NCIS: Origins season 2, episode 15 brought Agent Cecilia “Lala” Dominguez’s relationship with Manny to the forefront as she worked to find a way to get him out of his gang affiliation with Flaco. Was Lala able to help him, and how did this affect her relationship with her team?
Manny admitted to Lala that he didn’t want any part of the gang life and he always made sure not to kill anyone. But he was closer with Flaco to the point the latter considered Manny a brother, and if he ever found out he was with Lala, it could mean danger. Lala begged Manny to give her something on Flaco that wasn’t tied to Manny, and she could put him away for good.
Lala's efforts to help Manny affect her relationship with the team
He then told her that a competitor of Flaco’s, Rico Luna, was killed days ago. This was someone that Flaco wanted Lala to keep an eye on, and as far as his men were concerned, Luna was out of town.
Trying to keep things as quiet as possible, Lala told the team about the tip, but Gibbs was automatically suspicious of how she got this information. They found Rico’s body buried in a construction site, but the evidence against Flaco was flimsy at best.
There was a shirt that had been used to gag him, and they found a button that was very distinct. Due to information about Flaco’s driver, Manny, Gibbs realized that Manny had to be the Johnny that Lala claimed to be dating.
Vera confronted Lala about dating Manny along with Gibbs. However, Lala turned it against him, not saying the quiet part about him having his own demons in his past, namely what he did to Pedro Hernandez. Because Vera was in the room, neither said anything.
Gibbs then went to talk to Manny, accusing him of trying to rise up in the ranks, not realizing Manny was actually trying to get out from under Flaco. Manny decided to go to talk to Flaco himself to protect Lala.
However, Flaco realized what Manny was doing and when he told Manny he was going to take care of Lala, Manny pulled a gun on him. He shot Flaco in the chest, critically wounding him and ruining his chances of freedom.
The FBI had been helping with the case in the form of FBI Agent Swanson, who Franks had antagonized in an earlier episode. Gibbs, realizing he was wrong about Manny, convinced her to put Manny in witness protection since he could provide information about Flaco’s gang activities.
Lala was thankful that Gibbs helped Manny escape prison, even if it meant she couldn’t be with him any longer. With Flaco taken care of and Manny free, Lala did one thing to hold onto Manny. When she realized that Manny was likely in trouble, she had gotten behind the wheel of a car for the first time to go to him.
When the car Manny drove was put up for auction, she bid on it in order to keep it for herself. This was a huge step forward for her after spending so long being afraid to get back behind the wheel. Gibbs and Vera also seemed to be the only ones aware of her connection with Manny, which was good since it could have ended Lala’s career being associated with him.
It was for the best that things worked out this way. Even if Manny had been able to leave Flaco’s crew, it still would have likely affected Lala’s job due to their connection. This way, he could live his life and move somewhere that he could start over, maybe even become an actual chef since he loved cooking so much.
Who knows what the future will hold for him and whether Lala ever got the chance to see him again, but this was a good episode that hit a lot of emotional beats.
NCIS: Origins airs Tuesdays on CBS at 9/8c. You can watch previous episodes on Paramount+.
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