‘NCIS’: Why Gibbs Shot McGee

NCIS fans finally got answers to some of the show’s most pressing questions on Tuesday night’s episodes, as TVLine noted. The main question that has been on fans’ minds since the Season 18 premiere revolves around why Gibbs (Mark Harmon) shoots McGee (Sean Murray). In the cold open during the premiere, Gibbs apparently shoots McGee, but the show has not revisited that timeline since. Amidst all of the action within the two episodes that aired, fans saw exactly why Gibbs shot McGee, and it might not have been the situation that you were expecting.

The latter of NCIS‘ two episodes that aired on Tuesday showcased the conclusion to Gibbs and Fornell’s (Joe Spano’s) mysterious mission. The episode involved Gibbs’ investigation into an opioid ring led by a figure named “Merriweather.” During the episode, the team learned of Merriweather’s plan, which involved them circulating lethal pills via the Beltway Burgers that are near military bases. When Fornell and Torres (Wilmer Valderrama) make some headway in the mission and go toe-to-toe with the mysterious “Chad” a.k.a. Vladimir Ivanov, they realize that Merriweather’s crew took Bishop (Emily Wickersham).

Gibbs, posing as “Toby,” then tries to implement a trade between Merriweather in an effort to get Bishop back (Merriweather wants to trade Bishop for Vladimir, although he was not aware that the man was killed in the stand-off between him, Torres, and Fornell). Gibbs then ropes McGee in on this plan. When McGee arrives on the scene, and cuts off the plane that is supposedly carrying Merriweather and Bishop, his comms go out. As a result, Gibbs cannot alert him to the fact that the aircraft in question is about to explode. To try to prevent McGee from going too close to the aircraft, Gibbs fires a series of warning shots at him. McGee assumes the shots are from one of the bad guys. But, Gibbs continues to shoot at McGee, hitting him in the arm and the leg. Ultimately, the plan works as McGee is down but manages to avoid the fiery explosion that quickly follows.

Bishop later emerges from the hanger to reunite with the team, as she fought off the individual who was guarding her. The team also manages to catch Merriweather, who, interestingly enough, stayed in town for his daughter’s 21st birthday. At the end of the episode, Gibbs heads to the hospital to check in on McGee. He receives an update from Delilah, who says that McGee isn’t out of the woods, but he is, at least, alive. While Gibbs tries to explain himself, Delilah cuts him off to say, “You saved Tim’s life.”