NCIS - South by Southwest

[webbgirl]

For reasons that I won't go into, I had a very fuzzy viewing of tonight's episode. I'll do a more in depth post with thinky thoughts and such (especially about McGee and some of where I think this season is headed as a whole) once I get the chance to re-watch the episode (probably on Thursday). I will say that overall I thought it was decent and somewhat fun. Had some plot holes (as usual) but it didn't piss me off like some of the other episodes have. How sad is it when not feeling pissed off after an episode is an accomplishment?

Anyway, I had a couple of things that I needed to squee about and share for the moment:


I want fic about DiNozzo spending his "17th Summer" in England with his Uncle Clive. Bonus points on the fic if he attempts to seduce a certain Captain Jack Harkness.

I *do* wish that the writers wouldn't feel compelled to play almost every situation that Tony is in for laughs. I would have liked the whole inheritance sub-plot more if they'd made it a lot less slapstick. Let McGee be the joker every once in awhile. Maybe his panties will un-bunch. (As I said before, I do have more thinky thoughts regarding McGee and his current attitude, but they'll arrive in a later post.

How did the Not!Homeland Security guy get past NCIS security? Hell, I can't even get someone to an upper floor at my job without them showing like 3 different kinds of ID and being escorted.

Gibbs on horseback. THIS MUST BECOME A REGULAR THING!!!!

I refuse to believe that none of those boarding schools that Tony attended has riding lessons as part of the curriculum.

Gibbs asking Tony if he's going to leave. *sniff* For all the mis-steps this season has had, it really has given some great moments where they out and out show us how much Gibbs wants/needs Tony around. *sigh*

Maybe I missed it with all the fuzz, but did we ever find out why Tony hates Arizona so much??? Please tell me that's not going to be one of those things the writers just leave hanging.

Finally, I'm about 80% sure (again, the fuzziness) that the shots that were supposed to be in Arizona were actually shot at Mormon Rocks in the Angeles Forest. I used to pass them many many times going back and forth to the camp where I worked in the summers in high school. If so, it's another case of 'spot the So.Cal location' on this show.

Comments

[tejas.livejournal.com]

I'm going to try and watch it again tonight when CBS gets it online. It was far better than Deliverance, but then, what isn't? :-)

I was ticked at Ziva for her snide remark about Tony's time off to go to the funeral. But then, I think I may have reached the point with her where she's going to tick me off more often than not. She's starting to reach a Sam Carter level of constant annoyance (and it's completely due to the stupid, STUPID UST).

I hope they're going to do more about McGee's attitude than just his comment to Ziva. It's not nearly enough.

[tejas.livejournal.com]

BTW... South by Southwest is up at www.cbs.com .:-)

[donutsweeper.livejournal.com]

the only school we know Tony went to was Rhodes Island Military Academy. Which, it's quite possible, wouldn't have had horses. And few schools on Long Island do, there just isn't enough room for everything they need.

Hey, canon Tony fact- his mom was a Paddington! With uncle Clive and I forget cousin's name.

I was disappointed that they felt it necessary to turn the uncle SL into another dig at Tony. It'd rather the money had been donated or he'd inherited an ugly stuffed Chihuahua or something.

[tejas.livejournal.com]

Not necessarily. His mother's *uncle* was a Paddington. He could have been her mother's brother.

Riding lessons are incredibly common for the children of the very wealthy (and not just in Texas :-). It's "what one does", after all.

At least we learned that Tony's had Valley Fever, we just don't know when or under what circumstances.

[donutsweeper.livejournal.com]

I thought he said Uncle on his mother's side, which could mean her brother or her uncle.

Yes, riding lessons are common, but honestly, LI doesn't have a lot of room for that sort of thing, even in the ritzy sections, they'd have to go upstate for that and, given what we know of his parents, I can't see them driving a few hours for that.

[captain-tiv.livejournal.com]

Would Tony have played polo as a young man?

[donutsweeper.livejournal.com]

it depends. There *are* polo clubs on LI. Ages ago LI was THE place for polo, but back when it was exclusively a place for NYC people to have their summer homes. I'm not sure if Tony lived in the rich sections of Nassau County (close to NYC) or the mega-wealthy area of the Hamptoms (other end of the Island, usually only summer 'estate' type homes). When I was back home 7/8 years ago there was talk of trying to get a new polo club started there because there only was 4 clubs, but nothing ever happened with it.

[captain-tiv.livejournal.com]

Tony mentioned being in the Hamptons when he was a kid in one episode.

[donutsweeper.livejournal.com]

yes, but given the nature of the Hamptons, it's hard to say if he was visiting, if they has a second home or rented a home there or what. Living there full time is unlikely

[tejas.livejournal.com]

He spent summers in the Hamptons.

I thought it was Blackwater, but now I'm not sure.

[donutsweeper.livejournal.com]

It's not in Black Water. It might be fanon, it's not listed in the S1 or S2 guide either

[tejas.livejournal.com]

No, it's not fanon. It's the episode where he comes back from trying to interview someone and is talking about the great mansion and the flower arrangement with the two flowers (place weird arm motions here) that looked like they were kissing and it reminded him of his summers in the Hamptons.

[captain-tiv.livejournal.com]

It was an episode where Tony comes back to the bullpen talking about the cars he saw in this guy's garage, how it reminded him of when he was a kid in the Hamptons. He was talking to McGee.

[tejas.livejournal.com]

Yep. I just can't remember which ep it was.

[bananacosmic.livejournal.com]

Late reply, but if it's the one where he does the swan motion, then it's "Probie". :)

[tejas.livejournal.com]

I would have expected it.

[tejas.livejournal.com]

He clarified it to "great uncle" once.

[donutsweeper.livejournal.com]

oh, I missed that.

[tejas.livejournal.com]

Yeah, like the reference to having had Valley Fever, you had to listen close to catch it. I didn't catch the VF ref until the second viewing.

[captain-tiv.livejournal.com]

Was Uncle Clive his great-uncle? That would make him his mom's uncle.

[tejas.livejournal.com]

Exactly. And if Clive was *her* mother's brother, she wouldn't have been a Paddington.

[agentotter.livejournal.com]

malnpudl and I were also skeptical of the idea that he wouldn't have ridden horses at some point in his life, but that might've mostly had to do with our simultaneous mental pictures of Tony in polo gear. (At which point my brains almost exploded from the potential hotness.) They did really play him for slapstick in this ep and make him ridiculously annoying, and though I can see why they'd do that in the scenes with McGee (to make us buy the way McGee was about to lose his shit), by the time he was doing it with Gibbs and Sheriff Lance Henriksen, I'd had enough. Still, I was willing to be forgiving, because they gave me Tony on a horse.

Also, I didn't really see him ride enough to tell, and he was purposely trying to look like a novice rider, but the man seemed to have a pretty decent seat. I kind of wonder if Weatherly has actually ridden before in real life. I think that so I may judge objectively, he should do a western. Just for me. Harmon can be in it, too. It can be like... a hot gay western. ;D

Also, definitely Angeles Forest. I have been there. I have photos of those very rocks and have parked in that very lot. I was going to take my horse for a walk there but never got around to it before I moved away. Would definitely have gotten around to it if I'd known Michael Weatherly would be there. ;D

[captain-tiv.livejournal.com]

Tony had Valley Fever one time when he was in Arizona.

It's also called Coccidioidomycosis –noun

Pathology. a disease caused by inhaling spores of Coccidioides fungi, characterized by fever, respiratory infection, and reddish bumps on the skin, common in hot, semiarid regions, esp. in southwestern U. S. and Mexico.

Now given that Tony has had the plague which weakened his lungs, if he caught Valley Fever now, it'd be a huge dramatic angst fest.

[tejas.livejournal.com]

If only.

Need more h/c.

*considers watching SWAK, yet again*

[captain-tiv.livejournal.com]

Ah, the difficulties we endure to have our H/C.... *vbeg*

[tejas.livejournal.com]

I know. It bites.

[pegasuspup.livejournal.com]

Did he actually have valley fever, or is he just familiar with what the symptoms are? I don't remember the exact language when he was talking to Ducky.

[tejas.livejournal.com]

He said something about having had it when they were on horseback during South by Southwest.

[pegasuspup.livejournal.com]

Ahh, missed that. I had to change the channel occasionally during the episode because sometimes it was so painful to watch him be so shallow. Thanks for clarifying.

[tejas.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I missed it the first go round, too.

[making-gray.livejournal.com]

DRIVE-BY COMMENTING!

I was extremely unsatisfied with the explanation that McGee's been bitchy lately because his hedge fund crashed. Cop-out. Horrible, horrible cop-out. They had better have him goes nuts next episode, possibly try to punch out Gibbs, or declare his undying love for Ziva (actually, I hope not, ew), or I will be sorely disappointed in TPTB.

/DRIVE-BY COMMENTING

[webbgirl.livejournal.com]

I agree. The hedge fund thing doesn't explain why he's been such a McMeany to Tony especially. I'm really hoping that the writers are going somewhere with this. I'm holding out hope that they might know what they're doing.