it at a board – and based on the pock-marks in the board, that is not the first time he performed that act.

Up in Ops, Mosley is cranky that Callen was involved in a shoot-out near Lee's college and their best lead is dead. She also wants to know why Deeks is back. Callen explains he didn't want to be involved in a shoot-out either and maybe if Deeks was with them, the shoot-out would have ended differently. Mosley wants to know if Callen can't do his job without Deeks. Callen says he can do his job with the people he needs. If she wants to make the team stronger, that's fine but Callen thinks all she's done is weaken the team. She allows Deeks to remain with the team until she can find a better replacement. Callen wants a say in the replacement. Mosley tells him no.

Sam arrives to hugs back in the bullpen but band or parade, as he hoped. There was a bad handshake exchange with Eric. Lee’s computer was too badly damaged to be really useful but there were some notes discovered connecting North Korea to Iran. There were also photos of a conventional bomb – there probably isn't going to be missile attack, there is going to be a bomb set somewhere near one of the ports.

Hidoko joins the group. Mosley is on the phone with the SecNav. Hidoko continues to struggle with her tablet. Eric takes over. Satellite imagery has the North Koreans firing a missile at Los Angeles. Sam figures it would take 25-minutes to hit the city. Mosley arrives with news that the White House has all the anti-missile systems on high alert and a Carrier group off North Korea is waiting instructions. Mosley wants to know if Sam is back – based on the circumstances, he is.

Deeks wants to know what Iran is doing in all this. Sam wants to know why Lee and his friend were building a bomb when the North Koreans are acting like they have a missile. Callen says the missile launch was planned months ago. If there is a bomb going off in Los Angeles 25-miutes after the missile launch, it would take a long time to figure out it wasn't the missile that blew up the port. In the meantime, the US has likely retaliated to what they saw as an act of war. The US would pull all their troops from the Middle East for Korea, leaving it for Iran, ISIS and other groups to run free. Sam thinks the bomb should be mobile. Kensi remembers the EMT uniform – nobody would suspect an ambulance.

Up in Ops, Eric was able to match the logo on the EMT uniform to one near Long Beach. Callen and Sam are nearby. The man who shot Lee was in the country as Herbert Dieter but Agent Park identified him as Hamas bombmaker Hebod Darvish.

The SecNav calls. The USS Nebraska is ready to take out the North Korean missile site. Mosley orders Callen to stop the bombing. Sam tells thinks there are too many civilians around – Darvish can just blow up the ambulance and kill dozens. Callen asks Deeks to take one for the team.

Deeks does take one for the team as he is hit by Sam's car right in front of the ambulance. Sam runs up to Darvish looking for help. When he tries to flee, Callen shoots him. They now control the vehicle but the bomb is ready to go off. Mosley tells the SecNav to call off attack. He does – the SecNav is now a guy by the way.

Callen and Sam race through the streets (Callen) of Long Beach trying to defuse (Sam) the bomb. The two bicker like it is old times. Eric and Nell are trying to get the ambulance to the airport where they can go to an empty runway. Callen and Sam realize they don't have enough time to get to the airport.

Mosley asks they what they're going to do. Callen has a plan. He's driving them into the Pacific. Callen has a flashback to their time on the narco sub. Once the ambulance goes completely into the water, Callen and Sam are able to open the doors.

Kensi and Deeks arrive to help Callen and Sam out of the water. Back in Ops, Mosley is stunned, Hidoko is impressed, Eric and Nell are proud. Sam announces he didn't disconnect the bomb and at that moment, the bomb goes off, drenching the Kensi, Deeks and the already wet Callen and Sam. Mosley leaves, a bit pissy. Hidoko explains that the new boss really doesn't like excitement. When asked what does Mosley like, Hidoko really isn't sure.

Callen sees Mosley, who gives "gives credit where credit is due." She does think the team has to stop their high causalities rate. A perfect mission is one where there are no casualties – so how did that whole Mexico trip go EAD-PAC, especially if Hidoko is dead (which I don't think she is). And with your no personal use of NCIS resources too. But I digress as a person with complaints will often do. Mosley wants the team to cut its use of lethal force. Callen thinks they deal with more dangerous criminals than other agencies.

Callen returns to the team. Deeks is back for a while. Sam is back too- he couldn't live with himself if something happens to the team. Kensi wants to celebrate "the band being back together" but Callen is skipping out. He wants to know what happened to Hetty. Sam knows from experience – maybe she's left and doesn’t want to be found.

In a bar in Vietnam, Hetty is joined by a man named Dang. They know each other. She was late for their meeting – she had a hard time getting into the country. She didn't enter the country through customs. Dang hands Hetty his phone with a photo of a bearded man – an American. Hetty thinks the man could be American or Canadian or Swedish. Dang claims the American is former CIA who went down in a helicopter crash in 1976 – the same year Hetty went down in a crash. Hetty claims she was the only survivor of her crash. Dang tells Hetty a story of the American going native and killing people at will (which is a lot like the old White Ghost story from season five). Hetty doesn’t believe Dang. Or in ghosts.

What head canon can be formed from here: Less head-canon-y nine seasons in but you get the idea that while they probably had hard times, Deeks and his Mom did OK once they were on their own. Deeks also didn’t tell her about a major life change - much like not having her listed as next of kin.

There are two types of bosses for NCIS's OSP – Hetty and petty office tyrants who fight with the team. Hunter in the beginning of season three, Granger for the second half of season three and some of season four and now Mosley. What's the point? Here’s hoping Esai Morales’s new character works out better.

Episode number: The season nine premiere, episode 193 overall.

#NCIS: Los Angeles Rewatch #NCIS: Los Angeles #NCIS: LA #NCIS Los Angeles #ncis la

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