Wow. I tried to reply to your post and the moderators apparently didn’t allow it through. I guess we’re all supposed to be squeezing about the idea of another season featuring super Gibbs in any and all critical and dramatic scenes, with his new BFF and SIC McGee. Tony fans I guess should be excited that the team will be smirking and commenting as he either inappropriately brags about his sexual exploits or as he comically strikes out. That’s the only spoiler we’ve had about Weatherly’s DiNozzo and after 11 years of loyalty to the show. It’s become the super duper Gibbs show and there’s no place for Tony to be of any value unless he’s being cast as the butt of the joke, clicking the clicker, or gapes in awe as super Gibbs saves the day yet again. Don’t know if this post will be moderated out too, but maybe it’ll accidentally slip through.

He wasn’t always the whipping boy. The Tony of the first 4 seasons is who caused me to love the show in the first place. But sadly, that Tony is dead and gone. What we have left is butt of the jokes, clicker clicking, watching the almighty Gibbs in awe, Tony. It’s sad that after 11 seasons of loyalty and devotion, all tptb can come up with for Michael Weatherly’s character is that he will be playing the field again, which will no doubt be used so that the team can make fun of his bragging or unsuccessful efforts. That’s it. No smart, hero, Tony in danger. That ALL has to go to Gibbs now, who can’t even take Tony along anymore. It’s always McGee and Bishop as Gibbs saves the day abroad again, and I’m so sorry – but those are real yawn fest combinations despite the herculean efforts to flatter these characters with all the action, danger, and drama. I’ve decided that I’m done with the show. Tony and his fans are nothing to tptb and I can’t stand the thought of watching the super Gibbs with his new BFF McGee show while Tony makes an ass of himself.

Tony was used for humor (although not exclusively) in the first several seasons but he was also portrayed and shown to be a really bad ass, respected, and valuable agent. His talent as a clever and heroic agent were actually featured in episodes that showed him handling real danger with brilliance and initiative. But after Bellarsario was ousted as show runner Tony gradually became not only less and less smart and valued, but became the resident idiot and butt of every joke. I have no hope that there is any will from tptb to return great cool agent Tony who actually gets to do something besides click the clicker, be the joke, and stand in awe of the almighty Gibbs. This is why I’ve finally figured out that it’s time for me to stop watching this once beloved show. The Tony DiNozzo that caused me to start watching and love the show for many years is dead and gone. The show has become the almighty and amazing Gibbs show and Tony’s main function now is to have no real value.

Bishop is like a thousand nails on a chalkboard. She only gets worse and worse as time goes on.

Tony is always the whipping boy. Everyone who blamed it on Ziva got it wrong. It wasn’t about Ziva. It’s just what they always do to Tony.

I feel exactly as you do. Usually by this time I would be excited about the return of new episodes. This season I am ambivalent at best. Glasberg has a way of paying lip service to the importance of the Gibbs/Tony relationship in interviews, but clearly by what plays out on screen it simply isn’t something he values. The relationship they once had is being systematically replaced by Gibbs/McGee and as you say Tony will get a couple of “one and done” episodes, and otherwise mainly delegated to comic relief and clicking the clicker while Gibbs goes off and has serious action and adventures with McGee and Bishop. Obviously Season 12 will be more of the same. NCIS is no longer “must see” for me – it’s been downgraded to “if I’m home and not otherwise occupied.” Depending on how Season 12 plays out, it might get downgraded even further than that.