This episode is superb. Love these two parts.
First:
FORNELL: Napalitano's always been a step ahead of me. Every informant, every agent I get close to ends up like that kid downstairs. No one's that lucky.
GIBBS: He's got a mole in the Bureau.
FORNELL: Or someone with access to my operations.
GIBBS: Why not take it to Internal Affairs?
FORNELL: They can't help me.
GIBBS: But I can?
FORNELL: Realizing how sad this sounds, you're the closet thing I have to a friend, Gibbs.
GIBBS: You dying or something? Okay, not dying. Is this some part of a twelve step program?
FORNELL: Look, are you going to help me or not?
GIBBS: I'm thinking about it.
Second:
JIMMY: (INTO PHONE) And Gibbs, you hurt my boy, I'll kill your brothers, your uncles, your father...
JIMMY: (V.O./FILTERED) ... and after their funerals, I'll kill you.
GIBBS: (INTO PHONE) No brothers, no uncles, my father passed years ago. I do have three ex-wives whose names and addresses I will gladly fax on to you. (SFX: HANGS UP PHONE)
GIBBS: Oh. He hung up.
Review by LineageBlockedParent2022-11-09T18:44:00Z
(260-word review) Surprisingly, this was even better than the previous episode: more importantly, the components, like the banter between the characters, and the new/different scenes (the beginning/Tony and Caitlin going undercover), were better/contributed to that; the latter was a pleasant surprise: scenes that break from the usual are welcome, so I hope they'll be consistently often. The plot's resolution was predictable, yes, and the "twist" at the end was more predictable (although I was aware of recent appearances by that character, so it may have been different if it weren't for that), but that didn't negatively impact the episode.
Even better, this episode was the one with the ironic hacking scene of ridiculously unrealistic proportions I've previously been aware of that's the butt of jokes and ridicule when it comes to the portrayal of hacking in fictional media. I didn't remember until after it, with perhaps a subtle subconscious remembrance as it was happening; either way, it didn't disappoint.
Robert Costanzo (who voiced Joe Barbaro and Federico "Fat Derek/Derek" Pappalardo in Mafia II) also made an appearance. I instantly recognized his voice: it was a surprise, as I'd have expected him to look differently and be younger.
And so far, anytime Fornell shows up in an episode, it seems to be a better one, both because of him and because of the interactions between him and Gibbs: that alone adds much to an episode, making it worthwhile; the chemistry between Joe Spano and Mark Harmon is noticeable, which translates to their characters, naturally and well, I should add.