NCIS MODERATORS' BLOG 7

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NCIS - SEASON 6 - PERSONAL LOW POINTS

6th August 2009

I have already covered in some depth what were for me personal high points of season 6. Now it is time to turn the spotlight onto the low points of the season. The things that just didn't quite cut it. There's not too many. Season 6 was, after all, in my opinion the best season so far, but here we go....

The constant bickering between DiNozzi and McGee. It got to the point where I wanted to spank both of them and send them to their rooms without their supper. I've seen better behaved three year olds!
General lack of Ziva-isms. I love Ziva's own unique interpretation of the American colloquialisms. There just weren't enough this past season. Certainly very few that were truly memorable. The honorable exception being "playing his cards close to his breasts" in reference to Fornell in "Nine Lives".
Abby in "Silent Night". I really wanted to Gibbs-smack her in that one. Her constant whining on nearly drove me insane.
Lack of Gibbs-smacks. Two lousy smacks and we had to wait until episode 18 to get them. Many thanks to Jesse Stern for that.
The scalpel through Ducky's hand in "Broken Bird". Ewwwwwwwwwwwwwww. I still shudder at the memory.
Palmer's petualant whining and sulking at the start of "Broken Bird". Out of character and extremely annoying.

As I said, not too many in my personal opinion. What do you think? Do you agree with me? Disagree? Have your own ideas? As always, please let me have your feedback. In the thread attached or by PM.

LAST UPDATE ON 7th August 2009, 7.24AM Australian Time
SUBMITTED BY MargyW

TWILIGHT NEVER EXISTED OR IN DENIAL OVER THE DECEASE OF KATE TODD

6th August 2009

Several seasons have passed yet there are still many fans who would like to see Kate come back despite the fact she was bumped off with a sniper's bullet from Ari's rifle also known colloquially as a Kate. The character was written out of the series because the actress (Sasha Alexander) wished to leave and had no intentions of returning, therefore, the writers could hardly have her temporarily shifted to another NCIS team or abandoning the agency, since that would only have fuelled audience demand for her return.

Her death was dramatic yet as clear as a bell, there was no way out she could have come back, this is not the X Files, so there is nothing paranormal going on in any of the episodes. Yet people keep clamouring for her return, and in fan fiction she still lives on in a lot of stories, that Twilight (episode in which died) never existed, or in others it did, but her death was a ruse and that in fact she's alive under a witness protection programme, or she's alive and Ziva is also on the team.

Whilst all this is fine for fan fiction, and some of these stories are in fact extremely well-written and worthwhile reading, the fact remains this character cannot return to the series unless the decide to have some of the original team members suffering some kind of hallucination due to a series of dramatic circumstances, rather like in the case of Gibbs in S3 when he got blown up; and even then there's enough footage for the 2 seasons Kate was in the series, for it to be unnecessary for the Sasha Alexander to return and record any seasons.

What most surprises about this denial is the fact that many people are unwilling to face up to the fact that in this particular case it was the actress portraying the role who asked to be written out permanently, and even if it had been the scriptwriters, well, tough!! That's life and it's only a series. I don't deny there are people who prefer one character over another, that's logical, after all we can't be expected to like all the characters, there will always be those for whom we have greater or lesser preference or even hate. If the character of Kate Todd had been written out in such a way that there could have been an opening for her return, i.e. they could have had her off sick for a depression, transferred elsewhere, etc., etc., in which case the clamouring for her return would make some sense. Yet, quite how people expect Kate Todd to be resuscitated is beyond me - to date this is not possible in the real world, and a fictional series like NCIS would be totally out of place, a different kettle of fish would be series like Torchwood, Buffy, etc., which deal with the paranormal.

I find it quite incredible that people are unable to move on, Kate Todd was only a fictional character, she didn't exist. I can understand people who've lost someone close to them in tragic circumstances find it difficult to move on, although if you wish to remain in the land of the living there really is no other option.

This must sound terribly unfeeling to some, but come on people we're dealing with fiction NOT reality!!! However, let me suggest CAITLIN (KATE) TODD - REQUIESCAT IN PACE. Let the dead rest, it's the humane thing to do, anything else would be cruel.

I rest my case.

LAST UPDATE ON 6th August 2009 9:13 PM - CET
SUBMITTED BY Sorgiña

MARK HARMON & COTE DE PABLO - TV'S HOTTEST CRIME FIGHTERS?

5th August 2009

Great minds think alike! I logged in this morning to do my blog and discovered Sorgina had taken inspiration from the same source I had, www.ew.com's poll. My blog, however, will be a little different.

We all know these polls are popular and fun for the fans, but I do wonder what the actor's think of them. Given the size of some actor's egos polls like this must cause friction on some sets. Not that I imagine that that is the case on the set of NCIS. Egos appear to be non-existent there, which is great. I can, however, imagine that the Arch Prankster is getting some payback in the form of smart-ass comments from his co-stars. No comments to Cote, however. I should imagine that her co-stars are not suicidal. Any guys reading this please remember this one important rule. Never so much as intimate that a woman isn't sexy. Your life expectancy will either shorten drastically, or you will lose several component parts of your anatomy. Or possibly both.

Michael, Sean, Rocky and Pauley never got a nomination. So what was EW's criteria for selection? I'm not arguing with their choice of Mark Harmon you understand, but I know that others won't agree. What is sexually attractive to one person isn't necessarily so to another. I'll give you an example. I started primary school (elementary school) at age 5 with a guy whose name was Mark (no not THAT Mark). We went all the way through primary and high school together. He was my best male buddy. Outside of school he started playing American football, which wasn't big in New Zealand by any standards. A scout from an American university was visiting, saw him and he was offered a scholarship. He played college football and then was picked up by a Californian team, Sacramento Surge. I had a lot of penfriends in those days (pre internet...we actually sent letters to people) and a few of them were in California. I was asked by one of them if I knew anything about football. I said no, but mentioned my friend playing for Sacramento Surge. The next letter I got back started off with "He is soooooo sexy! I have his picture all over my bedroom wall!". Mark? My buddy Mark? Sexy? She's nuts! I spent several hours pouring over school photos and photos from parties and outings and things we'd done trying to work out what the heck she was seeing that I wasn't! I eventually realized what it was. I knew Mark. We had grown up together. What my penfriend saw was the image of a successful sportsman. Image versus reality. I realized that, like beauty and many other objective things, sexy is in the eye of the beholder.

There is a tendency when we hang labels like "sexy" or "hot" on someone to objectify them. Make them more or less than human. That is the danger of polls like this. They lead us to objectify actors. The polls are a lot of fun, as said before, but do need to be treated both lightly and warily. Don't take them seriously. The world won't come to an end if someone else is voted "hotter" than Mark Harmon. Also treat them warily.... voting for someone in a poll like that doesn't make them "yours".

LAST UPDATE ON 6th August 2009, 6.40AM Australian Time
SUBMITTED BY MargyW

NCIS GIRLS/LADIES

5th August, 2009

I thought it was time we tackled the female roles in NCIS given that Cote de Pablo has recently been nominated by www.ew.com as one of the hottest female crimefighters.

Well, just backtracking from S6 backwards and mulling over the different female characters in the series, and not one of them could be described as either simpering bimbo or femme fatale. Although none of them are ugly, they aren't there as inane smiling bustheads. We see they are dressed in clothes appropriate for the jobs they do, hairstyles and makeup included, except perhaps for Jen, but then supposedly as director of NCIS she could play at little more feminine than the rest. However, it's interesting to note, that when they're supposed to look tired/sad, etc., they really do no holds barred; and who doesn't remember Kate's bed hair in the episode where Tony screams at finding an iguana in his bed.

It makes a pleasant change to find actresses playing roles on TV with everything involved including their own stunts in the case of Cote, who likes to do her own, instead of the classic bimbo prancing around and wondering about a broken nail and holding inane conversations with other bimbos. Even the most of the minor characters on the series are pretty feisty, i.e. Col. Hollis Mann or Lt.Cmdr. Faith Coleman.

Another pleasurable thing about this series, is that the girls really are part of the team, there is no he and she roles, except perhaps at times in the case of Abby but even then she's more than capable of defending herself (Frame-up) and in the episode where she had to dress as a bimbo for the court case and then tazered some unsuspecting chap (can't remember the episode offhand).

I know there's a general complaint about female characters being knocked off instead of male characters, but then nothing's perfect, and it's what sells. However, I think an important thing is the fact that characters like Ziva, Abby, Kate, etc., are modern women roles in that they dress and act in accordance, even their nails are cropped short - I mean let's face it you can hardly go around beating up the baddies or pointing a gun somebody with perfectly manicured hands it would look ridiculous - although we know this does happen in other series.

So I think the series deserves praise for this reason alone, in that its female characters are real women, use normal language, dress in normal work clothes, who laugh wholeheartedly or snort instead of dissolving into bimbo giggles.

LAST UPDATE ON 5th -August 2009 9:23PM - CET
SUBMITTED BY Sorgiña

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MargyW

NCIS - Season 6 - Personal Low Points

Sep 1 2009, 4:30 PM EDT by MargyW

Thread started: Aug 6 2009, 4:35 PM EDT Watch

My blog today is on the low points of season 6.

Please let me have some feedback/discussion on this

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MargyW

Mark Harmon & Cote de Pablo - TVs Hottest Crime Fighters?

Aug 8 2009, 12:19 AM EDT by bellswebster

Thread started: Aug 5 2009, 4:44 PM EDT Watch

My blog today takes inspiration from the same place as Sorgina's, but goes a different path.

Please let me have your feedback. Thanks.

Do you find this valuable?

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Sorgiña

TWILIGHT NEVER EXISTED OR IN DENIAL OVER THE DECEASE OF KATE TODD

Aug 6 2009, 3:12 PM EDT by Sorgiña

Thread started: Aug 6 2009, 3:12 PM EDT Watch

This is today's blog entry, which will no doubt open some wounds, but please let's have some feedback/discussion on this

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What?	NCIS MODERATORS' BLOG S9	What is that makes people not like Ziva?
Brilliant!!!!	Please continue	NCIS Mavericks Page 21
NCIS Mavericks Page 22	Please finish the stories that are posted.	NCIS Mavericks interesting idea of back up team training as Gibbs 2