NCIS

What’s the Story?

NCIS is an offshoot of JAG, and, like its predecessor, it takes a military angle on the standard legal/crime procedural drama: The unit's purpose is to investigate crimes involving Navy and Marine Corps personnel. Mark Harmon plays Special Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs, the man in charge of on-the-ground operations. Gibbs is a serious guy whose impatience with bureaucracy makes you wonder why he chose a career in the military, but whose experience and intensity keep the rest of the team on track. His two main investigators, Anthony "Tony" DiNozzo (Michael Weatherly) and Ziva David (Cote de Pablo), riff with each other constantly, including some sexual banter. Several other characters round out the show, most notably Abby Sciuto (Pauley Perrette), whose gothic style and relentlessly chipper attitude make her an unusual forensic expert. Her geeky personality and propensity for Big Gulp sodas add to her cult appeal.

Is It Any Good?

While the show definitely has some appealing characteristics and an upbeat feel, the writing is mediocre, and the genre is just plain tired. But what sets NCIS apart from CSI, The Evidence, Crossing Jordan, and the rest of the shows in the crime scene-investigation genre is its tone. While CSI is dark and moody, NCIS is light and playful, full of gags and teasing banter between characters.

Stereotypes abound, but around gender the message is mixed. DiNozzo and David play out some familiar sex/power games, like when David tries to seductively bribe DiNozzo into saying he was driving during a fender bender in order to save her driving record. But balanced against this type of behavior is the fact that David is a strong character who holds her own against DiNozzo's mild chauvinism, bragging about her own sexual behavior and taking initiative when her partner is stumped.