Torres Deserves Real Character Growth & NCIS Owes It to Him (And Us)

When Torres first joined NCIS at the beginning of Season 14, he felt like a stand-in for DiNozzo.

There were many of the same mannerisms and personality traits, which could have helped us settle into the character.

After spending years undercover, Torres liked to keep to himself, and he carried a lot of personal heartache.

(Robert Voets/CBS )

Over time, he has developed some friendships, but there was a moment from NCIS Season 23 that made it clear he hasn’t really grown all that much.

Torres Was Way Too Hurt About Kasie Keeping Part of Her Life Silent

During NCIS Season 23 Episode 18, everyone learned that Kasie’s creation, Edna, was worth millions. 

She was even in the process of selling it to some big company.

Now, I stand by my thoughts that Parker and McGee should have never said anything to the others about the windfall that Kasie was about to receive. That was her news to share.

(Robert Voets/CBS)

It was clear from Torres’ reaction that she made the right choice in staying silent. 

Torres immediately complained that he’d just paid for dinner with Kasie.

Why should that matter when she hadn’t come into the money in the first place? The discussion about Edna was still going through the negotiation process.

It immediately left a bad taste in my mouth, showing how immature and egotistical Torres still is.

That got me thinking about how little he’s changed over the last ten seasons.

(Robert Voets/CBS)

While he’s had relationships and opened up more, his development has been short-lived, as he regresses to his previous self.

I think part of that stems from the way Bishop left at the end of NCIS Season 18, but we didn’t really get a full sense of that until her return this past season.

Torres and Bishop’s relationship was off-screen. There were always hints that they liked each other, but it was only after Bishop left that Torres showed how much he knew about her.

Bishop’s return in NCIS Season 23 Episode 10 brought much-needed flashbacks that highlighted just how important she was to him.

Add on the fact that Gibbs left shortly after Bishop, and there are plenty of reasons for Torres to revert to older personality traits, but it’s time for him to grow up.

(Robert Voets/CBS)

Torres Deserves to Become a Better Person

There have been moments that have shown Torres is capable of change, and, surprisingly, these are in the bigger ways.

He tried to lean into his lonewolf ways at the start of NCIS Season 21 to get revenge, but in the end, he decided his career and current life were worth more.

He’s fought alcoholism, and there was a brief reminder of that as the team said goodbye to Vance shortly after the 500th episode.

These major moments can’t be backtracked, as they are Torres realizing his need to change. He’s made the decisions himself.

(Robert Voets/CBS)

When it comes to the smaller elements of his personality, he doesn’t think there is a need to change just yet. Unfortunately, it’s these moments that get tiresome.

While I think someone should have called him out for going on about the dinner with Kasie, it wasn’t up to them to realize that Torres was fixating on the wrong thing.

Showing that he changed could have been as simple as realizing he was fixating on the wrong thing.

This isn’t to say that he can’t have flaws. Every human does. It’s just to say that he needs to grow up.

(Robert Voets/CBS)

There are even elements of his character that should stick around, such as his love for fun and games, his habit of betting against his teammates over trivial matters, and his decision to make Sawyer his archenemy.

These moments help secure his place on the team, and they show just how far he’s come in shedding the lone-wolf mentality.

But NCIS needs to stop using his immature moments as comedic relief, especially when they’re not all that necessary.

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