The Ultimate Jimmy Palmer Episode Of NCIS

A character on the hit CBS series since 2004, Dr. Jimmy Palmer (Brian Dietzen) is the chief medical examiner for the "NCIS" team. Originally introduced as an assistant to Dr. Ducky Mallard (David McCallum), Jimmy took over his former boss' position after Mallard steps down during Season 16. Mockingly called an "autopsy gremlin" by Agent DiNozzo (Michael Weatherly), Jimmy tends to delve into long, digressive rants at work, much to the irritation of Gibbs (Mark Harmon) and others. However, even his geeky tendencies can't hide his skills at the job. Not only is he a consummate professional at work, but he's also incredibly loyal to Ducky and the rest of the team.

Jimmy has had his share of individual storylines on the show, including his father-in-law Ed Slater's (Larry Miller) initial disapproval, and the loss of his wife Breena (Michelle Pierce) to COVID-19. But one particularly unusual Season 5 installment is by far the best Jimmy Palmer episode of "NCIS" to date.

"About Face" was an unusual episode for "NCIS" at the time it aired because Jimmy Palmer is the main focus of the events (this was years before the fan-favorite "Keep Going"). The episode begins with the team investigating the dead body of a man named Rick Baxter, who was found at an old Navy facility. When Palmer begins to move the corpse, however, he hears someone else within the building. When Jimmy sees a man run from the crime scene, he gives chase, only for the mysterious man to shoot at him until he flees. Not used to gunfire, Jimmy is deeply shaken by the experience and is unable to identify the shooter.

After finding another body encased in concrete, the team discovers that the real Rick Baxter was killed years ago by Milos Suskavcevic (Scott Checansky), so Milos could use his identity to get money from a long-term settlement Rick was involved in. Milos was then later killed in self-defense by a construction worker. Palmer is able to finally ID the shooter as Milos' brother and partner in crime, Tesla (James Logan), and in a risky move, he uses his car to stop Tesla from fleeing. The examiner ultimately finds closure and that he's much braver than he previously thought.