‘NCIS’: How McGee Reacted to Ziva’s Big Return

NCIS did not waste time sharing the news of Ziva David’s return with the rest of the team, and some were happier about the news than others. Timothy McGee (Sean Murray) was not happy to be one of the last to know Ziva (Cote de Pablo) had been alive all along, especially when the news came from relative new member Bishop (Emily Wickersham).

Spoilers ahead for NCIS Season 17 Premiere: “Out of the Darkness”

The high-stakes season opened of the CBS crime procedural showed as Ziva and Gibbs (Mark Harmon) races to safety after the triumphant return. Ziva revealed to her old friend she had used the big explosion where she presumably died to go undercover and find Zahar, a woman determined on killing her.

Ziva and Gibbs barely escape an attack at Gibbs’ basement through an underground tunnel, leaving behind the body of one of the attackers and a lot of mess. Nick (Wilmer Valderrama) Bishop and McGee respond to the scene after they get a call of shots fired at Gibbs’ home.

The team finds the body and the mess in his basement, and no sign of Gibbs. They then find the vent Gibbs used to escape and Bishop notices a piece of cloth left behind, suspecting someone else might have been with him. When McGee asks who she thinks it may be, Bishop keeps quiet, sticking to her promise to keep Ziva’s secret safe.

Bishop then heads to Ziva’s old house on her own and meets with a friend of hers, who reveals Ziva’s plan after the explosion. Bishops asks her if Ziva’s old love interest Tony (Michael Weatherly) knows Ziva is alive, but the woman refuses to tell her.

After the conversation, Bishop heads back but is intercepted by McGee who aggressively asks her what secrets she is keeping. He knows that she had a theory about who was with Gibbs during the attack. After some hesitation, Bishop breaks the news to McGee that his old friend Ziva is still alive.

McGee is angry at first, upset that his friends did not trust him with the secret. He later understands that the knowledge of Ziva being alive puts everyone’s lives in danger, and he focuses on helping her capture the mysterious Zahar.

He does get to have a reunion of sorts with Ziva in the premiere during a high-pressure moment. After Ziva and Gibbs barely escape a meeting with a dangerous informer, Gibbs steals a car to get the pair out of there just as the rest of the team arrives on the scene. McGee watches from afar and locks eyes with Ziva, who simply gestures at him not to follow them so they stay safe.

McGee later advocates for Ziva and Gibbs with Vance (Rocky Carroll) near the end of the episode, saying the team has to trust what the two are doing and stay back. The decision might bring consequences, however, as the premiere ended with Gibbs trying to stop Ziva from killing Zahar after the woman threatens her premature death would lead to the passing of a U.S. Senator. The episode ended with Ziva pointing a gun at her old friend.

Who else can’t wait until next week’s episode? NCIS airs Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET on CBS.