For Leroy Jethro Gibbs, "Mother's Day" came early last night, although it was really former mothers-in-law day. Gena Rowlands guest starred as the mother of his deceased wife.

As a witness in a murder investigation, her relations with Gibbs were frosty but genuine, adversarial yet forthright. Our episode recap has the plot details. Now, TVF's review ...

The murder of a Navy Captain, James Norton, reveals that Joann Fielding, mother of Gibbs' late wife Shannon, was his fiancée. She hadn't seen Gibbs since Shannon's funeral.

Shannon and their daughter Kelly were murdered by a Mexican drug cartel, which we later discover Norton was linked to. That's fishy enough, and Joann's story is also flimsy.

Abby and Ducky discover conclude, given the bullet trajectory and blood spatter patterns, that a random robber couldn't have killed Norton, as Joann claims. It was likely her.

Gibbs (Mark Harmon) was one step ahead of Joann (Gena Rowlands).

Gibbs learns Joann hired a P.I. to help track down anyone related or associated with the cartel and Norton’s name came up. She decided to get close to him and seek revenge.

When NCIS tracks the murder weapon to a Lt. Shankton, who ran “fishing charters” in Mexico along with Norton, it becomes clear that she stole his weapon and framed him.

She incriminated Shankton as well as the P.I. she knew the cartel would sniff out and eliminate, thus absolving herself of any link to the killing. The old bird was pretty cagey.

Gibbs was one step ahead of her, though, and while that's not surprising, the way he handled it was: enlisting M. Allison Hart (Rena Sofer) to represent his ex-mother-in-law.

Unwilling to take her down, Gibbs clued Hart in to Joann's impending charges. This was a great twist, with Hart again a thorn in Gibbs' side, only this time, he asked for it!

Later, Gibbs gets Joann to confess and arrests her, only to have Hart inform them that her statement is inadmissible it was coerced and she had not been properly Mirandized.

Thus, Gibbs' arrest of Joann was thwarted. She walked. Just like he drew it up.

No words were exchanged to that end, but he knew, Vance knew and Joann likely knew as well. Their intense glances said as much, and Gibbs' burning of the file confirmed it.

While it took some time for the mystery to unfold, without the action and the lightning-fast pacing the show is known for, this emotional episode was still brilliantly done.

Gibbs' flashbacks, particularly in the bathroom when he asked Tony to leave, showed us just how much he longed for Shannon and Kelly, and indirectly how Joanna did too.

Her admission fit perfectly into the web weaved by the writers. Joanna came clean, as did Gibbs with his own confession. Inner turmoil over the girls' death was jointly felt.

Questionable as it was for Gibbs to protect Joann and let her off the hook for murder, he justified it by saying Shannon would have wanted it. That was good enough for us.

It was a neat way of exploring Gibbs' past through a compelling story in 2010, and his teaming up with Hart (however unspoken their partnership) was a fun new wrinkle.

RANDOM THOUGHTS:

• The exchanges leading up to Palmer's date with the cute embalmer were very amusing. Anytime Ducky dispenses dating advice, plenty of laughs will follow.
• Great casting with Gena Rowlands and Leann Hunley as her younger self.
• The Norfolk detective flirting with Ziva seemed to rattle Tony a little, no?
• Where do you think the relationship between Gibbs and Hart is headed?

Steve Marsi is the Managing Editor of TV Fanatic. Follow him on Google+ or email him here.