NCIS: Los Angeles Season 8 Episode 14 Review: Under Siege
Dale McGarrigle
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I should have known better.
All signs pointed to the never-ending mole storyline being concluded in NCIS: Los Angeles Season 8 Episode 14.
But noooo!
Yes, many of the loose ends did get tied up.
The mole, actually moles, got revealed as a group of CIA officers, most making repeat appearances.,
Whether their mission to sabotage NCIS was sanctioned or unsanctioned, that was kind of fuzzy. I'm thinking it was just a rogue few, since that's all that were shown, but I'm not certain.
Their rationale was somewhat understandable. They were zealously protecting their turf.
You want to run around Los Angeles like Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys, be my guest. But you can not interfere with global security. That's a job for the big boys.
Sullivan/Ferris [to Kensi]
Still, go through official channels. Have your boss talk to SecNav.
Hell, send a nasty, misspelled tweet, with capital letters for emphasis.
But there's no need for an elaborate frame job just to establish territory.
It just seems so excessive. And it's been dragged out so long that it's no longer even good drama.
The fun part of the episode was watching the band be brought back together, after Hetty disappears. It was a lovely caper sequence.
After tossing off a few foreboding quotes, Hetty saddled Kensi with the Wonder Twins, especially over-caffeinated Eric, who somehow didn't blow off an appendage with a flash-bang.
Eric: Where do we keep the hand grenades?
Kensi: We don't have hand grenades.
Eric: We should order some.
Nell: Maybe just take it down a notch, RamBeale.
.Nell posed as a lawyer and snuck a key and an ear bud in to Callen, and he walked out the door, punching out the ATF agent without dropping his donut. Must be a skill they teach in NCIS training.
Deeks made a deal with Whiting for his freedom.
Sam used conversational logic to earn his release.
It was a sensible twist to have Hetty behind all the agents being jailed by various alphabet agencies in NCIS: Los Angeles Season 8 Episode 13.
Something reeks of munchkin.
Deeks
That's one way to keep everyone safe, although Granger might think otherwise. He didn't need to be stabbed to be kept out of trouble, so there's more to come there.
With Miguel Ferrer's untimely passing from throat cancer, it's a sure thing that Granger will be written off, probably either next episode or with a clip show in the near future.
It looks like producers had been planning for this eventuality. Still it had to be weird filming the character's exit at the same time the actor himself was dying.
RIP Granger.
Another character that definitely wasn't safe was Dugan. Sure, he was a douche, but he had a little more potential than "Blam. You're dead." It was probably the CIA, but it wasn't at all clear who killed him. Another loose end to tie up.
And of course Hetty had an elaborate scheme to flush out the mole and end that storyline.
That certainly explains where Hetty was for all those episodes she was missing. She was rigging up that warehouse for the final showdown with the mole.
And Carl Brown is finally dead, no great loss. And he may have taken Whiting with him.
Apparently this episode was also an opportunity to wipe out annoying characters, although Sabatino dodged a bullet, so to speak.
There's still one more annoying character, and an extended storyline, to finish, and that's Sullivan/Ferris.
So he was more than just part of a potential, weak-assed love triangle, as many originally suspected.
No, instead he's yet another CIA officer with a beef against NCIS. That's become even more of a cliche.
Poor Deeks. He finally gets Kensi back in action, so the action junkie will be easier to live with, and she gets kidnapped by a man with a grudge.
Sure, it's Kensi's fault that Ferris lost his leg while he was bargaining with terrorists in Afghanistan. Granted, it was her bullet, but why was the CIA negotiating with the enemy and against the U.S. allies in the first place?
Anyway, it's time for another hiatus until Feb. 19, first for the Super Bowl, then the Grammies. Yeah, it's annoying to wait another three weeks for some closure.
But to catch up on any mole nuances you may have missed, watch NCIS: Los Angeles online.
After spending two-thirds of the season getting Kensi rehabilitated, I think it's safe to assume she won't get her leg sawed off. But it could leave some psychological scars. That Deeks is a delicate flower.
Did you really think this storyline would be tied up with a bow already? Are you at least happy about some character deletions? Should the team be annoyed with Hetty for her subterfuge? Comment below.
Dale McGarrigle is a staff writer for TV Fanatic. Follow him on X.
