NCIS, the famous and long-running crime drama, has come to the end of its 21st season, and the fans cannot wait for the next season. Viewers have spent the last two decades invested in cases and personal lives of the elite Major Case Response Team working for the Naval Criminal Investigative Service. Growing and seeing the team evolve, most have seen a lot of their favorite NCIS team members leave the show.
Due to the 2023 Writers Guild of America and SAG-AFTRA strikes, season 21 was shortened to just 10 episodes. Howeve, the show still pulled off a very engaging storyline that really set a tone for big changes within the NCIS universe. From three bodies unearthed aboard a retired Navy vessel to possibly losing one of the band of heroes to another team in another city, this season had viewers literally on the edge of their seats.
The series also comes with another feather on its cap—its 1,000th episode. It is most deserved so by the super hit genre it is in, and the dynamic nature that it has had all these years. The show has also maintained storylines and kept fans’ interest levels intact. As the NCIS team gears up to face challenges and opportunities when season 22 comes knocking, fans expect a resolution for the season 21 finale cliffhangers and new faces to bring in new cases that will continue making the show feel new and relevant for years to come.
What happens at the end of NCIS season 21?
In the season 21 finale of NCIS, titled "Reef Madness," everything boils down to an intense dramatic ending. The episode focuses on Agents Jessica Knight and Alden Parker, who turn up the bodies of three persons inside the retired USS Goddell, a ship scheduled for intentional sinking to form an artificial reef. They stumble on the bodies during a live tour of the ship and find an urgent need to investigate.
Tensions arise within the team as Knight grapples with a significant career opportunity: being offered the position of Chief REACT Training Officer at Camp Pendleton. What may seem to be one of the greatest professional achievements in Knight's life could change the nature of her relationship with Jimmy Palmer and eventually affect the team's dynamic and their personal lives.
Things take a turn for the worse when Knight and Parker get stuck inside the ship with some unknown intruder; the action becomes more intense. They do get out, but not before Parker sustains a very severe injury to the leg, which causes significant loss of blood. He is hospitalized and is later shown to have woken up with a worried Knight sitting beside him.
The episode concludes with uncertainty surrounding Knight's future with the team and Parker's harrowing past, including hallucinations about a girl named Lily. These are explicit signs of his huge emotional scars. The ending completes an adequate cliffhanger for big developments awaiting season 22 and leaves fans in anticipation over these storylines.
What happens to Parker after the ship incident on NCIS season 21?
Following the explosive ship incident in the season 21 finale of NCIS, the biggest plot twist emerges concerning Parker's fate. Immediately after being tortured aboard the USS Goddell, to which he and Agent Jessica Knight were taken captive and beaten up, Parker sustains a serious injury to the leg that leaves him bleeding profusely. He is whisked to the hospital, where he comes around to learn that he will be OK, although the incident has left him shaken physically and emotionally.
During his stay at the hospital, Parker began having vivid visions of a young girl, presumably his sister Lily. Hallucinations were intermingled with his traumatic memories associated with ships, which were hints to a dark past not yet faced by Parker. The hallucinations suggest that he was involved in a tragic incident that led to Lily's death, and deepened his longstanding aversion to ships.
As Parker recuperates, he will have to deal with the repercussions of his past while still being concerned with the dynamics of the team, especially since Knight may have a potential job offer that will take her away from MCRT. The finale wraps up with quite a number of questions unanswered with regard to Parker's past and the future of his relationship with Knight, which supposedly will be explored further in season 22. Fans are left wondering how these developments would really affect Parker's character moving forward.
Where can I watch NCIS season 22?
The new episodes of NCIS Season 22 can be watched on October 14, 2024, at 8 PM ET/PT, and at 9 PM ET/PT on the succeeding weeks beginning on the 21st, only on CBS. You will need CBS for its live airing, and you can have it through traditional pay-TV providers and via antennas, or through live TV streaming services like Fubo, Hulu with Live TV, and YouTube TV.
More episodes will be available for streaming on Paramount Plus, and subscribers can stream the newest episodes live as well. The entire NCIS series, including old seasons, is now available on this platform.
Here are the Paramount+ subscriptions:
- Paramount+ Essential: $5.99/month for access to the streaming library with limited ads and live CBS TV (select markets)
- Paramount+ with Showtime: $11.99/month for the Essential plan plus the Showtime library and fewer ads
Stay up-to-date on everything NCIS, including episode recaps, spoilers, and character updates, all right here as season 22 gets underway on Soap Central.
