Ice Queen (JAG)

Updated on Jan 29, 2024

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Episode no. Season 8 Episode 20 Original air date April 22, 2003		Directed by Donald P. Bellisario
Written by Donald P. Bellisario & Don McGill

"Ice Queen" is the 20th episode in the eighth season of the CBS legal drama JAG. It is the 178th episode in the series overall, and it serves as the backdoor pilot for the crime drama NCIS (TV series), which is the first spin-off associated with the NCIS franchise.

Cast and characters

David James Elliott as Commander Harmon Rabb

Catherine Bell as Lt. Colonel Sarah MacKenzie

Patrick Labyorteaux as Lt. Bud Roberts

John M. Jackson as Admiral A.J. Chegwidden

Mark Harmon as NCIS Senior Special Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs

Robyn Lively as NCIS Special Agent Vivian Blackadder

Michael Weatherly as NCIS Probationary Agent Anthony DiNozzo

Tom Jay Jones as NCIS Special Agent Don Dobbs

Synopsis

The Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) team is called to investigate the mysterious death of a Judge Advocate (Lt Singer), who is discovered by a boy scout searching for a stray arrow. Before the episode concludes, Harmon Rabb is read his rights before being declared a suspect.

Plot

The body of a Navy Lieutenant JAG officer is found in the woods by a boy scout, and random tests later confirm that the JAG officer was pregnant. Admiral Chegwidden informs members of JAG of the news when it is revealed that the body is that of Lt. Loren Singer.

Called in to investigate, NCIS then launches an investigation into Singer's murder. Commander Rabb calls his half brother Sergei to inform him of Loren's murder. The episode is mainly dedicated to the investigation into Singer's murder, and finding a suspect. NCIS interviews several members of JAG, including Mac, Roberts, and Manetti.

After interrogating Rabb, Special Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs reads him his rights, and places him under arrest for the murder of Lt. Loren Singer with Special Agent Tony DiNozzo and Viv Blackadder aiding him. The first part of this two-part episode ends here, with the storyline later picking up in the second episode, "Meltdown".

On the side, NCIS is attempting to apprehend the terrorist responsible for the attack against the USS Cole and they interrogate another terrorist, Amad Bin Atwa, who helped finance the attack. Director Thomas Morrow wants Gibbs to take over the interrogation of Atwa so as to prevent another terrorist attack against a Navy ship.

Guest stars

Mark Harmon as Leroy Jethro Gibbs is the special agent in charge of the Major Case Response Team; Harmon was also credited as a special guest star.

Robyn Lively as Special Agent Vivian Blackadder is a former FBI agent who lost her brother in the USS Cole bombing, prompting her to join NCIS, where she became a member of Gibbs' team as she sought to avenge her brother's death. She, along with Don Dobbs, are the only two who appeared in the following episode of JAG, but did not appear in NCIS itself.

Michael Weatherly as Anthony "Tony" DiNozzo is Gibbs' second in command and also the senior special agent of the team.

Pauley Perrette as Abigail "Abby" Sciuto is NCIS's forensic scientist, who wears Goth-style clothing.

Thomas Anthony Jones (or Tom Jay Jones) as Special Agent Don Dobbs is an NCIS special agent who helps the team with the investigation into Singer's murder, but like Blackadder, Dobbs did not appear in the main NCIS TV series.

David McCallum as Dr. Donald "Ducky" Mallard is NCIS's medical examiner.

Note

The episode uses a different type face for its episode credits, signifying it as being a pilot for another series. Aside from featuring two characters who did not appear in later episodes of NCIS, the episode also uses a unique point-of-view perspective from the dead body as Dr. Mallard speaks to it. Although Mallard's conversations with the dead continued as a regular part of NCIS, this special effect remained unique to the pilot.

References

Ice Queen (JAG) Wikipedia

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