Spoiler Alert for NCIS season 22, episode 4, “Sticks & Stones”Jessica Knight (Katrina Law) and Dr. Jimmy Palmer (Brian Dietzen) decide not to get back together in NCIS season 22, and they explain their choice in episode 4. Heading into episode 4, the couple had yet to discuss their breakup. Both had been trying to focus on the positive and deflect their colleagues’ questions, not addressing their relationship despite working together. The pair called it quits in the NCIS season 21 finale when Knight was offered a promotion to Chief REACT Training Officer that would take her across the country to Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton in California.
When the couple decided to split at the end of NCIS season 21, it ended a healthy relationship that had lasted for several seasons after it kicked off in season 19. The couple defied the show’s traditional model of slow-burn romance, not allowing agents to get together with their colleagues and allowing the romance to progress slowly instead. However, now that Knight and Palmer have decided to stay split, despite having feelings for one another, the new storyline compromises Palmer and Knight’s previously uncomplicated NCIS romance. Despite Knight’s Navy Yard return, the NCIS characters had yet to address their issue.
Palmer & Knight Admit They Still Love Each Other In NCIS Season 22, Episode 4
Jimmy And Jess Talk About Their Relationship In Jess’s RV
Despite their reluctance to address their relationship, Knight and Palmer had to talk about it in NCIS season 22, episode 4, “Sticks & Stones.” The Major Case Response Team (MCRT) all wakes up in the middle of the night to help prevent World War III after a code that Curtis Hubley (J. Claude Deering) wrote intercepted a transmission that Belarus was planning a missile strike across Europe. Parker (Gary Cole), Tim McGee (Sean Murray), and Nick Torres (Wilmer Valderrama) report to NCIS Headquarters, but Jess isn’t present because she is camping with her cell phone off in Shenandoah National Park.
Jess is reading
A Guide To Marriage
and Jimmy is on Mate Quest.
Jimmy, who has time on his hands, picks up Jess. The pair is subsequently stuck together after the FBI infiltrates NCIS, and they are advised not to return. Stuck alone in Jess’ RV, both on the road and waiting for further instructions, the couple confronts their relationship. Jess is reading A Guide To Marriage and Jimmy is on Mate Quest. They are both seeking love, and Jess admits that she still loves Jimmy near the end of the episode. Despite Jimmy agreeing he’s in love, too, there’s a mutual agreement to stay apart.
Why Palmer & Knight Decide To Not Get Back Together In NCIS Season 22
Jimmy And Jess Stay Broken Up
Despite their shared love for one another, Jimmy and Jess both have an inherent feeling that they must work on themselves before jumping back into their past relationship. Knight is camping in an RV in a National Park, reconnecting with herself in nature after a rocky year. Meanwhile, Jimmy is moving onto a new chapter, embarking on a dating app called “Mate Quest” with Nick as his wingman (although Kasie uses the app, too).
Jimmy tells Knight she deserves an
“Indiana Jones”
kind of boyfriend who will follow her across the country as she seeks new job opportunities. Jess remarks that Jimmy deserves someone who can give him the stability he needs.
Knight and Palmer dance around the subject throughout the NCIS episode. However, when she circles back to the conversation about their romance, their discussion highlights their differing values. Jimmy tells Knight she deserves an “Indiana Jones” kind of boyfriend who will follow her across the country as she seeks new job opportunities. Jess remarks that Jimmy deserves someone who can give him the stability he needs. Despite their chemistry and love for one another, the six months apart have given Jess and Jimmy time to reflect on their needs.
Can NCIS Season 22 Still Bring Knight & Palmer Together?
The NCIS Couple Will Reunite Eventually
Knight and Palmer have feelings for one another despite their decision to work on themselves. The pair have differences, but if their desire to be together overcomes those, then they can compromise. Still, NCIS season 22 may be too early for the couple to get back together since both halves have committed to focus on getting themselves better. The series will likely play that out for a decent chunk of episodes. There are a lot of stories to get to in season 22, and Knight and Palmer’s romance has been addressed for now.
Related
NCIS Has An Unsolvable Timothy McGee Problem
NCIS has a big problem concerning the handling of Sean Murray’s Timothy McGee, and sadly, season 22 makes it clear that it’s likely unsolvable.
On the other hand, Jess and Jimmy’s breakup could play out for seasons. Dietzen has been with the franchise since season 1, and Law is becoming a stable member of the NCIS cast. Suppose both actors have longevity with the show to play with. In that case, the series may have the characters grow separately before they grow together, similar to other slow-burn romances on the series like Ziva David (Cote de Pablo) and Tony DiNozzo (Michael Weatherly). Still, Knight and Palmer’s relationship broke a 16-year NCIS series tradition, so hopefully, NCIS reunites the couple with time to enjoy it.
NCIS (Naval Criminal Investigative Service) focuses on the sometimes complex and always amusing dynamics of a team forced to work together in high-stress situations. Special Agent Alden Parker, a quirky former FBI agent who solves his cases with calm professionalism and sharp, sarcastic charm, leads the NCIS team, which includes NCIS Special Agent Timothy McGee, an MIT graduate with a knack for computers who has now graduated to senior field agent; the charismatic, unpredictable and resilient NCIS Special Agent Nicholas “Nick” Torres, who has spent most of his career on solo undercover assignments; and sharp, athletic and tough NCIS Special Agent Jessica Knight, a formidable REACT agent who specializes in hostage negotiations and high-risk operations. The naïve Jimmy Palmer is assisting the team, who graduated from assistant to fully licensed medical examiner and now runs the morgue; and forensic scientist Kasie Hines, Ducky’s former graduate assistant. Overseeing operations is NCIS Director Leon Vance, an intelligent, highly trained agent who can always be counted on to shake up the status quo. From murder and espionage to terrorism and stolen submarines, these special agents investigate all crimes with Navy or Marine Corps ties.
- Cast
- Sean Murray , Wilmer Valderrama , Katrina Law , Brian Dietzen , David McCallum , Mark Harmon , Rocky Carroll , Gary Cole , Joe Spano
- Release Date
- September 23, 2003
- Seasons
- 22
- Showrunner
- Donald P. Bellisario
- Creator(s)
- Donald P. Bellisario , Don McGill