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The Best Episodes of NCIS Season 1

Every episode of NCIS Season 1 ranked from best to worst. Discover the Best Episodes of NCIS Season 1!

Binge this in 16h 49m•Peaking at 8.5/10

From murder and espionage to terrorism and stolen submarines, a team of special agents investigates any crime that has any connection to Navy and Marine Corps personnel, regardless of rank or position.

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Episode Rankings

  1. #1 Fan Favorite
    NCIS Season 1 Episode 16 - Bête Noire
    8.5/10(1357 votes)

    S1:E16

    A terrorist holds Ducky, Gerald, and Kate hostage while NCIS investigate how exactly the terror organization member got a job at a Navy base.

    Director:Peter Ellis
    Writer:Donald P. Bellisario

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  2. NCIS Season 1 Episode 23 - Reveille
    8.2/10(1206 votes)

    S1:E23

    The terrorist from Bête Noire returns with a plan to attack the President. Gibbs and his team follow the clues to reveal his identity and find Kate who is kidnapped.

    Director:Thomas J. Wright
    Writer:Donald P. Bellisario

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  3. NCIS Season 1 Episode 1 - Yankee White
    8.1/10(2260 votes)

    S1:E1

    While on Air Force One, a Navy commanding officer dies. Agents from the Navy NCIS decide to take the investigation into their own hands and also force a Secret Service Agent to help. Now the NCIS team has to figure out if the Navy officer's death was of natural causes or not.

    Directors:Donald P. Bellisario, Dennis Smith
    Writers:Don McGill, Donald P. Bellisario

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  4. NCIS Season 1 Episode 13 - One Shot, One Kill
    8.1/10(1171 votes)

    S1:E13

    The team investigate when a Marine recruitment officer is found shot to death by a sniper with a grudge, who leaves a white feather behind.

    Director:Peter Ellis
    Writer:Gil Grant

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  5. NCIS Season 1 Episode 19 - Dead Man Talking
    8.1/10(1312 votes)

    S1:E19

    An NCIS agent has been murdered while investigating a case and the team's job is to find out what happened.

    Director:Dennis Smith
    Writers:Frank Cardea, George Schenck

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  6. NCIS Season 1 Episode 7 - Sub Rosa
    8.0/10(1309 votes)

    S1:E7

    A decomposed body is discovered in a tub of acid at a Naval base and Ducky and Abby learn that the victim was a submariner. However, there have been no reports of a sub crewmember missing.

    Director:Michael Zinberg
    Writers:Frank Cardea, George Schenck

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  7. NCIS Season 1 Episode 9 - Marine Down
    7.9/10(1210 votes)

    S1:E9

    After a Marine widow receives a call from her dead husband, the NCIS team take on the case and have to exhume the body to deduce whether the call was a prank or not.

    Director:Dennis Smith
    Writer:John C. Kelley

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  8. NCIS Season 1 Episode 20 - Missing
    7.9/10(1120 votes)

    S1:E20

    A Marine goes missing after a date with a reporter. During the investigation, the team discover that three former members of his unit are dead and suspect the unit commander to be a serial killer.

    Director:Jeff Woolnough
    Writer:John C. Kelley

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  9. NCIS Season 1 Episode 5 - The Curse
    7.8/10(1313 votes)

    S1:E5

    A Navy Lieutenant who was reported missing nearly ten years ago has been found by a deer hunter. When the NCIS team arrive at the scene to investigate, they see that his remains have been mummified.

    Director:Terrence O'Hara
    Writer:Unknown

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  10. NCIS Season 1 Episode 12 - My Other Left Foot
    7.7/10(1154 votes)

    S1:E12

    The NCIS team are called in when a severed leg bearing a Marine tattoo is found in a trash bin, leading them to a small town where a murder scheme is afoot.

    Director:Jeff Woolnough
    Writer:Jack Bernstein

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  11. NCIS Season 1 Episode 15 - Enigma
    7.7/10(1157 votes)

    S1:E15

    Gibbs risks his career when his former commanding officer is accused of stealing funds.

    Director:Thomas J. Wright
    Writer:John C. Kelley

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  12. NCIS Season 1 Episode 18 - UnSEALed
    7.7/10(1127 votes)

    S1:E18

    The team are looking for an ex-SEAL who escaped from prison in search of revenge. He is determined to find the real murderer of his wife.

    Director:Peter Ellis
    Writer:Thomas L. Moran

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  13. NCIS Season 1 Episode 21 - Split Decision
    7.7/10(1081 votes)

    S1:E21

    When a body of a murdered Marine is found in the forest, the investigation leads to the local militia and a weapon deal gone wrong.

    Director:Terrence O'Hara
    Writer:Bob Gookin

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  14. NCIS Season 1 Episode 6 - High Seas
    7.6/10(1261 votes)

    S1:E6

    An NCIS agent who used to work under Gibbs asks for the team's help investigating a case where sailors on an aircraft carrier are dying of a drug overdose, but have no history of any kind of drug abuse.

    Director:Dennis Smith
    Writer:Unknown

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  15. NCIS Season 1 Episode 10 - Left for Dead
    7.6/10(1194 votes)

    S1:E10

    After being buried alive, a woman comes out of the grave with amnesia and the only thing she remembers is that there is a bomb aboard a Navy ship. While trying to help Jane Doe recover her identity, the team find out that not everything is what it first seemed.

    Director:James Whitmore Jr.
    Writers:Don McGill, Donald P. Bellisario

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  16. NCIS Season 1 Episode 2 - Hung Out to Dry
    7.5/10(1577 votes)

    S1:E2

    During a training exercise, a Marine's parachute fails to open and he crashes into a parked car. The NCIS team head to the scene and have to determine if the Marine's death was accidental or a murder.

    Director:Alan J. Levi
    Writer:Don McGill

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  17. NCIS Season 1 Episode 3 - Seadog
    7.5/10(1394 votes)

    S1:E3

    When a Navy commander's body washes up on shore along with the bodies of two drug runners, Gibbs refuses to believe that the sailor who was killed was dirty.

    Director:Bradford May
    Writers:Donald P. Bellisario, John C. Kelley

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  18. NCIS Season 1 Episode 8 - Minimum Security
    7.5/10(1224 votes)

    S1:E8

    The NCIS team head to Cuba to investigate a Navy translator's connection to smuggling at a detention center after he suddenly dies at the wheel of his car when returning to the U.S. from Guantanamo Bay.

    Director:Ian Toynton
    Writers:Donald P. Bellisario, Philip DeGuere Jr.

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  19. NCIS Season 1 Episode 11 - Eye Spy
    7.5/10(1130 votes)

    S1:E11

    When a Navy commander, who was a technical advisor to a civilian contractor for a Navy weapon, is found dead on the beach, the NCIS team investigate the murder using satellite technology.

    Director:Alan J. Levi
    Writers:Dana Coen, Frank Cardea, George Schenck

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  20. NCIS Season 1 Episode 14 - The Good Samaritan
    7.5/10(1115 votes)

    S1:E14

    A Navy dentist stops near a parked car to help a stranded motorist who pulls out a gun. The team investigate a murder with the help from a local sheriff, Charley, when they find out about the similar murder of the Navy civilian employee.

    Director:Alan J. Levi
    Writer:Jack Bernstein

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  21. NCIS Season 1 Episode 17 - The Truth Is Out There
    7.4/10(1099 votes)

    S1:E17

    When the body of a sailor is found after a party in an illegal night club, the team investigate a number of possible leads - including blackmail and accidental death.

    Director:Dennis Smith
    Writer:Jack Bernstein

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  22. NCIS Season 1 Episode 22 - A Weak Link
    7.4/10(1092 votes)

    S1:E22

    Gibbs' team investigate the death of a SEAL during a training exercise, and come to suspect that it wasn't an accident, but a murder.

    Director:Alan J. Levi
    Writer:Jack Bernstein

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  23. NCIS Season 1 Episode 4 - The Immortals
    7.3/10(1357 votes)

    S1:E4

    The NCIS team investigate when a seaman's body is found at the bottom of the sea in his dress whites, with a ceremonial sword. They discover that he was addicted to an MMORPG. Now, the team must figure out how involved he was in the game and how far he would go to get revenge on his arch enemy, another sailor.

    Director:Alan J. Levi
    Writer:Darcy Meyers

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Season 1 Ratings Summary

"Bête Noire" is the best rated episode of "NCIS" season 1. It scored 8.5/10 based on 1357 votes. Directed by Peter Ellis and written by Donald P. Bellisario, it aired on 3/2/2004. This episode is rated 0.3 points higher than the second-best, "Reveille".