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Warning: Post contains spoilers
“NCIS: New Orleans” season 7 episode 9 “Into Thin Air” finds a 15-year-old girl kidnapped. While jogging through City Park, teenaged Beth Hogan vanishes without a trace. Since Beth is the daughter of Navy Commander Claire Hogan, NCIS NOLA is called in to investigate. Special Agent Quentin Carter (Charles Michael Davis) briefs Special Agent Dwayne “King” Pride (Scott Bakula) on the situation at the crime scene. Special Agent Hannah Khoury (Necar Zadegan) interviews Commander Hogan and her other daughter, Simone. During the interrogation, Pride asks if anything was bothering Beth to which Simone reveals that their mother was slated for a six-month deployment, leaving Beth with Frank, Commander Hogan’s ex-husband. Claire explains that Frank is paranoid and a survivalist.
Khoury and Carter visit Frank at his off-grid property. Initially, Frank appears hostile, although after learning that his daughter is missing, he agrees to come into NCIS NOLA headquarters. Although at first Frank seems overly paranoid, rapport established with Quentin and interrogation by Special Agent Tammy Gregorio (Vanessa Ferlito) unearths post-Katrina anxiety. In the wake of the devastation, and disgruntled at the lack of governmental assistance, Frank adopted a survivalist mentality reasoning that he couldn’t rely on society, merely himself.
Special Agent Sebastian Lund (Rob Kerkovich) pulls traffic cam footage and discovers that Beth was taken in a professional kidnapping. Tracking the plates on the SVU leads to a car crash where one of the goons is dead in the car, while a series of footprints leads into the woods. Despite orders to return home, Frank sets off in search of his daughter who, cleverly utilizing survival skills taught by her father, leaves a trail Hansel and Gretel style.
Jefferson Parrish Coroner Loretta Wade (CCH Pounder) struggles with many of the same frustrations as Pride in her appointment to the Crescent City 2.0 Commission, a committee organized by the mayor with the goal of combatting various systemic issues plaguing the Big Easy. But agreeing on what problems to focus on proves challenging. Doc Wade suggests changing tactics and instead of attempting to tackle a major problem, start with simple solutions to real-world problems. When her son CJ begins collecting old electronics donations to save a high school homework initiative. Loretta illustrates the notion of seeking out problems in the committee’s power to fix and concentrating on small steps that can achieve big changes.
“NCIS New Orleans” S07E09 “Into Thin Air” exhibits why “NCIS NOLA” remains unique among police procedurals. There’s a lot of nuance to the characters, and a concrete sense of place. While Frank at first appears unnecessarily paranoid, his anxiety stems directly from the devastation of Hurricane Katrina. Throughout its seven-season run, “NCIS New Orleans” has anchored itself in the Big Easy by incorporating elements of NOLA such as the ramifications of Katrina’s destruction which are still evident even today. Similarly, the season-spanning story arc with the Crescent City 2.0 Commission has many nods to issues plaguing New Orleans including economic disparities and systemic racism. It’s a series that doesn’t shy away from making social justice or political statements.
Beth’s kidnapping proves surprising with a neat twist in the third act. Rather than relying on tropes, “Into Thin Air” presents a multi-faceted storyline with complex characters. Thoughtful and balanced with both story arc and standalone crime-of-the-week, “NCIS New Orleans” season 7 episode 9 “Into Thin Air” is an exciting thrill-ride.
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