The Major NCIS Change That's Causing A Backlash On Instagram

Fans of "NCIS" think the powers-that-be have committed a major crime. The long-running CBS police-military procedural series, which started as a spinoff of "JAG" in 2003 and focuses on the work of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, has been popular enough to spawn multiple spinoff series, which in turn has spawned a slew of passionate fans. Twenty years in, the franchise has produced nearly 1,000 episodes of "NCIS," "NCIS: Los Angeles," "NCIS: New Orleans," and "NCIS: Hawai'i." 

While they're all related, each series in the franchise has its own fan base. Viewers who tune in for Mark Harmon as NCIS Supervisory Special Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs in the OG "NCIS" don't necessarily love Vanessa Lachey's Special Agent Jane Tennant in the Hawaii-based spinoff.  And some fans who prefer LL Cool J in the  L.A. setting might not be as interested in the action New Orleans has to offer.

Perhaps that's why there's been such outrage over the network's decision to consolidate all of the franchise's social media accounts into one page called "NCISverse." The move to obliterate the spinoffs' individual pages was announced via an Instagram post that featured throwback clips from all four of the series and read: "It's NCIS — open up. Welcome to the new home of all things #NCISverse. Stay a while. You'll like it here." Hashtags included: #NCIS, #NCISHawaii, #NCISLA, and #NCISNOLA.

Cue up the collective sigh from "NCIS" diehards.

"NCIS" has certainly earned its place in U.S. television history. For its 21st season in 2023, it will stand as the third-longest-running primetime drama of all time. But it appears that many fans like their "NCIS" kept separate. 

After the official Instagram accounts for "NCIS: Los Angeles," " New Orleans," and "Hawai'i" disappeared without a trace, the backlash was fierce in the comment section of the new solo page. "What?? No! I want each show on its own page! I especially don't need ncis Hawaii," @indiana_21 wrote. "I really hate when franchises do this. I only watch NCIS. I don't want or need to see content for the others," agreed @ilpuoscuro. "Even @‌nbconechicago kept the other singular accounts up when they merged as one. Wish you would have done that as well. Boo," wrote @myhipusername.

Others wanted to know if there are plans to repost or archive content from the shows from the franchise that are no more, such as "NCIS: Los Angeles," which was canceled in January 2023 after 14 seasons. "Don't pretend like you care for #ncislosangeles and its fans when you literally deleted the show's account. You could have done your ncisverse thing without doing so, but you chose it, anyway. For the fans, I guess not," wrote @chrisdonnellpt.

While many viewers were angered by the social media merger, there was at least one positive reaction in the bunch: "All my faves in one place!!!!!!" came an enthusiastic comment from the official @CBSTVStudios account.