Crime TV Heroes: On ‘NCIS’ season 13 and Mark Harmon’s Gibbs
There are not exactly many characters within the crime TV genre quite as iconic as Leroy Jethro Gibbs of “NCIS” fame. Let’s try to put this into a little bit of perspective here. He’s a man who has worked on 300 episodes of a single series, which is astounding and doesn’t even count the “JAG” backdoor pilot so many years ago. he’s also someone who is at this point known all over the world. He may not always be the flashiest character or the one we even want to see at the center of the story, but he gets the job done and is the anchor of the office in DC.
So what in the world can be done with this man at this point? It’s certainly worth discussion in what is the final entry in our Crime TV Heroes series.
Why he’s a hero – Basically, this is a guy willing to put his life on the line, time and time again, if it means bringing justice to the military community. He’s dedicated, strong-willed, smart, and a natural leader. He’s also the sort of person who has become so well-connected over the years that he can call on anyone if there is something extra that needs to be done. Sometimes, being a hero involves knowing that there are people in other agencies who are capable of helping out.
What he can learn – Still, he probably can learn how to do even more delegation, and maybe allow for some more happiness in his personal life. It’s not something that we’ve seen from him in a little while, but we’d tell him especially after his near-death experience that it’s okay to let people in outside of work. Also, it’s okay to trust your team, and allow them to have moments to fly even higher than they have to date.
What we’d like to see next – We’ve talked a few times now about the evolution of Gibbs, which is something that we’ve certainly seen over the course of season 13 when it comes to his style. We’d also like to see next season maybe a change for that when it also comes to the way in which he behaves on the team. With two new agents coming on board, why not allow him to be more of a strategic lead, and show off even more of his intellectual side? We wouldn’t mind “NCIS” moving more into being a cerebral show rather than one that relies on action-packed chases and standoffs. Gibbs certainly has the experience to work as a tactician in interesting ways.