Warning! This Article Contains SPOILERS For NCIS: Sydney Season 2NCIS: Sydneymissed an opportunity when referencing a familiarNCIScharacter in season 2. Despite spinoffs likeNCIS: Los Angeles, NCIS: New Orleans,andNCIS: Hawai’iall receiving cancelation in the last several years, the sharedNCISuniverse continues to expand with new additions likeNCIS: OriginsandNCIS: Sydney.One of the things that makes theNCISfranchise an institution is that its expansive network of shows occupies the same universe, with the stories connecting, which makes room for more immersive character development and world-building. Unfortunately, theNCIS: Sydneystorymissed an opportunity to enhance it even more.
The Aussie-themed procedural was the first internationalNCISshow. Yet, the series is still connected to the flagship, withNCIS: Sydneyreferring to NCIS Director Leon Vance (Rocky Carroll) in the series premiere. TheNCIS: Sydneycharactershave unique ties to the agency as the first Australian Federal Police/NCIS task force. Special Agent Michelle Mackey (Olivia Swann) leads the group, with AFP Sergeant Jack Dempsey (Todd Lasance) typically at her side. After establishing its connection toNCISin season 1, the show refers to the director again in the season 2 premiere but fails to highlight another familiar character.
NCIS: Sydney Season 2 References FBI Deputy Director Wayne Sweeney (But Not By Name)
The FBI Deputy Director Plays An Unnamed Role In NCIS: Sydney Season 2
In theNCIS: Sydneyseason 2 premiere,the show refers to FBI Deputy Director Wayne Sweeney (Eric Passoja). That said,NCIS: Sydneydoesn’t refer to theNCISseason 22 character by name. Passoja first joined theNCISfranchise as the deputy director of the FBI inNCISseason 19, episode 4, “Great Wide Open.” As such, Sweeney was introduced along with Special Agent Alden Parker (Gary Cole) amid Mark Harmon’sNCISexit as Leroy Jethro Gibbs. Parker was tasked with apprehending Gibbs for his crime. However, Sweeney fired Parker when the FBI agent refused, and Parker subsequently joined NCIS.
Sweeney was introduced along with Special Agent Alden Parker (Gary Cole) amid Mark Harmon’s NCIS exit as Leroy Jethro Gibbs.
Wayne Sweeney appeared once in season 20 before returning inNCISseason 22, episode 4, “Sticks & Stones.” After appearing inNCISseason 22, the premiere ofNCIS: Sydney’s sophomore run would have been a relevant time to loop Sweeney back in. However, when Special Agent in Charge of the Southeast Asia Field Office Ken Carter (Bert LaBonté) asks Mackey what he should tell the deputy director about Ana Niemus’ escape,Carter refers to Sweeney by title only. It might not have been such a big deal if Agent Carter hadn’t referred to Sweeney without using his name thrice:
Carter:I just flew in from Singapore after I got a call from our friends at Quantico.Deputy Director of the FBIwants to know why his grab team flew all the way to Sydney to render an international assassin who is no longer in your custody.
Mackey:Right. Yep. That was unfortunate.
Carter:Deputy Directorused a different adjective.
Mackey:Sir, we had Niemus isolated in the interview room while we worked the abduction of Sergeant Dempsey’s boy, but by the time the grab team got here, she’d picked her cuffs and fled the scene.
Carter:That’s what I’m supposed to tell theDeputy Director?
Why NCIS: Sydney’s Reference In The Season 2 Premiere Missed A Big Opportunity
All The Shows In The NCIS Shared Universe Connect
While it’s neat thatNCIS: SydneyandNCISexist in the same universe,the Sydney offshoot failed to take full advantage of its connectionto its predecessor.NCIS: Sydneyrefers to the FBI Deputy Director by his title on three occasions. It could be a formal way of referring to the FBI Deputy Director. But even so,NCIS: Sydneyneeds more connections to the flagship to make it relevant to fans. Referencing FBI Deputy Director Wayne Sweeney more boldly would have calledNCIS: Sydneyfans’ attention to the flagship and vice versa.
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Agent in Charge Carter mentionsDirector Leon Vanceby name inNCIS: Sydneyseason 2, episode 1, later on in the episode. Carter reports that he just received an email from Vance congratulating them on the outstanding result when everything is said and done. Whileit was great to seeSydneynod to Carroll’s established leader, putting a name to a lesser-known title would have formed an even more robust connection between the series. Failing to connect the position to Sweeney’s identity within the flagship makes no sense since he has been around for a while.
How NCIS: Sydney Season 2 Can Still Connect To The Flagship
A Showrunner’s Comments Highlight The Missed Opportunity
NCIS: Sydneycan still utilize the flagship by taking other opportunities to form connections between the series.Sydney’s nods to Leon Vance were a great start, but theNCISfranchise should further trust its audience to analyze its shows and enjoy the shared universe more profoundly. While the Aussie characters don’t need to rely on the flagship to tell a great story, connections toNCISare an easy way to invite more fans in, and showrunner Morgan O’Neill said in an interview withTV Insiderthat she desired morecrossover opportunities withNCIS: Sydneyand the largerNCISuniverse.
Morgan O’Neill: It’s a challenge for us. We’re not just in the studio next door. We can’t just pull Rocky Carroll out and drag him on our set. It’s not quite that easy. But I would say the great thrill of a franchise like NCIS is that it’s an interconnected world. Fans love that it is, and we’re certainly trying to work out ways where we can satisfy the desire for a kind of crossover or an interaction of sorts. So that may be happening in our future, I suppose, is the best way to put it.
O’Neill notes the challengesNCIS: Sydneyfaces in incorporating familiar faces into the show since it films in Australia. Their studio is thousands of miles from Southern California, whereNCISfilms. That said, making a subtle nod to a character like Wayne Sweeney a little bolder is a great way to meet the series’ benchmark without flying anNCIScast memberout to the titular city whereNCIS: Sydneyfilms. Still, bringing in a fan-favorite like Timothy McGee (Sean Murray) or Jimmy Palmer (Brian Dietzen) would be the best way to generate excitement for the Aussie show within the franchise.
