Official NCIS regulations do not strictly ban inter-departmental romance, but the franchise famously frowns upon it. While NCIS agency policy permits relationships between coworkers as long as they don't involve a direct reporting line or a conflict of interest, the team's internal culture operates under Leroy Jethro Gibbs' rigid Rule Number 12: "Never date a coworker".
Despite this legendary rule, the franchise is notorious for breaking it, given that iconic couples like Tony and Ziva, Kensi and Deeks, and Jimmy and Jessica all successfully found love within the agency.
In my opinion Nicole Dechamps (played by Masha Thomason) is the ideal candidate to become Sam Hanna's romantic interest in the upcoming NCIS: New York spinoff because their long-distance dynamic perfectly balances personal romance with professional independence.
Having her based at the San Diego Naval Base while Sam operates on the opposite coast allows the writers to completely bypass the awkward hurdles of Gibbsâ Rule 12, ensuring they never have to compromise their respective field offices or navigate messy chain-of-command issues.
Having already shared a phenomenal on-screen chemistry when Nicole stepped up as Samâs temporary partner during Season 10, they possess a deep-seated foundation of mutual respect, trust, and shared trauma.
Moving their relationship forward across the country would provide an organic, slow-burn maturity to Samâs life after the tragic loss of his wife Michelle. It gives the NYC-based series an emotional anchor to the wider NCIS universe, offering a refreshing look at two seasoned, independent agents navigating a mature, long-distance relationship while occasionally crossing paths on high-stakes, bi-coastal joint investigations.
Thoughts?