The return of Special Agent Vera Strickland (Roma Maffia) to CBS’s NCIS in Season 23 was a brilliant move designed to invigorate the flagship series by tapping into deep lore. However, the reintroduction of the agent—who once briefly filled the vacuum left by Ziva David’s exit—is not a simple nostalgia trip. According to star Gary Cole, who plays the current MCRT leader Alden Parker, Vera’s presence is about to create a major internal conflict within the team and force Parker to confront long-held team secrets.
Cole recently offered candid insights into the dynamics of the crossover, emphasizing that the clash between Parker and Vera Strickland will stem from their radically different approaches to law enforcement and their unique, yet overlapping, histories within the extended NCIS universe. Vera’s “old school” style, forged alongside Gibbs’s mentor Mike Franks, represents a direct challenge to Parker’s more modern, democratic leadership, threatening the stability of the MCRT.
💥 The Crossover Conflict: Parker vs. The Old School
Vera Strickland, who served alongside Mike Franks in the 1990s (as shown in NCIS: Origins) and briefly worked with the MCRT after Ziva’s departure, embodies a specific, rigid era of NCIS policing—one defined by hard rules, instinct, and a deep distrust of bureaucracy.
Clash of Philosophies
Gary Cole noted that the central conflict between Parker and Vera is a clash of professional philosophies:
- Parker’s Approach (Modern/Collaborative): Parker is known for his more egalitarian, collaborative leadership style. He consults his team, values forensic data, and tries to adhere to a more transparent chain of command. He’s less prone to the “Gibbs Gut.”
- Vera’s Approach (Old School/Instinctual): Vera, having trained with Franks, operates on instinct, boundary-pushing, and a pragmatic, sometimes cynical view of procedure. Cole confirmed that Vera will likely view Parker’s method as “soft” or “inefficient,” creating immediate friction.
“Parker respects the job, but he’s not one for unnecessary drama,” Cole explained. “Vera brings the drama. She challenges his methods right in front of the team, and that forces Parker to not just defend his style, but to re-evaluate if the ‘old school’ way still has merit.”
This conflict is strategically designed to ask a question the show has wrestled with since Gibbs left: Can the MCRT maintain its effectiveness without the rigid, autocratic style of leadership that defined its past?
🤫 Team Secrets: The Ziva Link and the Mike Franks Legacy
Vera Strickland’s return is more than a simple crossover; she is a walking repository of team secrets and shared history that Parker, as an outsider brought in post-Gibbs, is not privy to.
The Ziva Transition
Vera’s original appearance in Season 11 came during the immediate, raw aftermath of Ziva David’s departure. She witnessed the fragility and emotional turmoil of the MCRT—Tony’s quiet devastation, McGee’s anxiety, and Gibbs’s hardened resolve.
- Emotional Observer: Cole hinted that Vera’s knowledge gives her an immediate, unspoken authority over the returning members of the team (McGee, Ducky). She was there when the MCRT was at its weakest point. This knowledge allows her to see the current team dynamic through a lens of history that Parker lacks.
- Parker as the New Guy: Gary Cole acknowledged that Parker will feel like an “outsider” in Vera’s presence. She understands the pain, the triumphs, and the unspoken language of the Gibbs era. Her presence forces Parker to grapple with the fact that he is still the new leader of a historically intense family unit.
The Gibbs/Franks Secrets
As the former partner of Mike Franks, Vera knows the secrets of Gibbs’s most formative years, a time explored in NCIS: Origins. This knowledge allows her to reference the Gibbs legacy in ways that undermine Parker’s authority.
- The Implicit Comparison: Vera’s comments about how “Gibbs or Franks would have handled this” become a constant, implicit comparison that Parker cannot easily dismiss. Cole teased that the episodes will highlight Parker’s need to step out of Gibbs’s shadow by showing he can handle a crisis with his own, equally valid, methods.
The secrets Vera carries aren’t just plot points; they are the psychological baggage that the MCRT still hasn’t fully unpacked, and Vera is here to force that issue.
💣 The Breakdown: Vera’s Impact on the MCRT Dynamic
The inevitable conflict between Parker and Vera isn’t just a rivalry; it’s a stress test for the current MCRT dynamic, forcing internal rifts and demanding loyalty.
The Loyalty Test
Cole suggested that Vera’s challenging of Parker will put the other agents in a difficult position:
- McGee and Palmer: As the longest-serving members, McGee and Palmer will be torn between loyalty to their current leader (Parker) and respect for the history and wisdom represented by Vera. Their reaction will be key to determining the stability of the post-Gibbs MCRT.
- Torres and Knight: Torres and Knight, who have only known Parker’s leadership style, will likely struggle to understand Vera’s unorthodox methods, potentially leading to procedural conflicts that undermine the case.
The drama is built on the fact that the team needs the stability Parker provides, but the challenge from Vera will make them all question their foundations, forcing them to become a stronger, more unified unit by the time she leaves.
🔑 Conclusion: A Strategic Crossover for NCIS Longevity
Gary Cole’s candid breakdown of the Parker-Vera Strickland crossover conflict reveals a strategic, high-stakes narrative direction for NCIS Season 23.
The conflict is not random; it’s a calculated move to:
- Inject Drama: Create immediate professional friction by pitting Parker’s modern leadership against Vera’s old-school Frank/Gibbs training.
- Exploit History: Use Vera as a vessel to resurface team secrets and the emotional residue from Ziva’s exit, forcing the MCRT to deal with its past.
- Unify the Franchise: Strategically link the flagship series to the prequel, NCIS: Origins, through a shared, living character.
The presence of Vera Strickland acts as a crucible for Alden Parker, demanding that he prove his worth as the leader by establishing his own distinct authority, separate from the long, imposing shadow of Leroy Jethro Gibbs. The emotional fallout of this crossover promises to be one of the most compelling arcs of the season.
