NCIS: New Orleans season 4 episode 20 review: Should Sydney join the team?

At the start of NCIS: New Orleans season 4 episode 20, it was pretty darn clear that we were down for one of the most violent, intense episodes out there. The story started with Pride’s bar finding itself under siege by some attackers, but as the story went along, it became clear that this was not exactly your typical hostage situation.

Instead, what we saw tonight was a case all about seeing if there was a way in which a name could be cleared. What this episode amounted to was Pride having to work to maintain a crisis (one that later shifted over to a bus) while the remainder of the NCIS: New Orleans team did their best to resolve a case of a cop killer. Apparently, the only way that this guy thought he could get justice was by working intimately with Pride — he knew that the evidence against him was damning and, beyond that, that the cops wouldn’t probably give him a fair shake.

This case took many an ugly turn in the quest to get it resolved, mostly as we ended up seeing body after body fall by the end of it. Some of the wrongfully-accused fellow hostage-takers were not anywhere near as kind; meanwhile, some of the police were especially eager to take out who they thought was a cop-killer.

In the end, the good news here is that Pride (somehow) emerged through the rubble; meanwhile, the same did for the man wrongfully accused. The NCIS had a lot of tension with the local police but in the end, we like to think that they all learned a little bit about each other in the process.

Sydney is back

From a personal standpoint one of the most interesting questions at the heart of the hour was tied over to Sydney Halliday, who was in the bar at the time of the hostage crisis. She ended up being a big part of the mission and with that, we’re starting to wonder whether or not the show could end up bringing her in full-time. The show did certainly make a big deal out of her meeting LaSalle at the end of the episode — we’re not sure we’re ready for that so soon after Persalle, but we do like Sydney and think that she could be fun and effective with the group as a whole.

CarterMatt Verdict

NCIS: New Orleans season 4 episode 20 was a bloodbath. Beyond that, we do think that it taught us further to never underestimate the ability of Pride to get himself out of almost any jam no matter the situation. There were a few funny moments (especially at the end with the donuts), but overall, there were plenty of reasons in which to enjoy what producers brought to the table.

What do you think about NCIS: New Orleans season 4 episode 20 as a whole? Be sure to share right now in the comments!

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