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'NCIS' Season 18 Episode 10: Will this be the final season? Fans worry as 'every episode is sad lately'

With rumors that Mark Harmon might be leaving after this show has sure left fans concerned, but they can't help but wonder just why everyone's dying

With the exit of Maria Bello as Jack Sloane and the recent discovery of Tobias Fornell's daughter Emily's death, fans of 'NCIS' are left heartbroken with the show's ongoing plots and arcs. To them, it's another character's death or exit every day, churning speculations that this might be the last season of the show. News about lead actor Mark Harmon exiting after the lead actor the ongoing season has also fuelled speculations, but overall, fans cannot help but wonder just why all the recent episodes have been 'so damn sad lately'.

Complaints of NCIS becoming way too intense and upsetting with its character plots comes after episode 10 called 'Watchdog', released on March 16, where the team "uncovers a secret dogfighting ring, which leads to an unexpected move by one of the team members". As one can expect where this is going,  the episode was heavy on the emotions for dog lovers, with abuse being the center point of these innocent furry creatures. 

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The main culprit in tonight's episode is a man abusing a dog with who Harmon's Jethro Gibbs gets into a physical brawl. The man presses charges but hasn't been arrested yet, and Gibbs' entire career is in jeopardy because he cannot seem to control his emotions following Emily's death. In the end, however, the team was able to link Luke to his crimes within the dogfighting ring, but by then, Gibbs had already been picked apart by the investigation, making this an all the more difficult episode for his ardent fans. 

In the brash manner in which Gibbs was heading this season, fans worry that Harmon's exit is really neighed, and if he too will go out in the worst possible manner once Season 18 comes to close. The speculations arose after Hollywood Reporter shared that Harmon, who's been on the show since its beginning in 2003, will see his contract end following Season 18. He is also reportedly considering a move to another 'NCIS' spinoff, presumably a Hawaii series this time. Although CBS hasn't directly addressed the exit or spoken about the show's fate, they have made it clear that they don't see 'NCIS' going ahead without Gibbs. 

“Sources say when Harmon heard CBS would end the flagship series if he left, the star and exec producer began conversations with the network and producers CBS Studios to return for a handful of episodes if the procedural was to return for a 19th season," wrote the Hollywood Reporter. It's worth noting that the show is renewed for a new season every spring, and with its sister spinoff and shortest running 'NCIS: New Orleans' just announcing the ongoing Season 7 will be its final one, fans' concerns are reaching an all-time high.

Taking it to Twitter, one of them asked: "Why do I feel like #NCIS is reaching its ending? Is this going to be the last season?" Another noted: "I really hope this is not the last season but it feels like it. I hope I'm wrong." Some bluntly addressed the issue: "Is this the last season of @NCIS_CBS ???? First Jack, then Emily Fornell now this??? What in the name of Leroy Jethro Gibbs is going on??? #ncis"

Others just wondered: "Why are all these episodes so damn sad lately?" One fan, however, believes, "Dear #NCIS - lighten the F up!! 3 episodes in a row where there has been a death or departure from a recurring/main character, plus the near fatal shooting of McGhee...Give the team some light in their lives. ESPECIALLY if this does turn out to be Mark Harmon’s final season."

'NCIS' Season 18 airs every Tuesday at 8 pm on CBS.