NCIS: Last Man Standing (Season Six)

Channel Ten, always keen to "fasttrack" stuff that actually rates for them, have been surprisingly remiss in not fasttracking NCIS last year, but this year they've made up for it, and so as a consequence, one week after the American broadcast, and a fortnight after Ten finally managed to bring themselves to show the finale of Season Five, they are showing the premiere of Season Six. Things have changed on NCIS...Gibbs has a new team which sees the return of Jonthan LaPaglia to NCIS, having apparently left the FBI to join NCIS, and also the return of Liza Lapira's Michelle Lee, who was briefly DiNozzo's probationary agent on the team when Gibbs left. It's quite nice to see this sort of continuity in the series and it bodes well for Season Six, after the lacklustre Season Five.

Just on a side note, it's interesting to see that Brian Dietzen gets an "Also Starring" credit this series, and about time, poor bastard's been here since midway through Season One. Also of interest is that Mark Harmon is now a producer on the series. Clearly the rumours that Harmon wanted a little more control (or perhaps more accurately he wanted Donald P Bellisario had a little less control) were truer than we thought.

It's nice to see some originality in the series this year, although the disbanding of the old team and assembling of a new one is perhaps a little "House", but seeing as how, by the end of the episode, the team is essentially rebuilt, it's not that bad. What's more interesting is that the disbanding actually is based in plot - new director Leon Vance knowing that there is a mole in NCIS and, having narrowed it down to three, he puts those three into Gibbs' team. It's a nice plan, except that Gibbs isn't an idiot and realises that Vance has an ulterior motive quite soon.

Everyone is back, and once again bang on character. Cote de Pablo is starting to look hotter and hotter; I was never terribly impressed with her when she first joined, but her opening appearance, singing in that amazing dress, takes your breath away. I'm starting to get a little sick of the "everyone but Gibbs hates Tony" routine; he's a great character and it would be nice to remind the audience that his natural charm is also part of his character, and those kind of people always have friends. What's also interesting is the appearance of Ziva's father, who appears to have close ties to Vance.

Once the episode's problem is solved, it is clear that the traitor has not been revealed, and that is obviously the running theme for the season, along with the various secrets that Vance appears to have. It's a little bit of a shot in the arm and I think it is exactly what NCIS needs as it enters it's sixth year.

"A"