Sometimes, the old ways do work better.

There were a couple serious steps back in time on NCIS: New Orleans Season 4 Episode 12.

The episode was, first and foremost, an excoriation of technology.

At the heart of it was the prize: an artificial intelligence app that was used in Adrian's computer game she was developing with Nate, the dead sailor who gave NCIS entry into this case.

There was another, less official, connection, as Adrian was Sebastian's old high-school crush.

That's right, it's a Sebastian spotlight episode.

And, as much as I'm still not sold on Sebastian as a field agent, it worked.

It was amusing to watch Sebastian bark orders while doing his best Pride impression. The best time of all was when Pride walked in to see Sebastian in action.

He does Pride even better than LaSalle.

I'm amazed that Adrian remembered Sebastian's Lanky Pants codename so she could contact him on that gaming board. She must have Googled him to find out he is the law now.

Poor Sebastian will be stuck with that nickname at work, just like McGee with Elf Lord on NCIS.

Seeing Adrian again seemed to take Sebastian back to being the insecure geek he was in high school. 

Despite all the stress they were under, they still found time to reminisce and ponder what could have been. It seemed that geeky Sebastian had made an impression on Adrian all those years ago.

I thought they had figured out that they were just too different. But, with Gregorio's sisterly prodding, Sebastian finally took the step he had been too afraid to take in high school.

Yes, there were some eye-rolling moments: Sebastian blasting the SUV to make it explode, firearm novice Adrian hitting the thug with two shots center mass. Thank God for all that shooting-game practice!

I was disappointed that Patton was largely sidelined by circumstances, But that was kind of the point, wasn't it?

It trumpeted, "Look at the genie we let out of the bottle." It showed just how dependent, and vulnerable, people are because of technology.

That isn't just me being a Luddite. I remember having to use White-Out while typing and I don't ever want to go back there.

It started with Gregorio's diatribe about how social media isolated people rather than bringing them together. Yeah, she's right, to a degree, in that there's a large component of "Look at me," people shining a light of themselves and theirs, led by the Tweeter-in-Chief.

The Jackal forced NCIS and Isler to go old school. It was no problem for Pride, who had a box of old equipment just hanging around. And it was a hoot to watch him issue orders on a pink princess phone.

Patton could make do with that Commodore 64 or Trash 80 or whatever he was using, because he undoubtedly grew up on such "computers."

But the rest were out of their depth. The best example was LaSalle trying to determine how to deal with a busy signal.

It showed there is a serious lack of big-picture thinking among technology developers. Adrian created an artificial intelligence app which allowed The Jackal to hold the air-traffic system hostage. Facebook and Twitter are subverted to influence a presidential election 

Sure, technology makes life easier. But it's not without its down sides. Just look around at all the people, of all ages, glued to their screens, a world of techno-zombies.

I digress. It's a plot-line, not a dissertation.

I'm enjoying the tough-love relationship between Gregorio and Sebastian. She knows what it's like to be the new person, and she's trying to prevent Sebastian from any dangerous missteps. That's good, because he can seem to find plenty all on his own.

Gregorio is always going to be the loud New Yorker, but she serves an important role in a largely genteel team. She's more plain spoken, where the rest tend to tiptoe around the edges.

Isler was back again. He must be stationed in New Orleans now, or at the very least Atlanta. He seems to be popping up about every fourth episode.

He's growing on me. He provides a foil for Pride, kind of a much-needed angel on his shoulder to remind him what the proper choice is. Of course Pride can usually spin things so he's doing what he wants rather than what is judicious.

SPOILER ALERT: Sorry, it's an encore episode next week. Apparently three new episodes in a row would be too much of a good thing. How about burying those encores opposite the Winter Olympics instead?

To follow the development of Sebastian, watch NCIS: New Orleans online.

How did you enjoy this glimpse into Sebastian's past? How did the team do without technology? Have you come around on Isler? Comment below.

Dale McGarrigle is a staff writer for TV Fanatic. Follow him on X.