NCIS: Origins is the perfect show to answer one of the most grueling questions fans have about the flagship series: why did Jackson Gibbs leave his son in NCIS?
While we do get to see NIS Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs spend more on-screen time with his old man in Origins, what turned their estranged relationship for worse, really? Here's what happened.
Jackson and Leroy Gibbs Lost Everything When Ann Gibbs Died
The estranged relationship between Leroy and his father Jackson Gibbs is one of the most complicated to discuss.
Jackson and Leroy Gibbs' first reason to have grown apart is after losing Ann Gibbs, Leroy's mother.
While she had an unknown cancer diagnosis, Ann was adamant about taking her own life, which Jackson's best friend, Leroy Jethro Moore (the man he named his son after), tolerated.
This caused their friendship to grow apart, and quite frankly could have been one of the reasons why Jackson unconsciously grew resentful towards his own son.
Jackson believed that his son meeting his wife Shannon was the next best thing to happen to him, even more so when they grew a family together. That is until Gibbs lost them both to a car accident.
There's a chance that Jackson saw himself in Gibbs, especially when he found out his son planned to join the NIS.
While NCIS viewers rarely ever saw Gibbs and Jackson work their way together in the flagship series, NCIS: Origins takes advantage of the prequel to tell the true story.
Why Did Jackson Gibbs Leave His Son in NCIS: Origins?
As much of a stranger Jackson Gibbs is to his own son, he wanted to set things right for his path.
Jackson appeared in NCIS: Origins episode 3 titled Bend, Don't Break, he knew he had to do something before Gibbs took on his path of vengeance for his family's death.
Gibbs was still young. Choosing the NIS means forging a murderous path. The least Jackson could do was wake his son up and make him realize that becoming a cop meant Gibbs was out for blood, not justice.
"That sonuvab*tch killed Shannon and Kelly and ran to Mexico, and you're just gonna let that go? No. You didn't join NIS to become a cop, you joined to hunt him down — and not just to cuff him and walk away," Jackson pointed out.
Gibbs was stubborn. He didn't want to give it up and told his father he should just go 'home', something Jackson took quite too literally.
Although we'll still get to see Jackson in episode 5, as the showrunner promised, Jackson likely saw the future of their broken relationship as father and son then and there. The minute Gibbs made his decision, he knew he lost his son.
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