Lost at Sea (NCIS)

Did You Know?

• According to writer Christopher J. Waild, the story had been "kicking around" for some time.
• Waild originally wanted to bring back CGIS Special Agent Borin for the episode, but production schedules did not work out and the episode was postponed.

Plot

NCIS investigates a helicopter crash after the missing crew washes ashore, but the pilot remains missing. Meanwhile, Ziva becomes annoyed when DiNozzo and McGee boast about meeting a group of girls on a night out and planning a next meeting. Frustrated, Ziva dares them to ask out the first woman they see, which turns out to be CGIS agent Borin, who is also investigating the crash. After interviewing the two conscious crew members, the team finds no information pointing to the crash location or the pilot.

Ducky notes that aside from severe dehydration and exposure, the crew lacks injuries typical of a helicopter crash. While searching the beach for wreckage, DiNozzo and McGee find the pilot's corpse and discover he was shot in the head. When confronted, the crew claims the pilot was mentally unstable and attempted suicide after learning his son was terminally ill. Gibbs remains skeptical after hearing differing accounts from the pilot's wife and commanding officer.

When the fourth crew member regains consciousness, he admits the pilot did not try to commit suicide. The team interrogates the crew again, and they confess they planned to sell the helicopter with their commanding officer, who backed out at the last minute. They told the pilot, thinking he would join for money for his son; the pilot initially agreed but intended to have them arrested, only to be shot and killed by the buyer. The crewmen were forced into a life raft and left adrift.

Using their testimony, the team tracks down and arrests the buyer and recovers the helicopter. Ziva later learns that DiNozzo and McGee's "wild night" was actually an online games marathon with a sorority-sister team. She reveals she told Borin about the bet, a ploy to teach them a lesson for not inviting her to their recreational activities.

Reception

When it aired on October 23, 2012, "Lost at Sea" pulled in 17.78 million live viewers. It earned a 10.9/17 share among all households and a 3.2/9 share in the 18-49 demographic. That night, the episode easily won the time slot for both NCIS and CBS, while its spin-off NCIS: Los Angeles came in second with 16.53 million viewers. Compared to the prior week's episode "Phoenix," this one saw a drop in both total audience and younger adult viewers. TV Fanatic's Steve Marsi rated it 4.5 out of 5, praising the many twists in the case. He noted that the scrap dealer blended so well into Borin's antics with Tony and Tim that his link to the crime was easy to overlook—until the reveal that the officers were selling the machine. He called it a very enjoyable episode, adding that while tastes vary, NCIS clearly still has plenty of gas in Season 10.