NCIS: Los Angeles - Borderline

Network: CBS
Time: Tuesdays, 9:00-10:00pm
Cast: Chris O'Donnell, LL Cool J, Daniela Ruah, Linda Hunt, Barrett Foa, Peter Cambor, Eric Christian Olsen

Summary: Deeks and Kensi partner on a mission to find three marines who disappeared after their Humvee was ambushed in the desert.

Warning: This review contains spoilers for the episode.  Stop now unless you've seen the episode or you don't care.

Review: NCIS: Los Angeles is a show that really started growing into itself towards the end of season one, culminating in a wonderful season finale and a strong two-part premiere.  I was worried when pre-production started that it could never live up to its predecessor, but there are times when I actually think it might be better than the original (not that I don't love NCIS, of course!).

I find this show far more serious than NCIS.  The characters manage to have both a sense of humor and a level of professionalism, and they deal with more international terrorism cases than simply missing or murdered Marines.  They also don't have the "cowboy" quality that Gibbs' team has.  For the most part, they follow the rules.  When they do break them, it's because of special circumstances.

This episode centered around a Mexican drug cartel that had kidnapped two Marines and killed another.  To find the missing Marines, the team split into two groups.  Sam (with Callen as backup) reactivated a dangerous undercover identity to work the drug angle, while Kensi and Deeks tried to track the cartel through the southern California desert.  The humor went with Kensi and Deeks; the drama went with Callen and Sam.

Amidst the case was a lingering mystery... where did Hetti send Nate, and how did he learn to shoot?
The  drug cartel story was done well.  Unlike NCIS, Los Angeles seems to be able to pull off case-based episodes, even when the characters' personal lives aren't in the forefront.  This may be because Los Angeles is newer and hasn't had as much time to use lots of different scenarios.  Or it could be because they don't look for plot twists; the focus of this story was how they got from the crime to the rescue.

The chemistry between Kensi and Deeks was pretty good as well, though Deeks is clearly struggling to find his place in the show.  I liked him when they introduced him, so I'm hoping he eventually settles in.


My biggest problem was the resolution of Nate's storyline.  I understand that the writers and producers are trying to show the audience that no character is safe, but did they really need to write Nate out?  The team was working, and his character provided something that no other offers: the psychological insight into the criminals (as well as the team).  Obviously the show can survive without him, but it's stronger when he's there.  I haven't heard whether or not it was Peter Cambor's choice to leave, nor do I know if this is a permanent move, but I'm bothered by the trend in shows to get rid of the side characters whose jobs are not the main focus of the show.  I hope he'll be back by the end of the season.

Speaking of side characters, I heard rumors that Eric is in for a story of his own sometime soon, and I'm really looking forward to seeing some more of him, considering I think he had about five lines this episode.

"Borderline" was another in a line of solid episodes of NCIS: Los Angeles, but I worry that constantly shaking up the team will turn more people off than the quality writing and acting can keep.  It is only the beginning of the second season, so I suppose the show is still suffering from some growing pains, but I hope they don't do any damage to themselves while they continue to develop.

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My Rating:
[5] Excellent
[4] Good
[3] Average
[2] OK
[1] Bad