NCIS: Origins paid respect to the ’90s by finding a way to bring up Mark Wahlberg‘s days as “Marky Mark” — and brother Donnie Wahlberg‘s band New Kids on the Block.
During the Tuesday, October 14, episode of the hit CBS series, it was revealed that Randy’s (Caleb Foote) past request to be out in the field less resulted in him being given desk duty. This allowed Randy to spend more time listening to music, which helped him discover new musical artists.
“I swear to god, this song [‘Good Vibrations’] is a revelation,” Randy told Franks (Kyle Schmid), Wheeler (Patrick Fischler) and Gibbs (Austin Stowell). “Even when nothing in the world is right, Marky Mark makes you feel so good.”
Franks was confused by the name drop, asking, “His last name is Mark and his mom named him Marky?” Randy elaborated on how Mark is “the bad boy” of the family since his brother, Donnie, is part of a boy band.
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“Donnie Mark,” Franks asked, to which Randy replied, “No, Donnie Wahlberg.”
Randy tried to explain that “it is a stage name” — only for Franks to confuse which brother wasn’t using their real name professionally.
“Who puts Wahlberg as a stage name?” Franks asked. Elsewhere in the episode, Gibbs “tried” to get into Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch’s music, noting, “Marky Mark does not make me feel good.”
Despite Gibbs’ unenthusiastic response, he joined in when Franks, Randy and Lala (Mariel Molino) sang “Good Vibrations” at the end of the episode. Season 2 returned with other fun surprises such as the revelation that Lala was still alive after a near fatal car crash.
Before NCIS: Origins returned for season 2, creators Gina Lucita Monreal and David J. North teased the onscreen changes.
“That was really our ultimate goal from the start was to make a show that the fans of the original show loved and felt satisfied by. But [it is] also [a show] that new viewers can come in from the beginning of NCIS: Origins,” Monreal explained exclusively to Us Weekly in April. “Viewers can jump in and not be confused and really get on board with our characters and their stories. We’ve always approached it from that point of view. I feel like we’ve succeeded.”
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She continued: “We’re really keen on sticking to canon [events]. We’re strict about that. We want to pay respect to the mothership. We both have written on the mothership and do love that show. But we also love branching out into our new characters and digging into their emotional lives.”
North, meanwhile, previewed what fans can expect with Randy after his scene-stealing presence in season 1.
“We can’t get enough Randy. So in season 2, there’s going to be no shortage of Randy,” North confirmed. “But he’s struggling with something. A lot of those agents and police officers do. It’s hard when you have a family and it’s a dangerous job. So he’s struggling with that. But we can promise you there’s going to be no shortage of Randy.
NCIS: Origins airs on CBS Tuesdays at 9 p.m. ET.
