NCIS: New Orleans: Season 1

**Update** in an earlier review below I thought I wasn't going to like this but this show is growing on me. As the relationships between the characters build and the storylines get more complex and they really start digging deeper into the mystery and darkness of New Orleans and all the cultures and blends of different people, it has become quite compelling. This is what I was hoping for. I'm about four discs in now and I'm really starting to like it. If you're on the fence about this purchase, give it a chance. Once you get about three to four discs in you'll see why it's gotten some high ratings. Pretty good show. Keeps getting better as I go. *Earlier review: *This has been okay so far and maybe since I'm only two discs in, I might fall in love with this a little more as it progresses - especially if I get to see the chemistry between the characters comtinue to develop a little more the way it did with LL Cool J/Chris O'Donnell and Daniela Ruah/Eric Christian Olsen in NCIS Los Angeles. With LL Cool J's and Chris O'Donnell's characters in particular, I didn't really feel that chemistry start to flow completely until near the end of the first season. Obviously, I'm still a major fan of NCIS Los Angeles. But by no means do I expect or want NCIS New Orleans to be a cookie cutter version of the other shows in the NCIS family. I was enthralled to see that it was set in New Orleans and I was expecting something really fresh and original and I'm not saying that it isn't. I guess I just had a different expectation. With NCIS Los Angeles, the stories usually appeal to the mystery/sleuth fanatic in me plus the episodes are so action-packed and that is the icing on the cake. In NCIS New Orleans, so far I'm not seeing as much action as I'm used to and the mystery element is not as deep/ captivating as what I had hoped for. In NCIS Los Angeles there are also compelling sub storylines that keep you wanting to see what happens in the characters lives and a lot of the stories revolve around some terrorist mastermind and the agents are working to save either Los Angeles or the entire country in some cases from a terrorist threat before time is up. It's an edge of the seat type of show. Deep mystery plus high drama plus High action equals a great show! I don't expect the storylines to be the same but I expected all those elements to be there in spades. That's what I have come to expect from the NCIS family of shows. With NCIS New Orleans so far I'm not on the edge of my seat waiting to see what happens next. I think the characters are overall pretty good, and the storylines are well-written but usually in every episode so far, the storyline revolves around a murdered sailor or NCIS official who is found at some high degree of decomposition or with severe damage to the body and of course you get to see the body being autopsied at the coroner's office fileted open and looking horrendous over and over. Not a bad thing, because I know they're going for a realism. I just don't want to see it in every episode and I don't want to see 10 minutes of dialogue being held over a badly decayed body that is split open. I care more about the action and the brilliant detective/ mystery solving work. Also, so far I haven't found the subplots as compelling as I wanted to. And maybe that's because they're just trying to show you how the relationships are building between the main characters right now. I do think that with this show being filmed in New Orleans, they could do a whole lot more with that! New Orleans has been to Hell and back and they have made some references to that (Katrina) but they haven't carried it out as far as I would like to see it carried out. Plus, New Orleans has a little bit of darkness about it that feels similar to places like Savannah Georgia. There's a little bit of an undertone of the occult. There are lots of alternative lifestyles as well. It has this very "World unto itself" vibe about it.Plus there are the Creole and Cajun cultures and various other subcultures of voodoo and drag and sex industry. New Orleans is so diverse because of all the melding of cultures. The characters feel like they're riding above all this. They don't feel part of it to me. They try to make the King character appear to be very much a part of it but something about him still feels a little out of place. And when they do introduce characters that are supposed to be regional or local people, they play quite menial roles or they are already dead and on the coroner's slab. For instance , a local prostitute with a fairly key role was only on the screen maybe 5 minutes. A dead sailor that King had mentored was only seen dead and on the slab. They didn't do any backstory on him so that you could hear his dialect or see what he was like when he was being mentored by King. I'm just not seeing as much diversity as I would like to see. Besides a couple of references to the great food and the music, I'm not seeing them take full advantage of being set in New Orleans. Like I said I'm only two discs in so that may change.. I read some of the other reviews about the character Chris LaSalle's southern accent. I don't find that bothersome because I am from the south and I like his accent. There's something about regional southern swag that a lot of people from other regions don't get. Sometimes people have difficulty appreciating southern swag. I find that most people from other locales would readily accept and appreciate, for instance, a heavy New York or Boston accent and a lot of the regional colloquialisms and "ways of being" that define people from those areas , but people seem far less accepting of Southerners. They think that a person with a heavy southern accent sounds ignorant or stupid but it's really just regional dialect and has nothing to do with intelligence. Some people haven't embraced any concept of the new South yet so they see southerners with heavy accents as "cousin marrying", hard living, and ignorant louts. Usually they are portrayed as racist if they're white and victims if they're black. And yes, there still is some of that, but it's not as prevalent as it is portrayed in the media. Lucas Black really is from Alabama so a lot of what he is portraying is real. I don't know a whole lot about this actor and I suspect that his own accent probably isn't quite this thick, but I'll bet he knows and has grown up around people who sound just like that. I sure have! I personally like his southern, low-key brand of swag that he is bringing to the character of Christopher LaSalle. Loving CCH Pounder in her role. Also starting to see Scott Bakula In a different light. Never really thought about him much but he's pretty good in this.

I did not watch this show when it aired. I had seen a couple of episodes and liked what I saw. I decided to see how the series started. I was not disappointed!!

When CBS announced that “NCIS: New Orleans" would become a part of its new line-up of shows in September 2014, I was very pleased. After all, another addition to the NCIS franchise could only be a GOOD thing…"NCIS: New Orleans" is the third member of a highly successful franchise of police procedural crime dramas. ("NCIS" and "NCIS: Los Angeles" are the other two.) "NCIS: New Orleans" began as a two-episode "backdoor pilot," entitled “Crescent City Parts I and II,” during the eleventh season of “NCIS.”Like its parent show, "NCIS: New Orleans" is inspired by the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS), an actual civilian-run law enforcement agency of the U.S. Navy. This show, however, is set in the NCIS New Orleans field office, and follows the investigations of Special Agents “Dwayne Pride” (Scott Bakula), “Christopher LaSalle” (Lucas Black), and “Meredith ‘Merri’ Brody (Zoe McLellan), as well as Jefferson Parish Medical Examiner “Loretta Wade” (CCH Pounder), and forensics expert “Sebastian Lund” (Rob Kerkovich). Two other recurring cast members – Darryl “Chill” Mitchell and Shalita Grant – joined the show later in the season.From the very first episode of Season 1, it’s evident that “NCIS: New Orleans” is every bit as good as the show from which it was spun off. It tackles the same kinds of cases – Navy-related crimes – committed in New Orleans and its surrounding communities. It tackles tough subjects like a bio-terrorism attacks, water boarding, prisoner escapes, political corruption, and assassinations. It combines humor, drama, and suspense in every episode. And it makes each and every central character interesting, likeable, flawed, heroic, and easy to empathize with.Not surprisingly, I really enjoy watching “NCIS: New Orleans” Season 1. I honestly can’t find a bad episode anywhere amongst the 23 episodes of this show’s inaugural season. I think this bodes very well indeed for the show’s long-term success.“NCIS: New Orleans” Season 1 earns my highest recommendation.

Good series, decided to give it a try after watching original NCIS and NCIS Los Angeles, it's not quite as strong but hopefully it'll be there by season 2. But definitely worth a watch.

As the Producers stated repeatedly - the big star in this series is New Orleans itself! I have been there and am absolutely tickled how well this has been executed! GREAT ATHMOSPHERE! Interesting characters. Can hardly wait for Season 2.

Fantastic programme, watched on TV and thoroughly enjoyed. This is another NCIS but in New Orleans, get to see is it. Down side a bit gruesome, nasty corpses rotting and autopsies. Don't watch while eating,

NCIS is now cool. The cast is balanced, the location very good and the music - New Orleans, the home of jazz - what more could you ask for.This combination makes for a superb programme.

Bought this and it came in sealed package however set of dvd's appear faulty as will not play. Have to try at least 4 or five times. Do not have this problem with any of my other dvd's so can only assume this set is faulty. Not pleased at all