In the long and storied run of NCIS: Los Angeles, certain episodes stand out not just for action or intrigue, but for the emotional deep dives into the lives of beloved characters. With signature titles like “Callen, G.” (Season 1), “Lange, H.” (Season 3), “Blye, K.” (Season 3), and “Granger, O.” (Season 7), the series established a tradition of character-centric episodes that gave fans an intimate look at the pasts shaping the team we’ve grown to love.
Yet one name remained conspicuously absent from that list—until the series’ final season made it more necessary than ever: “Deeks, M.”
A Character Built for Complexity
Investigator Marty Deeks (Eric Christian Olsen) has always been the emotional pulse of the team—equal parts comic relief, moral compass, and dark horse. With a backstory rooted in trauma and resilience, and a heart that’s grown through love and loss, Deeks is a character built for a deeper dive. And Season 14, filled with family milestones and painful memories, was the perfect time to give him that spotlight.
Family at the Forefront
Deeks’ evolving role as a father added new emotional weight to Season 14. Now parenting Rosa (Natalia Del Riego) with Kensi (Daniela Ruah), he’s learning the delicate dance of balancing work, marriage, and fatherhood. Scenes with his mother Roberta (the always-wonderful Pamela Reed) added more heart to the season—showing a man shaped by trauma but determined to build a safer, warmer future for the next generation.
Their dynamic, laced with dry humor and hard-earned love, would’ve made Roberta a perfect anchor for a “Deeks, M.” episode. Even better? The show didn’t need to invent an excuse for her to appear—she already lived nearby and had become a staple in Deeks’ home life.
Revisiting the Past
In the episode “Flesh & Blood,” the show scraped the surface of Deeks’ harrowing past with his abusive father. When a case reminded him of the emotional scars from childhood, we got a gut-punch of a monologue—Deeks recounting a sweltering day at a Dodgers game, a melting ice cream cone, and his mother covered in layers of clothing to hide the bruises left by her husband. That same day, Deeks remembered, teachers believed his bruises came from playground fights.
The emotional truth of that scene was raw and unfiltered. But it also opened the door for more: for flashbacks, for context, and for catharsis. We needed to know more. How did Deeks survive it? How did it shape the man who became an advocate for the voiceless? And what has healing really looked like for him, now that he’s raising a child of his own?
An Unfinished Story: Where’s Ray?
Another compelling thread yet to be fully explored is Deeks’ longtime friend and former confidential informant, Ray (Channon Roe). The two shared a bond forged in the fires of childhood trauma, mischief, and survival. Ray, now in witness protection, hasn’t been seen or heard from in years. But wouldn’t he want to know that Deeks finally found the happiness and stability they both longed for?
A true “Deeks, M.” episode could’ve brought Ray back—or at the very least, offered a meaningful update. His presence would’ve provided a mirror to Deeks’ own evolution, a look at who he might’ve become had life taken a different path.
A Missed Opportunity in a Legacy Series
Executive producer R. Scott Gemmill previously told TV Insider that the team always kept the possibility of the show ending in mind. And while NCIS: LA eventually closed out after Season 14, it did so without ever delivering the “Deeks, M.” episode fans had long hoped for. Likewise, the long-overdue “Hanna, S.” episode—focusing on Sam Hanna (LL Cool J)—never materialized either.
That absence feels especially significant now that the show has wrapped. These weren’t just cool episode titles. They were milestones. Emotional anchor points. Love letters to characters we’ve followed for over a decade.
Final Thoughts
In a show defined by action-packed cases and team camaraderie, the character-deep episodes always stood tallest. And no character was more deserving of that treatment than Marty Deeks. His story—one of survival, compassion, and transformation—deserved a nameplate episode of its own.
“Deeks, M.” wasn’t just a title fans wanted. It was the episode NCIS: Los Angeles needed to round out its remarkable run.
And now? It’s the one that got away.
