Tonight on CBS NCIS: ORIGINS returns with an all-new Tuesday, October 14, 2025, season 2 episode 2 called, “Who by Fire,” and we have your weekly NCIS: ORIGINS recap below.
In tonight’s NCIS: ORIGINS season 2 episode 2 called “Who by Fire,” as per the CBS synopsis, “When the body of a college swimmer washes up on the beach, the team must determine if it was an accident or murder. Also, Gibbs prepares for his first interrogation.”
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Lala was back on her feet. Only she wasn’t fully back to herself. She was now visiting church more often. She was there so frequently that Felipe “Flaco” Navarro knew exactly where to find her and he did. He wanted to call in that favor she owes him. He helped her save Randy’s life.
He now wants something in return. He and his buddy took Lala out on a drive. She went off with them and all the while her team was wondering where she was. They caught a case. They found a young man dead on the beach. He was found on the Navy side of the beach.
Hence this was NIS’s job. Lala eventually showed up alright. She had Flaco drop her off at the scene. She hid the fact that it was him that dropped her off and Gibbs suspected something was off almost instantly. He’s gotten to know Lala. He hasn’t worked with her as long as the others have, but he knows her.
He’s in love with her. He knew how to find her in her neighbor’s pool and so he knew it wasn’t her supposed neighbor that dropped her off. He just didn’t say anything right away because he wanted to give her space after last week.
The body they found was without identification. He was simply known as John Doe. He was dressed as if he was going surfing and that didn’t make sense because his safety rope was found around his waist. Not his ankle where it should be. The Medical Examiner felt it was odd.
It got even odder. There was a scrape found on the guy’s shins and compressions on his chest. They indicated someone tried to save him. It was odd because that person didn’t stick around or get help. They left the body on the beach for hours on end.
John Doe was soon revealed to be Miguel Castillo. His roommate reported him missing. He never came home the night before. Miguel doesn’t have a record. His father does for hitting him. The two got into a fight about focus. Miguel was a swimmer.
It was his chance to get a scholarship and get out of the trailer park. His father wanted him to have more than he did. He knew Miguel wasn’t naturally gifted. He instead trained Miguel to make up for it. Miguel was trained so hard that he became a leading swimmer at school.
Gibbs latched onto that information. He hounded the father. He thought the father kept pushing Miguel until he drowned and that he left his son on the beach to hide the part he played. Gibbs got so bad that Franks had to pull him from the scene. He said that’s why he’s not ready for interrogations.
Franks pointed out that Gibbs heard nothing that Jack Castillo said. Jack implied that Miguel was dealing with some trouble from the other swimmers at school. Gibbs missed it because he was trying to prove Lala wrong by getting into the interrogation room.
Gibbs like everyone else also suspected that Lala was seeing someone. They all believed the person that dropped her off was her new guy. They didn’t get a good look at him and Franks warned her that she just made herself gossip fodder. Franks returned to the case. He checked out the swimmers.
Miguel was suspended from the swim team recently for getting into a fight with the team captain. The team captain was Owen Hawkins. Franks also asked about the scholarship and if the suspension affected it. And the coach said the swimmers all lost their scholarships.
The school was prioritizing football and basketball. They left the swimmers out to dry. They all lost their scholarships. Yet, he somehow found the money to pay for tuition. The school thought his father came up with the money. His father thought he still has his scholarship. Miguel never told him the truth.
He didn’t want his father to know. Miguel’s swim team was brought to the station. Gibbs was just supposed to take their information for a possible interrogation and he ended up going rogue. He interrogated Hawkins by himself. He had him and he lost him trying to be Franks.
He wasn’t Franks. All Gibbs did was cause Hawkins to close up. He asked if he was under arrest and left when he found out he wasn’t. Franks was left livid. Gibbs was going somewhere before he blew it. Gibbs found out that both Hawkins and Miguel were on the beach that night.
It’s why they have the chafing in the same place. Something went wrong. Gibbs never figured out what. He then tried to make up for it by discrediting Hawkins’s alibi that night and they had enough to bring him in. It was again too late because Hawkins already got on a bus to Mexico.
There was a chance he was returning to Tijuana. It’s where the fight with Miguel happened. They just weren’t fighting each other. They got into a bar fight with others.
Hawkins didn’t lie about that. Gibbs also found where Hawkins was. He back at the beach. Hawkins and Miguel were both drug mules. They lost their scholarships and Coach Gower said he had an idea. He knew the cartel. He had them deliver the drugs while he took the biggest cut. Miguel accidentally drowned. And Hawkins tried to save him.
Miguel lost the shipment attached to him. Hawkins had to make up for it before the cartel kills him to send a message. Hawkins was sorry about leaving Miguel. He never wanted to do any of this.
Once he got involved, he found out there was no way out. Hawkins helped Nis put an end to a drug business but more will rise up to replace it and Gibbs still blew his first interrogation. Lala saw him after he went rogue. It made her realize that he looks up to her and she doesn’t want to disappoint him. Lala turned down Flaco’s offer.
She wasn’t going to help him arrest an rival that killed his cousin. If he wanted justice, he has to do it the right way. He has to go to the cops and work with them. It couldn’t be Lala.
THE END!