NCIS: New York Season 1 Episode 2 Review: The Team Dynamics Evolve

NCIS: New York Season 1 Episode 2, “Family Business,” is an explosive, convoluted case of the week, and the series continues to prove its greatest strength: Sam Hanna’s characterization and the various team relationships.

The episode begins with a romantic moment between a couple that quickly goes awry when a jewelry heist ensues, making this case a tragic example of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. The situation is an insane turn of events because what’s supposed to be a special evening for the couple leads to death inside his family’s jewelry store.

Similar to NCIS: New York‘s pilot, a life is cut way too short and a loved one is left behind to grieve, but in this instance, the partner witnesses their final moments. Following the death, the episode shifts to the team finding the culprit and how they got hold of military explosives.

While the series keeps viewers on their toes with these intense storylines, the most gripping scenes are character-driven and focus on the developing team dynamics. 

“Family Business” is a great example of how beautifully written Sam Hanna is and how underwritten some other characters are. Sam Hanna is a dynamic character, and LL Cool J’s performance makes him even more convincing and multifaceted.

Wyatt Sellers is a monotonous character who takes more episodes to love; he needs scenes to stand out and solidify his value to the team.

Nevertheless, NCIS: New York makes great use of Sam’s character and his ability to connect with people and be the voice of reason. 

As seen on NCIS: LA and NCIS: New York Season 1 Episode 1, “Pilot,” Sam’s first strength is his combat skills in taking down criminals, but his words of wisdom are just as powerful. We assume an agent’s first instinct is to use brute force to capture a suspect, but Sam’s direct approach, talking to the perpetrator before using force, creates a moment of fortitude amid the action.

Sam’s delicate technique provides a brief glimpse into how far he will go to protect his city and help those caught up in the troubles of bad men. His behavior after catching the perpetrator highlights the fact that Sam always means what he says.

Sam is the best person to reason with the perpetrator because he shares similar experiences based on what we learn about his New York upbringing, but what makes Sam different from the perpetrator is that he was raised by wise people who have his best interests at heart.

The NCIS universe has numerous episodes that remind suspects you are the company you keep, but one can change that based on their decisions. Sam refuses to see the perpetrator as inherently wicked because he is a victim of how one foolish decision can ruin a life.

Sam’s moral compass continues to guide him when he tells the perpetrator the world will know the real story, showing a transient human interaction that goes beyond the standard of an NCIS agent. 

While the rest of the team investigates the deadly jewelry heist, we get a glimpse of the tense dynamic between Sean and Robyn at the New York field office. Sean’s awkward, quirky demeanor doesn’t help as he tries to reduce his sentence and absolve himself of his crimes, but Robyn doesn’t budge from her stern, no-nonsense attitude and wants him out of her office.

For Sean, staying in the field office feels equivalent to a jail cell, even though this tech specialist role is his alternative to the penal system. It will be interesting to learn more about Sean’s backstory and his life outside of work.

Robyn acts as his mentor and partly as a parental figure, looking out for and protecting him. Sean needs guidance in life, and his connection with Robyn can help him realize that. She may not often show it, but she cares about him; he could be in a jail cell right now if it weren’t for her. 

Although Sean is the team’s tech specialist, other characters treat him like the annoying little brother throughout the episode. This dynamic can make him seem useless and unimportant if the writers don’t give him scenes with the other characters that show a more serious side, and more scenes outside the field office.

Sean plays an essential role on the team, using his random knowledge to find new leads during investigations. While he isn’t making much of a mark with his technical expertise, he becomes the group’s secret weapon and leads the team in the right direction time and time again. 

NCIS: New York is two episodes into the season, slowly but surely diving deeper into these characters and building the world around them. It’s only a matter of episodes before Wyatt and Sean find their footing, and Sean and Robyn get more scenes with the others.

The team is slowly coming together, and the duos are finding their groove; we’ll see what happens for these characters in the future, and if the stakes will get higher.

Stray Thoughts

• Wyatt and Nick giving Sam and Addy dating advice is a sweet and light-hearted scene. We need more scenes with these two duos interacting all together because there are so many parallels.
• The actor who portrays Mateo gives a chilling smirk in the intense interrogation scene; he almost turns into the Joker with that mischievous smile. 
• Any scene with Sam and Nick bickering like an old married couple is fun to watch.

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What did you think of this episode of NCIS: New York? Share your thoughts in the comments below, and don’t forget to leave your own rating!

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NCIS: New York airs Tuesdays at 9/8c on CBS and streams the next day on Paramount+.

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