Are we surprised that the NCIS: Sydney crew would totally fail an HR workplace culture test?
They’re a bit unorthodox, and the environment they foster isn’t exactly textbook, but that’s why we love them in the first place.
Where they shine is in handling some of the most complicated cases, and taking on Carter’s son’s case was most definitely complicated.
The Carter investigation was interesting because the immediate situation that came to mind was the heartbreaking death of Gabby Petito. I wouldn’t be surprised if that was something they were angling for when constructing this particular case.
This story also resulted in a tragedy, but the angle they worked for it was interesting enough, as it was less about infidelity, domestic abuse, or even drugs, and all about how far a hurt man would go to seek revenge.
The hour was also decent in regards to giving us more insight into Carter, who is admittedly someone I don’t typically think about much at all.
He often feels like a bit of a hardass, and there are times when he also feels like a thorn in their side. However, this installment put into perspective that he’s not just a guy who likes to ride their case or impede how they do their jobs.
He’s a man of principle, almost to a fault in the eyes of those around him, and it’s a different way of looking at him than I ever had before.
A man who wouldn’t bend the rules even for his own son, knowing that he was facing a murder charge?
Yeah, that’s a man of principles and values, and it’s a refreshing change of pace from most law enforcement in fictional dramas like this.
By the end of the hour, he even apologized for dragging Mackey and the others into this, as it shouldn’t have been under their scope in the first place.
Carter had some stumbles along the way — it was still dicey on his part that he didn’t immediately call Mackey or tell her right out that Miles had returned to them at that hotel. It didn’t look great on his part, but it was also just a waste of resources.
And his going off alone in search of Clifford to confront him on his own was another moment where he slipped up.
But ultimately, he’s a man who stands by his values and walks the line, and not even a man coming for his son brought out the worst in him.
Ironically, it’s exactly what landed Miles in danger, potentially at the mercy of the Australian court system, and resulted in the death of his girlfriend, Sophie.
Grieving the loss of a child is one thing, but how did Clifford rationalize killing an innocent part like Sophie for the sole purpose of setting Miles up to send him to prison?
It’s just so sick! He brutally murdered her, too — just a nice, sweet young woman who was traveling around the country with her boyfriend and living her best life.
Everyone had to suffer because Clifford suffered the loss of his son, which, while tragic, didn’t mitigate why his son was in prison and what happened.
Miles woke up with no memory, a bloody knife in his hand, his van being a full-on crime scene, a dead girlfriend, and the genuine fear that he could go down for it.
It’s going to take him a long time to move past that, as there will never be any “getting over” it.
But at least he has Carter there to help him through, and you can trust that he will guide his son through the best way he knows how. It’s within his principles to do so.
It’s too bad Clifford couldn’t figure out the same thing with his own son.
Instead, he felt punishing Carter for not breaking the law and covering for him and his son would be the solution to ease his pain.
And then, when that didn’t work, he wanted Carter to ruin himself and his reputation by killing him in cold blood.
Imagine where he would’ve been if he had opted for therapy instead of revenge.
A little background on Carter was great. And there were some exciting moments.
Mackey and JD are always a perfect partnership when they’re beating the path together and working on something.
It always makes me wary because we’re just waiting for the other shoe to drop when JD learns about what Mackey has been keeping from them.
They trust each other implicitly out in the field, no questions asked, but we’ve also been noticing the silent, subtle erosion there all of NCIS: Sydney Season 3.
JD knew something was up and tracked Mackey down, which is him being a good partner but also an indicator that he’s still uneasy with her in some regard.
I’m just curious to see how their partnership will fare by the end of the season.
Their fixation on this case and their convenient bailing on the HR thing was amusing, though.
It also made me think — in some ways, their missing it felt like a sign. And the fact that they are faking team-building rather than actually doing it is also interesting.
Evie and DeShawn don’t have trust issues out in the field. When they’re serious and locked in, they’re always in step with each other. It’s the personal stuff that’s making them suffer.
They don’t trust each other with vulnerability. The two of them both use humor to deflect, but Evie especially leans into that too much, especially during serious moments.
Her antics during the culture class were peak Evie. At no point did she take things even remotely close to serious, except, maybe, when DeShawn actually committed to the role-playing.
They definitely threw that bone out there for those who ship this pairing romantically. And the tension in that moment was certainly entertaining.
DeShawn’s rizz? Unmatched in that moment. You could tell Evie was affected by how sincere he sounded, and who can blame her? It would’ve worked on me!
But just as they were leaning in closer, wrapped in the moment, with Blue and Trigger as riveted by this as the rest of us, the HR lady ended the “scene.”
One could argue that part of the reason Evie treats DeShawn the way she does, and has upped the ante with her antagonistic, at times obnoxious behavior this season, is that she may have feelings for him.
It’s scary to have those, so doubling down on the annoying behavior is a perfect way to put up walls and guard her heart and feelings. She doesn’t have to be vulnerable when she’s being silly.
Deflection and distraction.
I do have to hand it to the HR lady; she had them both pegged incredibly well. I love bits like that.
The trigger of it all was hilarious, though. Her thinking that his name was actually him admitting that she was triggering him made me giggle.
But whereas DeShawn and Edie have underlying issues they don’t want to address, Trigger and Blue performed well during the trust exercises.
Blue is very trusting of this batch of people, and Trigger is pretty dependable. Of course, my Blue Trigger/Triger Blue, True (?) shipper heart adores the little moments we have them.
If only NCIS: Sydney delivered on the pairing. Pretty please!
But did anyone else read too much into the ending with Trigger and Evie? Does she think he was asking her out?
Over to you, NCIS: Sydney Fanatics!
Did you enjoy this Carter-centric episode? Do you think NCIS: Sydney still needs to do something about Evie?
Were there sparks between her and DeShawn or her and Trigger? Let’s discuss below!
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