When Gary Cole came into NCIS after Mark Harmon’s departure, we were constantly told that he wasn’t going to be a carbon copy of Gibbs. Parker very quickly proved to be a different kind of agent, and the NCIS season 23 premiere synopsis reaffirms that.

During the NCIS season 23 premiere, Parker is going to hunt down the woman he holds responsible for his father’s death. Roman was killed in the NCIS season 22 finale, and Parker is sure that it was Carla. However, he doesn’t have proof, and he’s going to need to get that if he wants to take her down.

Parker is not going to work alone. He’s taking his whole team with him, and it continues to be clear that Parker is not a carbon copy of Gibbs.

“Sturgeon Season” – Gibbs and Fornell (Joe Spano) attempt to track down the leader of a drug ring who supplied drugs to Fornell’s daughter. Also, the team deals with the case of a missing cadaver from the NCIS autopsy room, on the 18th season premiere of NCIS, Tuesday, Nov. 17 (8:00-9:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network. Pictured: Joe Spano as Tobias “T.C.” Fornell, Mark Harmon as NCIS Special Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs. Photo: Sonja Flemming/CBS ©2020 CBS Broadcasting, Inc. All Rights

Gibbs would never have used his team in NCIS

We’ve seen Gibbs have personal cases in the past. Whether it’s in NCIS or NCIS: Origins, we’ve seen how Gibbs is more of a lone wolf when it comes to tackling those personal problems. He doesn’t want to get anyone else involved, and that’s not because he thinks he can do it better. The truth is he doesn’t want to get other people hurt.

Parker is not the same kettle of fish. He will get others involved in investigations when they’re personal, and that’s what he’s doing in NCIS season 23. In fact, he’s going to put his team in danger based on the synopsis for the episode, going completely against something Gibbs would have done.

Knight likely won’t bat an eyelid. After all, she wasn’t around Gibbs long enough to really get to know the way he worked. McGee is likely to be the one who questions a few things, but he is loyal enough to go through with whatever is needed. After all, he’s helped other members of the team and had them help him in the past.

“A Thousand Yards” – NCIS comes under attack by a mysterious enemy from the past. Also, Vance tries to mend fences with his estranged son by explaining why, despite the ongoing dangers of his job, he still chooses to stay at NCIS, on the CBS Original series NCIS, Monday, April 15 (9:00-10:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network, and streaming on Paramount+ (live and on-demand for Paramount+ with SHOWTIME subscribers, or on-demand for Paramount+ Essential subscribers the day after the episode

Parker shows us a different type of leadership

The great thing about NCIS and giving us these two vastly different men is that they show us different types of leadership. Neither are right or wrong. They are just different, and the team has had to adapt to the new style quickly.

While Gibbs would always listen to others, he never shared his own personal problems. I vividly remember that Ducky had told Gibbs that he didn’t know Gibbs had a wife and daughter (although then the canon doesn’t line up with that later) showing how little Gibbs talks about his past and his own feelings.

As for Parker, he wants to show his team that the confidence between each other goes all ways. It can’t just be them coming to him. He opens up and shows a personal side to himself, helping the team get to know him more and allowing them to connect with him on a more personal level. There are still things that he does keep to himself, but he’s not as guarded as Gibbs.

NCIS season 23 premieres on Tuesday, Oct. 14 at 8/7c on CBS.

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