NCIS Review: True Believer (Season 18 Episode 8)

A member of the team decides it’s time to make a major change, as Jack leaves the agency on NCIS Season 18 Episode 8, “True Believer.”

Goodbye episodes can be hit or miss. However, this is a strong, bittersweet, and memorable hour that gives Jack the sendoff she deserves.

Maria Bello is a popular TV vet who makes every show she’s on better. It’s why NCIS fans were so excited when she joined the show.

Unfortunately, everyone, including Bello and Jack Sloane, has been let down by how little her character was utilized.

A profiler still dealing with the trauma of being a prisoner of war, Jack immediately fit right in with the team.

Her friendship with Vance and her connection with Gibbs brought new energy to the show. Every time Jack had an important story, Bello gave it compassion and strength we couldn’t look away from.

When Bello announced she was leaving NCIS, we were upset, yet understanding. As much as fans love both Jack and Bello, we don’t want either sticking around to sit in the background and occasionally flirt with Gibbs.

A few episodes ago, Jack mentioned how the pandemic has her rethinking her life choices, and now she’s planning to leave NCIS to move to a beach in Costa Rica. Honestly, I can’t say we blame her.

The Taliban kidnaps a school bus full of girls and their chaperone, an old friend of Jack’s in Afghanistan. So, Gibbs and Sloane lead the investigation from there while the rest of the team works the case in Washington.

There are no wasted moments for Bello in this episode. She uses every second she’s on-screen to convey Jack’s despair, frustration, anger, and finally acceptance.

As sad as we are to see Bello go, she goes out like a hero. She gives a tour de force performance as the stress of the case, and the loss of a friend, take an emotional toll on Jack and push her to confront past trauma.

Once the girls are rescued, she decides to stay behind to protect the village and take over her friend’s work. Jack and Gibbs have a sweet goodbye that speaks to the missed potential of their possible pairing.

Back in D.C., the team is investigating the hack that leaked the bus’ route.

These scenes are basically just exposition for Gibbs and Jack, which is understandable. However, there had to be a better, less expected way to get to the truth behind the murder and leak.

Perhaps it’s due to Covid-19 protocols, or maybe it’s a flaw in the storytelling, but things in NCIS world have felt unbalanced. With the team working separate from one another, it makes for a disjointed episode. It’s not just a problem in “True Believer,” it’s been happening all season.

Whether it’s because we’re in Season 18 or the procedural formula, NCIS has become increasingly predictable lately. There’s very little drama in discovering the bad guy. This isn’t hugely unusual for such a long-running show, but we need to be a little surprised by how the journey develops.

This was the first case in a while that kept us fully invested every step of the way, but most of that credit goes to Bello’s amazing farewell performance.

Frankly, NCIS is starting to feel phoned in, and we need a return to form before it falls too far into laundry show territory.

What did you think of this episode of NCIS? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

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NCIS airs Tuesdays at 8/7c on CBS.

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