NCIS: Los Angeles - SEAL Hunter - Review: "Murder, spiky fruit & toupees"

“NCIS: Los Angeles” switched things up this week by making their case of the week a case that involved one of their own. Sam Hanna was charged with murder and his team had to prove his innocence.

This episode was actually shot at the end of last season before the actors went on summer hiatus. So it makes sense that it was a stand-alone episode. Star Chris O’Donnell served as director for the second time. (He also directed the episode “Wanted” in season four.) I thought he did a great job. He struck a playful tone that was really fun to watch. He pulled the humor out of each situation. And he drew great performances from the actors.

PLOT SUMMARY

I really liked that they shook things up right from the beginning. It’s nice to see a difference format once in a while. Instead of starting with the usual crime in progress, the episode began with Sam dictating a text to his wife in the car with Callen. Before long, they are surrounded by FBI agents arresting Sam for murder. And the FBI has evidence against him. His DNA was found on the murder victim, a woman Sam doesn’t know.

As Kensi and Deeks investigate, they are led to a man named Ray Turner, a kooky former Navy Seal who uncovers imposters posing as Seals. He had been seen meeting regularly with the victim because the woman was about to expose a man she worked for as a fake Seal. At first Turner doesn’t believe Sam is a real Seal, either, but when he learns the truth he wants to help him.

Eventually Eric uncovers a fake Navy Seal who may be behind the murder – and he is a doppelganger for Sam. (Well, supposedly. He really didn’t look all that much like him, in my opinion.) It turns out the man is a former Marine that Sam used to know. And the victim worked for him as a bookkeeper – it’s the man she was about to expose. This man and his partners have been running an identity theft factory. They have stolen Sam’s ID card, DNA and watch cap (a knit Navy head cap resembling a beanie) and planted it at the crime scene. But NCIS uses a female employee of the man’s to lure him out with money. When Sam finds him, he fights and taunts the man until the man starts crying. Sam then takes a video that their kooky friend Turner can post on his imposter-revealing website and then the FBI arrests him. Sam’s name is cleared.

CHARACTER & SCENE ANALYSIS

Callen:

This episode had a lot of funny moments and scenes between the different characters. Callen is getting cheekier all the time and I am really enjoying it. Since he had to officially sit out the case and hand in his badge, he was left to clear his partner’s name unofficially by following the FBI agent who arrested Sam, along with the federal lawyer. And Callen didn’t let up. He followed them everywhere, from their car to a restaurant to a hotel where they were getting it on with each other. (This was the only thing about the episode I didn’t like. The FBI duo was overly goofy. They were simplistic caricatures instead of real characters.)

When Callen surprises them in their car, he tells the female FBI agent he would take her gun if she pulled it on him. She responds by saying, “You’re never gonna get my gun.” But she obviously doesn’t know Callen. He had a mischievous glint in his eyes as he took that as a challenge. Sure enough, when he sees them in the restaurant, he grabs her gun and dumps it in the fish tank. I guess “never” was sooner than she thought. I loved that scene. He was taunting them and letting them know that he was a more formidable foe than they realized. You don’t want to mess with Callen, especially if you’re threatening his partner.

In fact, Callen even gets touchy with Deeks in Ops when he thinks Deeks is questioning Sam’s character. Deeks doesn’t mean any harm when he innocently points out there might be a connection with Sam and the victim and they have to think like the FBI. But Callen doesn’t like it. He is on edge because he cares about his partner so much.

Granger:

It was nice to see Granger going under the radar to help Callen and Sam. Instead of demanding they follow his orders, he shows up discreetly at the restaurant to take care of the FBI agents on his own. He then works with Callen to blackmail the FBI team to secure Sam’s release. It was great to see Granger taking care of his people. Granger’s motives are sometimes questionable and he likes to give orders and follow the rules to a T. But he’s become more lax recently (like last week when he allowed Sam and Callen to give the Mexican women the stolen money). This week again he was right there for his team. Callen even invited him for a drink after the case was finished. It was a definite step forward for Granger.

Sam:

Sam was being hidden by the FBI through half of the episode. But he eventually emerged to help solve the case. When Turner discovers Sam is the real deal, he comments that “Sam Hanna is who Seals want to be when they grow up.” And I think he’s right. Sam is a tough one. And also funny. I loved how he told Turner that Callen was trustworthy, just not with “top-secret stuff” (which generated a great look from Callen). But Sam proved his integrity by jumping in front of the money woman, who had a laser pointed at her chest. Sam took the shot instead of her but fortunately he was wearing a bulletproof vest.

Sam’s best scene, though, was fighting his doppelganger. I loved how the scene was filmed against the wide backdrop of the Civic Center theater. As they fought on the stage, it was like a show with no audience. This was just between the two of them. Sam wanted a face-to-face fight with the man who framed him and he had more than enough reason to be ticked off. As they fight, Sam proves his toughness by easily putting the man in a headlock and hitting him a couple times. He had a right to be mad but when it came down to it, Sam was levelheaded. His anger didn’t get the best of him and he had no intention of beating the man to death like he claimed. He actually dealt with the man very justly. He brought him to a very vulnerable position, exposed him and brought him to justice. I was impressed with Sam in this scene. And watching LL Cool J fight was a bonus. The man is tough and intimidating!

Ray Turner:

As strange as he was, Turner was also quite funny. He stuck to Sam and Callen like glue and thought he was the man in charge while everyone else was his “backup.” His fake hair almost took on a character of its own. Everyone could tell he had a toupee and they made fun of him to no end – both to his face and behind his back – but he was hilarious as he checked out Deeks’ hair with envy and told Granger he could help him with his coif and change his life. These scenes were priceless. I can’t really imagine a Navy Seal being as clueless with people as he was. But he was amusing.

Eric:

Eric had one funny scene in the episode comparing hacking to sex, treating the server as a woman whose secrets and fears you have to discover. Who knew Eric was so in tune with his sexual side? I think Nell was as shocked as the viewers. But I loved the unexpected element. After that Hetty thought they might need to have a talk. After all, if Eric really does believe that, he’s getting intimate all day long at work.

Kensi and Deeks:

Kensi and Deeks had some of the best scenes in the episode, especially Deeks. He was in perfect, loveable 12-year-old boy form this week. It started off with him praising his strange Durian fruit. Only Deeks would call a fruit hot. When Kensi questions that idea, he aptly says it goes back to the Garden of Eden. Then he details the Durian’s many purposes like being a mood enhancer and aphrodisiac, after which he jokingly asks Kensi, “What’s up?”

Later, after tracking down a lead to a deli, Deeks becomes a Jewish sandwich expert. He is disgusted with the fact that Kensi likes a lot of mayonnaise on her sandwiches, saying sandwiches are like a religious experience and being Jewish is about pastrami. As Kensi questions him about his expertise, he says he has had intimate Jewish relationships in the past where he’s learned things. I couldn’t help but laugh when he introduces himself to the deli owner as Detective Schapiro – a converted Jew. This scene was great. Deeks’ idiosyncrasies are one of the best parts of his character. He is so confident in all his likes and dislikes and feels he has so much expertise on everything. It’s a quality that easily makes him the butt of jokes but also endears him to the viewers. Kensi was the butt of a joke, too, though as she claimed she knew a good pickle and the owner replied, “I’m sure you do, honey.” I had to laugh out loud.

Watching Kensi and Deeks, I couldn’t help but think how I love their playfulness together. I’m really glad the weirdness between them is gone. When the writers wavered and flip-flopped on what to do with them last season, it changed their fun dynamic. So as Kensi and Deeks explore a closer relationship, I am happy they are back to a place where their interactions are natural and fun again.

My favorite scene between them was also fun – when they check out Ray Turner’s home. As a Deeks fan, I loved seeing him suddenly pull himself up the rafters (he’s stronger than you think) and then claim he did it to impress Kensi. (Eric Christian Olsen definitely impressed me!) As he crouches above her, he was hilarious as he claimed she was checking out his butt but that he didn’t blame her because it was a good butt. Deeks never does have a low opinion of himself. His humor then continued when he got caught in Turner’s gun room. As Turner points his gun at Deeks, Deeks won’t stop turning around so his back faces Turner, reasoning if he shoots Deeks in the back, that’s murder, not self-defense. Deeks really has no fear. Everything is a joke to him. But this really was funny. As Turner asked him what the hell was wrong with him, the audience knows it’s a legitimate question to ask Deeks. And then the scene ends with Turner’s eyes finding their way to Deeks’ nice hair. And Deeks checks out Turner's "rug" right back. That was too funny.

Then there was the scene with the “cougar” hitting on Deeks at the self-defense school. (She didn’t look much older than Deeks so I don’t see how she was a cougar.) Seeing Deeks uncomfortable there was perfect. Deeks doesn’t usually get uncomfortable when pretty girls hit on him – he’s usually happy about it. But this time he was vulnerable, “feeling pretty naked,” as he put it. And Kensi was enjoying his discomfort. It was funny to see Kensi pretend she was his cousin while Deeks grows more and more uncomfortable. Kensi clearly wasn’t jealous like she was of Talia, and this was nice to see. Their pure joy at embarrassing the other is always great.

But the scene turned into more than just humor. When the woman gets Deeks alone, she tells him she remembers him as a detective from her “working girl” days, revealing that Deeks had given her $50 and told her she was better than that life. That really said a lot about Deeks. It was a very classy thing for him to do and revealed his true character.

By the end of the episode, everything came back full circle to the spiky durian fruit, as Deeks finally finds a way to cut it and serve it to his team. But little did he know the fruit was extremely stinky. Hetty tells him to burn it while he drives everyone else away. I guess Deeks really doesn’t know as much about everything as he pretends.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Overall I thought the themes were fun this week and the characters and situations were humorous. It turns out murder + a spiky fruit + toupee jokes = one great hour of entertainment.

What did you think of "SEAL Hunter?" Did you have a favorite moment or character from the episode? Please join our chat in the comments below.