Lucy’s extended absence took away one of our favorite parts of the show.
NCIS: Hawai’i, an offshoot of the popular CBS procedural, follows Jane Tennant (Vanessa Lachey) and her dedicated team — Jesse Boone (Noah Mills), Kai Holman (Alex Tarrant), Lucy Tara (Yasmine Al-Bustami), and Ernie Malik (Jason Antoon) — as they solve varying crimes involving naval officers. Together, they are a force, but with the help of friends and coworkers like Kate Whistler (Tori Anderson), Commander Chase (Seana Kofoed), and Boom Boom (Sharif Atkins), they are unstoppable. As we gear up for another season, which is up in the air until studios begin to pay writers what they are worth and bring about an end to the strike, there is something that was, unfortunately, lacking in the second season (at least compared to the first season) and needs to be a priority: Lucy and Kate’s romance.
Lucy’s Absence Majorly Impacted ‘NCIS: Hawai’i’ Season 2 and Kate’s Story
In NCIS: Hawai’i Season 2, the powers that be were forced to write Lucy out for several episodes due to the actor having scheduling conflicts. In the show, Lucy took a position as Special Agent Afloat, which had her out at sea for several weeks, leaving behind her life in Hawai’i. (Despite her fear of water, considering the situation was outside the writers’ control, we’ll give them credit for pulling together a meaningful temporary exit for Lucy.) Lucy’s absence was felt on every level, and when she did return, it didn’t feel like there was enough of a spotlight on the character considering how long she had been gone. There was one episode that split focus between Hawai’i and Lucy’s new life, where Lucy solved a case on board the ship where she was stationed, and then her return came about unexpectedly. Afterward, she quickly got back in step with everyone. After being gone for eight episodes, it didn’t feel like enough time was spent with the character to “make up” for her time away, though it’s possible this was due to continuing scheduling conflicts. While colleague Jesse’s primary focus is his role on the team, Lucy’s has been fairly split between her job and her love life — neither of which felt fully fulfilling upon her return. There didn’t feel to be enough exploration of how Lucy’s absence really impacted those she left behind, nor how being gone for so long and confronting her worst fear changed Lucy herself. There was a little bit of exploration here, sure, but not nearly enough.
Meanwhile, Kate remained in touch with the team and helped them out on several occasions, allowing her to become even more entrenched in this chosen family than she was before. However, her role and story suffered somewhat because of Lucy’s diminished presence. Her primary focus is (more often than not) her relationship with Lucy, and this was just suddenly cut out of the show for nearly a third of the season. So, it simply didn’t feel the same with Kate without Lucy’s presence. Kate didn’t have much of a personal story with Lucy out of the picture, even though it was nice to see her continue to bond with the team and prove her connection with them is not solely due to her relationship with Lucy. It further increased her relevance, on her own, to the show, ultimately building Jane’s unwavering trust in her when Jane needed help in the two-part finale of Season 2. Nonetheless, until Lucy returned to our screens, the series lost some of its charm, especially as Kate and Lucy’s romance is the only romance we’re seeing.
‘NCIS: Hawai’i’ Needs More of Lucy and Kate Altogether
Without Lucy and Kate’s romance, and Lucy’s presence in general, there was a major void in the show that couldn’t be filled, proving how important these characters and their relationship are. Even before her absence, these two were not getting enough time on-screen together. NCIS: Hawai’i Season 3 needs to focus more on expanding these characters — romantically and otherwise. Both are beloved, fan-favorite characters that the general audience desperately wants to see more of. Both have interesting and rather unexplored backstories, only getting a few mentions here and there over two seasons about what their lives were like. After a season majorly lacking, we need to amp up their roles.
As the series points out early on, Lucy’s family life isn’t exactly what you’d expected. It would be nice to dig into her past, to learn more about her family and how their influence shaped her life and led to her coming to Hawai’i. Or, to delve into Lucy’s skills and give her a work-related story that showcases the character, as we have with Jane on several occasions. The same could be said for Kate. Though she’s not technically a part of the NCIS team, she is their FBI liaison and a series regular. We haven’t seen too much of Kate outside of her relationship with Lucy, which is an enormous missed opportunity. Anderson is an incredibly talented actor, and the small tastes of what Kate is capable of have been excellent to watch. She is a very capable, skilled agent, one who the team relies on constantly to help them out on some level. And, as with Lucy, we know little about Kate’s family and what her current relationship is with them, which is important and needs to be fleshed out as soon as possible. It’s not enough to tell us; we need to see it and see more of these characters’ lives.
While NCIS: Hawai’i Season 2 was still incredible and heartening to watch, it was quite obvious how the series suffered without Lucy. It wasn’t their fault, which we can take heart in, but it was disappointing to see how little was done to put Lucy and Kate in the spotlight following her return to the island. The characters deserve more time to shine jointly and on their own, and it’s vital this is done for the upcoming season. As one of the fairly rare LGBTQ+ romances on broadcast television (particularly with two main characters), in a time when LGBTQ+ rights are being stripped away (or many are fighting to do so), Lucy and Kate provide something unique to the television landscape and the fans, the importance of which cannot be understated. And, we just love them.
