NCIS: Los Angeles - Matryoshka Part 2 - Review: "Worth the Wait"

After seven and a half seasons, G Callen has finally come face to face with his father and learned his full name. That mystery G has been explained once and for all. And though Callen didn’t learn a lot of extra details about his dad, their emotion-filled talk was, dare I say, worth the wait. It was tense, emotional and meaningful. And despite the fact it was cut short, Callen’s chat with his father was a highlight of the season. It has been a long time coming, and their meeting set the foundation for an interesting road ahead.

Of course, the payoff didn’t come until the end of the episode. Sam and Callen spent most of the episode trying to get Arkady Kolcheck and the mystery CIA agent out of the Russian prison. Anna, Callen and Sam devise a plan to have the two prisoners injected with medicine that almost kills them so they will be transferred to a medical van. That’s where the NCIS team intercepts and rescues them. Meanwhile, in Los Angeles, the rest of the team works to help them. While the prisoner heist was relatively interesting, the last three and a half minutes of the episode were the real treat. So let’s get right to the juicy stuff!

Callen and his Father

Callen may have been told his father was dead, but I don’t think he ever stopped believing that information was false. So when the two finally meet, it’s a pretty epic moment. I loved the introductions when the team first arrived at the safe house and Garrison greeted them. Everyone introduced themselves except Callen, leaving Garrison to ask his name. At that point you had to wonder if Callen recognized his dad. And it’s hard to say for sure. But I certainly suspect the question was raised in his mind. Just look at the way his eyes grew wide as he quietly analyzed Garrison. Granted, his uncertainty could stem from not knowing whom they could trust and what kind of situation they were walking into. But the wonder in his eyes seemed to run deeper and point to a more personal question. If he did indeed begin wondering about this man, it was a thought that, no doubt, took him by surprise.

After singling out his son during introductions, Garrison paused for a second and then poignantly exclaimed, “Nice to meet you.” It’s hard to say if the statement was directed at Callen or the group, as Garrison’s eyes shifted around, almost nervously. But the audience knew it was meant for Callen. And the effect was mesmerizing. Here was a father meeting his adult son for the first time, uttering a simple statement. But the words held deeper meaning. Garrison chose not to give away anything in this group setting, but he also realized the power of the moment. He may have looked stoic, but you knew this was a father happy to finally “meet” his son. But his glance was also hesitant, a look that hinted of shame, from a father who hasn’t been there for his son. He didn’t quite know how to act. And his true feelings – excitement, pride, guilt – all shined through for just a second. But after that brief transparency, Garrison quickly took charge of his emotions and guided the group inside. However, as they all walked away, Callen stood still for a moment on the hill, pondering something by himself.

This entire dynamic had me glued to the screen. And it just got more intense as Callen saw proof of Garrison’s identity. Once inside the safe house, Callen and Sam noticed a table full of Matryoshka dolls – the Russian painted wooden dolls that fit inside one another. I loved how Sam pointed out the dolls “were like peeling the layers of an onion” as one gave way to another. That was a perfect analogy for Callen having to peel back the layers of his father’s identity. He’s been doing that as he searched for him, and he will need to continue peeling the layers going forward. In this episode we only saw one layer of that onion revealed. But there will be more layers to come. This was just the beginning.

In the midst of the Matryoshka dolls, Callen notices a coin sitting on the table – the same kind of coin his dad and Arkady used to communicate about refugees wanting to escape from Russia. That’s when Callen realized this man could truly be his father. If he wondered before, he’s even more sure now. At first it seems like Sam sees the coin and is about to acknowledge who Garrison might be. But instead, Sam simply comments that the man is magical with a paintbrush, leaving Callen alone with his thoughts.

I actually liked the choice to have Callen be the only one who knew Garrison’s identity. Callen is a private, lone soul, so it felt fitting that he kept this personal, emotional information to himself. It was a big enough deal that Callen didn’t want to share his emotions or suspicions without being 100 percent sure. That made the conversation with his dad even more poignant because they were the only ones who understood the magnitude of their encounter, almost as if they were sharing a secret.

This ending scene held so many wonderful nuances. You could feel Callen’s emotional struggle as he waited to see what his father would tell him. I loved how it began, with Garrison asking Callen if he knew who Garrison was. Callen’s response showed both his hopes and fears as he stammered, “I think so.… Maybe, yeah.… I don’t know.” This was the moment Callen had waited for his whole life. Now that it was here, it was hard to believe. In his gut he knew this was his dad. But without confirmation, it was almost too much to hope for. Nonetheless, his hope quickly became reality.

I loved how Garrison took the lead in front of his stunned son. “I know much about you,” he told Callen, which shocked the agent. His father had clearly followed his life, revealing himself to be a caring father, even if he followed his son from the shadows. Next Garrison addressed the elephant in the room: If he knew so much about him, why had he never reached out or made himself known? “I don’t believe in excuses, giving reasons for actions,” Garrison starts to explain. “The actions themselves are what matters.” But Callen doesn’t agree. “Sometimes,” Callen says defensively. Here Garrison gives Callen permission to hate him. But Callen’s response is so honest and vulnerable that it tears at your heart. “I don’t hate you,” he tells his father, the hurt in his voice evident. “But the reasons matter. To me they matter.” In this moment Callen reveals the pained child within, someone struggling to understand why his father abandoned him. I was so glad he spoke up. For a child who’s never had any kind of explanation, the reasons are indeed huge. They are everything.

Fortunately, Garrison immediately responds to Callen, realizing that if the reasons matter to his son, they are important. I liked how much he considered Callen’s feelings. He seemed to recognize this was a tough moment, and he wanted to give his son whatever he needed. But just as he agreed to tell Callen the reasons for his absence, the group’s exfiltration team arrives and it’s time to leave. And there is nothing Callen can do about it. The explanation will have to wait. But Garrison’s next comment gives Callen hope they will see each other again. “Another time I will tell it to you all, everything,” he says, with his son hanging on every word. Stunned silent, Callen can’t move. He’s not ready to leave yet. But Garrison once again takes charge by letting his son know how proud he is: “Callen, I know who you are and the things you’ve done. You are a good man.” Hearing his father’s approval after all these years proves to be an emotional moment for Callen. His eyes fill with tears. And once again, Callen’s father proves he cares about his boy. He has indeed paid attention to Callen’s life. He knows exactly who his son has become. And he is a proud papa. The fact that he wanted his son to know this before they parted was incredibly sweet.

As Callen remains stuck in his tracks, his father reaches out to shake his hand. That one touch, even with gloves on, is momentous for Callen. He is shaking hands with his father, physically touching the man who always seemed to be a ghost. But this time he’s real. As Garrison says goodbye, he offers his son one more valuable piece of information: his given name. “Dasvidaniya,” he tells Callen (Russian for “goodbye”), and then he adds Callen’s first name, “Grisha.” Callen is stunned and repeats the name back in a question. To that Garrison, having a hard time speaking himself, offers Callen his full name: “Grisha Alexandrovich Nikolaev.” And then he grabs his son's arm in a token of affection, adding that Callen’s mother wanted him to know where he came from. Callen's name is Russian. (Grisha is a Russian variation of Gregory.) That mysterious G now has visible roots. As Callen takes in this information and walks slowly away, Sam wants to make sure his partner is okay. And Callen’s response gives us hope because we realize he is filled with hope. “I’m good,” he replies with a lilt in his voice, looking back at his dad. He may not have gotten everything he wanted from this conversation, but he got enough. Meeting his dad lifted his spirits. He knows his dad is alive. He knows his dad cares about him. He knows his own name. And he knows the two have more to explore. It’s been a long journey, but this meeting opened a new beginning.

I can’t say enough great things about Chris O’Donnell’s performance in this final scene. He demonstrated Callen’s vulnerabilities in the varied emotions flooding over him. Callen still has a lot of pain and hurt built up from never knowing his father, which affected Callen’s ability to know himself. And now that his father was finally here in front of him, I love that he didn’t know what to say or do. Despite the fact that he’s a grown adult, Callen became the vulnerable child, waiting for the parent to talk first. And he couldn’t control his emotions: Nervousness, vulnerability, fear, hurt, pain, trepidation, unbelief, sadness, hope, amazement, surprise, confusion, satisfaction, all rushed over him, rolling into one big moment. O’Donnell’s depiction of these emotions added a real humanness to the scene, making it both sweet and heartbreaking. Though my first reaction may have been to lament all that Callen didn’t find out, in the end I liked that he just got this snippet of time with his father. It left him hopeful and eager for more. It was really the perfect introduction. Any more might have been too overwhelming for him and the audience. Getting this little bit of time was just enough. Now Callen is in a fantastic place moving forward.

I also thought Daniel J. Travanti was fantastic as Garrison. He demonstrated the hesitancy of a parent who hasn’t been around and doesn’t know exactly what to offer his son. But he also showed his confidence, love, concern, pride and desire to do the right thing by his son. I loved everything about their meeting and their final exchange. I love that he stepped up to lead the conversation when his son was at a loss. He needed to be the one to explain why he hadn’t been around. Even though he never got that far, he took on the parent’s role of trying to help his son understand his love and pride for him. You could tell how difficult this discussion was for him, too. With Travanti and O’Donnell at the helm, this scene was a wonderful payoff for all the fans who have waited years for this big moment.

Callen and Anna

I still really like Callen and Anna together. They have great chemistry. The writers worked hard in this episode to show how similar they are, both growing up without a dad around. (Although deep down, they both would clearly do anything for their fathers.) The scene where they have coffee together emphasized these similarities. Anna told Callen when she was a child, she used to make up stories about her father traveling around the world, being a hero. But Callen picks up on the fact that she had to do that because Arkady wasn’t around to be a dad. He identifies with her, telling her he had it worse because at least her dad had a name. The two bond over their lack of paternal involvement and then Anna worries if everyone in their line of work is broken, just like her. She wonders if anyone can be normal in their job. But Callen reassures her that maybe broken is normal. It was interesting to hear this perspective from him. Anna’s similar thoughts and worries made him look at his own life in a potentially new light.

I like Anna as a character. Granted, she is a little cheesy in her long pauses and always-smiling, flirty demeanor. It sometimes feels over-the-top, like the actress (Bar Paly) is trying too hard – and the writers, too. They want the audience to know Anna is fun and gets along well with the entire team. But their intentions are transparent and the scenes can come across a bit forced. This week's lighthearted moment with Sam was proof. It was clearly supposed to demonstrate Anna's easy-going nature and rapport apart from just Callen. But it missed the mark, instead feeling contrived. Yet in the midst of these overshot attempts, Paly and the writers are still building a likable character. I find Anna both earnest and fun. Yes, I would like to see a more subtle expression of the character, but nonetheless I do like her and hope she sticks around. She definitely has a really nice bond with Callen. She has gone from initially not trusting him to now worrying about getting him involved. It’s clear she trusts him now, not only because of their similarities, but because he jumped into action to help her.

The scene where she fell asleep on Callen’s shoulder was another scene that felt contrived to me. But it was still fun to watch and showed a nice dynamic and closeness between the pair. I liked how Callen fixed her blanket after she fell asleep, showing a tender side to him. These two are sweet together. They understand each other – and they understand the difficulties of their work. So Callen won’t have the same problems with her that he did with Joelle. I actually think the writers may have created the perfect girl for Callen. Anna is a great balance of tough and vulnerable. I see Callen as someone who pairs well with a woman who can stand on her own but still have a feminine vulnerability, someone who needs him in some way. He wants to be needed and provide that role. Anna is exactly that type of woman. She needed him for this rescue, after all, and that made him feel good.

Eric

Back in L.A, Eric was the highlight. As he’s sent out into the field for the first time, he is like a pendulum, swaying from one extreme to the other, rocking from fear to cocky confidence. And he did it all with his typical Eric swagger.

When Eric was first ordered into the field, he was hesitant, not quite sure he was ready. But Granger’s confidence boosted his own. I loved how he showed up looking like Rambo – and acting like it, too. I couldn’t believe he pointed out his “guns” (muscles) to Hetty. Oh, Eric! But when he actually got out into the field, he froze. He wasn’t expecting a shootout, and when it happened he couldn’t move. (Thankfully Deeks threw him to safety.) But he recovered quickly as he realized he had a flash bang in his pocket that would help. His decision gave Kensi and Deeks a chance to shoot the suspect. I loved how he referenced “Call of Duty” as his inspiration!

After he saved the day, though, he began to get a big head. This was hilarious. “Do you think I’m a natural?” he asked Kensi and Deeks, telling them how he always felt like he was destined for great things. As Deeks and Kensi walk away in disgust, Eric pulls out a Danger Bar as if he were a superhero, confident he just saved the city. All he needed was a cape!

When he gets back to Ops, it was cute how Nell praised him for his actions. Eric was humble with her, saying he was just lucky. But Nell told him she knew better: He did what needed to be done, and she was proud of him. Eric loved hearing this and started to admit he was scared when Granger walked in. It’s great how Eric can be honest and truthful and vulnerable with Nell.

Other Thoughts

- Anna did a great job undercover. She was convincing flirting with the Russian guys in the club and was later hilarious pretending to be a Russian woman herding a cow across the road.

- I always love Hetty on that rolling video stick. She really can be everywhere at once! And of course Hetty hides all her weapons behind her stove.

- Callen made me laugh when he said Sam “doesn’t like anyone touching his weapon.”

- Was there more to the story of the guy they arrested in L.A.? If he was only wanted for credit card theft, why did the Russians want him? I hope this comes up again.

- I loved how Hetty pointed out Granger was answering questions with questions. That was hilarious.

- Deeks was funny as he answered Kensi’s question in the car meant for Eric. I enjoyed how Kensi and Deeks were very affirming of Eric in the field – until he got a big head.

- It was fun to get a little taste of Callen’s backstory through the CIA agent. I enjoyed how we didn’t know if we could trust the man at first.

- I liked that Russian hat on Sam!

- I was initially surprised Arkady didn’t recognize Garrison. I thought they had met. But thinking back, they may have communicated through coins without seeing one another.

- Arkady made me laugh when he complained about being on horseback. He is such a big baby! It was funny to see Sam put him in his place.

- I’m curious if Callen is now going to tell Sam about his father. I can’t wait to see what happens next.


How did you enjoy "Matryoshka Part 2?" What did you think of Callen's talk with his father? Do you think he recognized Garrison at first? How long do you think it will be before he sees him again? Leave your thoughts in the comments below.

About the Author - Tonya Papanikolas

Tonya Papanikolas is an online, print and broadcast journalist who loves covering entertainment and television. She spent more than 10 years as a broadcast news anchor/reporter and now does everything from hosting to writing. She loves covering NCIS: Los Angeles for SpoilerTV. (She's a big fan of Kensi and Deeks!) She also writes SpoilerTV articles on other great shows.