NCIS: Hawai’i Just Revealed How NCIS’ Gibbs Is Connected to Tennant

Ahead of this March’s official crossover event, NCIS: Hawai’i this Monday night revealed the role that NCIS‘ Leroy Jethro Gibbs played in guiding Jane Tennant’s career.

In the NCIS: Hawai’i episode “Spies, Part 2” (the conclusion of a two-parter that kicked off on Sunday night), as the team investigated former CIA operative Maggie Shaw’s (Julie White) apparent role in abetting a Chinese spy who was hiding out in Hawaii, a series of flashbacks starting with “15 Years Ago” chronicled Maggie’s recruitment and training of a younger Jane (Vanessa Lachey).

In the final flashback sequence, set 11 years ago, Jane learned that Maggie was being shuffled from the agency’s Middle East division to Far East — and she wouldn’t be bringing her padawan with her.

Instead, Maggie produced a business card that had at once been slipped to her.

“Do you remember the NCIS agent who worked the operation in Kabul?” she asked.

“With the Marine haircut, and that [eye roll] snarky sidekick?” replied Jane.

“You made quite an impression on him.”

“How could you tell?”

“Because he tried to steal you from me; he asked me to give you this,” Maggie said, handing over the business card of one Supervisory Special Agent L. Jethro Gibbs. And handwritten on the back? “Rule 72: Always be open to new ideas.”

Noting the rule, Jane asked, “What does that mean?” — to which Maggie shrugged, “Oh, I don’t know. He has dozens of them. But he’s good people, and he can get you set up at FLETC.”

And that, kids, is how Jane Tennant met NCIS.