6.07 Collateral DamageThis is a featured page

Previous Episode Season #: 6
Episode #:07 Air Date: November 11, 2008
Next Episode

Collateral Damage



Synopsis:
Gibbs second-guesses his own judgement when Vance assigns a rookie to aid his team's investigation into a deadly bank robbery. (CBS Synopsis- released 10/30-08)

Episode Recap:
SHORT RECAP (for long recap, see the thread below).
When a child runs into a bank guard and smears ice cream on his shirt, the guard goes to the bathroom to clean up. On returning to the banking chamber, he finds everyone face-down on the floor and masked men doing a hold-up. He is shot at near point blank range and the villains escape.

In the bullpen, Tony is hitting on a rookie agent, to Ziva and McGee's disgust. The rookies are gathered and are on a placement, soon to go back to FLETC for more training. The team ponders why their own team has not been assigned a rookie. Gibbs arrives and says they have a crime scene at Quantico (which is a marine base surrounding the FBI compound).

At the crime scene, they get conflicting information from witnesses (but the accurate witness is a marine). The team ponders who would rob a bank in FBI territory. The getaway car is found near a gate, burning. Video of crime scene is digitally destroyed. The villains were professional.

The team investigate the bank robbery, and regard the death of the bank guard as collateral damage.
Director Vance requires Gibbs to accept a rookie on his team: Dwayne Wilson. He is required to assess Dwayne's suitability for NCIS.
Gibbs tries to transfer the assessment task to Ducky as psych specialist, but Ducky is surprised that Gibbs doesn't just trust his gut instinct.

The rookie is keen, honest and has joined because his dad was cleared of a crime by a persistent NIS officer. Rookie wants to make a difference.
Tony, who was grilling rookie on motives whilst they searched FBI records, is impressed. Claims that Tony's own motive for joining NCIS was for the guns and babes.

The team beavers away at discovering clues but are puzzled by the modus operandi and that they only stole 27k. If they waited three days, they would have hit the bank on a big money day (marines were getting holidays and would want cash). Therefore, the holdup was a smokescreen for the real crime. The real crime was the killing of the guard. But it could not look like murder, even though it was clearly a hit. Ziva ponders why they didn't just go up to his front door and shoot him when he opened it, which is the easy way to do it. McGee looks at her as if she is an assassin. (oh yeah, she is). Gibbs is just mildly amused at how serious Ziva is and how unaware she is of how she sounds to others.

Vance is on Gibbs' case about assessing the rookies. He also calls in Agent Lee for legal advice about what it takes to offload Director Shepard's rookies in favour of his own. Lee is bemused. And uncomfortable. Gibbs stares at her.

Tony has trouble opening a drawer: it is jammed with Agent Langer's old ID card from his FBI days, which prompts flashbacks in Gibbs and makes him ponder whether he was right to think that he was previously wrong about Langer (contorted but this is Gibbs' mind and that is the way it works).

Abby spots a clue. She notices the tatt on someone on the floor in the bank. She realizes it is the same tatt she has seen elsewhere, the tattooed man is a baddie and he is a hit man. They find his cronies. They find that cronies did time in prison with the bank guard's son. They realize the son will go to the funeral. They learn that the son was in a diamond heist and that the son is the next target of the villains who want their diamonds back.

Meanwhile, Tony has interrogated the man who set up the security system at the bank, which conveniently failed just when it was needed to the benefit of the villains. Security system man is in debt. Tony grills him in his own offbeat style (which involves itchy ears...yeah, it is weird but amusing and effective). But the guy has a financial plan to survive the credit crunch: he is going to marry a rich but ugly heiress (honest to goodness, they made her look ugly, right down to the big glasses and the frizzball hairdo). Hmmm. Tony realizes that the man must be serious about getting money from the woman because no one would marry her voluntarily (which is really, really shallow, Tony!).

So back to the villains.... they will know where the son is when the funeral is on, because it is Italian family and they always go to funerals. And they have crowds. When is the funeral, Ziva? Now Gibbs! Ok, let's go. So, they go. And rookie Dwayne tags along.

Tony makes Dwayne stay with the car, as he has no gun. Dwayne is disappointed.
Team goes trawling amongst the black-clad guests of the funeral where all the men look like mafiosi, we guess. They spot someone being dragged into a big black SUV (are all SUV drivers villains? Ecological ones perhaps, but these are gun-toting ones). The SUV is pulling away. But a car pulls up blocking the exit. The frustrated man in black says move! But the man (our rookie hero, Dwayne) goes over to help his "grandma" into the car. (The poor woman in lavender who was quietly laying flowers at a tombstone nearby is puzzled indeed). Dwayne distracts the villains with his ruse which enables a firefight. Rookie bravely shields old lady from the firefight that he has instigated. So the rest of the villains emerge from SUV and lay on the ground, and the old lady looks up and says "you are not my grandson", to which Dwayne has no reply. But he is happy to see that Gibbs has noticed him and probably even given a mild smile.

Back at HQ, the team are giving Dwayne a fond farewell at the candy machine, where Tony has stolen a candy bar for him. (oh, the moral turpitude!). So Dwayne leaves as someone they like and respect. (well done, son).
Gibbs goes to Vance's office and proffers Dwayne's file: nothing written in there. Gibbs tells Vance to write "recommended".
Gibbs now trusts his gut (but only after Ducky gave him a talking to... and pointing out that after Langer, Gibbs feels vulnerable but he should trust his gut). To elaborate, Gibbs had come down with Dwayne's file to the autopsy and had requested Ducky's help. The good doctor on knowing that the agent is alive surmised that he needed only to give his psychological evaluation. When Gibbs came back later again, Ducky says that the agent is extremely diligent, but not necessarily brainy, persuasive but skillless in the matter of technology, has profound ability to understand a situation and could be a excellent investigator...but. Gibbs has to ask what is the negative part ... to which Ducky says he has been married 4 times and divorced thrice. It becomes obvious to our dear Jethro that Ducky is talking about him and he also understands the point he was trying to make. Ducky does follow up by saying that a wrong decision he may have made in the case of Langer does not make his ability to judge other people totally vanish.

Gibbs passes Dwayne on the stairs and says "good luck" which is a high honour and Dwayne realizes it.
Gibbs spots Lee and he STARES. (A really really hard Gibbs stare. Hard enough that it taps Lee on the shoulder and makes her look around, then follows her into the lift and makes her flashback and we see her kill Langer. Pow. Thud. Bad girl).

Gibbs on his own enters a bar, orders bourbon. When barman observes that Gibbs is "alone tonight", Gibbs says "no" and goes over to the wall of honor for the fallen NCIS agents (and we see Cassidy!) and puts up Langer's FBI ID picture. Gibbs now trusts his gut.
Roll credits.

New Character Development / Insights:
  • Dwayne became an NCIS agent because an agent had cleared his father of charges when he was younger, and he would like to make the same difference in someone else's life.
  • Dwayne's basically a younger Gibbs, right down to his approach toward cases. Vance even asks Lee what his options for terminating him are, ostensibly because he is too much like Gibbs (although this might have been an excuse for Vance to call Lee to his office on a pretext).
  • Hints are dropped throughout the episode that Gibbs suspects something about Lee and confirmed at the end when Langer's picture is added by Gibbs to the NCIS Fallen Agents honour wall at the local pub (or honor wall for those who prefer American spelling).
  • Ducky's status as a forensic psychologist is established with Gibbs: Gibbs consults him for a profile on Dwayne. Ducky supplies one verbally but it becomes clear that he is really talking to Gibbs about Gibbs. Ducky advises Gibbs to trust his gut and points out that Gibbs' trust in Langer ought not to make Gibbs distrust his instincts.
  • Gibbs barely acknowledges Ducky's advice to his face, but acts on that advice when he decides to back his own initial judgement of Langer as 'trustworthy'. This is a compliment to Ducky's role as Gibbs' mentor and friend (without there being any touchy-feely behaviour exhibited by either of them. Indeed, Ducky was stern with Gibbs.)
  • Gibbs is a legend with rookies. Gibbs team appears to be a legend with rookies. Tony seems to be a legend with female rookies. And Gibbs shows his admiration for the plucky rookie who, unarmed, stopped the villains from getting away: Gibbs actually speaks to the rookie nicely when passing him on the stairs and mutters "Good luck at FLETC". (And we know that this amounts to high praise from Gibbs...seemingly so does the rookie).
  • Gibbs' gut amounts to an extra character in the show. When that character is absent, it affects everyone. Gibbs has to trust his gut like he has to decide whether to trust new agents and old agents. (How many shows have abstract characters like that?)
  • Dwayne is just like Gibbs because Dwayne was a marine like Gibbs.


Funny Moments:
  • The scene of Tony's "theft" as caught by Dir. Vance on the vending machine.
  • The look on McGee's face at Ziva's description of easier way to assassinate targets (you go up to their front door and knock. When they open the door, shoot them. Simple.) The look from Gibbs was also priceless. He knew that she did not realise how that would sound to anyone else, and even he is surprised at how forthright she can be about killing, even though he appreciates her logic. It is almost as if he is proud of how awesome she can be in her assassinliness. (And it harks back to the first time Tony saw her shoot villains, smiling, and says to Gibbs something like "Remind me never to get her pissed" and Gibbs replies to the effect "Oh DiNozzo, you have no idea".)
  • Tony's response to the sincere and heartwarming reasons that the rookie gave as to why he joined NCIS (because an NIS agent saved Rookie's dad from wrongful conviction, even when everyone else was settling for the false solution to the case, and it made the Rookie want to help other people). Tony is moved. Truly. When the rookie asks DiNozzo why he joined NCIS, Tony heartwarmingly replies "Guns and babes".



Trivia:
  • <add information here>
  • <add information here>
  • <add information here>
  • <add information here>
  • <add information here>
  • <add information here>
  • <add information here>



Recurring Cast: Guest Starring:
  • Liza Lapira (Special Agent Michelle Lee)
  • Jonathan LaPaglia (Special Agent Brent Langer) - flashbacks only
  • Jessica Steen (late Special Agent Paula Cassidy) - flashbacks only - uncredited
  • Rey Valentin (Dwayne Wilson)
  • Eric Martsoff (Paul Harris)
  • Anthony Montgomery (Marine Corporal George Linden)
  • Peggy Stewart (Elderly Lady)
  • Lenny Schmidt (Eddie Banasek)
  • Michael Swan (Ray Vittorio)
  • Louis Iacoviello (Curtis Rayner/Jamie Meyers)
  • Chelsey Crisp (Grace Penland)
  • Helena Barrett (Attractive Recruit)
  • Melonie Mack (Jenny Page)
  • Tanner Blaze Whitlock (Tommy Page)
  • Peter Gannon (Bartender)
  • Billy Finnigan (Joey Vittorio)
Written By: Directed By:
  • Alfonso H. Moreno
  • Terrence O'Hara






Add Episode Photos Below: (No blurry or duplicate photos please)
Collateral Damage Promo Picture Collateral Damage Promo Picture


Collateral Damage Promo Picture Collateral Damage Promo Picture


Collateral Damage Promo Picture Collateral Damage McGhee DiNozzo burning suv


collateral Damage Tony and the Vending Machine Collateral Damage Vance Dwight
Collateral Damage Tony and Dwayne going through FBI unsolved cases
Dwayne and "grandma" in cemetary



Previous Episode Back to: NCIS Season 6 Next Episode




No user avatar
Editor7117
Latest page update: made by Editor7117 , Aug 29 2009, 8:41 PM EDT (about this update About This Update Editor7117 Edited by Editor7117

28 words added
33 words deleted

view changes

- complete history)
More Info: links to this page
Started By Thread Subject Replies Last Post
sandbar17 I'm glad they are replaying Collateral Damage this week 0 Aug 24 2009, 1:05 PM EDT by sandbar17
Thread started: Aug 24 2009, 1:05 PM EDT  Watch
I'd really like to see Agent Wilson return to NCIS this season. Here's our chance to watch him in action again.
Do you find this valuable?    
Keyword tags: None
#1hotchfan Discuss Episode 6.07 Collateral Damage here (page: 1 2 3 4) 68 Nov 18 2008, 5:15 PM EST by iamscully
Thread started: Nov 10 2008, 3:40 PM EST  Watch
This is a place for Wiki members to discuss this episode.
2  out of 5 found this valuable. Do you?    
Keyword tags: None
Show Last Reply
Showing 2 of 2 threads for this page

Related Content

  (what's this?Related ContentThanks to keyword tags, links to related pages and threads are added to the bottom of your pages. Up to 15 links are shown, determined by matching tags and by how recently the content was updated; keeping the most current at the top. Share your feedback on Wetpaint Central.)