The NCIS Season 21 finale feels more like a personal send-off for Jessica Knight. Episode 10, “Reef Madness,” delivers the high stakes expected in a season ender, but most of the action and character development centers around Knight. Fans of Katrina Law’s character will find plenty to love and ponder until Season 22 premieres in the fall.
“Reef Madness” begins with the discovery of three bodies inside a soon-to-be-sunken Naval vessel. However, the investigation into these seemingly unrelated murders takes a back seat to Knight’s personal and professional challenges. The episode explores her career with NCIS, her relationship with Jimmy Palmer, and her very survival, creating a tense hour that succeeds but could have done more.
Audience enjoyment of “Reef Madness” may depend on their fondness for Jessica Knight, as she is the primary focus of the episode. Early on, Director Leon Vance approaches Knight with an offer to become the Chief REACT Training Officer, a position that would require her to leave her current team and transfer to Camp Pendleton in California. This potential career move creates significant tension between Knight and Palmer, with other characters commenting on their relationship throughout the episode. The core of the story involves Knight and Alden Parker being trapped onboard the ship, where Knight must take charge as Parker is immobilized.
Katrina Law delivers a dynamic performance, handling everything from chase scenes and relationship drama to quieter moments with Parker. However, her character has already been prominently featured in several substantial episodes this season, including the previous one, “Prime Cut,” which focused on Knight and Nick Torres. For a finale, one could argue that a more ensemble approach would have been appropriate, beyond the climax where the team arrives to rescue their trapped comrades.
The case of the week serves primarily to place Knight in a dramatic situation and is resolved quickly and somewhat comedically. The wife of one of the victims turns out to be the killer of all three people: her husband, his mistress, and an unhoused person she accidentally hit with her car. The sequence, explained by the killer’s uncle and accomplice, feels like a series of random events strung together to propel Knight’s storyline. Although there is a humorous moment where the suspect claims one victim ran into her knife, the entire resolution lacks the heightened murder mystery typically expected in a finale.
Comparatively, CSI: Vegas Season 3, Episode 4, “Health and Wellness,” featured a similar plot where Allie Rajan is trapped in a hospital basement. Despite Allie being on her own for most of the episode, the storyline felt more team-oriented, with the use of a cell phone to keep Allie connected to Josh Folsom. While Parker points out in NCIS that cell phones don’t work through steel hulls, the script by Scott Williams could have benefited from finding other ways to bring the team together earlier in the episode.
Overall, “Reef Madness” centers on Jessica Knight, offering a tense and character-driven finale that sets the stage for the upcoming season, even if it leaves some viewers wishing for a more collaborative team effort.