Since NCIS spun off from JAG, the franchise has continued to grow. Now, there are six shows (so far)within the franchise in total, although only three of them remain on the air at this time.
Of course, like any franchise that has grown, some shows are better than others. They may have the characters that connect better, or they may just have the more intriguing storylines. In some cases, the shows have been overshadowed by negativity, which admittedly does lead to some unconscious bias.
I’ve tried to look at this completely objectively. While NCIS: Hawaii will always have a special place in my heart, I’ve tried to take out my negativity surrounding its cancellation as I look at what each of the NCIS franchise shows has to offer. So, the top pick in my ranking may or may not surprise you (depending on how much you know about my love for the NCIS franchise).
I’m not including NCIS: Tony & Ziva just yet as it hasn’t aired yet, but I do have good feelings about that one. I'll come in to update this once the series has aired its first season in full to see where it lands in this list from worst to best.
6. NCIS: Sydney
I’ll admit that I only watched the first season of NCIS: Sydney, and even then, I didn’t watch it religiously. It wasn’t one of those shows that I had to tune into as soon as episodes dropped, and that’s why it has to go at the bottom of the list. It’s not even the fact that I’m still a little salty that NCIS: Sydney season 2 landed a linear spot when it was always supposed to be a streaming show, taking up the spot that NCIS: Hawaii season 4 could have had to wrap up storylines.
NCIS: Sydney just doesn’t feel like it fits in the franchise. While I love seeing how the American federal agents have to work around Australian rules, the humor and the camaraderie that other shows offer is just missing. I don’t feel we got enough of a connection to anyone in the first few episodes, and it made it hard to really care enough to keep watching. Sorry!
5. NCIS: Origins
This is one of those shows that I just don’t feel the need for. We know Gibbs’ story, and NCIS: Origins has a lot of work going through the original series and making sure everything fits into the canon. And that’s not easy.
I do enjoy heading back to the 1990s and seeing how the work was done then. Seeing how Lala works to fit in with the boys is believable and somewhat relatable for someone who worked in a male-driven field for so long. However, I haven’t felt myself drawn to the Young Gibbs story, and there are too many characters who have just been left underutilized. What is the point of Vera’s storyline, exactly?
4. NCIS
The flagship series started out amazing. The team worked so well together, and it worked having people from different agencies and walks of life coming together. Shocking deaths made it clear that nobody was safe, adding an element of fear and tension for us, and we got some beautiful moments about death and honoring the dead via Ducky (and later Palmer).
My issue with this series? It’s just gone on too long. The cases of the week have become easy to guess, as the writing is the same with each episode. The relationships aren’t quite as strong or dynamic as earlier seasons, indicating that the writing is just getting a little stale. Long-running shows are great, but please give us something fresh. If you can’t, it’s time to wrap things up and bring us something new.
3. NCIS: Los Angeles
When NCIS: Los Angeles first started, I loved it. We got the sun and a brightness that other shows didn’t manage to offer. Yet, there was still a cloud over the stories due to the crime scenes, creating an excellent juxtaposition for us as viewers. And let’s not overlook just how awesome it is to see someone like Linda Hunt’s Hetty take control and earn respect from many bigger and stronger than her.
After a while, the show just kind of lost its focus. There was so much focus on Callen and Sam that everyone else was overlooked and forgotten about. It became their show, leaving some of the newer characters underdeveloped, and now the show has been canceled, so there’s no chance to change that.
2. NCIS: Hawaii
Yes, the Hawaii spinoff is second on my list. If you know me well enough and have read my work in the past, this shouldn’t surprise you. There’s always been one NCIS franchise that I never missed an episode of. And sure, I never missed an episode of Hawaii, but it’s just pinched from the top spot. My biggest issue with the series is that there was a muted tone over Hawaii, which took away from some of the location’s beauty.
One of the great benefits of NCIS: Hawaii is that almost all characters get fair development. I still don’t feel like I knew Boone enough, but all the others gave us their flawed personalities, and we could see how those flaws formed. At the same time, they were characters we could look up to, and there’s no denying that the cases were intriguing and fun to follow.
1. NCIS: New Orleans
Yes, NCIS: New Orleans remains at the top of my list, and I’m still salty this one was canceled. I think a lot of people had issues with the killing of one major character, and while it was a shock, there was so much more that this show offered for me that made me continue tuning in. For one, it captured the essence of New Orleans culture with both the jazz and supernatural elements.
Dwayne Pride was also a leader to aspire to be. He was compassionate and fair, but he also had high expectations of everyone involved in his team. If someone didn’t do what he expected, he didn’t mince his words, but he also did it in a professional and respectful way. On top of that, every single character had development. Nobody was left behind, even when we only had one for a season, and that’s not easy to do.