Per Paramount, NCIS season 23, episode 9, which will function as the fall finale, will see Knight tackle her very first NCIS: Elite mission. Although that isn’t that interesting, what makes it more exciting is that it will involve “tracking down a former member of the team.” Titled “Heaven and Nature,” the outing will also seE McGee and Torres recovering a stolen truck of toys, while Parker learns the truth about his mom. Read the full synopsis below:
“Heaven and Nature” – McGee and Torres try to recover a stolen truck filled with toys for the Navy’s annual Christmas drive while the truth about Parker’s mother is finally revealed. Also, Knight is given her first NCIS: Elite mission, which involves tracking down a former member of the team
Based on the synopsis, there are very few options for the said returning character. That said, Ellie Bishop is unequivocally at the top of the list simply because of her exit story in NCIS. After learning the ropes to be a Special Agent in Gibbs’ MCRT, Emily Wickersham’s character secretly started paving the way to become a high-skilled agent that would result in her taking a long-term undercover assignment. Since Bishop left in NCIS season 18, there hasn’t been any update on her, and this might be the right time for it.
Of course, there’s also the possibility of Tony and Ziva coming back to MCRT, but it doesn’t fit the story description based on where NCIS: Tony & Ziva left them. For context, the pair is now living happily in Paris with Tali where Tony runs a security firm while Ziva spends her time on her language school. Another option is Jack Sloane, the former Forensic Psychologist with NCIS. In her exit story, she decided to stay in Afghanistan to continue her work there. That bodes well with the aforementioned story involving Knight, but her return won’t be compelling if it doesn’t include a reunion with Gibbs.
Whatever the case may be, the prospect of seeing another familiar face in NCIS season 23 is an exciting idea. CBS has already brought back Ziva’s original replacement agent, Romy Maffia’s Vera with NCIS: Origins featuring both Mark Harmon and Muse Watson’s old Gibbs and Franks. All these familiar faces indicates that the network is finally leaning into nostalgia by using the franchise’s history to its advantage.
