Midseason report card: Did ‘NCIS’ season 11 survive without Cote de Pablo?
2013 is a very different time for television than 2003, namely in that there is so much more now when it comes to great television. Therefore, what may have worked to allow “NCIS” to be a great show a decade ago does not necessarily put it into the same pantheon today. There is so much competition now, and whenever you make a change that is so big that it alters the foundation of the show, you have to be sure that you are doing the right thing.
This is the primary question that you have to ask about the first half of season 11: Did they handle the exit of Cote de Pablo correctly? We’re not going to sit here and play the “what if” game, or question whether or not CBS could have done more to keep her (mostly because that is an entirely different conversation); instead, the subject at the center of this Midseason Report Card is if the show made the most out of the transition, and satisfied both fans of Ziva and those hoping to see something new with Ellie Bishop.
What worked – The final scenes with Ziva and Tony were beautiful, and remain the biggest tear-jerker that “NCIS” has produced all year. The first two episodes were among the strongest of the entire year, with “Under the Radar” and then the Christmas episode “Homesick” also being at the top of the list.
The other things that “NCIS” has done well this year are things that have allowed them to be a hit for as long as they have: They do a great job of routinely bringing back people who we have come to know and love on the show, and they also do a great job of giving them something fun to do. We also feel like the introduction of Bishop was almost as good as it could have been, given that the expectations for the character were almost impossible to live up to. We at least applaud the writers for not just making her into Ziva 2.0, or someone else to be with Tony.
What didn’t – When you think about it, Cote really only appeared in about 20 minutes of this season onscreen. When you think about the eight seasons of buildup that we had for her and Tony, that’s just not enough. We did at least finally get a kiss, but it was much later than anyone would have wanted it to happen.
Also, the cases that took place around that middle portion of the season, and even one following the arrival of Bishop, were rather boring. When you have a show that is such a procedural, this is so important to nail every week. We don’t think “NCIS” did that, and that in turn caused some of the frustrations surrounding Ziva’s exit to echo louder than they otherwise would have.
Overall – For a show 11 seasons in to be inconsistent on such a level is very troubling, given that there were some episodes this year that we loved, and then some we don’t even remember now because they were so boring. The great episodes help to overshadow the bad, but the challenge for the second half of this season is to find some stability. That’s where we are really going to know whether or not the Bishop experiment is a success or a failure. Grade: B-.
What grade would you give “NCIS” this season so far? Let us know below.
Emanuele Fabiola de Souza
January 7, 2014 @ 9:15 pm
Sinceramente acho que a cbs tinha que ter tentado mais manter a cote como Ziva pois a saída dela não fez nada bem ao NCIS. Falando sério ta muito chato eu que sou fanática por NCIS com diz minha irmã perdi totalmente a vontade de vê os outros episódios depois da saída de Ziva, os episódios que vi não me agradaram em nada. Acho que cote tem que voltar pro show Ziva e Tony são maravilhosos juntos.
NCIS strong as ever
January 2, 2014 @ 5:12 am
I’d give NCIS an A+ seeing all the show had to go through not knowing Ziva was going to leave. They did a tremendous job. I love Bishop! They brought her on in a very modest way, not forcing anyone to like her or not. You can see how she just fits with the team. She was only suppose to be on a couple of Episodes and no one wanted her to go, she just flowed with them like she was always there! It works! Therefore she will flow with the show. The show is strong. Your review is a C-!
ncisfan
December 29, 2013 @ 5:00 pm
Interesting about a quicker return than might have been expected. When we see Tony and Gibbs “skyping” in the episode WTF Tony does not tell Gibbs he has found Ziza, We then pan out and see Ziva standing in the doorway. I got the impression that Tony has been around for a while. Ziva gave the impression of someone who is used to her privacy, having it invaded, but not wanting to lose the “invasive person (Tony). What would be interesting is Ziva returning with a little DiNozzo/David! Michael Connelly did a similar scenario with his Harry Bosch and Eleanor Wish characters in his Harry Bosch detective series. Just a thought
Léa
December 29, 2013 @ 11:34 am
NCIS is annoying without Ziva! I only watch 3 episodes without her and now, the show is mediocre. I don’t like the new character and all the characters have forgotten Ziva!!! :'(
Abby McGee
December 28, 2013 @ 11:22 pm
I wish Cote would have had more screentime in the first two episodes. I just rewatched them and cried my eyeballs out. I honestly DO NOT like Bishop. I really don’t. It’s mostly because CBS is trying to hard. The character is trying WAY to hard. Honestly, she doesn’t even fit in. She’s married and shows signs of having a lot of family. Everyone else except Palmer are not married and have basically no family (if not a dysfunctional one). She is nothing like them. What also pisses me off is that they are trying to make tony move on so quickly!!!!!!! LIKE NO!! The REAL Tony would still be heart-broken and hide in his shell. Haven’t we always seen him do that in the past? AND GIBBS, CBS I AM PISSSSSSSSSED OFF. Gibbs and Abby and everyone else warmly welcome BIshop!!! NO!! It took Abby FOREVER to get along and tolerate Ziva!! THEY HAVEN’T EVEN MENTIONED HER NAME FOR CRYING OUT LOUD!!! THEY CAN MENTION KATE BUT NOT ZIVA!!!! SHOW SOME DAMN RESPECT (not the characters, CBS).
I do not like season 11 so far. BUT ZIVA IS RETURNING IM CRYING!!!! GO ON GOOGLE AND SEARCH COTE DE PABLO AND FIRST THING THAT COMES UP IS AN ARTICLE SAYING SHES RETURNING THISSSSS SEASON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
mimi
December 29, 2013 @ 12:26 am
It’s just a joke. An “Innocence Day” aka “April’s Fools Day”.
CdP is NOT coming back.
agentscully514
December 29, 2013 @ 2:08 am
it was a poorly written article. as satire it was a big misfire. Cote fans need to lighten up.
Elana
December 29, 2013 @ 1:37 pm
As satire it was perfect. It highlighted and made fun of all the hysteria Cote’s leaving has provoked.
annsan
December 29, 2013 @ 8:48 am
well blame cdp for the lack of screen time – she’s the one who couldn’t agree on anything.
as far as the characters welcoming Ellie – why not?
Makes perfect sense that abby didn’t welcome ziva – ziva helped kill her best friend. plus she used Jenny to get appointed to the team and didn’t belong from day one.
Irishelf67
December 28, 2013 @ 5:37 pm
I love how some people claim the ratings show how much people love NCIS this season Hogwash. I did research about the Nielson ratings and found out they don’t represent actual viewership at all. They are even more unreliable than polls. Nielson ratings are an ESTIMATE of the number of viewers watching based on the viewing habits of a small sample size (around 30,000) some of which are collected digitally and some by handwritten diaries. So all the ratings are basically showing is that a handpicked sample of the US population still like NCIS. Social media, polls and actual viewer reviews show most people hate the new Coke version of NCIS and have stopped watching! Notice that the same 6 people on this website post over and over again how much NCIS is better without Ziva, while many different posters say the opposite!
mimi
December 28, 2013 @ 11:18 pm
Why I’m sure that, if CdP was still part of the show, you and your friends would be squeeing everywhere because ratings a great and saying that NCIS success is only due to CdP and Ziva?
After all it’s what you’ve done in the last 8 years and until the moment Cote voluntarily quit the NCIS and all of her fans without any respect for the show that gave her fame, money and success, for the people she’d worked with for years and for her fans that had loved her so much.
Many different posters or the same people with many identities? ;)
Irishelf67
December 29, 2013 @ 4:34 pm
Actually, I have been saying for years that the rating system is a joke. Many great shows have been cancelled because of this inaccurate rating system, while many horrible ones remain on the air because of it. All the current rating means is that the people who are being monitored by Nielson still watch NCIS in large numbers, not the general public. And even these numbers are starting to go down. Most people I know stopped watching after the 2nd episode this season.
Terry
January 3, 2014 @ 3:35 pm
Show AVERAGED 23 million last year. Now — halfway through the season — it is struggling to hold onto 19 million and dropping. That is a drop of 4 million or about 20 percent of the viewership. Also, it has fallen to 15th — BEHIND AGENTS OF SHIELD — in the key 18-49 demo. That’s the facts.
annsan
January 3, 2014 @ 5:40 pm
That ‘average’ is a skewed number….there were MANY episodes that barely hit 16 million & didn’t come close to 20 millions until the +7 numbers were added in. now the show has consistent same day ratings of 19 – 20 million & still wins demo.
Your dear aos needs +7 ratings to be anything close to a hit
Elana
December 29, 2013 @ 1:39 pm
The ratings over the last few years have all been taken in the same way this years were. They don’t change whether Ziva is there or not. Ergo, Ziva is not vital to people’s viewing pleasure.
Crookshanks
December 28, 2013 @ 5:19 pm
I would give this season an F. This has been the worst NCIS season by far. TPTB played hardball with Cote’s contract regarding it’s length and by doing so lost an integral part of NCIS’s family. Bishop is the 2nd worst character created by GG (the worst being Samantha Ryan) and the actress playing her is just not up to snuff. To add insult to injury, they keep pushing Bishop down our throats (why do we even need the team-Bishop does it all). Most of the posts I’ve seen indicate Bishop is NOT a good fit-even posts from some people who weren’t Ziva fans. Plus, the writing this season has been worse than usual. This year’s season premiere was one of the worst NCIS has ever had, mostly due to an unbelievable poorly written script. And while the scenes between Ziva and Tony were fantastic in the 2nd episode (thanks to great acting by both CDP and MW), the reason for Ziva staying away from DC made absolutely no sense-while I can believe her leaving NCIS, there is no way she would leave her “family” like that. Plus there is the minimal appearance of Ziva in the so called farewell to Ziva episodes, almost as if TPTB were punishing Cote for standing her ground. And then they have the other characters (except for Tony) acting as if she never existed. Horrible. I have stopped watching and won’t ever again until TPTB realize their mistakes and beg Cote to come back and get rid of the horrible Bishop character. Get rid of Barbie and bring back the ninja!
bbicecream
December 29, 2013 @ 5:07 am
I tried, I REALLY tried, so hard, to like Bishop. every minute of screen time makes me hate her more. I TRIED SO HARD. I can’t STAND HER.
Tory
December 27, 2013 @ 11:51 pm
As usual Matt Carter shows up with a misleading and poorly written article article about NCIS. The only thing he can guarantee when writing these articles is that he gets lots of response from the two sides of the fandom.
Bellz Webster
December 27, 2013 @ 11:53 pm
That’s the idea of writing articles.
Tory
December 28, 2013 @ 12:36 am
Just wish he reported more accurately and less inflamatorily. (Is that even a word?! LOL!)
Bellz Webster
December 28, 2013 @ 2:31 am
Part of the ploy to get comments. lol..
agentscully514
December 27, 2013 @ 10:53 pm
so the great episodes (by your reckoning) were the ones with/about Ziva, and the rest were forgettable. What does that tell you? By the way, she didn’t get 20 mintues on screen. She got less than 10 minutes.
Elana
December 29, 2013 @ 1:40 pm
If she was only there for around 10 munutes but the episodes were still great that of itself demonstrates that the character is not necessary to the show.
DidoTwite
December 27, 2013 @ 10:49 pm
Grade F. People talk about the “Core Four”, and they have it dead wrong. The show ALWAYS had a kick ass woman agent in the lead role. First beloved Kate, then Ziva. They *need* a dangerous woman on that team. Now with Bishop, they have yet another semi-autistic socially dysfunction character, like on half the shows on prime time for the last 8 years. I like Ziva best, but if she doesn’t come back, they need a new dangerous woman to round out the team.
bbicecream
December 29, 2013 @ 5:09 am
AGREED. it doesn’t hae to be Ziva. (although Ziva is obviously the best to anyone with a brain). if we can’t have Ziva, it HAS to be another badass, damgerous woman.
annsan
December 29, 2013 @ 8:50 am
Kate was not kick ass….
Nor were Kate or ziva ever the lead roles of the show –
Sylvia Wissmann
December 27, 2013 @ 6:01 pm
Ziva’s exit was handled absolutely terrible and the aftermath even more. There is no reasonable explanation for this whole stay in Israel to start a new life because she killed her half-brother eight years ago. And this terrible try not to mention her name to make viewers forget she had been there for 8 years. This won’t work for me and most people I know!
Sadly the new character (portrayed by such a nice actress) is used to play Miss “I-know-better-than-Gibbs” and the other characters are now written around Bishop. Even worse Tony will be dating soon after he was willing to change his whole life for a woman some people say he never loved!
So sad because this has been the best show for years and now everything goes downhill for all NCIS fans who loved the Ziva character and the TIVA chemistry!
annsan
December 27, 2013 @ 10:45 pm
All GG has talked about in interviews is how the team & fans deserve a ‘mourning’ period….& he gave ziva’s fans that time. No one sat at that desk before Ellie. Both McGee & Tony stared at it. There was the Israeli flag & the scarf she wore. The sudden mention of Tony having a second fish – name unknown.
ziva got FAR more of a goodbye than Kate or Paula or Jenny ever got – & SHE WASN’T EVEN DEAD!
Looking forward to Tony dating in the second half of this season – considering he NEVER DATED ZIVA – it’s beyond time
Tintigorri
December 28, 2013 @ 10:55 am
You seem to forget CdP didn’t exactly leave the writers a lot of room to work considering she made her decision at the last minute when they were on the point of coming back to work, which forced them to rewrite the episodes as best they could.
Those of you who complain about Ziva’s exit seem to forget the writers are already designing the episodes for the new season before the end of the previous and usually have several episodes written ready for the cast to work on when they return and a script doesn’t write itself in a day. By CdP informing the bosses of her departure so late in the day probably meant a lot of work already done had to be trashed.
TIVA chemistry – that’s a load of hogwash.
mimi
December 28, 2013 @ 2:39 pm
Sorry, but I’ve got the feeling that you’re confusing Ellie with Ziva.
Ziva was the ‘I-know-better-than-anyone-else-&-I-don’t-take-responsability-of-my-faults-and-mistakes’. During Ziva’s time all characters have been diminished to highlight her, all characters’ stories literally disappeared because the show was completely filled with Ziva’s unbelievable/boring dramas, all actors’ talent have been humiliated to make CdP look a good actress despite her lack of talent.
EW has already showed that she has talent, because it’s not easy to become part of such a (finally again) talented and well established cast, and look like she’s been with them since S1. Bishop is a breath of fresh air after years of gloomy atmosphere and stuffy air. She’s smart but not arrogant. Funny but not stupid. Young but not childish. All the other characters joke and laugh with her and no one is the punching bag (like Tony was Ziva’s) and… hear! Hear! If Ellie makes a mistake, she admit it and tries to fix it.
About tiva chemistry. Tony/MW had more chemistry with DiNozzo’s desk than with Ziva/CdP. Especially in the last seasons very often it seemed that MW and CdP couldn’t stand to be in the same scene. And in a certain way they confirmed it, when they both said tha they didn’t talk about their scenes together anymore because they has two different ideas about what they should have done on the set… I guess, CdP all pro-tiva and Michael all no-tiva ;)
Terry
January 3, 2014 @ 3:25 pm
Welcome to yet another Annsan nom de plume.
mimi
December 28, 2013 @ 3:02 pm
What writers should have done?
CdP left the show a week before they started shooting S11, so when the first 5/6 are already written and the most part of locations and scenes are already planned. Not only they had to re-write the scripts, but they also had to re-arrange the sets, change scenes (so wasting money) and actors had to learn new scenes and lines.
Ziva’s fans are very lucky that SP talked about her and that they had an entire episode that revolved around her. If I were GG, I would written her off in two scenes at the beginning of 11.01 and then completely forget about her.
The aftermath was more than enough and much more of what all NCIS had to deal with Kate’s death and she was much more loved than Ziva, no doubt on that. Actually, I’m still surprised that EW is not already on opening credits, since CdP appeared on 3.04 “Silver War” aka her 3rd episode. I really hope to see EW on 11.12 “Kill Chain”. About time!!!
Ziva decided to quit NCIS and stay in Israel as CdP decided to quit the show and live her life. Don’t you see an analogy in their stories?
I could be wrong, but I think this is what tptb are trying to tell us.
As Ziva wanted time to find herself again and build her own life, also CdP needed time to re-find herself, after she realized that she was acting like her characters in RL too (as she said and showed). She needed time to regain control of herself and her life, and undestand what she wants for her future jmo
Grumpycat
December 29, 2013 @ 4:51 pm
That is no excuse! Number one, GG said he only rewrote parts of the premiere-the main story was left intact. Number 2, anyone with a lick of sense would have written a back up in case Cote didn’t sign a new contract when there was an obvious impasse that wasn’t resolved by the season 10 finale. And number three, a good writer can crank out decent material in far less time. I often wrote term papers and creative writing assignments a day or two before they were due and got As and Bs (which you actually had to work for back then). There have also been instances where actors didn’t show up on the day of filming (CSI) or walked off the set (Criminal Minds) during filming, yet the writers of those shows were able to rewrite off the cuff (and did much better than NCIS’s horrible premiere). And I seriously doubt that 5 or 6 episodes were already written at that point. More likely it was 4.
Tintigorri
February 9, 2014 @ 5:48 pm
In David McCallum’s recent interview he stated 5 episodes had already been written when they found out CdP was leaving. And he called her attitude unprofessional. Kudos to Mr McCallum
Suly
December 27, 2013 @ 5:44 pm
I give it a C- The show as become boring and I miss Ziva but I have to accept that the first time that Bishop show up was good.
guest
December 27, 2013 @ 5:42 pm
I give the show a C. They handled Ziva’s exit with little grace and yes, it was nice to see her and Tony kiss after eight seasons of built up sexual tension turned love but she was basically a guest star. It would have been nice to see her interact with more of the characters before she left to make it feel more like a natural goodbye.
As a member of Cote’s Army, of course I am naturally inclined to see the show is boring without her. I haven’t watched any episodes without her because she is the reason I even started watching the show in the first place. I am sure when it was announced Kate was leaving, there was an uproar similar to Cote’s departure news even though Sasha Alexander WANTED to leave the show. Cote has said before, “leaving NCIS was not planned”.
After eight years of bringing life and beauty and excitement and pain into this character of Ziva David, for it to be thrown away in two episodes has not evoked a positive reaction into her fanbase and other neutral viewers.
annsan
December 27, 2013 @ 10:47 pm
I’d guarantee that none of Sasha’s fans terrorized the cast the way Cote’s Army has done so to Pauley especially but also to MW, BD & any of the writers who happen to tweet about the show.
As far as the whine that she wasn’t given a ‘proper farewell’, blame the actress for that considering the lack of notice she gave the show
Bellz Webster
December 27, 2013 @ 11:00 pm
I have read on a few sites for different shows that in most cases the Network (such as CBS) don’t usually give a cast member who has left any chance at all to clear up their character. Its only if they were written out of the show that its finalized. It may have been that she was only given the small amount of time that they did have to work with.
Tory
December 28, 2013 @ 12:43 am
Good point. cote was lucky to get the chance to say goodbye. Obviously CBS tried very hard to keep Cote, but she wouldn’t bend much. This the one or two episodes launching S11.
mimi
December 28, 2013 @ 11:05 pm
Very lucky indeed.
After how she left, other shows would have killed her character off in the first minutes of SP and then completely forget about her.
GG even gave her fans the time to mourn her exist! Now it’s time to move on and leave Ziva in NCIS past.
CdP’s fans blame CBS and NCIS because they saw her only in the second episode and only for some minutes, but what if the minutes we saw Cote were the only minutes she agreed to shoot? It wouldn’t be so weird after the way she quit…
So if it’s true her fans need to blame her twice: leaving though CBS did anything possible; not giving writers the proper time to write her character’s exit and the the director the proper ammount of minutes to shoot it.
LJS
December 27, 2013 @ 5:05 pm
Ziva fit the team with her character, the team was well rounded out. Her replacement is well a kind of now it all. For example when she walked into to the forensics lab and told Ducky about the body pretending to know more than him. Also tell Gibbs what she is going to do and disregarding all procedures. not called probe like all the rest. dose not work well with the team and dose things on her own, where are Gibbs rules her character needs a lot of work.
annsan
December 28, 2013 @ 3:01 am
ziva never fit the team…..not as a liaison or as an agent. Nor was she ever called probie.
as far as Ellie goes – she isn’t an actual team member yet. Only on dual assignment from NSA. Betting things will change once she’s actually on the team. Also she’s worked alone so far and never worked with a team. How she’s been working is what she’s used to.
Tintigorri
December 28, 2013 @ 3:09 pm
Agreed. People also need to remember that Ellie is from another US federal agency, so a lot of requirements will undoubtedly overlap, unlike Ziva who was (a) a foreigner (b) member of a foreign paramilitary force (c) and was supposed to liaise – this latter being a diplomatic post!
annsan
December 28, 2013 @ 4:03 pm
& why she had access to ALL the files, MTAC etc is beyond me
bbicecream
December 29, 2013 @ 4:56 am
that’s legit. she shouldn’t have.
mimi
December 29, 2013 @ 12:19 am
And we can’t forget that Ellie already applied to NCIS so she attended FLETC. So she’s not just an analyst, she’s a probie agent too.
Ziva never attended FLETC and her Mossad training is nothing on US Federal Agencies.
And more: a spy with free access to all NCIS database and secret? A spy that could have hacked all US Government database and learn all US and its allies secrets?
Ridiculous!!!
bbicecream
December 29, 2013 @ 4:53 am
ziva didn’t have to attend fletc, she was an exsquisitly trained MOSSAD agent, FAR more stringent than FLETC, and did her time in the IDF as well. Kate was Secret Service, also STRINGENTLY trained in the field. Bishop is a desk jock and has NO experience whatsoever in the field. she is a hazard.
Crazy4NCIS
December 30, 2013 @ 4:37 am
I looked that up on the NCIS site and everyone no mattrer what your background or training was everyone goes to FLETC and you have to have a Bachelors degree and a very thorough background check Ziva would have never passed that or the lie detector.
bbicecream
December 29, 2013 @ 4:55 am
no she would NOT have attended FLETC until she got the job. all the other agents in the show went to fletc. But not bishop. she had three older brothers, who unlike my older brothers, taught her how to disarm a huge man with a gun.
Tintigorri
December 28, 2013 @ 3:05 pm
Pull the other one LJS! Ziva never fit in with the team nor did she make any effort too. Bishop did not pretend to know more than Ducky but rather wanted confirmation that she’d understood correctly what she read; also that she had read the book so that she could understand Ducky’s work better and not feel lost.
Furthermore, she has just joined the team, and in the 3 episodes shown to date she was only a temporary addition. Nevertheless, in all 3 episodes she has expressed her desire to learn to understand how the team works. And as she explained to Gibbs she was used to working alone and not with a team, so it was going to take some time to adjust but that she was willing to learn, unlike Ziva who thought she was more than the team simply because she came from Mossad, ergo she had nothing to learn. Crass error!! You always have something to learn when you go to a new place and more so, when you change countries and government agencies, where protocols vary greatly.
bbicecream
December 29, 2013 @ 4:50 am
Ziva not only fit in the team, she was mesmerizing from her first scene. All fans know her first line on the show. Not true for any other character.
annsan
December 29, 2013 @ 8:53 am
mesmerizing? nope, forgettable….
ummm….her first line on the show? wasn’t it something about being followed by Tony or was it in Hebrrew….can’t remember
Tintigorri
December 29, 2013 @ 9:46 am
We’re obviously watching a different series with a different Ziva, because you’ve got it all wrong.
tejas
December 27, 2013 @ 4:22 pm
A++ After the first two incredibly awkward episodes (understandably awkward given the incredibly difficult situation CDP put production in), the season has been excellent! The show I fell in love with is finally back!
annsan
December 27, 2013 @ 2:42 pm
The scenes between Tony & ziva in 11×2 were out of character for Tony & seriously close to jumping the shark.
Matt – you really need to be more careful of how you word things. GG has gone on record in interviews saying that ziva’s exit was planned without knowing how much time they’d get from cdp, so there was no way for them to plan a huge story with ziva on screen for a major part of the time. Can’t exactly blame the show when the actress was unable to commit to even a phone call voice over in 11×1 or significant time in 11×2.
Bellz Webster
December 27, 2013 @ 9:15 am
I don’t believe this season is boring and neither do 18-20 million other viewers. The ratings so far have not changed, as a matter of fact they have increased. What people are really saying is that because there is no Ziva in the episode it is boring. The storyline are great so far. You have to judge an episode on everything in it and what it has to offer, and not because 1 character left and isn’t in it. Its like the show is not good without her in it, which to me is not true. I loved Ziva too but i won’t stop watching just because she is no longer there. Cote wouldn’t want you to do that either. I do think there could of been a bit more of Ziva & Tony in another episode before she left. The 2nd episode didn’t seem to be quite enough. Ziva wasn’t having a break down on the tarmac, she was simply upset that things were they way they were at that time. She was alone by choice. Tony found her only after his long 4 months search. If Ziva had of wanted him there she need only have told him where she was. I don’t see the characters being any different to who they have always been. Gibbs is much the same. Cote left at the inconvenient final hour leaving the show with no season premier as the one written had to be scrapped. There are many who like Bishop. For goodness sakes she has only been in a few episodes. I give the show a A. I don’t think some people are seeing Bishop as a new team member, they are looking at her as a Ziva replacement and resenting her character for it. The Ziva character is still there, she did not die.
Jean-charles Tillmann
December 27, 2013 @ 8:56 am
I watched 10×24 last. Behind this point it was not longer NCIS. 11×02 was in part an EP from Cote de Pablo and had nothing to do with NCIS.
I watched NCIS only because Cote de Pablo and her huge talent and her enourmes personality.
GUES
December 27, 2013 @ 5:07 am
C+ (BEING VERY GENEROUS)
The only good thing about this season was Episodes 1 and 2. Apart from the fact that they were Cote de Pablo’s last, but wow they were intense. But then after that, they made a MASSIVE mistake in getting this new girl in. If Cote wanted to leave, that’s fine (and if she didn’t want to – then FFS CBS – bring her back). Either way, Emily Wickersham’s character does not fit. She has no chemistry with any of the cast (on or off the camera) and the writing has been terrible. Boring storylines, actors delivering their lines with no punch and all in all its been VERY hard to watch. I actually turned it off, and refuse to watch any new eps until they get a new girl in who actually HAS chemistry with the cast and get in some new writers who know what the hell they’re doing. It’s like they don’t even care any more… and if they keep going the way they are in 2014, a lot of fans will simply stop caring and watch something else… like reruns… on DVD… A lot of improvement needed IMHO – here’s hoping they find a magic pill to fix their problems. Here’s hoping NCIS New Orleans is better than NCIS, because at the rate that they’re going, NCIS: LA is kicking their arses in terms of chemistry, story lines and acting. GET IT TOGETHER NCIS/CBS – there is something seriously wrong !!
WhereIsNCIS
December 27, 2013 @ 4:21 am
Grade F. I hope all these messages somehow are read my someone who might be able to save the show. Most people I know have stopped watching it because they can’t relate to the new Gibb’s personality (what happened to Gibbs?), Ellie offers absolutely nothing to the show, and they’ve marginalized all characters. I’m not sure it’s all because Ziva left. It almost feels like there was a deliberate move by the producer and writers to change the tone of the series. The plots are boring, and many of the shows are wrapped around relationship/social issues rather than effectively combining military drama and very interesting criminal investigations. What ever happened to what once was the most-watched television series and our beloved team of Tony, Timothy, Abby, Ducky, Leon and Gibbs? With Ziva’s
departure, one would think they would evaluate what made the show so successful and maximize that in their stories. Sad.
Bellz Webster
December 27, 2013 @ 9:42 am
I don’t feel the show needs saving. If Ziva was still there you would be finding it great…right?
Tintigorri
December 28, 2013 @ 3:01 pm
The series did well before Ziva and continues to do so after Ziva. All you tiva-ites seem to forget it’s an ensemble series not the Ziva Show. Wake up!!
Lisa Liscoumb
January 2, 2014 @ 6:40 pm
Oh, please. The focus on relationship/social issues hasn’t changed; the only thing that’s changed is that the focus is no longer on Ziva’s relationship and social issues. We had two seasons where one of the major story arcs was devoted to her issues – the whole Rivkin storyline and the death of her father, not to mention the shoehorning of the Tiva plotline into almost every episode.
Steve
December 27, 2013 @ 4:02 am
Need to get ziva back. Spend the money before it’s to late
annsan
December 27, 2013 @ 4:05 pm
Cote stood to be the 3rd highest paid actress within the ensemble cast had she signed. What more should she have been given/offered?
Tintigorri
December 28, 2013 @ 2:57 pm
She probably wanted to appear first in the credits ahead of MH *sigh*
annsan
December 28, 2013 @ 3:08 pm
snort – wouldn’t surprise me….or maybe a ‘with’ or featuring’ thing near the end, as if she was the most special….
mimi
December 28, 2013 @ 10:13 pm
She wanted one year contract (though she knew CBS never signs this kind of contract), less working hours, less days on the set but more money than actors that are wit the show since the beginning. I wouldn’t be surprised to find out that she also wanted her own make-up/hair team and a ‘featuring’ as if she was Meryl Streep lol
annsan
December 29, 2013 @ 8:46 am
snort….for someone who isn’t on social media, she sure found a way to lap up all the adoration from the wacko batch of fans and believe herself to be more important to the show than she was
Terry
January 3, 2014 @ 5:26 pm
The only “wacko” is you.
marysue
December 27, 2013 @ 3:14 am
I would like to have seen them pickup on the Bodnar storyline from last season. Ziva killed Ilan and his brother went to prison. The brother could have escaped and rounded up some bad dudes and come gunning for Ziva to avenge his brother’s death. There could have been an attack on NCIS from them. At this point Ziva would make a decision to leave NCIS and go into hiding to protect the team. They would have a goodbye maybe somewhere at a safe house will all the characters and Tony would have the job of seeing her off somewhere and get the private time with her so TIVA fans could have their moment. Ziva then goes off into hiding and could remain there indefinitely so that Cote could choose to come back or not. The reason I suggest this is that one thing that bothered me about Ziva’s departure is that she never said goodbye to all the characters properly.
annsan
December 27, 2013 @ 3:01 pm
Blame that on cdp –
Beyond that, the only part of your storyline I like is dealing with Bodnar’s death. ziva should pay for her revenge hunt & murdering him
Terry
January 3, 2014 @ 3:24 pm
There goes Annsan again boiling the Ziva bunnies!
NCIS going Strong
January 2, 2014 @ 5:23 am
Hmm…could be why you’re not the writer. Ziva departed for personal reasons. If she does decide to come back, who’s to say they can write her back in at that point. If she does ask to come back and all the fans love how the show is then does everyone start another wine fest like when Ziva first came on and replaced Kate!
guest
December 27, 2013 @ 3:03 am
I’m giving it an A. Happy with the Season so far , looking forward to the rest
BlueBelle
December 27, 2013 @ 2:50 am
I wanted to like the new girl, but what crack were they smoking when they invented her? She adds nothing to the team and is a hazard in the field. Weatherly has no one to play off of, as someone else said, because his chemistry with her is a bore. The worst thing is what happened to Gibbs. He has had all the life sucked out of him with this girl. I want my sharp, witty characters back.
annsan
December 27, 2013 @ 2:50 pm
Ellie is not a hazard in the field – she’s a rookie & is learning. The team finally has a true probie – something they have not had since McGee joined & it’s going to be interesting to see how Tony & McGee teach her.
As far as Gibbs goes, it’s beyond time that they got rid of the idiot ‘team daddy’ facet they’ve been writing for far too long.
Nice to see the insult humor gone as well –
Tonyfan Ncis
December 27, 2013 @ 2:34 am
I have only watched a few episodes this year, the ones with Ziva and then one or two others- both of those i found to be totally lacking because of Ziva missing. The chemistry just isn’t the same. Ellie Bishop is a relatively boring, whitebread character that to me does not spur the interest that a Mossad assassin did at the beginning of her tenure. I also don’t expect to ever be interested in Bishop’s relationship with the other characters like i was with Ziva, nor am I interested in her backstory or family history.
I think it’s a shame that the producers and writers of the show have not included more about Ziva, her relationship with Tony, or some kind of story on where she is, and what she’s doing to grow into that person she said she wanted to be. Not that it would fix everything that’s wrong with the show, but it would be a start.
All of that being said, NCIS is a different show than I started watching with Ziva as a central character, and I do not find the change to be refreshing. CBS needs to do whatever they have to do to get Cote back on full time.
Bellz Webster
December 27, 2013 @ 9:20 am
I don’t see that Ziva had a particular relationship with Tony. He thought more of her than she of him. As Ziva said to him ‘You are loved’…meaning she loved things ABOUT him, she never said she was IN love with him. There is a big difference. They had a close relationship, a loving friendship, that’s all.
mimi
December 27, 2013 @ 2:06 pm
Sorry, but I disagree a bit. Ziva was clearly in love with Tony and, from what her friend (doctor/Ari’s girlfriend) told Tony had told her so, or wouldn’t have said that she wanted Ziva to lose the man she loved as she (the doc) had lost Ari when Ziva had killed him.
As friend said on another site, the last scene at the airport showed us that Tony loved Ziva but he was NOT IN love with her. Big diffence!
In fact on OAC, sleepless-Tony was not upset because he missed Ziva but because he thought his friends blamed him for not taking her back, but as soon as Gibbs reassured him and told Tony “I trust you anytime”, DiNozzo fell asleep at his desk with a peaceful smile on his face.
I agree with you that Tony and Ziva had a loving friendship (unvelievable imo) but that’s all. Tony has a loving friendship and even closer than with Ziva, with Abby, Gibbs and the rest of the team.
Tintigorri
December 27, 2013 @ 3:24 pm
So you think it’s normal to hit, punch and insult someone you love? Because that was how Ziva treated Tony, and if we were talking about a real life couple than we would be talking about domestic/gender abuse, which would logically lead to the abusive partner being reported to the police. So you might want to rethink what you’ve just stated.
annsan
December 27, 2013 @ 4:08 pm
No, it’s not normal – however I, too, always got the vibe that ziva at least wanted Tony. I’m not going to say she was in love with him because people who are in love with someone don’t actively go sleeping around on that person, which is what ziva ended up doing many times during her time on the show.
As far as the ‘hit punch insult’ deal, I definitely don’t buy into that as being love. But obviously many do since they insist that the characters were in love with each other.
Tory
December 27, 2013 @ 11:33 pm
I think that the two of them wanted to be in love and they already had a sizzling relationship. It just wasn’t enough love to be “true love.”
agentscully514
December 28, 2013 @ 9:09 pm
Ask Gibbs – he insults and hits Tony all the time, and the audience keeps asking for more.
Lisa Liscoumb
January 2, 2014 @ 6:47 pm
You are right in that respect – however I don’t really see the Gibbs/DiNozzo relationship as a particularly healthy one either…
mimi
December 28, 2013 @ 9:50 pm
I agree with you.
When I said that Ziva is in love with Tony, I meant that she loves/loved him in her sick way not how normal people love each other.
I’ve always had the feeling that Ziva was attracted to Tony, obsessed by him because he’s the only man she tried to seduce for 8 ears and didn’t fall for her aka didn’t end up in bed with her.
Ziva saw Tony as a challenge because, though she thought she knew him, in the end she realized that he had fooled her.
Tony never showed Ziva the real himself in order to protect his heart from her cruelty. He showed her the mask and not the man behind it and she took the mask as the real Tony… “You’re growing up and you need to respect people when it comes to feelings… You’re Tony DiNozzo, a class-clown and we love you for that”. After this line MW’s face was priceless. His half-grin perfectly showed what Tony was feeling: sacasm and disappointment.
All of this was confirmed by MW, just after CdP quit the show. Michael said that now that Ziva is no longer in the bullpen Tony doesn’t need to perform anymore and that he was really excited about his character’s future because he and us were going to discover the real Tony. Can’t wait too!
S11 is one of the best seasons ever. Last time I was so excited about new episodes was in S2 and part of S4, when Tony was with Jeanne and we had the chance to see the amazing man behind the mask.
I also can’t wait to see Tony and McGee teaching and interacting with Ellie with finally-no-daddy-Gibbs-anymore leading them.
EW’s arrival is what NCIS needed to get back to the real itself and become even better and credible as in the past.
Tory
December 27, 2013 @ 11:32 pm
I think the two of them had a complicated friendship. Totally can’t see that Ziva was IN LOVE with Tony. She disrespected him too much and really didn’t see much of the real Tony. She wanted him to be “manly” in a way she respected, but wasn’t really him. Tony is a strong person and Ziva never let him be strong. The two of them fed their relationship with competition and one-puma ship, not romance or love.
Marysue
December 28, 2013 @ 2:50 am
They were just starting to develop more of an understanding in the Berlin episodes. I agree that Ziva had difficulty with Tony’s comedic stances. Tony also struggled with her need to be independent. He wants to be able to take care of her and share more but she shuts him out because she interprets that as being weak. Her Mossaud training taught her to shut down her emotions so that they wouldn’t get in the way of the task at hand. It was the main thing that stood in the way of them having a true relationship.Tony put up with a lot from Ziva. As we saw in S11 Ep2 she did a flip-flop. In the first episode she through the computer invites him to join her in Israel and then after months of searching she tries to blow him off when he finds her. The conclusion I drew from the final scene in Ep2 was that she does love Tony in a round about way but won’t go there because she has finally realized that she needs to sort herself out first. This is something that she didn’t recognize earlier.
Marysue
December 28, 2013 @ 2:39 am
The reason these two couldn’t get it together is because they both have serious problems when it comes to relationships. Ziva has serious trust issues with men given all that has happened to her regarding her father, Michael, Ray and a host of others. She loves Tony but just can’t say it and is honestly afraid of her feelings for him. Tony does love Ziva but has commitment issues due to the loss of his mother at a young age. He said in S10 while looking at a photo of her with Ziva that she was the first woman to break his heart. He too, is afraid of the feelings he has for her. Unfortunately for us they were just beginning to understand each other in a deeper way when Cote decided to depart. It would have been too much of a stretch to have them leap into bed given the complicatedness of their relationship. Had Cote stayed they could have developed the relationship further by having short subplots/scenes in a few episodes that related to the development of true love and trust not just a bedroom scene. They hadn’t learned how to share deep feelings yet. This would have been an important development in S11.
annsan
December 28, 2013 @ 3:04 am
GG was already on record a saying that season 11 would have seen more of the tease and no actual development or movement towards any type of romantic relationship for the two.
MW is also on record (post cdp leaving) that the tiva relationship was never meant to be an actual romance.
Tintigorri
December 28, 2013 @ 4:41 pm
This is a crime series, ergo romance between team mates would have turned it into a soap like Bones
mimi
December 29, 2013 @ 12:04 am
Weird!
Tony didn’t have some many problem to tell Jeanne ‘I love you’ and show the real himself, though he already knew that they love story didn’t have any future. He had doubts about living together, but just because he was undercover and she didn’t know that, but when finally Jeanne found out the truth and left him, Tony was desperate. And even when he let her go, you could see love in his eyes.
He didn’t have any commitment issues when he was with Jeanne.
And what about EJ?
Tony dated her and told Gibbs to mind his own business when the boss quoted his rule 12.
If Tony didn’t care about Gibbs’ rule and was in love with Ziva, why he didn’t date her?
Simple! Because Tony was/is not in love with Ziva.
Maybe he liked her when she arrived, but then he knew her and understood that she was/is not what he wants for his future… or he’s have been desperate at the airport in Israel, but… surprise! Surprise! He looked happy, at peace and relieved after he gave her a not-so-passionate kiss goodbye.
annsan
December 27, 2013 @ 2:58 pm
Sorry Bellz….I think it’s the other way around…
ziva was the one in love with Tony – even though she had an odd & creepy way of showing it.
Tony, on the other hand, loved ziva as a team mate.
Bellz Webster
December 27, 2013 @ 10:28 pm
Someone who loves another so much (like Tony) doesn’t go to another country, not once, but twice to find you. Ziva didn’t come back with Tony, if she loved him that much, she would of asked him to stay and live there or come back with him. She loved things about him. You can love someone without being ‘in’ love with them. If showing love to someone is seen as ‘odd and creepy’ then its not love.
annsan
December 27, 2013 @ 10:36 pm
SHRUG –
I really don’t think Tony did anything less for ziva in TorC that he would have done for any of his team mates.
As far as his going with ziva on the hunt for Bodnar & going to find her in Israel, he’d been told to do so by Gibbs.
Any type of love between between them was strictly platonic – team mate/sibling kind.
As far as ziva showing her love for Tony being creepy –
1 – assault in Aliyah
2 – constant put downs & insults to his face & to others about him
Bellz Webster
December 27, 2013 @ 10:44 pm
Tony was determined to go and find Ziva. He was the one who pushed for it in TorC. It was more personal for him to find her, even though he would of done it for his other team mates. Gibbs told him to find her in ep 1 but that’s what he wanted to hear. He would of went off to Israel with or without Gibbs consent. They had already made arrangements for Tony to go visit anyway.
mimi
December 28, 2013 @ 10:04 pm
In TorC Tony, Gibbs and McGee went to Somalia to avenge Ziva’s death and stop a terrorist cell “before someone else die”. They thought Ziva was dead so they didn’t go there to save her. And if you know NCIS characters as I think you do, you know that this is a thing that Tony (Gibbs, McGee) would have done for all of his teammates/family because he can’t live without them.
True, in 11.01 Tony has planned to go to visit Ziva because she had invited him. Then, when NCIS and Mossad thought that she was in danger, Gibbs ordered Tony to go find her as it always happened every time Ziva was upset and/or in trouble. Gibbs always had to order Tony to go to her. Always.
Bellz Webster
December 29, 2013 @ 5:24 am
Tony was going anyway. He was pleased when Gibbs told him to go…just made it all the more justified for Tony. Tony still wanted to revenge Ziva’s ‘death’, more so than any of the others. The look on his face when he realized she was still alive said a lot.
Terry
January 3, 2014 @ 3:27 pm
Yet another Annsan nom de plume.
Bellz Webster
January 3, 2014 @ 9:51 pm
I beg your pardon! I am Australian. I don’t even know annsan. People have a right to their own opinion about things. Grow up.
annsan
December 27, 2013 @ 2:57 pm
cote quit – the show does not need to keep a faux romance alive just to please a certain small number of fans that can’t handle the idea that they didn’t get a ‘great love story’ played out scene by nauseating scene on screen every week.
As far as keeping a ziva story alive – hope they kill her off to end the endless whining about how the team isn’t mourning her walking out on them enough.
MikeD
December 27, 2013 @ 2:14 am
I think the Diva exit was lame and boring. I also have to agree that Bishop is uninteresting and stiff. McGee’s girlfriend is also a miss. He is my favorite character and deserves better.
annsan
December 27, 2013 @ 4:09 pm
I like McGee’s girlfriend. Much like Breena Palmer she seems to be a real person type character & we’re seeing/hearing just enough of her.
CoteLOVER<3
December 27, 2013 @ 2:13 am
Alright. They get a F- Tiva needed to be elaborated not crushed into nothing. I believe that CBS for the sake of keeping a amazing and VERY talented actor should’ve done EVERYTHING in their power to keep Cote. They won’t get any sympathy when they ask her to come back! Ncis dosent deserve her. They NEED her as these reviews prove! And also Bishop needs to stop acting like she dosent know there was someone before her. Like how she just sits ON Zivas Desk! NO!!
Gabi
December 27, 2013 @ 3:06 am
CBS committed a travesty. They treat actresses like rubbish. Hopefully this incident will teach them not to dispose of actresses because they believe all females are interchangeable.
I have not watched Ziva-less NCIS and I have no interest in it but I feel bad for EW because she will eventually be treated the same way.
annsan
December 27, 2013 @ 2:52 pm
Tiva, as MW has said, was not a romance.
Cote quit – the show has moved on & it’s time the fans did as well.
As far as Bishop goes, I LOVE the idea that she sits on, at & around the desk. It’s a piece of furniture – not some shrine to a character that isn’t there any longer. ziva got far more leeway than the show ever showed to Kate & that character was killed off.
guest
December 28, 2013 @ 1:54 am
I’m sorry you lost your fav character but please don’t do this disrespect stuff and put it onto other characters with the desk.Ziva quit and it’s was an empty desk. But if you want to trade disrespect and the desk then rewatch Ziva joining the Team . The character of Ziva joined the team already sitting at Kate desk and went through her stuff without the team even being there in Silver War. And this is after her brother killed Kate, so if you want to get into disrespectful Ziva owns that crown.
Bishop is just a new character just like Ziva was or McGee was or Vance or Palmer or anyone else aside from the original four. Bishop is just a new member, her actions aren’t about Ziva, don’t put them onto her it’s unfair
Tintigorri
February 9, 2014 @ 5:50 pm
CdP is a mediocre actress, when she first started on NCIS she appeared to have some potential until they converted it into the “Ziva Show” where it became to clear to anyone with a bit of intelligence that she was/is a substandard actress.
Ellen
December 27, 2013 @ 2:00 am
Glad to have the team back without Ziva. She was beginning to take over the whole show. I like Bishop she is refreshing.
Cote Fan
December 27, 2013 @ 1:46 am
I just hate the blonde. The show is now just missing its pazzazz with out Ziva it’s no fun and Tony is not as playful as he used to be and who doesn’t miss Ziva and her messed up idioms and then one if the teammates especially Tony correcting her. The blonde is just a try hard and the show Should Just Bring Back Cote De Pablo.
annsan
December 27, 2013 @ 2:59 pm
Definitely do not miss ziva & all things she supposedly brought to the show.
The show is finally moving back to the wonder that it was before cdp/ziva ever set foot in Valencia.
Tintigorri
December 28, 2013 @ 1:11 am
Newsflash your *darling* CdP left of her own accord quite literally at the drop of a hat without a by or leave. What kind of a team mate is that? Mind you the episodes have improved considerably with her leaving since her acting was so very limited. Bishop’s character is doing a great job and really blending in as a team member, and somebody willing to admit to her mistakes unlike miss diva ziva.
M
December 27, 2013 @ 1:37 am
A++ I much rather have cote gone then Mark and Michael Cote was a jerk to them and refuse to return to end her storyline lucky her lawyer told her she had too.
vickie
December 26, 2013 @ 11:44 pm
i agree with linda and i can’t understand a lot of what she says
Tintigorri
December 28, 2013 @ 3:12 pm
You really need to study your own language more if you can’t understand plain English, not exactly saying much for yourself, if you have problems understanding a series rated for the general public from age 7 upwards.
Linda
December 26, 2013 @ 9:30 pm
I still think that NCIS is the best show. The only problem is the new character they introduced, Ellie Bishop. She’s boring, she hasn’t brought nothing new, nothing particular. Moreover, she behaves in a weird way TOLERATED by Gibbs, which is something that never would’ve happen before. She doesn’t join the team during investigation and only follows her own lead. It’s a team we’re talking about, for godness’ sake, they should work together!
In my own opinion, I believe they should come up with a new character, if not Agent Borin, someone like her, a strong, but funny, kick-ass chick.
Bellz Webster
December 27, 2013 @ 9:24 am
You don’t think you aren’t judging Bishop because she isn’t ‘kick ass’ like Ziva was. Another ‘kick ass’ character would take Ziva’s attributes away from her.
Jenny
December 26, 2013 @ 9:20 pm
I give them an F because the show is nothing & total crap without Ziva or Tiva.
Deborah Courtois Bechtel
December 26, 2013 @ 8:31 pm
I have only watched episodes 1 & 2 because Cote de Pablo was the reason I watched NCIS. I agree about her send off. 20 minutes was not adequate for the 8 year build up. The characters of Tony & Ziva deserved a much better, more realistic storyline. How difficult would it have been to make Ziva Agent Afloat? The kiss we finally got was beautiful, but bittersweet as it was a kiss goodbye. Totally unfair to those who have followed their story for 8 years. And the story itself was a slap in the face to Cote. Ziva would not have left like that. And Tony definitely would not have left Ziva alone and having a breakdown on the Tarmac. Totally destroys the story in Truth or Consequences. I guess Gary Glasberg didn’t watch that episode. He also must not he watched (even though he participated in writing) Shiva. The episode where Tony told Ziva she was not alone. So where is Ziva, alone.
I haven’t watch since then. What I have heard from coworkers, at the auto repair shop, the hair dressers, at a Physical therapy, radiology, and the grocery store: NCIS this season is boring and the characters are totally different from the characters they are use to. They want to know if they got all new writers. They miss the interaction of everyone with Ziva. They give Bishop a rating of C to F. (I keep my keys on an NCIS lancet, it starts conversations.) I miss my Tuesday night date with my favorite show. I really wish they would bring back Ziva. Bishop can be a recurring character for those few who like her character. For now, I watch HGTV.
gab
December 26, 2013 @ 10:01 pm
I have also not watched since 11×2. I was pretty certain I would not continue watch it without Ziva but any curiosity I might have vanished once I saw how boring and dull the show was without Ziva during the premiere. The spoilers and the reactions I have read online have also validated my decision of dropping it from the start instead of experiencing the trainwreck that is NCIS. In addition my uncle (does not watch TV regularly) told me he watched a new episode a couple of weeks ago and also commented that he found it to be boring.
On the Agent Afloat angle I do not think it would have worked because she does want permanence. I would have accepted that she stay in Israel if she was taking care of a sick Schmeil or Aunt Nettie because they are also her family and it would be in character for her to give up everything for her family. Another possibility would have been if she have ended up in a refugee camp somewhere in Africa where she felt that she could have at least been helping people. However the story line that they gave her was just awful because she was all alone and not helping anyone. Also Tony would have never left a Ziva in crisis and definitely with some signs of being suicidal. Definitely the ath to levad means nothing to Tony and that is the worst travesty committed on the show.
Deborah Courtois Bechtel
December 27, 2013 @ 12:36 am
I like you exit ideas. It is sad that fans can write more plausible story lines then the show’s own show runner.
M
December 27, 2013 @ 1:34 am
You guys are not fans
Bellz Webster
December 27, 2013 @ 9:32 am
No they aren’t. NCIS is made up of ALL the cast, not just 1 actress.
Tintigorri
December 27, 2013 @ 3:21 pm
Newsflash!! The vast majority of us have been watching since 1×01 Yankee White and not missed an episode, not to mention those who’ve been watching since the 2 pilot eps in Jag, regardless of the comings and goings of actors/actresses, ergo we are true fans. Furthermore, you might want to pay attention to Mark Harmon’s interviews where he always emphasises NCIS is not just about one person but a team, also that no character is essential including his for the series to continue functioning.
DidoTwite
December 27, 2013 @ 10:43 pm
if the “majority” had been watching from 1×01, it would have had 18 million viewers from the first episode. But the vieweers came later.
Bellz Webster
December 27, 2013 @ 10:50 pm
No. NCIS naturally started out at a lower rating but each episode and season brought them up to where they are now. You can’t expect a first episode to rate that high 11 years ago.
agentscully514
December 28, 2013 @ 9:11 pm
exactly, so “most” fans were not there from 1×01, and in fact, “most” fans started watching after Ziva joined the show.
mimi
December 30, 2013 @ 3:48 pm
I thought you were a true fan who reads/watches all interviews and articles about NCIS. I was clearly wrong.
If you think that NCIS high ratings are due to Miss de Pablo’s arrival, you never ‘heard’ SB saying that NCIS great success was/is due to Summer marathon… and we all know that Mr. Brennan was a devoted fan of Ziva and tiva, so if even him think that, I guess it’s true ;)
Tintigorri
December 28, 2013 @ 12:37 am
Don’t be so ridiculous! No series worth its salt starts out with such high ratings, that’s for the flash in the pans. NCIS started out with modest ratings to slowly steadily build up to where it is today. The presence of CdP had nothing to do with the improvement in ratings, if that had been the case the ratings would have dropped drastically on her departure, which they haven’t.
annsan
December 27, 2013 @ 2:47 pm
No, fans just write more plausible ideas to paint ziva as some sort of wonder woman/saint
annsan
December 27, 2013 @ 2:46 pm
LOL….Doe, it’s time to realize that NCIS is not the great tiva love story that you & your buddies have been pushing for the last 5 years.
Tony just isn’t that into ziva as a lover. & the end story for ziva made perfect sense given her background. Agent Afloat would not have worked as she didn’t have the experience of being NCIS long enough.
As far as ‘what you have heard’ re: the rest of the season, I guess when one watches for ziva, one isn’t going to like the idea that the character are finally becoming the ones we started out with instead of characters that are written around another that makes no sense on the show. ziva is simply not essential to the show’s success.
sadtonyfan
December 27, 2013 @ 3:51 pm
I agree with annsan. This is an ensemble cast and last few seasons had become the Ziva show. Every character was marginalized and/or diminished, especially Tony, in order to continually highlight Ziva’s wonder woman skills and whatever her tragedy du jour happened to be the center of the ZCIS universe at the moment. I have enjoyed this season far more than the last 5 or 6 even though I don’t consider it up to the cleverly written standards of the first 4 seasons. I find Emily Wickersham to be likable and pleasant. I too am hoping that Ellie’s skills will be toned down because I fear they’ll turn her into another mary sue and Tony and Tim will be relegated to non essential supporting cast again. But I’m hopeful that Ellie’s contributions will be fewer and further between now that the writers aren’t trying introducing her.
Not Happy
December 26, 2013 @ 8:08 pm
They handled Ziva’s exit terribly, the show has now become boring and Ellie Bishop is like watching paint dry, Uninteresting. The show is going downhill fast and I will not be surprised if this is the last season we see.
Tory
December 28, 2013 @ 12:37 am
Funny, but the viewing numbers have gone up even more this season, remaining CBS’ top watched show.
Terry
January 3, 2014 @ 3:18 pm
Sorry, but no they haven’t. The show AVERAGED 23 million last year. It is now struggling to stay around 19 million — that is a drop of approximately 4 million. Also the show has fallen to 15th in the key 18-49 demo BEHIND Agents of SHIELD halfway through the season. Those are real numbers. Check them out if you wish.
Terry
January 3, 2014 @ 3:18 pm
By the way, that is a drop of about 20 percent.
Spot13
December 26, 2013 @ 7:55 pm
No one for MW to play off of – Bishop is lame. No Ziva no drama. At least give us more Tony/Jethro interaction – at least they can act.
Bellz Webster
December 27, 2013 @ 9:36 am
I found Tony to be a bit of an immature fool before Cote’s departure. I think he has grown up more so far this season…thank goodness. He still has his jokes and does some funny things so I don’t see why you are complaining. The writers don’t want Tony to ‘play off’ another character…been there done that.
annsan
December 27, 2013 @ 2:48 pm
MW does not need cdp to play off of. He does wonderfully with Sean & Brian & Pauley & Mark.
Tory
December 27, 2013 @ 11:29 pm
Considering how weak of an actress Cote is in comparison to the rest, your suggestion is wrong. I do like when Tony has someone strong to play against, but he gets,that best when playing off Gibbs. The MW/MH chemistry just explodes.
Lisa Liscoumb
January 2, 2014 @ 6:53 pm
Actually, now that Ziva’s gone I’ve been enjoying the Tony/Tim interaction. They’ve gotten back to being the supportive teammates and friends that they were the last time Ziva was gone (Truth or Consequences).
Lee
December 26, 2013 @ 7:41 pm
My grade is a definite A. Ziva is not missed by most of the 19+ million viewers who tune in each week, just by a very loud, obnoxious minority. The interaction between the characters is better than it has been in years. The banter is no longer mean-spirited and we don’t have to watch super Ziva beat up men twice her size while her male teammates stood by in awe. Best season in ages.
m
December 27, 2013 @ 1:35 am
She was becoming the cancer of NCIS
CoteLOVER<3
December 27, 2013 @ 2:19 am
How can you say that ?!!
annsan
December 27, 2013 @ 2:54 pm
because it’s true
Tintigorri
December 27, 2013 @ 3:37 pm
Very easy, just repeat after me: “She was becoming the cancer of NCIS” a few times and then you’ll soon understand why we’re glad Ziva’s gone and Bishop has arrived.
Bellz Webster
December 28, 2013 @ 2:34 am
I’m not glad she is gone, I would like her to return but in a often recurring role in another ‘section’ or in another ‘outfit’ like Mossad. That way there would be enough room for her and Bishop. That should appease everyone.
Tintigorri
December 28, 2013 @ 10:38 am
Now that has to be the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard! You can’t sit on the fence and try to appease everybody, life doesn’t work like that. You can’t make everybody happy all the time, in the same you can’t expect to be liked by everybody. I mean for goodness sake with that rule of 3 you’d have to bring back everybody that ever left just to “supposedly” keep a specific group of fans happy, which in the end will only upset people and essentially destroy the series.
Moreover people need to get it into their heads that CdP left the series of her own volition despite the attempts of CBS to retain her, she wasn’t willing to stay for whatever reason and as a free agent that’s her privilege. She could have left with more elegance, evidently so, but we all make choices in life that we believe convenient. To give her credit what she did took guts to up and leave a leading role in a nº 1 series without being a consolidated actress of long years standing say like Dame Maggie Smith. So if she’d really wanted to stay she would have. In other words she made her own bed and now she’ll have to lie in it. Obviously this has upset some fans, but it’s not the end of the world as some of sad fans would have us believe.
Actors are free agents, some become regulars in tv series, others always recurring, etc., etc., but the life of an actor is essentially nomadic, where his/her jobs are ephemeral because (a) a serie/film finishes (b) the character is written out of the series because the storyline of said character has gone as far as it can go (c) an actor/actress decides to leave for any of a number of reasons from burnout to money and many more.
And if a series is good, as in the case of NCIS the departure of a regular character does not have a negative impact on the ratings. Criminal Minds and CSI went through similar situations and have still come out on top, in fact, Mandy Patinkins left CM in very much the same way as CdP did NCIS. So let’s leave off this wailing and tearing of clothes.
Bellz Webster
December 27, 2013 @ 11:57 pm
Some fans feel that way because she had taken over the episodes with the character. I really liked Ziva but i too did feel there were too many episodes about her.
Tory
December 27, 2013 @ 11:45 pm
Ziva was definitely unmanning the men of her team. She had become a caricature of the great character she once had been. Her determination to have revenge was problematic. Gibbs at least had realized that taking revenge years ago had far reaching repercussions for him internally and externally. But to keep The Ziva storyline going the writers kept stretching things too far, endorsing a revenge plot line that Gibbs would’ve shot down, Tony would never have considered, and McGee wouldn’t have touched. Then the team quit and Gibbs kept working. Totally didn’t make sense. Nor did the supposedly in love Ziva sleeping with another man while in Israel for her fathers funeral.
The last couple seasons really did turn Ziva into a cancer or a cold sore, as MW suggested.
The only ones who ever publicly supported the Tiva romance were Cote de Pablo and Shane Brennan. Every other member of the acting team said that there shouldn’t be a romance between characters on the show.
CoteLOVER<3
December 27, 2013 @ 2:18 am
Not missed?!! Since when?! How many girls cried over her departure? Because according to fan pages on all forms of Social media sites ALOT!!
annsan
December 27, 2013 @ 2:54 pm
Just because the high school contingent cried for months & then sent vicious hate mail to the network & launched a twitter attack on Pauley that was unprecedented, idiotic & hateful doesn’t mean that cdp is missed by the majority of the fanbase.
Tintigorri
December 27, 2013 @ 3:17 pm
For heaven’s sake! She’s only missed by a few puerile teens and people who think romance is the be all and end all of any series whatever the register
Moreover, if CdP’s character Ziva is an ideal to be looked for in women then god help us all. Ziva’s attitude towards Tony was of constant abuse physical and psychological.
The character of Ziva rarely if ever toed the line when she was supposed to, whenever her superiors told her not to do something she always spat she was Mossad as if that gave her an automatic jail free card.
I for one am more than relieved she has departed. The series has got back to its original style of being a team and no oneupmanship.
In S3 and the odd episode in S4 and S5, NCIS was fast turning into the Ziva show with an almost constant plot line of international terrorism, Al Qaeda, Israeli spies, etc., and very little to do with the US Navy and Marine Corps except maybe for the title and odd episode.
I think S11 deserves an A+++++ so far
mimi
December 28, 2013 @ 2:01 pm
Yes, not missed since July 10th when CdP’s publicists let viewers and the cast, tptb and the crew know that their diva wouldn’t be part of the cast anymore.
Ratings clearly show that 18-20 million of viewers do not miss her and Ziva at all. As MH said numbers are stadier than ever.
Social media just show that a small group of crying babies/immature adults are very talkative, mean and vendicative. Social networks shows that these people completely miss their target when they bully, bash, insult and threat the other actors and all tptb.
If it weren’t for these few people and CdP using them to keep her fame alive, who would talk about Ziva and her interpreter? No one!
Didn’t you notice that none of the cast want to talk about CdP and Ziva and every time someone asks them something about the actress or they desperatly look for words, or they’re sarcastic or they dismiss the subject with as less words as possible?
But if they answer questions about Bishop and EW, they’re all smiles (real smiles not fake) and they all are very happy Emily’s part of the cast?
As MW twitted #zivagone and I’m afraid (not) that, if the too-loud small group won’t stop tormenting the cast, soon tptb will definitely get rid of Ziva killing her off.
Sparkyfoot
December 27, 2013 @ 2:32 am
Amen. Ratings are terrific and ad dollars up so it seems pretty unnecessary to ask if it “worked.” Ziva was part of a good ensemble and Cote had a terrific job with an obviously accomplished production team. No way are pros like Mark Harmon and his proteges going to let her business decision negatively affect their work. And what kind of intellect can possibly pass judgment on Bishop at this point? It took Kate fans a long time to accept Ziva, and in fact, some never did! But oops! NCIS still has 18 million viewers on a bad night!
BlueBelle
December 27, 2013 @ 2:53 am
Now we have tiny, untrained desk jockey Bishop taking down an armed man. How is that an improvement?
Bellz Webster
December 27, 2013 @ 9:28 am
Ziva took down many armed men…where is the difference?
DidoTwite
December 27, 2013 @ 10:41 pm
Assuming you are serious, Ziva was an exquisitely trained Mossad agent in an elite fighting squad.
Bellz Webster
December 27, 2013 @ 10:53 pm
So. Other people have skills in self defense and can take down people as well.
Tory
December 27, 2013 @ 11:46 pm
Too bad she couldn’t handle her undercover assignments without blowing them. Every. Single. Time.
Tintigorri
December 28, 2013 @ 1:13 am
Come off it! Pull the other one it’s got bells on. Ziva was like a bull in a china shop with no finesse whatsoever. Undercover she was a disaster, in particular, because she never understood chain of command.
Tintigorri
December 28, 2013 @ 1:13 am
Come off it! Pull the other one it’s got bells on. Ziva was like a bull in a china shop with no finesse whatsoever. Undercover she was a disaster, in particular, because she never understood chain of command.
mimi
December 28, 2013 @ 1:19 pm
If Ziva was Mossad best officer, I’m really worried for Mossad.
She was not an exquisitely trained officer, she was a dangerous walking disaster without self-control. More we saw her in action and more I thought her father didn’t send her to USA to have a laison officer/spy in NCIS, but that he just wanted get rid of her in order to save Mossad and the officers who would have worked with her.
Gibbs, Tony and McGee are very lucky to be still alive after working with Officer David for 8 years. Extremely lucky men! Especially Tony who tasted on his chest and leg what means working with a sociopath assissin/liar with 0 self-control and loyalty towards people who had saved her wortless a** more than once.
Mike
December 26, 2013 @ 7:41 pm
With Cote or without Cote, the show changed much and it wasn’t a good change, it was pretty messed up.
Mike
December 26, 2013 @ 7:41 pm
F
I agree, I am not a fan of de Pablo or Wickersham, but ever since she arrived it looked like nothing changed much, the show was now dull as what was before. I missed the old show, and it really was tiring to watch something boring.