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Just as the team is getting settled into its rhythm, four years after Leroy Jethro Gibbs’ (Mark Harmon) departure in NCIS Season 19, the Navy procedural is teasing a new direction for Kasie Hines (Diona Reasonover). The forensic scientist has been with the Major Case Response Team (MCRT) for the last seven years, officially joining Gibbs and company in Season 16 after Abby Sciuto’s (Pauley Perrette) departure in NCIS Season 15. Abby is doubtlessly one of the most popular NCIS characters, but Kasie has been an excellent successor.

NCIS Season 23 teases new developments for the team’s forensic scientist, amid a formative installment for Alden Parker’s (Gary Cole) MCRT. The team leader nearly died on the Quentin amid the hunt for Carla Marino (Rebecca De Mornay). Although Parker has reunited with the team, there’s tension with Leon Vance (Rocky Carroll), who has assigned Nick Torres (Wilmer Valderrama) and Jessica Knight (Katrina Law) to special projects. While things have slowed down for McGee (Sean Murray) and Jimmy (Brian Dietzen), Kasie is heating up.

Kasie Hines Wants to Get Out in the Field in NCIS Season 23

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In “Gone Girls,” as the team is searching for a missing Marine in the case-of-the-week, Kasie Hines shoots her shot. Jessica Knight tells Kasie that she needs to get out of the basement more often, and Hines tells her that she had a similar idea. However, where Knight’s remark was purely sarcastic, Kasie is serious. The NCIS character asks, “Why should Kasie Hines be confined to her lab?” Kasie even recommends a change of scenery, saying, “When can she get out in the field?” Knight continues joking, saying, “Maybe when Kasie Hines stops referring to herself in the third person.”

However, Kasie Hines has a point, and Knight is keen on the idea. After being briefed on Kasie’s evidence and learning what she found on Molly Delgado’s (Denise G. Sanchez) phone, Jess tells Kasie, on a serious note, that she would love to have her in the field. With a show like NCIS, every scene and interaction has weight, so it’s worth noting that Hines is seeking new opportunities. Perhaps Kasie will have a reason to get out in the field again, proving her worth and establishing a more permanent way to work closer to the team in the future.

NCIS Season 22 Made a Blueprint For Kasie Hines’ Fieldwork

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The idea isn’t implausible, and Kasie got out in the field as recently as this year. In NCIS Season 22, Episode 16, “Ladies Night,” Jessica’s sister, Robin Knight (Lilian Bowden), is back, and she takes Kasie and Jess out for a much-needed girls’ night. However, after something in the case doesn’t sit right with Jess, she and Kasie have trouble putting it down. They ultimately do an experiment in the kiln in their pottery class, upsetting Robin and the pottery studio owner, but creating a rough blueprint for Kasie Hines’ fieldwork.

In “Ladies Night,” Kasie proves that she doesn’t need all her equipment all the time to get results that can break the case. Baking Knight’s necklace in the kiln, Kasie and Jess get results and can report back to MCRT, bringing evidence that allows them to turn a corner in the investigation. While Kasie’s pottery studio experiment in NCIS Season 22 was a bit chaotic, Vance could swing their forensic scientist a better mobile setup if he could see that some extra equipment would help improve the agency’s rate of solving cases.

Kasie also plays a significant role in an NCIS Season 21 investigation. When the team is working in other departments as part of Vance’s Walk-a-Mile Day in NCIS Season 21, Episode 3, “Lifeline,” Kasie takes a vital call at dispatch and gets wrapped up in the investigation after Eric Webb (Chris McKenna), a former NCIS agent who refuses to speak to anyone else. The episode showcased Kasie’s people skills, proving Hines is suited not just to the lab but also to work with those who are key to solving the investigation at hand.

How NCIS Season 23 Can Get Kasie Hines Out in the Field

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The team functions pretty well as is, but Kasie’s prospect is an intriguing one. However, it’s worth noting that Kasie didn’t specify precisely how she hopes to get out in the field. Kasie likely wants to assist in investigations more than to become an agent like the others. Regardless of what she envisions, active crime scenes are significantly less safe than the basement and evidence garage at NCIS Headquarters, where Kasie is accustomed to setting up shop. The last thing anyone on MCRT wants is for Kayce to be in harm’s way in the current NCIS season.

Still, Jimmy is typically out in the field, and he doesn’t have the same skillset as the agents. All that said, Hines getting out of the lab could be as simple as coming with the team to collect evidence that she feels is relevant. While it would switch up not only the established dynamics of the show but also perhaps what is expected of a real NCIS forensic scientist, Kasie working more closely with MCRT would be an exciting twist for NCIS Season 23. Switching up a key character’s role to change things up a bit without anyone coming or going is ideal for the current NCIS Season.