We’ve finally learned the plotline for the NCIS season 23 premiere, and it looks like Parker is going to be taking the team on a dangerous mission for revenge!
NCIS fans are used to the show providing some stunning cliffhangers for their season finales. That still wasn’t enough to prepare them for how NCIS season 22 ended. This cliffhanger is certainly going to lead us into the NCIS season 23 premiere.
Breaking down the NCIS season 22 finale
The finale had the team discovering that LaRoche wasn’t some traitor as McGee had been suspecting. Instead, he was on a deep undercover job for the Department of Justice to infiltrate the Nexus criminal group. LaRoche even apologized to McGee for taking his promotion as part of the assignment before resigning.
The team was ordered to take on Nexus with the unlikely aid of Kansas City mob boss Carla Marino (Rebecca De Mornay), a move Parker was totally against. He had to put that aside when the investigation indicated Nexus was in possession of nuclear material.
It turned out Carla was the real boss of Nexus and was planning to blow up some of her rivals. She also blamed Parker for the death of her son years before, leaving him on a road as the team stopped the bombing.
Parker soon discovered that Carla wanted him to live and feel her pain. The final scene had Parker coming home only to discover his father, Roman, was murdered, and the lipstick on a glass indicated it was by Carla.
That was a stunning ending and no wonder NCIS season 23 kicks off from it!
Will Parker go too far in his revenge on NCIS?
CBS released a synopsis for their various fall 2025 TV show premieres. NCIS Season 23 opens with “Prodigal Son (Part 1)” indicating a two-part tale where Parker wants revenge on Carla and brings the team along.
“Prodigal Son (Part 1)” – Reeling from his father’s murder, Parker goes to extreme lengths to hunt down the woman he holds responsible, mob boss Carla Marino, jeopardizing not only his own future but the team’s; Nancy Travis guest-stars as Parker’s sister, Navy Vice Admiral Harriet Parker.”
Obviously, the team is sympathetic to Parker and wants to help him find justice. Yet they have to be aware that turning this into a murderous vendetta is not going to help Parker either. It’s likely Parker will be breaking a few laws to get at Carla and it wouldn’t be surprising if Vance orders him off the case and Parker ignores him.
That puts the team in a quandary as they’ll feel loyal to Parker while also knowing backing him up on an unauthorized mission could backfire on them. They’ll also debate if they can turn a blind eye in case Parker’s ultimate goal is to kill Carla in cold blood.
Seeing his sister in the storyline will be interesting, as we don’t know too much about Parker’s life outside the job. While NCIS season 22 touched on the mysterious “Lily," who appeared to be a young girl who witnessed the death of Parker’s mother, Harriet is the first member of the family besides Roman we’ve met.
Their dynamic will be interesting to watch and see if they’re close or distant and if Harriet blames Parker for their dad’s death. It’s also a question if she tries to rein Parker in or joins him in his quest for justice.
However it goes, NCIS Season 23 promises to kick off in a wild way as Parker may cross the line in his quest to avenge his dad and the rest of the team has to choose sides.
NCIS Season 23 premieres on Tuesday, Oct. 14 at 8/7c on CBS.
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