NCIS: LA Season 4 DVD Set Review

So I’m a big fan of NCIS: LA, I’ve been watching this show since the very beginning. So when I was given the opportunity to review the season 4 DVD set with the extra special features, I was super excited! I love watching these things because it’s always fun to see what goes on behind the scenes. And so without further ado, here’s my review of the NCIS: LA season 4 DVD set.

The DVD extras which include 2 episodes with commentary by Eric Christian Olsen/Daniela Ruah and Renee Felice Smith/Barrett Foa were far more entertaining than I think informative.  And I mean that in the best possible way.  I actually laughed out loud a lot during the commentating with Renee Felice Smith and Barrett Foa. These two singing the theme music was absolutely priceless!   There was also a feature they did on the set design for the 2-part episode RED.  The set for this episode was basically a couple of truck containers that were transformed into a mobile NCIS unit. That was rather amazing to watch.  The set designers were so unbelievably detailed in putting this mobile unit together – they made it look like the set of a Transformers movie.  Another fun special feature was Chris at the Helm and was a look inside the episode that Chris O’Donnell (Callen) directed.  As a long time fan of Chris O’Donnell’s, I found this feature the most enjoyable to watch.  I remember him way back in the day in movies like The Three Musketeers and Scent of A Woman, and now here he is calling the shots.  Crazy!  Also there was a look back at season 4 with the cast, producers, and the writers.  It was great watching all of them talking about the different reasons they enjoyed working on this last season and what we can look forward to in season 5.

And speaking of season 4………I have to say the writers did a fabulous job this past season.  I think it’s my favorite so far.  We got to see some partner shake ups and new sides to our favorite characters.  One of my favorite moments came when Nell and Eric – my two favorite computer geeks – got to leave the confines of their comfortable computer room for a crime scene to do some forensic work.  It’s a great scene and kind of sets things up for a later Christmas episode.  This was really the season of character building and relationships.  We’re so used to seeing Sam and Callen together, and then Kensi and Deeks, and of course Nell and Eric.  But the writers changed things up a bit this year pairing up Kensi with AD Granger, and Sam with Deeks.  I actually thought this was a great way to liven things up in the series.  We met a different NCIS team (Red) that introduced yet a new kind of dynamic.  The team was headed up by a woman named Paris (played by the awesome Kim Raver) who seemed to have some chemistry with the lone wolf, Callen, himself.  And we also saw a different side to Sam this year when introduced to his wife, Michelle (Aunjanue Ellis) a former CIA agent.

Aunjanue Ellis as Michelle

More than just having a little more insight into the team and these characters, there really were some great stories.  There was a storyline arc that really did start at the end of season 3, continued into the premier of season 4, and then circled around again to the finale.  I think the writers this season went deeper and a little more intense than they have in past seasons.  I love how these writers can keep a great balance of the humor we’ve come to expect between Kensi and Deeks, and Sam and Callen with the seriousness of the cases they work each episode.

I’m so excited to have this DVD set with all its features, but mostly because it was such a great season I’d love to go back and watch it all again.  I’m still reeling from the finale and can’t wait for season 5!

NCIS: LA: The Complete Fourth Season is on sale now.