NCIS Los Angeles Season 6 Episode 15 Review: Forest For the Trees
Narsimha Chintaluri
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On one hand, NCIS: Los Angeles Season 6 Episode 15 had a majority of the gang fending off a cell of ISIS located on US soil, while on the other hand, it had our favorite Beavis and Butthead partners being taken hostage.
Things sure did seem intense at the start of tonight's episode – even if it all fizzled out by the end.
My major complaint is the fact that the plot seemed way too convenient. Right from the jump, it made no sense that Sam and Callen would go off on their own to an isolated location to meet an unknown "informant" – even if it was about rescuing a missing NSA agent. It seemed uncharacteristically dumb and it got them kidnapped.
From there on, the conveniences only cascaded on each other as they were locked in a room with not only an access panel, but tools for them to find. It could be argued that the point was for them to escape so that they could be tricked by Jamal, but that thought process takes a lot of leaps in logic, as well. It would have Jamal and the rest of the ISIS cell assuming the two men would find the access panel, find the tools hidden in a hole in the floor, and then run into/believe Jamal in the woods.
Then, it would mean Jamal would have to lead them to where he hid his phone and gun, get the information he wanted out of them, and so forth. You can see what I mean by plot conveniences and/or contrivances.
It only made it worse when Sam and Callen would make comments such as:
Callen: The way they took us out?
Sam: Well planned, well executed.
Callen: That room they kept us in?
Sam: Spent a lot of time and money.
Those kind of remarks make the two characters look a lot dumber than they are.
But hey, at least they were sharp enough to figure out Jamal was an imposter ahead of time (or they were lucky enough that the writers were okay with throwing yet another lazy explanation at us).
By the end of the episode, they completely bypassed any semblance of logic and just made everything work through Callen's flashback explanation of the events.
Despite these complaints, I still felt as if the episode had a many strong moments – mainly derived from the comedy between having Sam and Callen stuck in a tunnel together, or Kensi and Deeks bickering like a married couple. At least they all have each other's backs in the end.
What's your plan here? That I'm gonna sleep and knock myself unconscious? Kensi shoot him.
Deeks
Having simultaneous operations running made tonight's episode more interesting than it should've been, and definitely added some much needed tension – even though everything seemed to work out without a hitch in the end. Owen obviously cares about Sam and Callen as much as the rest of the team, but he was right in emphasizing the case at hand.
And sometimes, its best to let other people take over when you're emotionally attached. There was no reason why a normal team couldn't rescue Sam and Callen, and Kensi and Deeks were aware of that, so they stuck to their duties.
Head over the NCIS quotes for more highlights from tonights ultimately lackluster hour, and watch NCIS: Los Angeles online in case you missed anything.
Did you guys find this as predictable, and as safe, as I did? Or was the presence of an ISIS threat enough to have you hooked? As always, feel free to leave any thoughts you have down below.
