The return of NCIS: Sydney last week for its second season was an action-packed episode. Things picked up right where the Season 1 finale left off with the phone ringing in Colonel Rankin’s (Lewis Fitz-Gerald) pocket after the escape of assassin Ana Niemus (Georgina Haig) with a little help from JD (Todd Lasance), who was trying to get back his kidnapped son.
Ana’s “escape” led to both Mackey (Olivia Swann) and JD losing their command, which was bad for them, but good for viewers because we got to go home with both and learn a little about their personal lives.
“I think that shows where they both are in that moment, which I like,” Swann told Parade. “I like that shift of their relationship in that episode because we see a bit more vulnerability and a bit more grounding from both of them because of what they’re currently facing. And it paves the way for the rest of the season and the dynamic that we see with them.”
We already knew about JD’s wife and son from the Season 1 finale. So, while that was nice, there wasn’t really a surprise. But what we learned about Mackey was a major revelation that we didn’t see coming.
First, she has a gorgeous apartment with a fabulous view of Sydney Harbor that must cost a fortune. But it turns out she doesn’t have to pay for it. NCIS pays for it, so Mackey has a “sweet deal,” as Swann says.
But the big surprise was that Mackey is mother to a 17-year-old son who is in high school, which she calls the “best mistake” she ever made. He lives back in the U.S. and is being raised by her mother.
“I love the reveal of it in that way in Episode 1, because it just feels so simple and so right for that moment,” Swann says. “[She and JD are] both at the end of the road, they think. And so what else is left but to let it be known and let JD into this part of her life? But I think it also does show the courage and the honor that Mackey carries with this job.”
