Weighing in on Gerald and Jimmy
by DC and NancyP, respectively

These were originally posted in February of 2005, after the first run of the epi "Meat Puzzle". There were some posts about Gerald being disrespectful to Ducky and a (very innocent, mind you) supposition that the reason fans liked Gerald was because they had met Pancho Demmings.

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I've never met the guy who played Gerald and was amused by but never overly excited about him in the first season. There is, however, a genuine reason--solidified after seeing "Meat Puzzle"--I prefer Gerald to Jimmy Palmer. (This is nothing about any actors, just the characters.)

Jimmy is a nice, smart, and observant guy and he'll turn out to be a great medical examiner. He was the one whose idea to test the nerve DNA proved Gibbs' hunch right. I've got nothing against him.

Still, there are way too many bumbling, over-eager, trying-hard-to-please-others people, and it's a little annoying. McGee is a regular. Tony and Kate sometimes fall over themselves to please Gibbs. Palmer tries too hard to please Ducky and is way too scared of Gibbs. Only chatty Ducky and the hyper Abby don't.

Jimmy, to me, is just a medical version of McGee with Ducky's chattiness tacked on. In a show whose marking characteristic is distinctive personalities, Jimmy doesn't feel distinctive, even after this episode.

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Gerald obviously enjoyed his job, probably because of all his time in his grandfather's funeral home. He remembers Ducky's stories (e.g. about his "salad days") and seems to be interested in him as a person, not just as someone whose medical knowledge is valuable. He is competent (Gibbs leaves him and Tony to deal with the contaminated crime scene) and quick and efficient (Ducky complains about him in "One Shot, [One Kill]" only to find out he's already taken all the photos and readied the body and the gurney for transportation).

He isn't afraid of Ducky or Gibbs. He doesn't do anything intentionally to make Gibbs mad but he definitely isn't flustered by him. He even gives us our first look at Gibbs' out-of-touch-ness when he grins and tells Gibbs, "I called Abby on her cell. It sounded like one phat party!"

As for the headphones/iPod/CD player thing, that was Gerald's weakness. I know some people who are addicted to those things. I had a roommate who always had to have some kind of background noise (music, TV) on in order to work; quiet literally drove her to distraction. Not only did Gerald not inflict his music on others around him, his music was never so loud that he didn't hear Ducky when Ducky called him.

Gerald had a distinct nature that isn't found on anyone on the show. There's nothing intense or loud about him. It's even different from Abby, who overflows with enthusiasm. (I get tired sometimes just watching her bounce off the walls :) ) He's quietly confident, and so we see a guy who is laidback, has an easy laugh, and doesn't take things too personally or seriously (but doesn't go overboard, like Tony). He's content with his job, seemingly happy with his life. Plus, he smiles. You don't see many of those on TV.

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If "Meat Puzzle" was Jimmy's episode, "Bete Noire" was Gerald's, and that one really said a lot about him. He came in first, was already dressed, had talked to the people who delivered the "body" and then called Ducky to come. He was ready to go when Ducky showed up.

Ari tells Ducky that his "sense of humor under duress" is an admirable quality; later, refering to one of Gerald's comments, he tells Ducky that his sense of humor is contagious. Gerald is, I think, the only assistant we've seen who could still talk about phobias and Wellington-Waterloo-Eton with his boss and a suspected terrorist!

When Gerald is shot, he doesn't make a single whine. The guilt and the fury is on the side of Ducky and Kate. He keeps saying he's all right and keeps still and quiet through the end of the ordeal.

At the end, Tony says they find Ducky and Kate in the body coolers. While I'm sure it wouldn't be hard to find them in there eventually, particularly if they rattled around (I know nothing about body coolers, though!), maybe Gerald said where to find them.

Jimmy in "Meat Puzzle" was overtly concerned, openly worried about Ducky, and determined to help his mentor by successfully doing his job. At times, I felt like Ducky was comforting Jimmy with humor (with his jokes about "saving the best for last"), almost parent-child like. The comfort was going one way, from the victim to the one worried about him.

Gerald in "Bete Noire" helped Ducky in an entirely different way. By being calm and resilient himself, he frees Ducky temporarily from one worry--Gerald's emotions/fear. We hear nothing about Gerald's feelings about the whole thing until Kate says in "Reveille" that he asks every day if Ari's dead yet. If Gerald had displayed overt fear during the ordeal, I think Ducky would not have been as calm as he was.

Gerald is past the stage of uncertainty, and it marks his relationships with people in ways no other character does. And *that*'s why I want him back.

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There are two additional comments I would make about the character of Gerald:

First is in response to the criticism that he wore headphones to "tune out" Ducky and so was disrespecting his boss. I find this to be a rather illogical and unfair comment. As DC pointed out, Gerald may just have been one who needs "background noise" in his life. Lots of people do. My older sister cannot fall asleep unless the tv is on, and at my parents' house, she sleeps on the living room sofa because there is no bedroom with a television set. Whenever she is at home, the television is on. She rarely actually watches it more than in passing, but she needs that noise. She keeps a small radio in her office, which is also on when she is there.

But there is another possibility as well: we need to remember there has been a subtle shift in the attitude towards Ducky and his stories between Seasons 1 and 2. In the first season, his stories frequently annoyed everyone. We saw Gibbs cut him short many times, and Tony and Kate were sometimes shown to exchange glances. Ducky's stories are far more tolerated by everyone this season than last. So, I think it was in keeping with the mood and tone of the first season that Gerald would be shown to be wearing headphones from time to time. Not to be disrespectful to Ducky but just because he would need a break from time to time. I could see that it might get to be a bit much from time to time if you worked all day every day with someone like that.

An objective look at all of what we saw about the relationship between Ducky and Gerald makes it quite clear that Gerald must spend a lot of time actually talking with and listening to Ducky, as he is quite familiar with Ducky's background and life experiences. He knows Ducky far too well not to be listening most of the time. DC's posts give numerous examples that amply demonstrate the true nature of the relationship between these two men.

My second comment was also touched on a bit by DC in his/her (sorry I don't know which) comments: namely, I much more enjoyed the relationship between Gerald and Ducky and Gerald and the rest of the team. Although Ducky was Gerald's boss, it was at heart a rather equal partnership between Gerald and Ducky, and Gerald was clearly a well-liked and accepted member of the team. Gerald was more than competent at his job, and both Gibbs and Ducky trusted him to take charge or work alone when needed. He was respectful but not subservient, confident without being arrogant, and he had a playful streak that was a lot of fun. Remember when he was supposed to be "the body?" Ducky had to keep reminding him he was supposed to be dead ["High Seas"]. As DC mentioned, it strikes me that Jimmy is to Ducky what Magee is to Gibbs, and I much preferred Gerald and Ducky's quiet and mutually-respectful teamwork.