SWAK
- Episode aired May 10, 2005
- TV-PG
- 44m
Tony opens a letter, literally SWAK, dispersing a fine white powder; the gang does the drill. Kate and Tony get a free trip to Bethesda. Gibbs and company find both the bad lady and the solu... Read allTony opens a letter, literally SWAK, dispersing a fine white powder; the gang does the drill. Kate and Tony get a free trip to Bethesda. Gibbs and company find both the bad lady and the solution of a two-year-old rape case at the USNA.Tony opens a letter, literally SWAK, dispersing a fine white powder; the gang does the drill. Kate and Tony get a free trip to Bethesda. Gibbs and company find both the bad lady and the solution of a two-year-old rape case at the USNA.
- Receptionist
- (as Bibi Amos)
- Doctor at Bethesda
- (uncredited)
- Will
- (uncredited)
- NCIS Special Agent Christopher Pacci
- (archive footage)
- (uncredited)
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaDonald P. Bellisario has a cameo as a neurologist in this episode.
- GoofsWhen Gibbs and McGee leave the morgue in chemical suits, Abby claims that he hasn't left isolation. This is wrong, these suits only protect the person inside from contamination from the outside. But as the breathing air is vented to the outside (otherwise the suit would be inflated by the decompressed breathing air) any airborne agent would leave the suit on this way as well.
- Quotes
Special Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs: [wearing a biohazard suit] I need you to check the video from 1130, when I left, to 0530, when McGee arrived.
Abby Sciuto: You need to get a life, Gibbs.
Special Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs: [not hearing her clearly] Last thing I need is another wife!
Abby Sciuto: [louder] *Life*, Gibbs. You need to get a life.
- ConnectionsReferenced in NCIS: Driven (2006)
- SoundtracksGypsy Racket
(uncredited)
Written by Dominic Kelly
Performed by Dominic Kelly
Courtesy of Addax Music Company
Still, it went beyond anything I could've ever imagined/expected. It was an effective change in the routine of no stakes or sense of "something more" regarding shows like this, and even though nothing came of it in the end, going the extra mile of doing the routine change was sufficient. Doing that may be more common nowadays in shows like this. I don't know. If so, it seems better to go with the 99% of the time "mundane," run-of-the-mill route. That way, the 1% that's beyond that hits harder instead of switching up the formula too much.
Most of the character moments were great, and the humorous tone with some of them was just as great. We got to see Gibbs be the most exasperated he's been, stemming from Abby's initial non-answers/unhelpful answers, vagueness with her replies/whatever else you'd call it, and Ducky's stories/ramblings. Every moment with Abby and Ducky was great; Gibbs is exasperation central. We got more Gibbs slaps; the final one was endearing. And Olivia Burnette's (Sarah Lowell) acting at the end was good, as was Mariette Hartley's (Hanna Lowell) acting; her voice was also distinctive and compelling.
The cinematography by William Webb was also very decent; that arc shot of Tony right before the title sequence was great: but in particular, the scenes at the hospital; that entire set was good, especially the blue lighting throughout the episode. I'll admit: I'm not knowledgeable about everyone involved with TV/film productions and their duties, yet I think the production designer (Robert J. Bacon), set decorator (Lynn Wolverton-Parker), and art director (Linda A. King) deserve some credit alongside him regarding what I'm talking about.
But what stood out the most was the emotional beats concerning Tony and Caitlin; their scenes together elevated this episode so much. It brought me back to the seventeenth episode: the stakeout scene with them in the car. That instance made me wonder if there was a bigger purpose for it.
Now, we got the scenes in this episode, which were way more hard-hitting and "obvious." The stakeout scene, possibly/most likely, but the scenes in this episode, without a doubt, were done/written with the season finale in mind 100%. If you know, you know, and I'm not ready.
So, in case it's not obvious, I loved this episode: I thought it was this season's best. So far. There is one left. I'm expecting it to be just as good as this one, especially considering what I know about it: the underlying story (not the procedural, episodic norm) and the significant cliffhanger event that happens at the end, while also dreading it a bit because of the latter.
- LegendaryFang56
- Mar 25, 2023