NCIS: The Nineteenth Season
[{'review_meta': 'Reviewed in the United States on July 30, 2022', 'review_star': 'a-icon a-icon-star a-star-3 review-rating', 'review_body': "NCIS Special Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs, the outstanding lead actor of NCIS for all these years, has left the building. The first four episodes of Season 19, completing a story arc begun late last season, saw Gibbs out the door in a convoluted (and not very convincing) story line. Gibbs does get to say his good-byes, and it might be understandable that Mark Harmon, aged 70, wanted a break, but the show is just not the same.\n\nUnfortunately for the future, Harmon built Gibbs into a uniquely compelling character who was the beating heart of the show all these years. The show has remained successful through a lot of cast rotation. It did so because it was about Gibbs, the driven lawman who made his own rules, and who made his office team into a substitute for the family he lost before NCIS.\n\nWhat remains is a decimated cast now led by Gary Cole as Mark Harmon's replacement. The early shows had the poor quality of a bad soap opera. The shows did get better over the course of the season, but this reviewer isn't convinced that Gary Cole was going to be just as good as Mark Harmon at leading the team.\n\nAs of this posting, there are no indications that Gibbs will return in the new season. CBS has left itself a steep hill to climb to convince long-time viewers the show is still worth watching. Let's hope so. Season 19 is cautiously recommended to long-time fans of the series."}]