Ever since dear old Gerald was shot in season one, Jimmy Palmer has been Ducky Mallard's medical assistant, bumbling along providing us with comic relief as he makes jokes in poor tastes, has sex with Agent Lee in the most awkward places and sparks a curious rivalry with McGee. Indeed, we even got to see him have a go at Chip in season three. If cast interaction is the best thing about NCIS (and it is), then Palmer contributes greatly to making the programme a success. He should be a regular, really.
So it's nice to see an episode that concentrates on him for a change. It's another "self doubt" episode, perhaps coming a little too hot on the heels of Ziva's "self doubt" episode, but unlike Ziva's, the difference is that Palmer's not the hero of the series. When he fails to catch the guy who stole a passport and then shot at him, no one ever criticises Palmer (with the exception of Assistant Director Vance, who makes a return here - will Jenny ever return?) because, as Ducky so rightly points out, he is a medical assistant, not a field agent.
It's only Palmer who blames himself, and it's Palmer's self loathing the drives the episode as he struggles to recall the information his frightened brain has seized up and won't release. This leads to a hilarious hypnosis scene where we find that Palmer has a shoe fetish, and the ability to accurately recall who sold him coffee (though of all the things Palmer reveals it's perhaps a shame he didn't reveal anything about Agent Lee - a plot thread that has been left curiously dangling). But in the end, of course, Palmer shines through when he takes the risk - against Gibbs' instructions - and slams his car into the bad guy's. Hoo-rah Palmer!
Not much of a case, but worth it for the chance to see Palmer shine.
"B+"
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