“Corporal Punishment” first aired Tuesday, November 27, 2007.
The opening scene reveals a uniformed Marine officer approaching his car at the Bethesda Naval Hospital in Washington. After gaining entrance and preparing to drive off, the driver’s side window is imploded by a raging man. The viewer is treated to the alleged carjacker’s trail back to the hospital where a secured psych unit has just been blown and the alarms are singing. A less than stable veteran has just checked out AMA.
In the typical levity sequence of the show before the real action begins, Special Agent Tony DiNozzo (Michael Weatherly) is egging Special Agent Tim McGee (Sean Murray) on to punch DiNozzo in the stomach so the latter may show off his granite six-pack abs. No luck there, DiNozzo requests the same from the recently arrived Mossad Agent-on-Loan-to-NCIS Ziva David (Cote de Pablo), but she thinks DiNozzo is talking about beer. Ziva is about to issue DiNozzo a punch when Special Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs (Mark Harmon) enters, gathering his team for the search for the disturbed escaped veteran. Ziva and DiNozzo continue, with Ziva drawing back before striking DiNozzo. While admiring his abs, Ziva informs DiNozzo that Gibbs’ are still better.
The NCIS team arrives at the hospital, immediately establishing that the Marine, more than likely suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), is very strong, having made his way out of a straightjacket using brute force. Gibbs finds that the Marine whose car was attacked has yet to report in and realizes that he may have a hostage situation on his hands. McGee identifies the hostage from the hospital’s internal video system. DiNozzo does a damn good Tommy Lee Jones imitation from The Fugitive, confusing Ziva, annoying Gibbs.
McGee pulls up one Marine Corporal Damon Worth (Paul Telfer)'s file, reciting his myriad of his symptoms which include paranoia, depression, and aggression. Meanwhile a senatorial public relations suit, Ray Vincent (Patrick Fabian), arrives, talking on the cell phone via Bluetooth, marching around like he is someone special. He proceeds to inform Gibbs that the central issue with Corporal Worth is that a senator (from Worth’s home state of Michigan) was due to award him the Silver Star in three days as the Corporal went above and beyond the call in the desert theater and has been crowned a certified war hero. Gibbs is nonplussed by this Federal sack of shit, rolling his eyes.
Article comments
1 - Britni
Absolutely perfect, it explains the whole show from beggining to end. This is my favorite episode of NCIS & no one could have described it better.