NCIS’ Latest Case Has Me Wondering If Something’s Brewing Between Torres And Knight, But I Also Need To Talk About That Abby Reference

Warning: SPOILERS for the NCIS episode “The Sound and the Fury” are ahead!

NCIS finished its Carla Marino storyline last week, so Season 23 has reentered its traditional procedural groove. However, that doesn’t mean the episode that just finished airing on the 2025 TV schedule was just your run-of-the-mill case of the week. “The Sound and the Fury” brought back NCIS Special Agent Dale Sayer for a spooky night case that ended with me wondering if there’s something deeper brewing between Nick Torres and Jessica Knight. On top of that, there was a fun throwback to the still-beloved Abby Sciuto that’s worth talking about.

There’s No Romantic Interest Between Torres And Knight… Right?

“The Sound and the Fury” saw Torres, Knight, Alden Parker and Timothy McGee’s latest murder investigation overlapping with Dale Sawyer’s for the night shift. Both cases involved a disguised woman who was seducing young naval men into committing infidelity, then blackmailed them by threatening to tell their wives if they didn’t pay up. Oh, and the murder victim, Petty Officer 3rd Class Steven Keogh, had his brain liquified through his ears and nose.

After Director Vance selected Sawyer to take lead on this team-up since his bribery case was underway first, he, Torres and Knight identified the woman in question, Olga Bergamot, and tracked her down. They arrived just as one of her partners-in-crime just as he was dying in the same manner as Keogh. Shortly thereafter, Olga started suffering similar effects and fell into a coma, and Nick started feeling strangely too, to the point that while Sawyer and Knight were on a stakeout, he attacked them in a state of temporary, rage-fueled insanity.

Long story short, the deaths, coma and Nick’s erratic behavior all came from the use of a long-range acoustic device (LRAD) at the hands of the proprietor of a bar that Keogh visited. This man blackmailed Keogh into stealing the LRAD and was going to sell it some sketchy party in Russia. As per usual, the bad guy was captured and his plan was foiled, with Torres getting back to his old self under Jimmy Palmer’s dutiful care.

As all this was going down, Torres and Knight shared how much they care about each other through their separate conversations with Swayer and Jimmy. Torres admitted he was feeling a little jealous seeing Knight work with Swayer, though only in the sense that she’s his close partner, and Knight mentioned that she cares about Torres “more than he knows.” At the end of “The Sound and he Fury,” these two reaffirmed how they won’t let anything get in the way of their connection.

And yet, I can’t help but think there’s more to this that will be explored. Wilmer Valderrama said earlier this month that a potential romance between Torres and Knight is “a little complicated, a little messy,” but he didn’t outright rule it out. While these two obviously don’t have romantic feelings right now, now I feel like it’s at least a possibility. After all, it didn’t work between Torres and Emily Wickersham’s Ellie Bishop, and as much as I want her to return, he also has something special with Knight.

One Of Abby Sciuto’s Essentials Made A Cameo

Anyone who’s been watching NCIS for a long time or gone back to stream the show from the start with their Paramount+ subscription will remember Pauley Perrette’s Abby Sciuto as one of the OGs, debuting in the backdoor pilot that aired on JAG. It’s been seven years since Perrette exited the series, but NCIS has found ways to reference Abby in the years since, like when she sent a distinctive black wreath to honor the then-recently-passed Ducky Mallard.

During “The Sound and the Fury,” Dale Swayer brought out some bottles of Caf-Pow, saying he found a case of them in the forensics lab a few years back. Caf-Pow was, of course, Abby’s beverage of choice, frequently guzzling the energy drink as she was working. Nick Torres even said to Jessica Knight later on that those bottles were Abby’s, although it’s unclear if Knight ever crossed paths with Abby.

Given that Pauley Perette retired from acting, and taking into account the less-than-ideal circumstances that led to her leaving NCIS, the chances of seeing Abby Sciuto return to the show are slim to none. So it’s nice when NCIS find ways to nod at her and remind us an era long since passed on this popular procedural. When it comes to this era, you can watch new episodes live Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET on CBS.