'NCIS': The Mole Strikes Back

Earlier this week, the New York Times officially declared NCIS an overwhelming ratings success and a cool show to watch. Since then, most every reputable news organization has come out of the woodwork to praise this mega hit. If you're just finding this show for the first time, this is the episode for you.

These Spoilers double crossed the double crosser.

What can brown do for you? Apparently, they can deliver large crates to secure military facilities. The sentries on duty open it to find a body on dry ice. They immediately draw their guns on Didi, the unsuspecting delivery gal. Gibbs and the team arrive to find it's a dead sailor in a box. Ducky and Jimmy Palmer follow close behind, but are taken aback when they actually peer into the box. They seem to know who the sailor in the box is. The convoy speeds away, but for some reason, McGee and Gibbs stay behind to do surveillance. Later that night, Ziva and DiNozzo arrive and use pictures taken earlier of a guard entering the door code to gain access to the facility. McGee is nice enough to loop a hallway camera so as not to tip off the guards. The two maneuver through hallway after hallway, getting ever so closer to their goal when they unintentionally trip a security alarm.

We arrive three days earlier to reveal all the details leading up to the incident: Ducky and Jimmy are releasing the dead sailor in question while Vance instructs Team Gibbs and team to break into a secure facility to see how secure it really is. Meanwhile, both McGee and DiNozzo separately attempt to enter Abby's lab, but the door is closed and locked. Naturally, they suspect she's up to something.

The gang meets in the storage room. Gibbs asks if they're familiar with an operation code named Domino: how the US would respond to an attack in the Middle East and Israel. Their mission, whether they like it or not, is to infiltrate a secure facility and steal the Domino file. This, however, is only a test of the security features of the facility. They begin to formulate a plan over pizza. A fire drill, tubes, catapult... some of the many ideas proposed to gain entry. Michelle Lee arrives for pizza and DiNozzo picks her brain on how she would go about getting in. They pitch their entry plans to Gibbs, ultimately going with the inevitable shipping of the dead body route.

Back in the present, the security cameras begin to fail, so McGee and Gibbs are no longer any help on the outside. Ziva and DiNozzo are caught by the guards and they attempt to take them out... failing spectacularly. Ziva wakes up to Jude Ciccolella and his Cuban in her face. The guards were aware of the security exercise all along, and because of Vance's lack of control over the whole deal, the secretary of the Navy is mighty upset he was called away from the Kennedy Center. Regardless of hurt feelings, there's still the nagging issue of a security breach in NCIS.

Abby's still exhibiting strange behavior, even for her. Jimmy attempts to enter her lab with unfortunate results. He's freaking out that he lost the dead sailor's body and just wants use of her lab to investigate. She later meets up with McGee and continues the suspicious activity when he starts asking questions.

Back at the "secure" facility, Gibbs reveals the mole is still out there. They enter the Domino room and SECNAV Phillip Davenport is mighty angry that the plan was never to apprehend the mole there. Upon closer inspection, the facility isn't even real; it's just an elaborate ruse to catch the rat that's been a plague on their respective houses.

DiNozzo and Ziva intercept McGee. They come to the conclusion that Langer was only a patsy. Before he can make the big reveal, Michelle arrives, sending DiNozzo into a story to cover their tracks. Upstairs, Vance and Gibbs meet to discuss the exhaustive surveillance already underway on Special Agent Lee.

DiNozzo is mad as hell that the politics of the job is overwhelming everything else he loves about working for NCIS. Ziva does her best to calm him down, but he's clearly on a warpath. He even goes so far in using Kimbo Slice as a verb. Too bad this episode didn't air one month ago before he became the laughingstock of the mixed martial arts world.

Speaking of irate, Ducky feels violated about Gibbs stealing the body for less than unethical reasons. Good to establish that everyone is upset at everyone else. DiNozzo then rails on his "toothpick" director, livid that Gibbs knows the mole is Michelle and isn't actively doing anything about it. All Gibbs ultimately asks for is patience from the two.

Thanks to his meeting with Secretary Davenport, Vance calls for a building lockdown and begins to corral all personnel into the storage rooms. Of the assembled gang, plus Ducky, Jimmy and Michelle, he's confident the traitor is in the room. The Domino console was coated in a harmless, yet radioactive material, and Vance is using a Geiger counter to find out who has the dirty hands. Gibbs is clean. So is Ducky, DiNozzo and Ziva. He then skips McGee and Michelle and goes straight for Abby, who is busted on the spot

Turns out, Abby was also in on the ruse all along. Her job was to set-up the computer with the radioactive agent, but she accidentally spilled it all over her lab. Seeing as how her role in the operation would have been compromised had anyone entered the lab, that's ultimately why she denied access to everyone. Vance plays up his acting chops by misdirecting both McGee and Michelle herself. He asks her if she can provide Abby with the best defensive counsel in town. She agrees, but says she must leave the lockdown to accomplish this. Vance agrees, setting up the trap.

Michelle leaves the premises, doing her best to leave an unsuspecting mark on a newspaper box. Witnessing all this on a security camera, Vance orders a go to place her in custody. Ziva, DiNozzo and Gibbs casually apprehend her without making a scene. Gibbs later proves her involvement with the Geiger counter. Michelle pleads for mercy, saying she had no choice in the matter. "They" have her daughter and if she doesn't comply with their every request, they will kill her. Vance isn't buying it, if only because her personnel file has no record of a daughter.

Apparently Jimmy and Michelle did date for a while. He spills that she indeed has a kid. The assembled gang say there's no way Michelle walks out of there... except she does. They look shocked. She walks to her car and gets in to find Langer's ID on the rear view mirror and Gibbs crouched in the back seat. Seems they're now working together!

Next time on NCIS, the gang must trust a traitor and perform some light treason of their own... especially Gibbs and McGee!

Did you see the twist Michelle provided about a kid coming? Is it plausible that one of our beloved main characters could ultimately be involved in this mole hunt? Are you excited about all the positive press the show has been getting lately?

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