NCIS: HAWAII Canceled After Three Seasons

© by Gerald So | 2:00 AM

NCIS: HAWAII had been CBS's last show on the bubble. Ratings-wise it seemed to have a good chance of returning. It was an expensive show, but the producers had agreed to budget cuts. The strikes and Paramount Global being up for sale may have been factors. I think CBS should have renewed it instead of ordering a Gibbs prequel and a Tony-and-Ziva spinoff, maybe instead of un-canceling S.W.A.T.

NCIS: HAWAII was the first with a female lead, but it stood out to me for its portrayal of lesbian couple Lucy Tara and Kate Whistler, unconditionally supported by their colleagues, a dynamic no other NCIS nor other broadcast crime show had. That said, because the NCIS franchise remains entrenched at CBS, HAWAII's cancellation stings less than other shows'. Members of the Hawaii team could move to the mothership as Sam Hanna moved from canceled NCIS: LOS ANGELES to HAWAII.

ROBERT B. PARKER'S BUZZ KILL by Alison Gaylin

© by Gerald So | 6:30 PM

Thanks to Putnam Books, I got to advance review Alison Gaylin's September 10 second Sunny Randall sequel.

NCIS: "A Thousand Yards"

© by Gerald So | 5:30 AM

The NCIS franchise marked 1,000 episodes across its five series with a case of the original that deftly recalled its first. I haven't seen all 1,000 episodes nor all 464 of NCIS itself, but I did watch every episode the first seven seasons. In the middle, sameness set in. How many stories could you tell with Gibbs, Tony, Ziva, and McGee after all? I tuned back in when Bishop joined in Season 11, then again when Knight and Parker joined in Season 19.

One reason the show has run 21 going on 22 seasons is the cast changes. Another is the show has always had characters who span generations and personalities—Gibbs the gruff, taciturn leader; Ducky the garrulous grandfather; Tony the quippy man-of-action; McGee the computer geek; Abby the goth—all working together.

As a BONES fan, too, I was happy to see T.J. Thyne this episode in a guest role. I recently caught a Thyne-specific BONES nod in the NCIS Season 14 episode "The Tie that Binds." Fornell's daughter Emily says she has a boyfriend, Jack, studying to be an entomologist.