Release calendarTop 250 moviesMost popular moviesBrowse movies by genreTop box officeShowtimes & ticketsMovie newsIndia movie spotlight
    What's on TV & streamingTop 250 TV showsMost popular TV showsBrowse TV shows by genreTV news
    What to watchLatest trailersIMDb OriginalsIMDb PicksIMDb SpotlightFamily entertainment guideIMDb Podcasts
    OscarsEmmysToronto Int'l Film FestivalIMDb TIFF Portrait StudioHispanic Heritage MonthSTARmeter AwardsAwards CentralFestival CentralAll events
    Born todayMost popular celebsCelebrity news
    Help centerContributor zonePolls
For industry professionals
  • Language
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
Watchlist
Sign in
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
Use app
Back
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
  • FAQ
IMDbPro
Wilmer Valderrama, Rocky Carroll, Gary Cole, Katrina Law, Sean Murray, Brian Dietzen, and Diona Reasonover in NCIS (2003)

Goofs

NCIS

Edit

Continuity

After showing a very large back tattoo of a cross while she's changing clothes in front of McGee, various outfits of Abby's have in succeeding instances revealed her to not have said tattoo.
Ducky was born and raised in Scotland and has a distinct Scottish accent, however "Young Ducky" is extremely English.
Between 2003 and 2005, "NCIS" and JAG (1995) had different Secretaries of the Navy, even though the two shows exist within the same universe.

Factual errors

When analyzing shell casings, there's more than one reference about the fact that it "could be either a Glock or a Beretta". The difference would be readily apparent to an experienced observer. Glock: the firing pin leaves on the primer a distinctive rectangular mark plus, in many cases, the extraction leaves a mark near the mouth of the case. Beretta: they leave just a small mark on the primer left by the percussion pin. There's no way you can mistake a Glock and a Beretta, given a spent casing fired from either pistol.
When the series began, Gibbs was 53 years old. As of 2018, Gibbs is at least 8 years beyond NCIS field agent mandatory retirement age of 57.
Gibbs's team routinely photographs the crime scene before allowing evidence to be touched or moved. Many times, however, a piece of evidence is picked up and handled before being photographed.
While often the science and technology portrayed in this series (as well as the CSI series, which is also shown on CBS) is accurate or mirrors sound scientific principle, there have been times when methods have led to results simply not possible in the real world.
When ever a handgun is fired, the muzzle remains level and steady. Even in the hands of the most experienced shooter, there is recoil and slight muzzle rise, or "bounce", especially when firing multiple shots in quick succession. This never happens to the agents.

Revealing mistakes

Throughout the series, it is obvious the elevator (lift) at the NCIS offices only has one set of doors. In reality, passenger elevators have doors on both the elevator and the elevator shaft, and both would be visible when the doors open and close.

Miscellaneous

The computers for the characters are always left on and unlocked, showing various screens of data. No company and certainly no law enforcement agency would allow people to walk away with their computers unlocked.
In (Kill Ari (Part II) (2005)) the license plate on Ari's SUV is shown as a Virginia tag# 724 TJA, but in (Model Behavior (2005)), the same tag is shown on the medical examiner's truck. Additionally, since the ME truck is an official federal government vehicle, it would have US Government, not state, tags.

Anachronisms

In the episode "Hiatus Part 2" it is revealed that Gibbs joined NIS (changed the same year to NCIS) in 1992 following the death of his wife and daughter. However, in the JAG episode "Ice Queen" in 2003 he tells Lt.Cmdr. Rabb that he has been an agent for 19 years, which would mean he would have joined NIS in 1984.

Errors in geography

When the scene is towards the team's office windows, a view of the Display Ship Barry, The Anacostia River, and Anacostia can all be seen, and is correct. However at the top of the view is the Rotunda of the US Capitol Building, which is actually north of the Navy Yard and not south like all the other objects seen through the window.

Plot holes

One team of investigators secures a crime scene. Another team interviews suspects and witnesses. Another team, usually a local medical examiner's office, performs autopsies. Another team, often under contract with an agency, analyzes evidence. In the NCIS universe, all of those functions are conveniently handled by 8-10 people in almost every case.

Character error

Numerous times, autopsies are conducted by Ducky, who is wearing the same clothes he wore in the field. Not only does this promote cross-contamination, but it is also highly unsanitary as well as an OSHA violation.
Many times throughout the series, forensic weapons specialists, assassins, and a retired Marine Gunnery Sergeant refer to a "suppressor" as a "silencer". While the audience of the show may know it as such, the characters should not.
Abby tells people that whenever she finds something important to the case they are working on, Gibbs knows and just shows up in her lab. However, there are multiple times throughout her run on the show that she calls Gibbs and tells him she found something.

Contribute to this page

Suggest an edit or add missing content
  • Learn more about contributing
Edit pageAdd episode

More from this title

More to explore

Recently viewed

Please enable browser cookies to use this feature. Learn more.
Get the IMDb App
Sign in for more accessSign in for more access
Follow IMDb on social
Get the IMDb App
For Android and iOS
Get the IMDb App
  • Help
  • Site Index
  • IMDbPro
  • Box Office Mojo
  • License IMDb Data
  • Press Room
  • Advertising
  • Jobs
  • Conditions of Use
  • Privacy Policy
  • Your Ads Privacy Choices
IMDb, an Amazon company

© 1990-2025 by IMDb.com, Inc.