NCIS: Tony And Ziva Episode 4 Recap: Will The Team Be Able To Rescue Jonah?

The action-packed three-episode premiere of NCIS: Tony and Ziva saw the titular couple finding their family being targeted by rogue Interpol agent Martine, who further incriminated them for a series of cybercrimes committed by her using 9.4, an advanced all-access tech. As Tony and Ziva went on the run, they found help from Tony’s techie associate, Claudette; an underground hacker, Boris; and his fiancée, Fruzi, all of whom are being targeted by Martine and her crew. As this situation aligned with a sudden shakeup in the hierarchy of Interpol, it is suspected that Tony’s good friend, the current general secretary of Interpol, Henry Hunt, has betrayed him and is using Agent Martine to do his dirty work. To lure Martine in order to extract intel from her, Tony hatched a plan of organizing a fake wedding of Boris and Fruzsi. Needless to say, things don’t work out as planned, requiring improvisation as Tony and Ziva reassess past decisions regarding their relationship.

Spoilers Ahead

How Does Boris Lure Martine?

Like the first three episodes, NCIS: Tony and Ziva episode 4 too opens with a glimpse of the fake wedding, where Claudette is secretly trying to extract data from Martine’s phone. However, following the sound of a gun firing, the attendees erupt in fear, leading to a chaotic situation. 

The narrative shifts to the present, two days before the fake wedding. At Tony and Ziva’s request, Boris calls Martine to set the trap to lure her to the fake wedding. As Martine tries to trace his location, Boris informs her that he knows her identity as an Interpol agent. Boris threatens to expose Martine using a sophisticated deepfake recording in Martine’s voice—which Claudette has made up rather quickly while recording their call. Boris reminds Martine that it was she who hired him to create a breach in the security firewall to use 9.4 and also killed another hacker involved in malware installation using 9.4 to take control over the drone guidance system. Boris has leverage on Martine thanks to the deepfake, and unless she leaves him and Fruzsi, he will hand over the recording to the authorities. Tony and Ziva intend to rile up Martine into finding Boris to nab the incriminating fake recording from him during the fake wedding, when they will corner her to get their hands on the real evidence of her involvement.

To arrange fake attendees at the wedding, Claudette and Boris tinker with the prison system’s database to provide early parole to a large group of Hungarian prisoners from Budapest prison. Fruzsi convinces them to participate in the fake wedding as guests, and the plan is set in motion. As the wedding preparations begin, Ziva reminds everyone that they have to be crafty while tipping off Martine about the wedding; otherwise, she can assess danger and might not bite the bait. Fruzsi takes care of the situation by posting a selfie inside the church where the wedding will be hosted, with captions indicative enough for Martine and her crony, Galimard, to deduce that Boris will be present in Budapest during his wedding. Despite knowing that it might be a trap, Martine reaches Budapest with Galimard to nab Boris and seize the recording. As Claudette confirms their arrival through hacking airstrip CCTV footage, Ziva hands a tracker to Tony, which he needs to put on Martine’s car once she arrives.

Ziva’s Reminisces of the Past

Claudette sets up a device inside the church, which will extract data from Martine’s phone once she arrives. However, it will take twenty minutes to complete the process, and to keep Martine busy during that period, Tony decides to ask Boris for help in cloning Henry’s number. However, Boris is in no mood to help them, as he is annoyed that all the grand planning of their wedding he had made with Fruzsi has gone down the drain following the involvement of Martine, Tony, and Ziva. Fruzsi helps him to calm down, reminding Boris that the success of the plan is necessary for them to stay safely together and to ensure that they have to defer their real wedding for a while. Claudette, who is revealed to have been ordained, volunteers to conduct their marriage then and there, much to the couple’s happiness.

While overseeing the preparations of the fake wedding, Ziva is reminded of how her PTSD-afflicted mind created trouble for their daughter, Tali, during the initial days after her return. On one occasion, Ziva’s paranoia caused her to lash out at a lady in a children’s park who was offering a cupcake to Tali, not knowing that she was the mother of one of Tali’s friends. Later on, Tali experienced nightmares related to the incident, which made Ziva realize how her demons have started haunting her daughter as well. Also, Ziva blamed herself for opting to live separated from her family; both she and Tony have experienced neglect by their absent parents in younger days. It was a painful realization for Ziva that she too was going down the same path, given she had already abandoned Tali once. To assuage her woes, Tony requested Ziva to stay with her family and proposed to her. However, their marriage was postponed indefinitely for reasons still undisclosed. Cutting back to the present, Boris and Fruzsi get married, with Claudette pronouncing them as husband and wife. However, the moment of bliss is interrupted by Hungarian police, who break into the church and arrest Fruzsi on the charges of shoplifting. An infuriated Boris almost leaves the mission, but Claudette manages to convince him by stating she will tinker with the prison system database to have Fruzsi released in no time. Ziva has to play the role of the replacement bride; under the veil she won’t be recognized by anyone anyway. 

Is Fruzsi rescued?

The wedding begins according to the plan, and as Martine arrives, Tony secretly attaches a tracker under her car. The opening scene from the first episode is replayed as Ziva arrives in a wedding dress as Tony, who has changed into his tux, shares his admiration. Tony keeps Martine’s phone busy by texting her as Henry, as Boris has already cloned his number, and Claudette begins the data extraction process using her device. However, things turn awry when Claudette finds out that Fruzsi is not registered in the prison database system yet, and it is further revealed that she was not arrested by real cops at all. Galimard has abducted her by sending fake cops to keep her hostage in order to force Boris to give up the audio recording. Ziva tries to keep Boris’ focus on the mission, who is reasonably terrified for his wife after learning about the situation and almost breaks. To make matters worse, Henry arrives with Interpol forces and Hungarian police to arrest Boris, and a chaotic situation ensues. Boris escapes, and Ziva confronts Henry for a moment while chasing Martine and calls him out for betraying them. Claudette locates Galimard in a nearby building complex, and Tony rushes to rescue her. 

Tony rescues Fruzsi and engages in a fight with Galimard, which ends with the crook getting thrown out of the window and falling into the Danube. Martine corners Tony, but Ziva catches up to her, and as she disarms her, Tony snatches Martine’s purse. With police approaching, Tiny and Ziva escape and later reunite with Claudette, Boris, and Fruzsi, who have arranged a getaway speedboat. 

Will the team be able to rescue Jonah?

9.4 is found from Martine’s purse, along with her phone, which can reveal her involvement and details about the entire conspiracy. Claudette reveals that looking into Martine’s phone, she has found out that the former secretary general of Interpol, Jonah Markham, who has been missing since the last few days, has been incarcerated in a supermax prison in Austria under a fake identity. Tony assumes that a power-hungry Henry has betrayed his boss to usurp his position, and Jonah might know crucial details about this conspiracy—which can give all of them a chance to clear their names. All this talk about power struggle and intrigue has to be kept in the backseat for a bit, as Tony and Ziva are having a moment. Claudette encourages Tony to approach Ziva, but a brief hesitation from both sides kind of ruins the perfect moment. However, Tony approaches her again, and this time, Ziva doesn’t back out.

As NCIS: Tony and Ziva episode 4 comes to an end, Tony and Ziva finally surrender to their feelings for each other. As their boat cruises through the Danube during the sunset, the picturesque scene makes the moment all the more beautiful. In the upcoming episode, Tony, Ziva, and the team will try to break Jonah out of the supermax prison, and as it can be guessed already, 9.4 will play a crucial role in that. 

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