‘NCIS: Hawai’i’ 2×21: “Past Due”

NCIS: Hawai’i 2×21 “Past Due” is a very engaging first half of what is structured as a two-part season finale, in many ways, a much better one than NCISLA’s first half of its two-parter. There’s never a dull moment in this hour, and when it ends, it ends with a literal bang — and a character we’d gotten used to, one we really were hoping would stick around, particularly under these circumstances, gone, and Tennant in danger, most of her family way too far away to actually help.

RIP Charlie One, we will actually miss you. You always had a knack for saving the day, and for flirting at the most inappropriate moments. It never felt like it could be more than that, but that didn’t mean we didn’t have our fun, or that you didn’t deserve better than to end this way. Thanks for saving Tennant when you did, and for making us smile — and yes, blush a little, sometimes.

it’s all about family …

NCIS: Hawai’i 2×21 “Past Due” puts Tennant at the center, but it serves as a reminder that the core of this show is the family — and we will do anything to protect ours. That’s why Jane sends her kids away. That’s why she does her very best to avoid getting her team involved. And, on the flip side, that’s why her team gets involved anyway, even though it’s the opposite of what she wanted. Because she needs them.

That’s what you do when you love someone, you try to protect them. Even when, perhaps, they might not want you to, they might not appreciate it. Even if, maybe, they would want you to just, let them in, trust them. Love isn’t always rational — but yes, Tennant would do well to trust her work family, not just because they love her, but because they are trained agents who can actually help her, not kids she has to take care of.

Life is already complicated enough on a regular day without having to carry all the burdens on your own, which is what Jane Tennant is used to doing. But she’s never had to — she’s got people. Her people. She’s always been there for them, and would fight tooth and nail if they told her she didn’t need to. It’s time she understood they would do the same for her, and trust them to actually carry through with that. Starting with Kate, who is actually in a position to physically help in this case.

not the Kate Whistler of old …

But who is this Kate Whistler? Not the woman we first met two seasons ago. Not even the one from the beginning of Season 2. No, this is a different Kate, not just Lucy’s girlfriend, but part of this team, of this family. Jane Tennat’s friend. And yes, she’s still Kate, so breaking the rules still makes her deeply uncomfortable, and confronting authority is still her worst nightmare, but this Kate Whistler doesn’t back down. She does it. Because that’s who she is now.

A woman with something to fight for.

Which is why she’s gonna go out there for Tennant. Not because Lucy asked her to — in fact, Lucy pretty much tried to convince her not to, only to then pivot to supportive girlfriend when she realized Kate wasn’t backing down and what Kate needed was reassurance — but because that’s what you do when you love someone and they’re in danger. That’s what you do for your family.

It’s easy to love Kacy (they’re amazing, haven’t you heard me gush about them, I even did an entire podcast on my love), and one of the reasons why it’s because this show makes it so, so easy to love Kate and Lucy as two separate, distinct individuals. When you do character development this well, the rest just falls into place.

Things I think I think:

• Okay, that’s an opening.
• Lucy’s “what are you suggesting?” was kinda hilarious.
• Kai and Lucy being all protective is my jam.
• “Bad CIA vibes”
• Ernie asking Tennant “what gives?” feels like a good sign of trust.
• Vanessa Lachey’s Spanish is pretty good.
• Look, you say OSP, I think of NCISLA. That’s just the rules.
• Is Kai Tennant’s favorite? Does everyone know this_
• Alex, my baby.
• “I’m deeply uncomfortable BUT …”
• Kate, I love you.
• Of course, Kate was going to tell Lucy, we all knew that.
• What Tennant did to Kate was cold, but at least she left food.
• The whole thing about friendship having no place in the job is just …the antithesis of what this show is.
• Charlie One has never known appropriate moments for flirting.
• Worried Lucy to Supportive Lucy was funny.
• Oh, Charlie One, no.

Agree? Disagree? What did you think of NCIS: Hawai’i 2×21 “Past Due”? Share with us in the comments below!

NCIS: Hawai’i airs Mondays on CBS.