Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		3.5
Audio		3.0
Extras		3.5
Overall		3.5

NCIS: The Twelfth Season Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Martin Liebman August 24, 2015

Much like network TV has always been defined by its ABCs (and NBCs and CBSs), so too have its most popular contemporary programs presented as alphabet soup crime investigation, government agency, or military investigation-based Dramas. Titles like CSI and JAG have long dominated the ratings, the former coming to a close in fall 2015 but the larger franchise still going strong with no less than three spinoffs filling the airways with location-specific and type-based crime-solving goodness. But perhaps the top dog amongst them all is NCIS (Naval Crime Investigative Service), recently rated as the number-one television program worldwide with an estimate northward of 50,000,000 people watching at any given time. Those are startling figures. Even considering it began as a spinoff from the aforementioned JAG, NCIS and its own spinoffs -- NCIS: Los Angeles and NCIS: New Orleans -- have become an industry all to themselves, a veritable open world of television goodness populated by rich characters maneuvering through the murky modern world of crime investigation. Twelve seasons -- with a thirteenth on the way -- is testament enough to the show's staying power, but NCIS has evolved far beyond its procedural roots and become something that extends far beyond the reaches of cut-and-paste investigation, transforming coworkers into family and characters into friends, a relationship clearly evident on the screen but, perhaps more importantly, one that transcends television's boundaries and extends into the viewer's home where Gibbs, Abby, Ducky, Tony, McGee, Jimmy, Bishop, and Vance feel like friends people want to visit, get to know, and care for on their weekly, yearly, and now even decade-plus journeys.

On the case.

Spoilers for seasons eleven and twelve appear below.

With the death of Actor Ralph Waite, who played Gibbs' (Mark Harmon) father, season eleven ended on a necessary down note with a funeral for the character but, in many ways, also one of the cast's own with a ceremony that seemed to transcend the show and morph into real life. Season eleven, then, didn't end with a traditional "bang" and a cliffhanger but rather an air of sadness and a sense of uncertainty lingering over the show. With nothing to resolve and, effectively, a fresh slate to start season twelve, the NCIS team opened with a large-scale, international, action-based episode that would set the tone for the season's broader plot arcs that center around contemporary terrorism but that also deal in current event topics like Operation Fast and Furious, homosexuality in the military, and American-born citizens fighting Jihad overseas. Of course, there's also plenty of murders to solve. The season ends with a doozy of a cliffhanger that leaves the series in the balance, the NCIS family reeling, and the audience breathlessly awaiting the outcome of what is arguably the single most traumatic blow to the group across the twelve season run.

Season twelve shines in the way NCIS tends to shine, through perfecting the duality that is its precision attack of procedure and the more intimate expansion of the show's collected cast and the growth -- the big moments and the intimate character revelations alike -- that keeps it moving forward, that separates it from the run-of-the-mill Crime Dramas and that have pushed it to the top of the pack. Yet not content to settle into the comfort zone and reap the easy rewards of established television royalty, NCIS takes very real risks in season twelve, shaking things up but never betraying that core togetherness even in the most challenging times. Until the end. Season twelve's finale pushes the envelope further than ever before with an ending that's at once both dangerous and eerily familiar considering the show's most recent history. The intersection between the core family ties and the darker, most dangerous corners of their mission intersect, and in a big way. The cliffhanger threatens to either upset the cart or bring the crew closer together than ever before, perhaps leaving NCIS at a crossroads that will strengthen its foundation or plant the cracks of its demise. But considering how far it has come, the very tangible room for even more growth amongst the core characters, and the ever-evolving (and quickly at that) world in which it takes place, it seems that, no matter where season thirteen begins and how far the series goes, there's just no stopping the show's critical core value of cast togetherness that has seen it rise from copycat procedural to the talk of television and, ultimately, to the top of the summit.

Below is a list of all season twelve episodes. Summaries are provided courtesy of the Blu-ray insert.

Disc One:

• Twenty Klicks: While escorting their systems administrator out of Russia, Gibbs and McGhee's Naval helicopter is shot down by a surface-to-air missile. Original air date: 9/23/14.
• Kill the Messenger: When a Navy commander is killed on his way to meet with the president, the NCIS team tries to determine if the hit was political or personal. Original air date: 9/30/14.
• So It Goes: A car explosion in Virginia claims the life of an Englishman, who has a mysterious connection to Ducky's best friend. Now, Ducky and Bishop travel to England to get to the bottom of the murder. Original air date: 10/7/14.
• Choke Hold: After a Naval scientist is killed, NCIS and the FBI launch a joint manhunt for the prime suspect -- the dead woman's ex-research partner. Original air date: 10/14/14.

Disc Two:

• The San Dominick: On a joint training exercise with the Coast Guard, Gibbs encounters a man overboard. Investigating this death leads him to a ship that's been hijacked by Pirates. Original air date: 10/21/14.
• Parental Guidance Suggested: The therapist-wife of a Navy SEAL is murdered after visiting a convicted serial killer in prison. The team soon discovers that the husband was on a Jihad hit list. Original air date: 10/28/14.
• The Searchers: The murder of a retired Master Sergeant may be linked to a Marine who was killed in action during the Vietnam War. Original air date: 11/11/14.
• Semper Fortis: Gibbs steps in after a Navy hospital corpsman is arrested for giving unlicensed medical aid to the victims of a car crash. Original air date: 11/18/14.

Disc Three:

• Grounded: Over the Thanksgiving holiday, DiNozzo, Bishop, and her husband face an elevated terror threat at the airport and contend with an impostor air marshall. Original air date: 11/25/14.
• House Rules: In the week before Christmas, the team consults with known cyber-terrorists to determine who's behind a citywide Internet shutdown. Original air date: 12/16/14.
• Check: When a series of crime scenes seem to be mimicking past cases, the team dives in to stop a copycat killer. Original air date: 1/6/15.
• The Enemy Within: Gibbs, NCIS and the FBI launch a hunt for an American-born terrorist who was tracked from Syria to Washington, D.C. Original air date: 1/13/15.

Disc Four:

• We Build, We Fight: The team searches for clues in the murder of an openly-gay Navy Lieutenant who was about to receive the medal of honor. Original air date: 2/3/15.
• Cadence: DiNozzo returns to his old military academy after a Marine and a fellow alumnus is found dead holding the picture of a current student. Original air date: 2/10/15.
• Cabin Fever: A bombing that kills two Marines sets the team in motion to smoke out Gibbs' longtime enemy and Russian terrorist Sergei Mishnev. Original air date: 2/17/15.
• Blast from the Past: A murder victim has been using one of Gibbs' undercover aliases from twenty years ago. Now, the team must find out why. Original air date: 2/24/15.

Disc Five:

• The Artful Dodger: After the murder of a Vice Admiral's aide is linked to a stolen painting, the team consults with DiNozzo's father and his knowledge of black-market art. Original air date: 3/10/15.
• Status Update: Investigating the case of a dead thief found in a Marine's house leads to a terrorist group that has been on the Department of Defense's watch list. Original air date: 3/24/15.
• Patience: Gibbs and DiNozzo get a fresh lead in a 40-year-old cold case centered around an airport bombing. Original air date: 3/31/15.
• No Good Deed: When a murder weapon is traced back to an ATF sting, DiNozzo partners with his girlfriend, ATF Special Agent Zoe Keates, to solve the case. Original air date: 4/7/15.

Disc Six:

• Lost in Translation: Investigating a Marine's murder in D.C. leads Gibbs and Bishop to a terror group in Afghanistan. Original air date: 4/14/15.
• Troll: When a Navy tech officer is killed after hacking into a Columbian drug cartel server, Special Agent Ned Dorneget assists the team in solving her murder. Original air date: 4/28/15.
• The Lost Boys: The team's latest cyber case intensifies when they uncover an international terrorist group that's recruiting children online and buying bombs on the black-market. Original air date: 5/5/15.
• Neverland: After a terrorist attack results in an unthinkable loss, the team's ongoing investigation may cost them one of their own. Original air date: 5/12/15.

NCIS: The Twelfth Season Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

NCIS: The Twelfth Season's 1080p transfer satisfies, but it's not without some annoyances. Shots inside the NCIS offices frequently appear soft, taking on a noticeably flat and dull façade that, combined with the already glossy digital source, leaves such scenes taking on an almost dreamlike quality. Many shots outside the offices, however, carry much of the same basic texture but yield somewhat crisper results. Details are often sharper and more refined. The digital flatness remains but well-lit exteriors reveal intimate skin and wardrobe details with commendable ease. NCIS ball caps, for example, show every seam along the brim. Whether in the country or the city, the transfer reveals a consistent level of intricate texturing, both near and far, that's on par with the average example of digital photography on Blu-ray. Colors are likewise vibrant in these scenes, with lush natural greens the real winners but flesh tones, clothing hues, and other bright elements popping with a clear command of the palette. Those pesky interiors, however, favor a somewhat heavy warmth that dominates the color scheme. Black levels satisfy but waver a bit throughout the season, pressing to crush in some places and going a bit pale in others. Noise and banding are evident in places but not particularly to a distracting level.

NCIS: The Twelfth Season Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

NCIS: The Twelfth Season features a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack. Music is nicely dynamic, particularly the title theme song. It's full bodied and rich, nicely spaced and aggressively postured. The difference between the 5.1 track and the weaker, less dynamic 2.0 track is night and day. The 5.1 track handles NCIS office atmospherics well, with little details helping to pull the audience into the environment but without the pinpoint richness that truly transforms the home soundstage into the show's primary environment. Effects out in the field are impressive, with various gunshots, location ambience, and random bits of heavy and light elements enjoying enough definition and natural placement to help draw the listener into each episode's own unique sonic environment. The track's main problem, however, comes with dialogue reproduction. There's a very mild lip sync problem that appears throughout the season, with words seeming just a millisecond off from mouth movements. The problem intensifies in a big way in the final episode where the difference between lip movement and sound increases to at least a full word or two off. It's severe enough that the episode is practically unwatchable. The problem was replicated on four Blu-ray players connected to three different setups and verified by two pairs of eyes and ears. Otherwise, dialogue reproduction -- clarity, placement -- is fine.

NCIS: The Twelfth Season Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

NCIS: The Twelfth Season contains several bonuses throughout the six-disc set.

Disc Three:

• Pre-Flight Jitters: Shooting on Location (1080p, 9:54): A look inside the episode "Grounded" and introducing Bishop's husband.
• Audio Commentary: Actor Sean Murray, Director Terrence O'Hara and Writer Christopher J. Waild for "House Rules."

Disc Four:

• Bad to the Bone (1080p, 11:18): A look at the Sergei Mishnev character, the dynamics that unfold as a result, the show's willingness to surprise, the death of a character, and more.
• Rocky Carroll: Director (1080p, 6:45): A fun behind-the-scenes look at the actor's turn behind the camera, the episode's subject matter and modern day relevancy, and the support people who helped Rocky churn out a quality episode.
• Audio Commentaries: Rocky Carroll, Jennifer Corbett, and Mark Horowitz for "We Build, We Fight" and Mark Harmon, Bethany Rooney, and Joe Spano for "Cabin Fever."
• Deleted Scene (1080p, 0:29): From "We Build, We Fight."
• Extended Scene (1080p, 2:22): From "Cadence."

Disc Six:

• Inside Season 12 (1080p, 24:54): A season overview that looks back at the season eleven finale; season twelve's large-scale opener; commentary in "Semper Fortis;" Tony Gonzalez's, Leslie Hope's, and Jeri Ryan's involvement in the season; blending the procedural story lines with longstanding and ongoing character development; Abby's romantic relationship and various relationships between the characters; and more.
• Table for Ten (1080p, 30:20): Key cast and crew discuss the show's longevity and popularity, fan response to key events, the cast's thoughts on where they would like the characters to go, the way the show's popularity and the characters have effected their real lives, reaching #1, Rocky Carroll's turn as director in "We Build, We Fight," the cast's favorite moments from season twelve, the actors' dream superpowers, the possibility of a live episode, their openness to appearing on reality television, the realities of life on a major television show, and more. This is a terrific piece that should thrill fans.
• #1 Drama in the World (1080p, 7:10): A look at the show's global popularity, its themes that extend beyond the series' core stories and the world's borders, and more.

NCIS: The Twelfth Season Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

NCIS: The Twelfth Season may be a hard sell on Blu-ray. It's not that the season isn't great, it's that the show has no history on the high definition format. Even NCIS: Los Angeles was a one-and-done; season one released back in 2010 and season six is set to release on DVD only just weeks after this review's publication with no Blu-ray releases for seasons two-plus in sight. This Blu-ray does, of course, offer a higher yield presentation, but it comes at double the price of the DVD set, at least out-of-the-gate. That's too much. Yet the best way to support NCIS -- and other network shows -- on Blu-ray is to buy it. Nevertheless, one cannot help but feel that this release is something of an outlier, a shot in the dark, a test case. It's a shame there hasn't been more, and who knows if there's more to come, but fans can, at least and if they don't mind an outlier in the collection, buy with confidence knowing it's the best this season, anyway, is ever going to look and sound, minus the lip sync issue which will hopefully be remedied in short order. The supplements alone -- particularly the roundtable sit-down -- should prove enough to entice and delight longtime fans and are nearly worth the cost of admission alone. Recommended if the lip sync problem is ironed out.