What happened to Tony DiNozzo in NCIS Season 2, Episode 22, “SWAK”?

This episode of NCIS from Season 2 is a fan favorite. This season is when the show hit its groove. Caitlin “Kate” Todd, played by Sasha Alexander, was still part of the team at this point. And her flirty banter with “Very Special Agent” Tony DiNozzo, played by Michael Weatherly, was increasing. And in Episode 22 of Season 2, the pair’s feelings for each other were finally revealed.

Mark Harmon’s character, Leroy Jethro Gibbs, had to split his focus between his agents’ well-being and bringing a culprit to justice. In typical Gibbs fashion, he was impatient and stubborn. His behavior in this episode was motivated by his concern for his team.

Absolutely no one on the team anticipated the danger that was lurking in their squad room. Or that in one moment, Gibbs, Tony, Kate, and Timothy McGee, played by Sean Murray, would be in a life-threatening situation.

What mistake did Tony DiNozzo make in NCIS Season 2, Episode 22, “SWAK”?

In the NCIS episode “SWAK,” Tony decided to open an envelope with a lipstick print on it. But when a white powder was released into the air, the building was evacuated. Following bioterrorism guidelines, Kate, Gibbs, Tony, and McGee showered.

Both Kate and Tony were sent to Bethesda Naval Hospital where they were treated in an isolation room where the air flows in, but can’t flow out. Kate insisted that she was sneezing before the incident, but no one was taking any chances.

Both Gibbs and McGee tested negative. But David McCallum’s character, Dr. Mallard, revealed that the note in the “SWAK” letter contains a modified version of Y. pestis. Not just your ordinary plague. The letter writer demanded that NCIS solve a case in a certain file. It was a rape case in which a young woman was found tied to a bed, naked. If the perpetrators were identified within 32 hours,  there was an antidote to the contagion.

Meanwhile, at the hospital, Kate tested negative. Sadly, Tony didn’t have the same luck. He tested positive. Kate pretended that she was also positive, and persuaded the doctor and nurse to play along. She knew that Tony was scared.

Gibbs identified the mother of the victim as the letter-writer. She ran a big pharmaceutical company. Both motive and means were obvious. She admitted to sending the sinister letter and stealing the plague.

Hanna Lowell wasn’t worried about serving any prison time. She had a brain tumor, which had radically altered her behavior. And she was dying. Sadly, her daughter later confessed that she wasn’t raped. She made up the story.

Agent Gibbs found out that the plague would stop replicating within 32 hours of exposure. Great news for Tony DiNozzo!

At the hospital, DiNozzo’s condition was worsening. The doctor insisted that Kate leave the room because it was too dangerous for her to stay. Then Gibbs burst into the isolation unit. He told Tony that he wasn’t going to die. Well, it was more of an order.

Tony was still ill, and Kate opted to sleep in the isolation room in a nearby bed. And, as always, he commented on the set-up reminding him of the film, Alien. Kate chuckled as they settled down to sleep.

NCIS  is available to stream on Paramount+.