NCIS and NCIS: Origins come together for a must-watch two-part crossover that mixes Gibbs’ past with the present of NCIS in a really interesting and emotional way. And that’s not all, because the episodes also manage to give us an update on present Gibbs (Mark Harmon)—and suggest that his story is nowhere near done yet.
But if NCIS: Origins Season 2, Episode 5 ‘Funny How Time Slips Away‘ and NCIS Season 23, Episode 5 ‘Now And Then‘ do anything, it’s conceptualizing the franchise’s entire story. It is, as Jimmy said at the end of the NCIS hour, about this family, and about what these people have meant to each other. The rest is just, hopefully, icing on the cake. And as these two episodes make it abundantly clear, there are still a lot of stories left to be told.
MORE: Want a complete list of Gibbs’ rules? We’ve got one!
FUNNY HOW TIME SLIPS AWAY
The NCIS: Origins part of the story proves that even if this show has yet to find the same success with viewers as the mothership, it’s got no issues when it comes to writing. Young Gibbs is as interesting as the version Mark Harmon gave us, and the little moments when we get to connect past with present are still thrilling, without them being the only reason we’re watching.
‘Funny How Time Slips Away’ does deliver a particular treat for fans: that of present-time Gibbs. He’s not alone anymore, though it’s hard to say that he’s thriving or at peace. He is, after all, still turning this story over in his head. Still telling us about it. And clearly, still thinking about Lala. So, we’ve got some answers, but there are still a lot of questions to be answered.
But the hour also gives us glimpses of how Gibbs turned into the man we’ll know. How Mike Franks influenced him—not just with Rule 11, either. How Lala made him better by being the person who was always checking on him, and the one she allowed to check on her. And how Randy was there, a good friend, through it all. This is the part of Gibbs’ life we never knew, the part before this show we might have thought wasn’t important.
And yet, we can’t look away. We don’t want to. Not just because of the glimpses of cases that might still be important thirty years later, or because of how it helps conceptualize things, but because we have grown to like these people in this moment, and we really, really don’t want to let them go.
MORE: Here’s how to watch every NCIS show in order
NOW AND THEN
Ironically, even though Gibbs is no longer part of NCIS, ‘Now And Then’ still works really well as a tribute to not just Gibbs, but what the agency, the show, has built. There’s Vera and McGee, two characters who, for a moment, are giving us glimpses of how these two shows come together and how they’ve done so before. But there’s also Nick and Jessica getting to interact with Woody and Phil, and a case that felt like justice wasn’t served thirty years ago getting something resembling that in the present.
Sure, this team has changed. The threads that connect NCIS and NCIS: Origins are weaker now than perhaps they would have been five years ago. But all of the people on this team worked with Gibbs, even if some worked with him a lot longer. They all learned the rules and, in a lot of cases, do their best to live by them. And they might not be the OG team, but they’re still a testament to what has made the show work for over 20 years.
Teamwork. Found family. A desire to be there for each other, in good times and bad times. And, almost as importantly, an understanding that they don’t have to be exactly what came before them to work. There’s no new Tony and Ziva, just like there’s no new Gibbs. There are just the characters we have now. And we happen to like them too, very much.
MORE: Here’s our last NCIS review, and our last NCIS: Origins review.
Things I think I think:
- It’s actually so good to see Gibbs again, I’m not gonna lie.
- How many notebooks does he go through? Because with that huge handwriting, he’s probably going through one a week! Where is he even buying them? Does he buy in bulk?
- “Over the years, the outside changes, but inside you still feel all the same things.”
- I’m glad he’s not alone.
- The way he touches Lala’s face in the picture, I’m OKAY.
- Nice transition to young Gibbs.
- Boat’s looking good, Gibbs.
- Vera’s “You should always tell me everything.”
- Abs indeed, Herm.
- “My two dads,” lol.
- Look, whatever Franks was doing, it was not asking Vera out.
- Roadtrip!
- “Make me proud,” says Lala as she hands Gibbs the camera.
- Everyone knows about Gibbs’ pictures in the notebook?
- I love that Gibbs is no longer wary of giving it back to Franks.
- Everyone in the two is lying?!
- Gibbs was indeed right.
- The whole Franks and Vera thing is hilarious because everyone is reacting.
- Lala and Gibbs might have taken a step back, but they’re still the person pushing the other to be honest. Does anyone else do that for either?
- Gibbs saving Lala from that tire iron like a hero.
- And the way she runs when she’s worried about him.
- Lala reacting to protect Gibbs by throwing something at the cell is my jam.
- Mike goes from “I didn’t ask her” to “Of course she does, she’s a woman and I’m me.”
- Lala went out looking for Gibbs’ pictureees. And the knife!
- Well, Franks and Gibbs didn’t need to almost come to blows for Rule 11.
- “When the job’s done, walk away.”
- The ultimate question for Gibbs: how are you gonna get that boat out?
- Franks is such a hypocrite, and I say that with love. He was the one who didn’t let it go.
- “I don’t know how people solved crimes in the 90s.”/”I don’t know how they got anything done.”
- So great to see Vera again.
- Her interactions with McGee are kinda hilarious.
- “Retirement is boring as hell.”
- See, Kasie loves Vera. But also, who keeps a VCR?
- What do you mean by the new Tony and Ziva? No!
- Woody and Phil look pretty great for their age, lol.
- Okay, what do you mean you talk to Gibbs, Vera?!
- I knew it was his son. And I knew it was the Congressman.
- The reunion between father and son!
- “What we meant to each other. That we were family.”
Agree? Disagree? What did you think of NCIS: Origins Season 2, Episode 5 ‘Funny How Time Slips Away’ and NCIS Season 23, Episode 5 ‘Now and Then’? Please share with us in the comments below! And if you have any thoughts about the show, leave a review/rating of your own in our NCIS hub and NCIS: Origins hub!
NCIS airs Mondays at 8/7c on CBS. NCIS: Origins airs on Tuesdays at 9/8c on CBS. For this week only, the shows swapped timeslots, with NCIS: Origins airing before NCIS.
These 2 episodes really brought out the best of this franchise.
There’s still so many stories that can be told in the years to come, CBS and Paramount + just have to take advantage of it all.