How NCIS Fans Really Feel About Torres

Contains spoilers for "NCIS" Season 18

When a new character gets introduced on a long-running show, it can sometimes be hard for them to stick. That goes double for a series like "NCIS" which has not only been on the air for 18 seasons but is also known for having a cast that fans are deeply attached to. It's not so easy to replace old favorites like Abby Sciuto (Pauley Perrette) and Tony DiNozzo (Michael Weatherly) when they turn in their badges and leave.

Nick Torres (Wilmer Valderrama) joined the team in Season 14 when he gave up his previous life as a deep-cover agent. The transition to the normal world was a rocky one that occasionally put him at odds with the rest of the squad, but the longer he stuck around, the more of a central figure he became. Known for his confidence and flirtatious personality, he soon developed a Tiva-esque "will they, or won't they?" storyline with fellow agent Ellie Bishop (Emily Wickersham). That all came to an end with the Season 18 finale, though, when Bishop made her surprise exit from the squad and the show.

With Bishop gone, along with so many other veteran "NCIS" characters, Torres has not only seen one of his major narrative arcs come to a close, but he also finds himself going into Season 19 as one of the more senior agents on the team. So, now that he's crossed this milestone, how are fans feeling about the character? It likely won't shock anyone to hear that the reaction is fairly mixed.

Following the Season 18 finale, which saw Torres left heartbroken as Bishop walked away, Reddit user u/Ijustwatchmovies started a thread titled "I feel sad for Torres." The initial post expressed sympathy for the character and prompted others to chime in with their own opinions.

Reactions to Torres were all over the place. On one hand, u/Powerful_Lynx_4737 wrote, "I feel bad for Torres he's one of my favorites ... I'm more pissed for Torres he's been saying he wants a family and [Bishop] just wasted his time." On the other side of the coin, u/AraCand declared, "Honestly I'd prefer Torres have left and not Bishop."

Another Reddit thread, titled "Opinion on Torres," also brought out a myriad of different takes. User u/quiltmeknot wrote, "I like him. He's not infallible, but he is loyal and has developed a trust with the team. He's had a lot of growth." Meanwhile, u/riveramblnc defended the character from the nagging perception that he's a poor substitute for DiNozzo, who left the series around the time Torres was introduced. "He's not Tony. People don't want shows to change," they wrote. "They get attached to characters and the replacements always take a beating."

However, u/NSGACT1985 wasn't buying that excuse. They argued, "For me it's not that he replaced Tony, it's the smarmy, 'I'm better at everything than you' chip on his shoulder ... Sure his character has grown somewhat over the last few seasons; however, there's been so much bad writing for him it just hasn't made up for it."

Love him or loathe him, it's clear that Torres has made an impression during his time on "NCIS."