NCIS: Los Angeles - The 3rd Choir - Review

This week’s “NCIS: Los Angeles” episode followed the search for Hetty’s old German enemy Mattias as he tried to track down Hetty. Mattias apparently thought Hetty and all her Cold War secrets would fund his retirement. But Hetty wasn’t about to let that happen. While Hetty decides to leave her congressional hearing to go back to Los Angeles, Mattias is going after her team, hoping they will lead him to Hetty. That part of his plan works. But the team comes through in the end to save their fearless leader.

I didn’t find the episode’s storyline as interesting as others we’ve seen and the character scenes weren’t huge standouts this week. But the episode was still enjoyable to watch. So let’s get down to the character and plot analysis.

Deeks and Kensi:

Nothing too significant happened with Kensi and Deeks this week. They had some lighthearted fun scenes and they had some goofy scenes that left me a little baffled. They did come in to work together, which wouldn’t have even been noticeable except when Granger approached them to ask about Nell, they assumed he was wondering why they were together. So they both made up an excuse about how carpooling is good for the planet. These two continue to enjoy their companionship outside of work but are afraid of what their superiors will think about that. So their natural reaction is to hide whatever they have going on.

After the carpooling comments, Kensi goes into some goofy, awkward dialogue about Deeks wearing underwear. I thought that banter was slightly humorous but mostly just weird. And I also thought Deeks’ earlier questioning about a good name for a kid was odd. Deeks is often odd, but he usually has a reason for his strange train of thought. This one just seemed random, which I didn’t like. I don’t want the writers to give us dialogue simply meant to appease Densi fans. I like to have a reason for it that makes sense. And this made no sense. Why in the world was Deeks asking if Shepard was a good name for a kid? And why would Kensi think talking about Deeks wearing underwear would be appropriate conversation in front of Granger? I know it was supposed to be an inadvertent joke that went too far, but it felt misplaced for a purposeful Kensi who is very careful about what she says, especially when it comes to her and Deeks.

The part I found amusing was the end of this dialogue when Kensi said she didn’t know if Deeks wore undies because they were “just partners.” Both of them acted like they had been caught. The way they said it definitely showed they were more than just partners. I don’t know if they were trying to hide their feelings from Granger or from themselves. But if Granger wasn’t suspicious of them before, he certainly should be now.

I feel like the writers continue to bring these two closer without letting the audience know exactly what is going on between them. In this scene the characters protested too much, which made it seem like they are more than friends. But the writers seem to always give us a “wink, wink” without spelling anything out. It’s almost like they want us to guess. They are playing up the partners’ playfulness and the “Did they or didn’t they?” question while taunting us just a little bit at our lack of full knowledge.

One scene I did like a lot was the cockroach scene. Just like Deeks confirmed last week, Kensi is definitely tougher than him. His jittery nerves at seeing the cockroach and trying to kill it was amusing when compared with Kensi’s decisive method of actually killing the bug. And Deeks’ reaction to that was classic.

Callen and Sam (and Investigator Wallace):

Callen was my favorite character in this episode. You could see how much he cared about Hetty in how upset and frantic he was to find Mattias. He acted rashly because he had so much at stake. What Granger says about Callen is very true: Hetty is the closest thing that Callen has to family – and he is going to defend his family at all costs. I love that he was willing to give all of his money – everything he had – to save Hetty. It was hilarious, though, that all of his life savings were stored in a safe inside a crypt at the cemetery. Of course, I can’t imagine Callen being weirded out by things like that. So if anyone is going to keep his money in a cemetery, it would be Callen.

The only time we really saw Callen joking around in this episode was when he catches Sam being hit on by the DOJ investigator. I love that scene between Sam and Callen. Sam was indeed acting very awkward after it happened and Callen had to call him on it. My favorite part was when Sam threw something at him and Callen was already blocking his face because he knew it was coming. These two can often read each other’s minds. But I loved that throughout the episode, as we’ve seen before, Sam questions his partner about his actions but ultimately backs him up with Granger. When it comes down to it, he has Callen’s back.


Speaking of Investigator Wallace, it was a strange turn of events to see her hit on Sam. I guess he and his driving really did make an impact. But that whole conversation was awkward. I couldn’t help but feel bad for her as I watched it go down. I did think it was smart of the writers, though to have the investigator get caught in the crossfire between Hetty and Mattias. Getting shot is going to teach her firsthand what they do in their office. I don’t think after this she will have a problem with letting them continue their work. Watching them save her life will likely keep the rest of her questions at bay.

Hetty:

Hetty is always sassy, but this episode emphasized to me that she really does believe she’s above the law. As much as people respect Hetty, she doesn’t have a lot of respect for most authority figures above her. Usually that is part of her charm but in this episode I thought her attitude was really too much at the hearing. There is a time to be irreverent and a time to play along – and this would have been the time to play along. But Hetty had no intention of playing their government game. I can’t imagine someone at the center of a government investigation continually checking her phone in the midst of a congressional hearing – or getting up and walking out. That is really bold! But I guess there is no better way to describe Hetty. (I don’t really think they’d let her get away with that, though.)

On the positive side, while Congressman Thomas told Hetty it was a problem that she thinks of her team as a family, I found myself strongly disagreeing. The way Hetty treats her team is one of her best qualities. They may be government employees, but they are family to Hetty – and that’s a good thing. In unemotional, dangerous jobs like they have, you need people watching your back who care about you. And Hetty has always done that.

Though her overall attitude was a little too much for me and somewhat off-putting for the seriousness of the allegations, I did think the methods she used to get her way were amusing. Seeing her jump out a window into a pile of garbage was great, and so were her funny remarks. (By the way, did you see her do her cross before she jumped? Who knew Hetty was religious?) Hetty hiding on a military plane was funny, too. (Although I thought it was unrealistic that the admiral followed her there and then just let her do whatever she wanted. Again, it showed she didn’t have to answer to anyone.)

I also noticed there have been several mentions lately of Hetty being too old for the job. But I don’t think Hetty is in danger of retiring. Hetty does not want a desk job and she gets what she wants. She is still on top of her game. No one is going to hold her down. I also found myself noticing that Hetty never seems to be afraid of anything. Mattias didn’t even faze her – it was just another day at the office. She always has the upper hand.

Granger:

I found Granger very grouchy in this episode. I think he needs that blonde woman back in his bed to put a little spring in his step again.

Nell:

Nell was out of her element this week after shooting a man in self-defense. It was nice to see Nate help her deal with her emotions. But it was really Hetty who could get Nell back on track. Her phone call snapped Nell into “go mode.” When Hetty needs Nell, she jumps into action. Just when it looked like Nell was not going to be a good field agent, she jumped in front of Hetty to protect her from Mattias’ bullets without hesitation. I have to say Nell’s storyline was not the strongest for me. It didn’t have the impact I would have liked and felt a little forced. But Hetty was the perfect way to get her out of her funk. By the end of the episode I felt like Nell would get another shot at being a field agent.

Mattias:

I hate to say Mattias didn’t really feel like that strong of an adversary. He certainly knew how to lay traps and lure the team out, but when he was facing Hetty in person, he was no match for her. After all that he’d attempted, he just willingly gave up his gun. The way he handed it over felt resigned and weak, even if he was surrounded and outnumbered. Hetty, on the other hand, showed her strength at every turn: capitalizing on a distraction to shoot him, choosing to turn herself in and then shooting him in the knee when he’d already given himself up. Okay, strong is the wrong word for that last one. But it still showed who was in charge.

Unresolved issues:

Overall Hetty’s plot left me thinking, “That’s it?” Her hearing was never finished and yet I got the feeling that storyline was done. I could be wrong, but it seemed like Hetty would not be answering any more questions about her actions. That means the real heart of the matter – the accountability for Afghanistan – was unresolved. If that’s true, it’s a cop-out after all the buildup. Not that I want Hetty to be reprimanded severely for her actions. Her actions haven’t bothered me as much as they have others. But I hate to see storylines dropped without proper resolution. I guess we will see if anything more comes of it. But since next week’s episode takes place in Mexico, it gave me the impression that Hetty’s Washington DC troubles were over.

The episode also didn’t deal with the fact that there is still a mole or leak within the NCIS operations. I hope this storyline is played out; I anticipate it will be. Somebody leaked Hetty’s information on the internet for Mattias to find and we still don’t know have a clue who that is.

Arkady also implied that the Russians want to get their hands on the Cold War secrets Hetty knows. So it seems Hetty has more trouble ahead with the Russians. And we don’t know what Arkady meant when he said she wouldn’t be their only target. His fear showed the seriousness of the threat. I hope this is something we see in future episodes.


What did you think of "The 3rd Choir?" Do you think Hetty is off the hook for her actions in Afghanistan? Please discuss the show and your thoughts in the comments below.

About the Author - Tonya Papanikolas

Tonya Papanikolas is a freelance journalist who loves covering entertainment and television. She spent more than 10 years as a broadcast news anchor/reporter and now does everything from hosting to writing. She loves covering NCIS: Los Angeles for SpoilerTV. (She's a big fan of Kensi and Deeks!) She also writes SpoilerTV articles on other great shows.