NCIS: Origins Finally Settles the Debate Over Mark Harmon’s Gibbs Replacement With 1 Perfect Scene

NCIS: Origins has settled a divisive debate about Mark Harmon’s original Leroy Jethro Gibbs character in its special crossover event. On Tuesday, November 11, the NCIS franchise aired a two-part episode that depicted a case unfolding over 30 years, beginning in the 1990s in NCIS: Origins Season 2, Episode 5, “Funny How Time Slips Away,” and ending in the present day in NCIS Season 23, Episode 5, “Now and Then.” The crossover consisted of each series unfolding the mystery in its own distinct tone and style, with NCIS bringing the investigation full circle.

Young Mike Franks (Kyle Schmid) and Gibbs (Austin Stowell) begin the investigation in 1992, looking into the death of a petty officer whose body was planted in his car on the railroad tracks to cover up a murder. The crossover featured special appearances from the original actors, Mark Harmon and Muse Watson, as older versions of the characters at the beginning and end of the installment. The cameo scenes had cinematic appeal and served as perfect bookends to the episode, but they also spoke to an ongoing discussion about Austin Stowell’s rendition of Gibbs