paikia

I really like NCIS, it's usually fun to watch, even with the occasional plot-holes and shallow science. This episode is the worst out of the first 8 seasons, in my opinion. You don't have to know much about computers to realize just how pathetic some of the stuff really is.

The description of the term "Kill Screen", for one, feels like a bad joke, even worse than having Abby and McGee both hack something using the same keyboard on one of the early episodes of the series. "A player getting such a high score, that the game can't handle it and crashes"? C'mon! That could've been an issue during the 1970's, and even then I doubt anyone would've taken it seriously.

Then, the funny idea that shooting a monitor should have any impact on the computer itself. Even my grandmother knows that the only thing the monitor does is display images and videos, while what actually does the "computing" is a totally different part of the computer.

Those issues, plus the entire array of stupid computer and gaming clichés all along the episode, show that none of the people involved in the writing process of the episode had a clue about computers. That's just bad, sloppy writing, and it's a shame, because this show has so much talent. How hard is it for a show of that magnitude to have someone who knows computers go over the script and suggest corrections?

The episode starts pretty dramatically, as it turns out the murder victim is someone all the main characters know and respect. While the obvious drama does get its place during the episode, there's still plenty of room left for the investigation itself, which follows a rather winding road and quite a few surprises, including a connection to an old NCIS case, which had been considered mostly solved up until now.

In light of some other reviewers bringing up claims as if this episode is offensive or stereotypical in nature, I must point out that while being a liberal, open-minded person, I don't share that view at all. As far as I was concerned, there was no shaming or discriminating of any kind - just a good, interesting plot unfolding.

Many shows tend to try and spice themselves up by trying all sorts of unique approaches, such as musical episodes. I can recall at least one musical episode of Xena: The Warrior Princess, and while I can't recall the specifics, I can vaguely remember other sci-fi / fantasy shows trying it as well.

Like the title says, describing myself as someone who's generally not a fan of musicals would be a major understatement. Surprisingly enough, I really enjoyed Fugue. I usually find musicals extremely dull and boring, as if the singing was supposed to be enough to carry the entire show on its shoulders. Obviously, not the case here. Fugue, just like any typical episode of Sanctuary, comes with an entire arsenal of tools meant to tell its story, with the singing being just one of them. We get the usual doses of drama, sci-fi and horror, delivered by great dialog, awesome visual effects, and yes - this time also by singing.

I really don't get the extreme negative reviews this episode received. They kind of made me wonder if those reviewers really bothered watching the entire episode, or perhaps just used the singing as an excuse to bash a series they didn't like to begin with. Even if you don't like the singing, this episode has plenty of other things to offer, and I consider it one of the better episodes of the series.