NCIS season 21, episode 1 recap: Did Nick Torres commit murder?

NCIS wasted no time in jumping right into what happened in the aftermath of Agent Nick Torres paying a visit to the man who harmed his family. But at the end of the day, did he commit the murder and was the team able to help him?

When the FBI came in to arrest Nick, NCIS could not work on the case publicaly. However, that didn’t stop the team from using unofficial methods to prove Nick’s innocence. Jimmy Palmer and Jessica Knight used stealth to take a second look at the victim’s body. 

The team would also learn more about who the victim, Maurice Riva, was, thanks to Nick’s sister, Lucia. They discovered that Maurice had abused the Torres family and even got Nick’s mother in trouble for fraud. But no matter what, he still came out looking like he had never done anything wrong.

Once they find out that Nick pleaded guilty to murder and got sent back to the prison he was in for the undercover operation, they find out Reymundo de Leon’s connection to Maurice. He was once again using an innocent family. But this time, Reymundo seemed to believe Maurice was a good guy.

The team obtained Maurice’s laptop from Reymundo’s mother while they tried to find the money Maurice was hiding. They even figured out Nick thought his sister, Lucia, was involved since she called him near the man’s house.

After Nick was stabbed in prison, Parker and Lucia visited him. Nick learned that Lucia didn’t commit the murder. He didn't either, he'd only beat Maurice up.

As it turned out, once they got information on who accessed Maurice’s laptop, Reymundo’s mother killed him in self-defense after she learned the truth about him. She had gone to his house where Maurice was still alive after the beating. But once he turned his rage on her, she shot him.

With their killer having fled, the team was ready to get back to normal, though Nick’s job was in question. It was up to Parker to decide whether Nick would come back to work, especially now that McGee doesn’t have to help in the Cyber division anymore.

Just as Parker told Nick that he needs to remember to rely on the team, he got a phone call from Jimmy. Looking distraught, Parker could only look at his team. Considering we know how the second episode will pay tribute to Dr. Donald Mallard, we can guess what it was Jimmy told him.

All in all, the first episode of NCIS brought us right back into the fold with the characters we love as if the long hiatus had not happened. It was an episode that also saw that even though he came so far, Nick still can crash easily if he doesn’t rely on those around him. It's a lesson he still needs to learn and hopefully he will realize he can go to the team when he needs their help.

We also met FBI Agent Rose, who would apply for the role of the head of the Cyber division, after Parker unwittingly helped the former head to decide he wanted to move on from the job. She may have seemed like a one-off character, but given we see the Cyber division in various episodes, we could see her take on Tech Troll King Agent McGee once again.

We're looking forward to seeing what the season has in store for the characters. But we know we're going to need tissues for the second episode.