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NCIS: Los Angeles Season 1 Episode 1

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Episode Summary

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AIRED: 9/22/09

Callen, who has been recovering from severe injuries, returns to the NCIS Office of Special Projects and immediately joins his team-mates in solving a kidnapping case which might have national security implications.

FAN RECAP

Fan Episode Reviews (15)

A clever title goes here!

10

By loza23, Nov 08, 2012

amazing show interesting to see the characters development especialy callen and his past
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The first of NCIS LA

9.0

By 7dixob, Oct 29, 2012

NCIS LA is a similar show to the original NCIS but this LA one is more about going undercover which only sometimes happens in the original. Callen and Sam are the main two characters in the show and I would say they would be right for it but whether the others are right for NCIS I don't know yet.In the episode Callen returns after getting shot at the end of the crossover episode and his first case is a kidnapping of a girl which has its twists when it turns out to be the father and the first time the team go undercover they are compromised but manage to get there way out of it and rescue the girl.This was overall a good episode and a good start to the show and I hope it continues to be good.moreless
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Identity Theft

6.5

By pretty_sure, Jun 18, 2011

Now, I love NCIS: Los Angeles. It's action-packed and almost always entertaining, but I was kind of hoping this would be a conclusion to the cliff-hanger they left us with on NCIS. They left alot of bread crumbs, but then they didn't follow them.

To this episode. I thought this was ok, at best. It wasn't a great start to the show, by itself without NCIS, if I had seen this episode first, I probably wouldn't have tuned in the following week. That sad the episode was watchable and a most part entertaining, but it's not a story I would have started the season with.moreless
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The Pilot episode finds Callen returning to work for the first time since being shot. A Navy Captain is killed by what seem to be kidnappers in a gun battle with the LA police. Everything including a young girls kidnapping is related to the drug wars.moreless

8.5

By jyarter, Dec 30, 2010

Beginning with new digs this is supposedly a faster paced version of NCIS. LL Cool J and Chris O'Donnell star as a pair of NCIS Special Agents who work undercover to solve national and international threats to the US.

This first episode involves the Mexican Drug Cartels and the kidnapping of a young girl to manipulate her Uncle to do things he normally wouldn't. Things go wrong and the Uncle who is a decorated Navy Captain is killed. So his death is investigated by NCIS.

Complete with a professional extraction team who is run by the Navy Captain's friend and a father who turns out to have worked with a major Mexican Drug Dealer for the last six years. That last piece of information was suppose to be the twist, but it was pretty obvious before they revealed this piece of information that the father was behind the kidnapping. I thought it was a little strange that the mother passed the phone to the NCIS Agent Blye.

Overall a very professional show with a lot to live up too. Giving it its due this is the first episode so I think we have to give it a chance and forget it is NCIS for a while. I look for this show to improve a great deal over this first episode. Thanks for reading...moreless
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NCIS: EL AYE = Left Coast Inbred Lackluster Boring Annoying and Waste of Time.

4.5

By jetgraphics, Dec 30, 2010

NCIS: Los Angeles started out bad - - - obligatory jumpy "action" that nauseates me. In this age of High Definition, would someone PLEASE inform the industry that degrading the image is NOT entertaining, NOT good story telling, and frankly almost had me shut the expletive deleted show off.

However, the shaky camera work subsided as the show progressed. We had the usual back story, etc, etc, and the posing of unanswered questions. Yadda yadda. Drama 101.

The actors were a bit stiff, and somewhat "left coast" for such a gung ho "military" outfit. You can put Abby Hoffman in a uniform, but you can't make me "believe" that he's hero material. And LL Cool J may be an entertainer, but he's no actor. Confidence before a lens can only carry one so far.

The story, for a pilot, was pretty much pedestrian. The [spoiler] napped the [spoiler] - which was telegraphed pretty early on.

And then the climactic fight scene was a repeat performance of unstable imagery, shaky cam, and blurry "action". They might as well have just thrown the camera up in the air, played loud music coupled with sound effect grunts and scroll "ka-Pow", for the "shot". (Didn't BATMAN pioneer such pitiful fight stunts?)

Well, that was it for me. I am NOT going to waste my time with this show.

[] Casting = D

[] Actors = C-

[] Story = C

[] Cinematography = F

[] Entertainment factor = D-moreless
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Cast & Crew: STARS

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Chris O'Donnell	NCIS Special Agent G. Callen
LL Cool J	NCIS Special Agent Sam Hanna
Peter Cambor	Operational Psychologist Nate Getz
Daniela Ruah	NCIS Special Agent Kensi Blye
Adam Jamal Craig	NCIS Special Agent Dominic Vail

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Cast & Crew: RECURRING AND GUESTS

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Daniel Edward Mora	Emilio	Guest Star
Ariel Gade	Emma Perez	Guest Star
Mathew St. Patrick	Bobby J. Jenlow	Guest Star
Linda Hunt	Henrietta 'Hetty' Lange	Recurring Role
Rocky Carroll	NCIS Director Leon Vance	Recurring Role
Barrett Foa	Eric Beal	Recurring Role

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Trivia, Notes, Quotes and Allusions

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TRIVIA (6)
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- Callen's shooting which he was recovering from took place in the NCIS episode "Legend".
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- Hetty has known Callen for three years.
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- Kensi Blye was raised in the Marine Corps.
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- Callen is fluent in Spanish. Dominic and Hetty are fluent in Latin.
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- Callen's nickname G is the only information he has about his first name.
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- Prior to joining NCIS, Special Agent Callen was an FBI agent and Special Agent Hanna was a Navy SEAL.
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QUOTES (5)
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- Hetty: Expense accounts; yours are six months behind. I would have thought that seeing you had time off for recuperation, you would have caught up on your paperwork
  G: Please tell me you're kidding me, Hetty.
  Hetty: Well, I could but it would be a lie. No rush tomorrow will be fine...
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- Hetty: Wardrobe for your undercover work. I know you grew up in the well meaning but cold embrace of the welfare state, Mr. Callen, but just because you're an orphan doesn't mean that you have to dress like Oliver Twist.
  G: In the three years we known each other, you've never called me "G".
  Hetty: It's not a name, it's a letter.
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- G: What are we? If anyone asks.
  Sam: Uhh, city inspectors
  G: No, no one talks to city inspectors
  Sam : Okay, you're a realtor and I'm your client; you're showing me an apartment.
  G: Do I look like a realtor?
  Sam : Okay, I'm a realtor and you're the guy looking for an apartment. Can we go?
  G: Would I like a place like this? I don't even know if I can afford a place like this.
  Sam: That's why I'm showing you to see if you'd wanna live in a place like this.
  G: Does it have a Jacuzzi?
  Sam: If it has, I'm going to drown you in it.
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- G: Where are we with friends or lovers?
  Sam: There is this one stand out guy.
  G: Friend or lover?
  Dominic : Not really the question that jumped out at me.
  G: Informed guess?
  Dominic: He's a six foot three, two hundred pound, Special Forces paratrooper guy. Leaning towards a friend.
  Sam: Good call, Dom.
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- Sam: I'm definitely getting you a birthday card this year.
  G: Great. Make sure you put some money in it.
  Sam: How 'bout I put some personality in it.
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NOTES (3)
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- International Air Dates:
  Australia: September 30, 2009 on Channel Ten
  United Kingdom: October 21, 2009 on Sky1/Sky1 HD
  Sweden: November 10, 2009 on TV3
  Denmark: December 1, 2009 on TV3
  Norway: December 7, 2009 on TV3
  Latin America: March 3, 2010 on A&E
  The Netherlands: March 7, 2010 on Veronica
  Germany: July 24, 2010 on SAT 1
  Finland: August 11, 2010 on Nelonen
  Czech Republic: November 5, 2010 on AXN
  Slovakia: June 23, 2011 on Markiza
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- Goof: During the opening scene, LAPD patrol vehicles are chasing the bad guys. The LAPD air ship call the units with a "6A" designator, which indicates Hollywood Division. However, the number "15" is on the trunks of the patrol vehicles, which indicates a North Hollywood unit. Different divisions, different radio frequencies, different bureaus and a mistake the LAPD air ship would never make.
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- Goof: When Kensi welcomes Callen back, he asks if she's "still making the weekend drive up to Pendleton" from the team's base in Los Angeles. However, Marine base Camp Pendleton is in San Diego, two hours south of Los Angeles.
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ALLUSIONS (0)
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