There have been a fair number of TV dynasties over the decades that have stuck in the memories of audiences. From the days when the entire world held its collective breath to find out who shot J.R. to the moment we all gasped when Jon Snow opened his eyes, nothing beats a good show for bringing people together. Among the many great TV franchises out there, NCIS certainly stands out. Ridiculously successful, it’s ballooned over the years and now finds itself among an elite group of franchises that have run consecutively for more than two decades. With the original show now in its 22nd season, the world of NCIS has also expanded significantly over time, encompassing five spin-off shows as well.
With such an expansive world and so many great episodes, characters, plot twists, and amazing storylines, there are also more than a few tragic moments. However, amid all the good the franchise has to offer, it’s in these often shocking and devastating events that it’s developed a somewhat negative reputation among fans. While there are plenty of creative ways to weave tragedy into a TV series, NCIS seems to keep repeating the same trope, and fans aren’t happy about it.
Why? Because the show seemingly relishes dropping major female character deaths on viewers. Worse yet, they’re usually the wives or girlfriends of famous characters and, in some cases, are major characters themselves. This is known as fridging, a trope where a female character is killed, usually in brutal fashion, forcing a male character into action and moving the story forward.
The propensity for the fridging trope in NCIS made itself known as early as the second season, when Caitlin “Kate” Todd (Sasha Alexander) was killed brutally by the now-infamous sniper Ari Haswari. Caitlin and Gibbs (Mark Harmon) had a complicated romantic history, and her death was the first of what would become something of a repeated pattern, especially whenever Gibbs was involved.
The grim and infamous moment when Kate was killed set the tone. As the show went on, we’d see a similar fate befall Director Jenny (Lauren Holly). She was smart as a whip and exuded an aura of impenetrability for many seasons. However, after establishing herself as a fixture on the show, Jenny also had an unfortunate complex history with Gibbs. Again, in a tragic plot twist, another strong female character with ties to Gibbs saw her life snuffed out by an assassin’s bullet. If these two deaths weren’t already bad enough by Season 5, they were far from the last of their kind.
Prominent Female Deaths in ‘NCIS’ Became the Norm
By Season 10, we saw the wife of another powerful character killed. This time, it was Jackie Vance (Paula Newsome), the wife of Director Leon Vance (Rocky Carroll). In a pernicious attack on the leadership of NCIS, Jackie lost her life and, as shocking as that was, later served as a means of drastically shifting the character of Director Leon off his axis. Again, this was far from the only strong female character who was killed off.
Others, like Paula Cassidy, Michelle Lee, and even Gibbs’ memorable ex-wife, Diane Sterling (Melinda McGraw), would follow in time. Like the others, these women and their untimely deaths made for shocking moments on the show and became a recurring fixture, one that would continue into the modern era of the show’s run.
Through the ‘NCIS’ COVID Era and Beyond
By the time the show reached the COVID era, there was another prominent example of the fridging trope — only this one somehow seemed even more callous despite the character not dying as violently as others. That’s because fans never even got to see her death. That character was Breena Palmer (Michelle Pierce). As the wife of the beloved medical examiner on the show, Jimmy, Breena’s death not only blindsided fans but seemed to sting even more since she died off-screen.
If that wasn’t bad enough, young Emily Fornell’s death by overdose had a devastating effect on other characters. Again, events like those on the show became chilling reminders to fans that characters could be taken away at any time, seemingly to advance the storyline of surrounding characters. This has been pointed out by fans before, and in the case of one character, it almost sparked an uprising among fans solely due to her popularity.
Ziva’s Saga Almost Caused Some Fans To Stop Watching ‘NCIS’
That character was, of course, Ziva David (Cote de Pablo). After joining NCIS early on, she quickly became one of its most iconic and memorable characters. Her emotional depth, coupled with a somewhat mysterious but ultimately fascinating backstory, made her a fan favorite. However, after many years of thriving like this, Ziva’s time came to an unceremonious end in Season 11 due to other forces at play behind the scenes.
However, due to her popularity, her supposed death caused a massive uproar among fans. While she left the show to return to Israel, the gut punch came later when it was revealed that she had died. However, this was revealed to be a ruse, and she made a return to the show a few years later to the delight of fans everywhere. Nevertheless, for a moment in time, Ziva’s supposed death was probably the worst to share the show’s infamous trope of killing off female characters.
To this day, her character arc continues to fascinate many fans, many of whom have recently shown their continued interest in her fate. Per the Daily Express, Ziva’s love interest, played by Michael Weatherly, provided a major clue via a social media post:
“The 56-year-old star shared a video on Instagram to his audience of 115,000, pairing a clip of a tortoise moving slowly with the message that television
production needs patience. His caption, ‘Sometimes TV takes a little bit of time,’ is igniting speculation about the upcoming NCIS spin-off, NCIS: Tony and Ziva, leaving followers abuzz.”
As you can see, Ziva still holds immense clout among fans. Like the long line of others, she also represents female strength and has become a TV icon because of it. However, if NCIS is to keep building on that legacy, perhaps it’s time to listen to the fans and stop relying so heavily on the fridging trope.
