NCIS: Sydney’s Season 3 Premiere Introduced A New Character I Hope We See Again, But I’m More Concerned About Where Things Stand With Mackey And JD

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Warning: SPOILERS for the NCIS: Sydney Season 3 premiere are ahead!

I just finished watching the Season 3 premiere of *NCIS: Sydney*, and I’m so glad they’ve moved it to the same night as the original *NCIS* and *NCIS: Origins* – it’s much easier to keep up with now! The premiere, “Gut Instinct,” didn’t really explain the cliffhanger with Bluebird from last season, other than letting us know Mavournee Hazel’s character left the team about a month ago. But it sounds like we’re finally going to find out more about her backstory next week, which I’m really excited about!

The new season of *Sydney* started with the team looking into the mysterious return of two Navy pilots. They believed they’d only been missing for a few weeks, but it turned out they’d been gone for six years! The premiere also introduced a new character I’m excited to see more of. However, I’m mostly worried about the tension between Mackey and JD after the events of last season’s finale.

Welcome To NCIS: Sydney, Trigger

To start with some good news, JD hired Travis Riggs, a security expert and colleague, to improve the team’s headquarters security. This included things like installing better locks and checking the CCTV cameras. However, Evie, Rosie, and even Mackey weren’t very welcoming. Mackey sarcastically called him the “work experience guy” and was suspicious of his sealed personnel file and specialized skills, which she felt weren’t useful to the team.

I have to admit, Trigger really came through in “Gut Instinct.” At first, I wasn’t sure what his role would be, but he ended up being crucial. He figured out where the explosives that almost blew up the team’s ship came from – right back to the episode’s villain! Then, he pinpointed a specific frequency that was messing with one of the Navy pilots, causing him to completely lose it during a conversation with Mackey. And the biggest save? He helped Rosie carefully disarm a bomb *inside* that same pilot, preventing a potentially fatal infection. Seriously, Trigger was a lifesaver in this one.

At the conclusion of the “Gut Instinct” episode, Rosie suggested that Trigger is someone worth keeping around, and I’m hoping that hints at his return. While I don’t anticipate him becoming a main character on *NCIS: Sydney*, his role with the AFP’s Bomb Response Team would allow for occasional appearances. Perhaps he’ll even be the one to shake things up between Evie and DeShawn, as showrunner Morgan O’Neill mentioned to TVLine.

There’s Clearly Tension Between Mackey And JD

At the end of *NCIS: Sydney* Season 2, Mackey found out her friend Etienne was secretly involved with an arms dealer. He almost killed her, but JD saved her by shooting him. The Season 3 premiere showed Mackey getting a psychological evaluation to determine if she was fit to return to work after the traumatic events in Darwin. The psychiatrist told her it was important to confront her trauma, or it could cause bigger problems later on.

More on NCIS: Sydney

Olivia Swann, star of NCIS: Sydney, has expressed interest in a crossover episode with the original NCIS series, and fans are excited about the possibility.

After a challenging episode of NCIS: Sydney that tested DeShawn and Evie, the actors shared their thoughts on how these experiences will shape their characters going forward.

Despite later asking Mackey if her psychological evaluation revealed anything significant, she didn’t share any insights with JD. She also seemed a little uneasy when she mentioned hearing that JD had joined a dating app. Things became particularly tense when Mackey expressed her suspicion about the pilots, and JD pointed out that her intuition had failed her in the past. While JD acknowledged he was mistaken by the end of the episode, it feels like their relationship will remain strained for a while.

I truly believe these characters will be okay in the end, even if they don’t end up in romantic relationships, as Olivia Swann suggested. However, I expect things will feel a little different between them for the next few episodes of *NCIS: Sydney*. You can watch new episodes Tuesdays at 10 p.m. ET on CBS, and then stream them on Paramount+.

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2025-10-15 06:08