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Dead Air is the fifth episode in NCIS Season 8 and the 167th episode of the entire NCIS series.

Synopsis

A politically outspoken radio host and his guest, a Navy Commander are both gunned down during a radio show. The investigation leads the NCIS team to a terrorist conspiracy involving an extreme home-grown terrorist group and a potentially devastating threat that could jeopardize national security.

Prologue

As a lone car drives along the road, easy-listening music is heard coming from the car's radio.

Once the jingle has played, the DJ welcomes his audience back and announces that they're on Daily Backtalk, 86.9 FM. before revealing that he's their host, Adam Gator.

Gator then announces that this morning, he's joined by a very special guest: Navy Commander Walter Daniels.

It then cuts to the inside of a radio studio where Gator and Daniels are seen in a studio while a man in the background keeps an eye on things.

Gator remarks that many loyal listeners to this show have complained and questioned why they spend hundreds of billions sending troops, planes and ships to protect other countries and resources, they say should be here protecting and bettering the homeland.

As this happens, an SUV drives along the road, its driver glued to the station as Daniels remarks they are and that the age of isolationism is long over.

Gator then wonders about those who complain about the U.S. having to be pay to be the policemen of the world?

As this goes on, it's shown that the S pulls up outside the station itself.

Daniels remarks that American military deployment around the globe assures the safety of free trade of all and that it's trade that invariably benefits their own markets.

Meanwhile, the SUV stops outside the station with the driver getting out.

As Daniel continues on, stating that secondly they're constantly eliminating terrorist threats that may otherwise end up in their own backyard while the SUV driver grabs a rifle from the back of his SUV before heading into the station.

Gator remarks that it brings them to their next topic and the main reason he asked Daniels to be here today right after a word...

Meanwhile, the driver enters a booth and shoots the engineer, startling both Gator and Daniels.

"Hey, what are you doing?", Gator yells. "Hey, put it down".

It then heads outside to the radio station with Gator yelling at the shooter to stop him before he's shot while Daniels begs for his life and for someone to call before he too is gunned down.

It then cuts to a close-up of the radio in the SUV as two more gunshots are heard.

Act One

Act Two

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Gibbs and Abby after discovering that the person who rang into Adam Gator's radio show was calling from Royal Woods, one of the wealthiest gate communities in Washington D.C.

Act Three

Act Four

Act Five

As a social worker talks to Kristen in the Conference Room, Ziva keeps an eye on things from outside with Gibbs asking for an update on Arthur Haskell.

Ziva tells Gibbs that Haskell regained consciousness and that he's being treated for a mild concussion with the doctors planning on releasing him into NCIS custody very soon.

Major Events

Trivia

  • The opening murder appears to be partly derived from the murder of Alan Berg by members of the white supremacist group The Order.
  • The laptop McGee uses to delete Ziva's NCIS profile, reverting it back to her original Mossad profile, is an Acer.

Cast

Series Regulars

Name Portrayed by Role
Leroy Jethro Gibbs Mark Harmon Special Agent in charge of the NCIS Major Case Response Team.
Anthony DiNozzo Michael Weatherly Senior Agent and second-in-command of the NCIS Major Case Response Team.
Ziva David Cote de Pablo NCIS Probationary Agent and also a member of the NCIS Major Case Response Team.
Timothy McGee Sean Murray (actor) Junior Special Agent of the NCIS Major Case Response Team.
Abigail Sciuto Pauley Perrette Chief Forensic Specialist of the NCIS Major Case Response Team.
Leon Vance Rocky Carroll Director of NCIS.
Donald Mallard David McCallum Chief Medical Examiner of the NCIS Major Case Response Team.

Other Cast

Name Portrayed by Role
Arthur Haskell George Newbern A man who lives in Royal Woods.
Kristen Haskell Madisen Beaty Arthur Haskell's daughter.
Matt Lane Michael Monks A member of Military At Home- MAH.
Zach Nelson Jackson Hurst Another member of MAH and also the killer.
Annie Nelson Robyn Cohen Zach Nelson's wife.
Adam Gator Eli Goodman Radio Host and one of the murder victims.
Hannah Gator Sarah Manninen Adam Gator's wife.
Deeter Johanson Cokey Falkow A South African bomb maker.
Walter Daniels Michael Duvert Commander in the United States Navy and one of the murder victims.
Grumpy Neighbor Dan Desmond A man who resides in Royal Woods.
Brittany Nadia Bjorlin An attractive wife who lives in Royal Woods.
Boy Robert Ochoa A young boy who appears in the episode.
Businessman (Dead Air) CJ Johnson Uncredited role.
Vincent Clark Leo Georgallis Uncredited role.
Haylie Haskell Tracy Dillon Uncredited role.
Abasi El Masri Abraham Justice
  vedNCIS Season 8
Spider and the Fly (episode)Worst Nightmare (episode)Short Fuse (episode)Royals and Loyals (episode)Dead Air (episode)Cracked (episode)Broken Arrow (episode)Enemies Foreign (episode)Enemies Domestic (episode)False Witness (episode)Ships in the Night (episode)Recruited (episode)Freedom (episode)A Man Walks into a Bar (episode)Defiance (episode)Kill Screen (episode)One Last Score (episode)Out of the Frying Pan (episode)Tell-All (episode)Two-Faced (episode)Dead Reflection (episode)Baltimore (episode)Swan Song (episode)Pyramid (episode)
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