NCIS: Tony & Ziva Episode 4 feels like a new beginning for a couple that has had a lot of beginnings—and endings. The hour, which sees them stage a wedding to try to lure out their villain, Martine, is altogether more interesting because of the way it advances the Tony and Ziva relationship than it is for the part where they almost catch her, but end up at least being able to outsmart her.
There are, after all, six more episodes to go. The setup, the mystery behind it, and even the running are likely to continue. But the ship? That’s what we’ve been waiting for. And though “Wedding Crashers” doesn’t solve all their problems—or many, considering they don’t even talk!—it is an important step forward for two people who spent NCIS: Tony & Ziva Episodes 1-3 trying to convince us, and each other, that there was nothing between them anymore.
Except, one look at her in a wedding dress and all of that crashed for Tony. And Ziva, I’ll argue, had her “oh” moment in “Cover Story,” because nothing will make you realize what you might lose other than the possibility of losing it. So, let us talk about the wedding that wasn’t, the reconciliation that is, and the words that have yet to be spoken between Tony and Ziva.
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THE WEDDING THAT WASN’T
The wedding in “Wedding Crashers” is less about catching Martine or giving the team a chance to work together—even though it does that second thing very effectively, and more about Tony and Ziva. About what could have been, and never was. About that image that Tony will never be able to get out of his head of Ziva dressed as a bride. About the things that the two have yet to say and the things they both want. Including their own actual wedding!
We have proof. There was a proposal. There was a “yes.” Now, can we get the rest?
And this episode makes it clear they do want the same things. Not just that, everyone around them sees it. Claudette has them clocked and likely has had their number for a while. But Fruzsi, who literally just met them, also clearly sees it. Not just that, she’s the one who—from the position of relative newcomer to this team—points it out.
But the wedding is also about how good Anne-Marie Waldeck is as Fruzsi, and how well she and Maximilian Osinski work together. We’ve yet to see much of Claudette and Sophie, who I’m sure I’ll love, but I’m already plotting out ways for Fruzsi and Boris to stay if this show gets a Season 2. The first three episodes gave them a chance to provide a little bit of lightness, and this hour gives them an earnest moment, which the two land beautifully. Can we keep them?
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THE RECONCILIATION THAT IS
That kiss, that moment at the end, that coming together for Tony and Ziva is a long time coming. And yet, they’ve never had a problem with attraction. If anything, their problem has been words. However, in this instance, there’s more to them coming together than just passion. They’re both making a choice, and though we don’t get to see the fallout from that, the episode makes it seem like they both understand that things have changed. Things will change. There’s no way they don’t.
In a way, this feels inevitable to everyone but Tony and Ziva. Except, perhaps it feels inevitable to them, too. Tony tried to move on. Ziva tried to heal. And yet there was a part of them they never fully gave away to anyone else, because they understood no one else could ever have it. They’d already given it to each other.
The thing about Tony and Ziva isn’t just that they have history, which they do. It isn’t even that they fit well together and complement each other, even though there’s also that. Or that at one point, they decided they wanted to be each other’s family, officially. With rings and all. It’s that at every hard point in their lives, at times when perhaps the safer option would have been to give up, they’ve chosen each other. They just have never found a way to make that stick in the romantic sense. But the choice, over and over again, cannot be discounted.
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THE WORDS THAT HAVE YET TO BE SPOKEN
And yet, if “Wedding Crashers” shows anything, it’s that these two need words. It is, of course, hard to have a heart-to-heart while you’re in the middle of trying to clear your name and an international manhunt. But they’re never going to move forward—as a couple or as a family—if they don’t commit to doing the thing they’ve found hardest for the entirety of their relationship: talk.
That will require Tony not to deflect with humor. It will require Ziva not to hide what she really feels. It will ask them to be honest and vulnerable with each other. And perhaps, it will ask them to do that again, and again. Because there’s a relationship to recover, but there’s also a family to build. Tali will come into play at some point, and she’s not a kid anymore. She’s a teenager who is bound to have questions and opinions.
Parents should not make romantic decisions for their kids. If Tony and Ziva want to be together (and we can all clearly see they do!), that is and should be about them and them alone. But that doesn’t mean Tali won’t factor into their decisions, in good ways and perhaps even in bad ways. Because as much as you love someone, it’s one thing to lose a relationship, it’s another to lose a family.
We all wondered how long the will-they/won’t-they would last. Now, it’s over. The rest is about rebuilding. And we can’t wait to see what the next step looks like.
Agree? Disagree? What did you think about NCIS: Tony & Ziva Episode 4 “Wedding Crashers”? Share with us in the comments below!
New episodes of NCIS: Tony & Ziva stream on Thursdays on Paramount+.
