NCIS: New Orleans - Music to My Ears - Review: “Dirty, Dirty!”
3.8 - “Music to My Ears”
Directed by Michael Zinberg
Written by Kate Sargeant
Reviewed by Kelly Anne Blount
The show starts with a woman frantically waking a boy up in what appears to be the middle of the night. She’s wearing a Navy sweatshirt. She hides the boy in the closet and tells him that she needs him to be brave. She makes sure he is wearing headphones as well. Is she trying to block out noise? Is something loud and/or violent about to go down?
Eek! Someone is in the house and he is getting super violent with her. Looks like he might have killed her and the scene cuts out as he is walking toward the boy. This is where you want to grab the screen and scream, “RUN!”
OH MY GOSH! Percy unexpectedly shows up to LaSalle’s house. Melody answers the door and LaSalle walks in with the baby in his hands. I think Percy is devastated, but hides it with a forced smile.
Melody is being super clingy when LaSalle is trying to leave. She pulls him closer, kisses him in front of Percy, and wants to know when he’ll be home. This is not a good sign.
Percy is pissed. I would be too.
They get to the crime scene where they find Petty Officer Cobb dead. She is a member of a Navy jazz band called the Commodores.
Looks like the killer was looking for something, as the house is completely torn apart. The Petty Officer has defensive wounds to her face and neck. She fought hard, but not hard enough.
The team is looking for a potential second victim. I hope the kid is okay!
Sebastian has found footprints. Eek! I hope they belong to the boy and not the killer! The footprints either lead to a gate or under the house.
Aw, Pride finds the child, who is absolutely terrified. He is wearing headphones and cries, “Please don’t hurt me!”
Pride brings the boy, Dustin, back to HQ. Turns out his mother is serving overseas and he was staying with his aunt, Petty Officer Cobb, until she came back. This is a really sad real life situation faced by a lot of single mothers who serve in the armed forces. I used to be a teacher and I worked with a girl whose mother was in the army. The girl and her siblings had to stay with their grandmother, because their mother was on active duty. Really sad stuff and it makes me even more grateful for those who serve our great nation.
Anyways, back to the show. Pride cooks Dustin some sweet potato pancakes, because Pride is amazing. The boy is still wearing his headphones. This is very a-typical behavior, especially for someone whose aunt was just murdered in front of him, right?
Gregorio says that she’ll miss Pride’s cooking and coffee. She thinks the cartel case will be over soon and she’ll be back in DC. Yeah right…
A white Jeep without plates had been seen in the victim’s neighborhood prior to her murder. They have a BOLO out. How do people drive around without license plates and not get pulled over these days?
LaSalle’s phone is ringing. It’s Melody and she’s lost the remote. City Mouse quips that Country Mouse is on a short leash. I am not a fan of this relationship, not one bit! Who calls someone investigating a MURDER to tell them that they lost the remote?
Gregorio tells Pride that the FBI wants her back full time. Pride tells her he has a permanent spot on his team for her, if she wants it. Gregorio says that she’s, “already gotta job.” Right… Pride tells her to think about it.
LaSalle and Percy visit the Commodores, the Navy jazz band that Petty Officer Heather Cobb, the victim, played in.
Turns out that the band had a violent member. Petty Officer Gordon, who happens to drive a white jeep, was majorly pissed at Petty Officer Cobb for earning first chair in the band. He used to give her a hard time during rehearsals. He also threw a chair at the band’s director and as a result, broke the directors arm. The incident cost Gordon his Navy career. That’s bound to make someone incredibly angry.
Sebastian is hanging out with Loretta in the morgue. He doesn’t think the mess at the crime scene makes sense because allegedly, nothing was missing. Lightbulb moment! Sebastian figures out what’s missing from the crime scene! Cobb’s trumpet is nowhere to be found. Good job, Sebastian!
Loretta asks Sebastian to run the skin cells she found under the victim’s fingernails. Sebastian reluctantly agrees. Loretta wants to know what’s up. Sebastian thrived from the excitement of working in the field (and being kidnapped). Working in the lab isn’t exactly cutting it anymore.
OOOH! Maybe Gregorio will leave and Sebastian will take Brody’s spot? One can wish, right?
Pride is walking around the Music Academy that Petty Officer Cobb volunteered at in her spare time. He is there with Dustin, who is still wearing his headphones.
A woman greets Dustin and Pride. She hugs Dustin and tells him that she’s sorry for his loss. How does she know Dustin? Interesting! She’s his teacher and it turns out that Dustin is a musical prodigy.
Another parent who has a child at the Music Academy has graciously donated an auditorium. Who does that? I’ve worked at an incredible school before with some very generous people, but I don’t think anyone donated an entire auditorium. Seems a bit too good to be true, no?
Per Dustin’s teacher, construction is disturbing the student and impacting their school day. I’m curious as to why this was introduced? She also mentioned that a large number of students have been out sick due to a virus going around. It must have something to do with Petty Officer Cobb’s death, right? Otherwise, what was the point of mentioning that fact?
Pride and the teacher hear a beautiful sound. That sound is Dustin playing the trumpet. He’s incredible!
LaSalle and Percy are trying to find Petty Officer Gordon. His white Jeep is parked on the street and must be nearby. As they are looking for him, Percy tells LaSalle that she’s upset she was the last to know about baby Tucker. I’d be upset too. They are co-workers and friends. LaSalle thinks he’s a failure as a dad. Percy tries to reassure him that he is not.
City Mouse and Country Mouse find Gordon; he’s playing the trumpet in the park for money. When they confront him, Gordon throws his case full of money at the bystanders and he makes a run for it, with his trumpet still in his hand. LaSalle is too tired and can’t keep up. Percy tackles Gordon and brings him down.
PO Gordon tells Percy and LaSalle that his therapist thinks he suffers from paranoia. He’s spouting off in the interrogation room and acting unstable.
Pride and Dustin are behind the mirror. Pride takes Dustin’s headphones off and asks for the boy to help. Dustin says that he didn’t see the man’s face, but he did hear his voice. According to Dustin, PO Gordon is not his aunt’s killer.
Gordon does share that PO Cobb went down to the school site right before she died. He said that she was snooping around the construction site and come home covered in dirt. He says that Heather had a kid with her that night.
Dustin admits that his aunt did take him to the music academy after dark. He’s not sure why. This kid is way too old not to ask questions about why his aunt is taking him to school, at night, and then driving him home while she’s covered in dirt.
Gregorio is at FBI HQ. Surprise, surprise, she’s looking over the NCIS application. Eisner interrupts her daydream of joining NCIS and informs her that the cartel is making moves in NOLA and that they are moving a lot of money around. They are funding businesses and laying roots in the city. Eisner wants Gregorio to come to DC and brief The Director and Attorney General. Eisner is a huge jerk and says that he knows that Gregorio doesn’t have plans for Thanksgiving. Who says that? Gregorio all but agrees and leaves with the file Eisner needs her to brush up on before they leave for DC in the morning.
Pride brings Dustin to his bar. The kid has little to no facial expressions until Pride starts to play the piano. He and the boy jam. The boy is super talented at playing the trumpet. Not sure that crosses over to his acting skills.
He takes his inhaler after they finish playing.
Pride gets Dustin to talk about last night, the night his aunt was murdered. He says that he should have helped her and he tells Pride about the attack. This scene… Anyone else have an opinion on it? I think I’m being a bit too harsh, but it was almost painful to watch, and not in a tugging on the heartstrings kind of way.
Country Mouse and City Mouse are at the construction site at the Music Academy. Percy and LaSalle are talking about Melody. LaSalle says that Melody isn’t someone he wants to marry. Ouch! At least he’s honest! Percy tells him that she understands, but he still needs to have Melody’s back. She asks LaSalle about what he really wants. I don’t think he knows, do you?
Uh oh! Someone is at the construction site. Percy and LaSalle draw their guns. Seems like a bit of an over exaggerated response. Don’t you think? I mean, would it be that unusual for a construction worker to be at the site during the middle of the day?
Ha ha! Guess who it is? Sebastian! He falls over the fence and lands at their feet.
Sebastian tells Percy and LaSalle that he is there to collect dirt, as a sample from the victim didn’t match anything they found at the crime scene. The dirt contains PCBs, which are dangerous and toxic. Per Sebastian, exposure, even limited exposure could lead to serious respiratory issues. I’m assuming this mess is the reason Dustin is coughing so much and it also explains the scene where the teacher said a bunch of the kids were out sick with a respiratory illness.
The team thinks Heather might have been killed for trying to expose the truth about the PCBs at the school. After finding this out, Dustin starts coughing up blood. Pride rushes him to the hospital.
Dustin is okay, but his blood test came back positive for PCBs.
Pride thinks Heather discovered the PCBs and before she could expose the toxic material, she most likely paid the price for it with her life.
LaSalle is struggling to find a balance in his life. Pride is there for him and offers the perfect words of wisdom.
Sebastian said that dirt from the construction site had minimal signs of PCBs. That means that the construction company moved the dangerous dirt and didn’t take out the appropriate permits or follow the rules that would have kept the kids at the school safe.
Sebastian wants to go with Percy to visit the construction company. He said working in the lab just isn’t cutting it anymore.
Javier Garcia, the man behind the donated auditorium at school, is the owner of the construction company. When they bring up his info on their fancy government computer, it turns out that his profile has been flagged by the FBI. I wonder if he’s part of the cartel?
Percy stops by the FBI and brings Gregorio caffeine and a pastry. She wants to know everything the FBI has on Garcia. Gregorio can’t say anything and tells Percy to back off. She says that Garcia, who recently moved to the states, is a member of the cartel and he has been buying companies and properties in NOLA for the last six months. Gregorio tells Percy to back off again. Percy isn’t having it! She stands up to Gregorio before leaving the FBI building. Get it, Percy. Get it.
Uh oh. Pride and LaSalle have a warrant and they are at Mr. Garcia’s construction company. They are looking for evidence that he knew about the PCBs, which Mr. Garcia denies having any knowledge of and states that his own child is sick due to the chemicals.
It only takes a few moments before LaSalle finds Petty Officer Cobb’s trumpet case, which has a canister of dirt and lab reports. He also finds an email where Cobb said she was going to go to the EPA with her evidence.
The office where the trumpet case was found belongs to Mr. Garcia’s foreman, Theo. Mr. Garcia admits that he just found out that Theo tried to cut costs by using contaminated soil. Uh oh. The foreman is in the wind.
While in the office, Theo’s phone rings. The song is the same song Dustin was playing on his trumpet earlier. Pride puts two and two together. The song was Dustin’s way of identifying the killer. Pride and LaSalle come to the conclusion that Theo knows Dustin can identify him and that the boy’s life is at risk.
Eek! Theo breaks into Dustin’s hospital room and points a gun at the boy’s chest.
That’s strange, it looks like the show picked up a few seconds late after coming back from a commercial break. The team, including Gregorio and Percy, were all at the nurse’s station before racing outside and confronting Theo. Did that happen for everyone else as well? Wonder what I missed?
Theo is holding Dustin at gunpoint. Theo is freaking out. He says the people he works for don’t forgive mistakes.
Dustin starts coughing. Eek, the acting is bad. Pride convinces Theo to put down his weapon and let Dustin go.
Pride hugs Dustin and tells him that he did a good job. Dustin is miraculously not coughing anymore.
Wonder if Theo will turn become an informant and help the FBI close the case on the cartel once and for all? What do you think?
Dustin’s mother has arrived at the hospital. She thanks Pride for saving her son. Her behavior is strange, most mothers would be in tears, but she has a surprisingly calm smile. Pride gives Dustin his aunt’s trumpet. There’s a touching scene and Dustin’s mother hugs Pride with Gregoiro watching on from a distance.
Pride is surprised that Gregorio is still there. She looks torn. She tells Pride that she wanted to see this case through. Yeah right, she wants to join NCIS NOLA and everyone knows it.
Eisner confronts Gregorio. He wants to know why she helped the NCIS crew and almost blew the case with the cartel. Gregorio tells him that the team needed help. Eisner asks Gregorio if she’s happy at the FBI. She admits that she’s not sure. He tells her to get her act together and figure it out, because they are scheduled to leave for DC in a few hours.
Pride is talking to Sebastian at HQ. Sebastian wants to be a bigger part of the team. He wants to be an agent. He’s already submitted his application.
She leaves NCIS NOLA HQ without saying goodbye to Pride and tells Percy and LaSalle that she has a plane to catch.
The episode ends with Dustin playing his aunt’s trumpet in the hospital. Hate to say it, but if he has a severe respiratory infection, I doubt they would let him play the trumpet… Just saying.
Meanwhile, at Pride’s, Sebastian and Percy are there for what looks to be a fantastic dinner.
LaSalle, Melody, and their son (allegedly) are enjoying family time together while Gregorio is packed and ready to fly to DC with Eisner.
The episode ends with Pride, Percy, and Sebastian being adorable as they prepare to enjoy a Thanksgiving feast together.
*******
My Thoughts:
I’m going to preface My Thoughts with this bit of info… I had a root canal yesterday and my mouth feels like it got hit by a Mac truck. This may have impacted my thoughts on this episode… You know how I feel about this show, I love it, but tonight’s episode just didn’t quite do it for me across the board.
The number one issue for me was the lack of acting chops from the boy who played Dustin. He didn’t deliver and because of that, this episode fell flat. His storyline didn’t make sense either. Everything from his constant need to wear headphones to having a respiratory disease and yet, still being able to play the trumpet didn’t add up. A child who witnessed a family member’s murder doesn’t behave the way Dustin did during the episode.
Like I said, due to the pain throbbing in my jaw right now, there’s a good chance I’m being overly critical. What do you think?
It was interesting to see Gregorio soften up a bit and fill out her application. But, in true Gregorio fashion, she decided acting like a hard ass was more important than owning up to the fact that she wanted to join the team. Do you think she’s gone for good and Sebastian will take Brody’s spot on the team? I watched the previous from next week and while Gregorio is nowhere to be found, I don’t think she’s gone for good.
I think LaSalle’s character needs to be careful. That Melody is trying a little too hard and she’s a bit too thirsty for LaSalle, if you know what I’m saying.
Okay, that’s all I’ve got in me. I’m off to watch Ladies of London before I watch the NCIS OG.
What did you think of the episode? Leave me a comment below!
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