Fishermen catch the remains of a DB in a net. Tony (Michael Weatherly) refers to Ziva (Cote de Pablo) as the "Wee Probie." He should have said that in his Sean Connery accent; which he's used on many occasions but not here now when it was called for. He then refers to the head and the heart as a reference to Edgar Allan Poe, he does read. See past episodes where Tony's reading, or lack of, has always come into question. Especially since he says he reads National Geographic and GSM. At least we know he's read McGee's (Sean Murray) novel. Ziva scared Tony so he tells them to dial 91 and the wait for him to tell them to dial the remaining 1. Then they have to dial 991 since you need to get an outside line. Ziva comments Tony can't even work his e-mail as he replies to all. That's just like Gibbs (Mark Harmon) though. Tony: "Sneaky people expect sneakiness." As Ziva thought Gibbs was behind her.
A DB is found in Tanzania and Gibbs liaises with Vance (Rocky Carroll) who's no longer chewing his toothpick, as he's got a splinter. They look at the CS photos of Cryer (Erik Palladino) a marine deserter. He was UA 6 months ago and was on a ship called the Damocles, which sank without survivors. The same ship Ziva was on. Gibbs says she survived and Vance saw this coming. He asks Gibbs if he didn't. They'll play 'good cop, bad cop' to get to the bottom of this. McGee calls a code blue, Ziva's got a red flag on her file. (This episode partly explains why Ziva hadn't been approved for fieldwork yet, since not all things from her past have been resolved.) Her application to become an agent has been rejected.
Vance questions Ziva first and explains she has a problem; there are unexplained inconsistencies. She won't talk about her loyalty to her father, which predates everything else; or surviving prison camp. Vance orders her to talk if she wants to stay here. Well, practically orders her. He asks her how she reached the camp and McGee uncovers a virus in the system. Tony claims they have bigger issues. Need to check out Cryer. Tony on amassing info, his mind "absorbs things very quickly...take a breath, have a keyboard." He comments Ziva was "lost at sea, before lost at sea" and brings up Aliens (1979) saying that Cameron's version, as in James, has more action. [He had to say that since he was in James Cameron's Dark Angel.] McGee adds Ziva hasn't been herself since she got back. Tony explains they need to see what pops out of her chest. Not metaphorically McGee adds. That could have been a one-track minded comment from Tony. He then says he "should stay in Paris." (Cue a future episode when Tony and Ziva get to Paris.) Lots of quick-fire dialogue here between Tony and McGee, especially Tony, which was easy enough to follow.
Abby (Pauley Perrette) studies thermal images of weather patterns off the Horn of Africa. Ziva said that the ship was in a storm, but the body was found away from the storm, not that far south. Thus the ship wasn't really near a storm. McGee suggests they should backtrack to determine where the ship went down. Tony tells Ducky (David McCallum) his specimens look like a sushi bar. He's studying the feeding patterns of the sea creatures to confirm how long the DB was in the water; 16 weeks. There's a GS wound near his left ear and no exit wound. Tony picks up a skull, alas Poor Yoric (from Hamlet) surprised he didn't comment as such, since he reads, but not Shakespeare it seems.
Vance tells Ziva she took Rivkin's place in the Kidon unit. When Ziva tells him she can't comment on her investigations, Vance posits he was the one to give her father the Intel. Yes but if she wants to be an agent with them, why's she keeping secrets when the mission is over and done with. She can't have it both ways and protect people she no longer wants to work with, her former Mossad colleague in particular and her father. Cos that's what she's doing when she said she can't talk about it. Not really showing her loyalty now lies with NCIS. McGee believes the entire crew of the Damocles was executed. Ziva appeared to be lying, as she looks left when being questioned. Would've thought with her training she wouldn't do that.
Ducky comments Gibbs is on the wrong side of the glass and thought he would have wanted to question her himself. He's punishing her. Gibbs calls it tough love. Ducky replies there are other kinds of love. Vance hasn't charged Ziva with a crime yet, but there is the crime of omission.
Aqaba, Jordan. Ziva boards the ship, along with two others. She carries the same photo of herself with Ari and Talia from season 6 and the one her father has in his office. Cryer is caught checking out the cargo on the ship and Ziva rescues him, they kiss to throw the sailor off the scent. Ziva knew he was a marine as he didn't fit in. His alias was Shalev and she doesn't trust a man "whose loyalty has a price." Then she didn't really trust anybody, not Gibbs and certainly not Tony after the way she treated Tony last season. Not to mention the fact she trusted the wrong people, her father, Rivkin and Ari. He tells her to take off her necklace but she would die first than remove it. Speaking of, where was her necklace when she was being held hostage in the season opener.
Tony tells McGee to answer Gibbs' phone, as Tony's in charge in Gibbs' absence. Ziva says she learned one of her first lessons from Gibbs: that there's no such thing as an ex-marine. Malachi Ben-Gidon (TJ Rimini) comes to NCIS and Gibbs tells him he "missed his chance to rescue Ziva." He replies he's in time to rescue her from Vance, whom he claims is holding her hostage. Her father sent the Kidon team leader but NCIs were the ones who actually rescued her from danger. Tony tells Gidon he should have allowed him to collect him from the airport and return the favour in showing him the same hospitality they showed Tony. Vance comments they left Ziva to rot and now her father wants her back. My thoughts exactly, where was her father for all those months she was being held hostage and no rescue from him. He let his own daughter go there alone, on that mission. The same way he used Ari to infiltrate terrorist groups. Getting his children to do his dirty work for him. Now he wants her back when she's been saved.
Gidon was there on the ship too. He doesn't trust anyone and says he's changing their plan. Her father said to carry out the mission "by any means necessary" irrespective of what happens to Ziva; what did happen to her and then leaving her to rot as Vance put it. Abby's philosophy is that when large amounts of evidence need to be analyzed, there is no plan. You just go for it. She accuses Gibbs of not acting like he's on Team Ziva. Ducky speaks to Ziva with Tony around. He's her escort. Ducky says she needs to trust them like they trust her. She's carrying the weight of the dead sailors around her. The truth may set her free. Or it may not, as she adds.
Gidon tells Ziva their outgoing transmissions were monitored. There's a shoot out on board and Ziva says his plan was to shoot everyone. Cryer shot the captain. She tells Ducky to keep her distance since "the ones who end up close, always end up dead." Vance says Gibbs should give her a chance to deny. Gibbs asks if Vance was playing the good cop. They put Ziva and Gidon together but she has nothing to say to him. Tony spots Ducky with a folder and so that means he's got news. COD was from 9mm wounds, a single, large caliber wound to the head. .45 hollow points. Abby has three slugs without any organic matter, so they missed at close range, which doesn't sound like Ziva would miss. Tony asks her for an "unmushed" .45 slug. Gidon was wounded in his shoulder, he accuses Ziva of killing Cryer.
It's Gibbs' turn to tell the story. Cryer didn't betray them, but Gidon shot him as Gibbs has the kill shot. (Which of course he doesn't since the bullets were all "mushed" as Abby said.) He tells him that her father sent him to burn Ziva. She asks if he's following orders. Of course he is, why else would he be here, just like Rivkin was also following his orders and she was too, when she arrived at NCIS to help Ari. Gibbs tells Ziva her father's dirty, which we already knew. He tells Gidon to leave and to give a message to her father to keep away from Ziva. Ziva uses Gibbs' rule, to "never apologize. It's a sign of weakness." Vance gets his toothpick back, cos he's just not Vance without it. Ziva was on a mission for her father; "at any cost." Including her own life.
Mogadishu, Somalia. They have to kill Saleem. Gidon tells her Cryer was the leak, but was he? Ziva must undertake the mission alone and he just lets her go, like her colleague that he is, saving his own skin. She calls it her choice to go it alone. She was overpowered, well duh. How many were with her to help her. Ziva: "I had nothing but death in my heart." Gibbs concludes her father raised her to be a ruthless killer. It was Ziva's choice since it seems she was on a death wish, having nothing and no one left. Which wasn't true. She chose not to come back with the team, preferring instead to continue working for her father.
Yeah, too right he did raise her to be a killer. She always was an assassin. What sort of a family was that anyway, when sending his children out on such missions. Ziva's been through the ringer and the men in her life have all been ruthless killers too since that's the only company she's known and the only line of "work." Is it any wonder she had a hard time believing Tony when he killed Rivkin as he was watching her back. As well as thinking Ari was innocent and didn't kill Kate (Sasha Alexander) or anyone else. She knew he was a killer, same as her.
Plenty of mileage from this storyline carried over from season 6. So has Ziva laid all her ghosts to rest now?
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