NCIS: New Orleans - Pound of Flesh - Review: "I Thought You Hated Halloween"
5.6 - "Pound of Flesh"
Directed by Jim Whitmore, Jr.
Written by Ron McGee
Reviewed by Kelly Anne Blount
Note – Before I hop into this review, I would like to thank Dahne for filling in for me last week. Her review was fantastic!
Also, a quick note, I’ll be testing some different formats for the recaps and reviews. Please let me know your thoughts!
Recap – “Pound of Flesh” opens with Pride’s assistant, Ginny Young, handcuffed and hanging from the ceiling. She barely manages to get away from her kidnapper. This intense opening reminded me of a Criminal Minds episode and I’m all about it!
Pride isn’t doing well. He’s not sleeping and he’s having regular hallucinations. His spirit guide keeps popping up as well. I’m still not a big fan of her character. If it was played by someone else, I’d probably be more on board. Thoughts?
Pride receives a visit from one of his old buddies, Commander Calvin Atkins, M.D., who is played by none other than Geoffrey Owens. I really hope he has a reoccurring character on this show! He assures Pride that his tests look good, but that his body has experienced major trauma. Pride may very well be experiencing PTSD. Doctor Atkins provides Pride with a prescription to help him calm down and sleep, but I doubt he’s going to take it.
By the sounds of it, Pride isn’t listening to anyone about his health. He needs to slow down and take it easy. His body hasn’t had time to heal from a major medical event. Do you think Pride will be forced to slow down and rest, or will he keep pushing it in the field?
Even though he took this job to “slow down” and stay out of danger’s way, Pride ignores his friend and all of the other medical specialists that he’s seen, by jumping in to assist on a case. It makes sense, since his assistant, Ginny, is the one who was kidnapped. But still… Pride hasn’t backed off at all since taking the SAC promotion.
We find out that the kidnapper, Ignacio Marquez, a medical student who was expelled from med school, wanted Ginny for a very specific reason, he wanted her liver.
Luckily, with Pride’s help, Ginny is able to lead him back to the crime scene. It’s a very creepy setting. An entire neighborhood of homes, all of which were destroyed and left abandoned after Hurricane Katrina.
Pride and Ginny bond over their near-death experiences. I like that he’s supporting her and that she’s leaning on him, I just wish he’d allow someone to serve as his support system. Also, I really enjoy Ginny’s character. She has some Sebastian-esque qualities and great tenacity. I hope we see more of her in the future as well.
Dr. Welles manages to save Ginny’s life.
Pride was really off his game during this episode. He needs to get control of his sleep issues as quickly as possible. Luckily, he visited the shop of an old friend and was given some herbal tea to help. He has Loretta test it and after determining it’s safe, he asks the shopkeeper, Zaire, who is the granddaughter of his friend, why she gave it to him. She reminds him that not everything needs to make sense in order for it to work.
Thank goodness she was right! After weeks of sleepless night, Pride drinks his herbal tea and falls asleep.
Sebastian and Gregorio have an epic scene at the end. They are dressed up and ready to have some Halloween fun! Sebastian isn’t as into dressing up, but gets put in his place when Gregorio offers the epic quote, “Put the damn ears back on and move your tail!” I love these two together!
The episode ends with Hannah looking outside of NCIS HQ and smiling. She really feels like part of the team and by the looks of it, she considers New Orleans home.
Review/Thoughts – “Pound of Flesh” is the perfect creepy episode for Halloween lovers everywhere! I love Pride, so I’m glad he’s showing up in a major way in every episode, but also, the SAC storyline is getting a little tough to believe. If he has loads of cases to review every day, seemingly endless meetings, etc., how does he have so much time to hang out with his old crew? Think about how many episodes we saw the old SAC step into. Not many, right? At some point, things have to change, but when and how? Is it possible for Pride to rejoin the team as the leader, but spend less time in the field? Can Hannah stay?
Also, unrelated to this episode, but I wonder how LaSalle’s dinner went? Did they mention it in either of the last two episodes? I’m still in a bit of a daze from an intense work deadline and a business trip to NYC. LOL! Please help me connect the dots if I missed something.
Lastly, please bring back Commander Calvin Atkins, M.D. a.k.a. Geoffrey Owens. He is the calm and caring person we need to see more of and hopefully someone Pride can turn to in his continued time of need!
What did you think of the season premiere? What are you most excited about for Season Five of NCIS – New Orleans? I can’t wait to hear your thoughts! Be sure to leave a comment below!
Also, have you missed an episode or two? Need to catch up or just want to refresh your NCIS - New Orleans memory? You can access all of my SpoilerTV reviews and interviews by clicking on the following link: http://www.spoilertv.com/search/label/KA
