All the NCIS: Sydney characters have exceptional qualities, but some naturally rise to the top as favorites. The NCIS: Sydney characters debuted in 2023, when the show launched in Australia amid the writer’s strike. The new series filled a vital need for programming that otherwise wasn’t being produced and introduced many exciting firsts to the franchise. NCIS: Sydney was the first NCIS show to incorporate serialized storytelling, which sees a more cohesive narrative throughout.

When considering who are genuinely the best characters in Sydney or ranking them otherwise, the twist is that characters can change their positions in the upcoming season. Many characters, such as guarded leads Mackey and Evie, have abundant character development opportunities in the coming season. While some characters are lower on the list after season 1, it’s anyone’s game in NCIS: Sydney season 2 for who will be the most compelling.

6

Special Agent Michelle Mackey

Olivia Swann Portrays The Supervisory Agent

Mackey is the team leader and supervisory agent of the AFP/NCIS Sydney Task Force. She has a tough exterior and often chooses not to show her emotions. Frequently, that makes sense in the environment she is in. As a team leader, Mackey exudes leadership prowess and strength. While she may not always externally emote, it’s clear that Mackey is capable of profound emotion and has felt indelible sadness. As a former service member, Mackey has a tragic past and has experienced grave losses in her line of work. It makes sense that she is somewhat protective of her vulnerabilities.

Mackey’s guarded exterior made her somewhat hard to relate to in NCIS: Sydney season 1. If Mackey can develop her ability to relate to her team members in season 2, receiving and understanding her will be easier. Mackey occasionally judged her colleagues in season 1, namely Bluebird “Blue” Gleeson. Blue, the team’s forensic scientist, has highly anxious and self-doubting tendencies that make it challenging for her to communicate with Mackey, who is more straightforward, especially early on in season 1. Mackey even said NCIS was not a “refuge for misfits with personality disorders” concerning Blue.

Mackey needs to be more understanding in season 2, as she already began to do at the end of season 1. Despite her communication hurdles, which are part of the development of her character, Mackey is a courageous and fierce team leader. She fights to keep her team safe, even if that goes against their wishes, like when she wants to pull Evie from her undercover operation in episode 6 to protect her. Many sides to Mackey are reminiscent of the original team leader, Leroy Jethro Gibbs, who didn’t soften quickly but would stop at nothing to protect his team.

5

Constable Evie Cooper

Tuuli Narkle Portrays Constable Evie Cooper

Evie Cooper is a character who got more likable as NCIS: Sydney season 1 ticked on. Evie is a Constable with the Australian Federal Police and a Liaison officer with the AFP and the NCIS Sydney task force. Early in season 1, Evie is almost a one-dimensional character, defined by her antics of antagonizing her teammate, Special Agent DeShawn Jackson. In the first few episodes, Evie and DeShawn play adversaries. Still, Evie rarely lets up the ruse, making her seem somewhat arrogant and conceited until episode 6 when the season exposes more about who Cooper is outside the workplace.

In NCIS: Sydney season 1, episode 6, “Extraction,” Evie is genuinely vulnerable for the first time. The episode witnessed her letting down her guard emotionally while fiercely protecting herself in an undercover operation. Evie attempted to hide her involvement in the undercover operation from her team. While it may just be that Evie felt like she didn’t have any other options, the decision signaled that the character keeps her guard up, even professionally, and doesn’t trust people easily. Seeing Evie break down more of her safeguards in season 2 would be a satisfying development for the character.

4

Jim “JD” Dempsey

Todd Lasance Portrays The AFP Sergeant

Jim Dempsey, or simply “JD,” is a Sergeant for the Australian Federal Police. He is a complex character that brings a lot of different sides to the role without inauthentically portraying various aspects of who JD is and how he responds to the world around him. JD can be contradictory. He is laid back, and yet he is viciously competitive. While it sometimes seems like winning the “pissing contest” is the most essential thing to JD, he is often able to let it go with a smile. He features an arrogance similar to that of the original team leader, Gibbs.

JD shows Gibbs’s cunning, grace, and prowess mixed with Aussie charm, taking a side seat to Mackey. He is a smooth operator of his environment since he is a local and, therefore, master of his terrain. JD is an essential element of the team. Not only are his skills necessary, but JD’s interpersonal skills are vital for gelling the team’s Australian and American assets. While quick to smile and form a positive outlook on a situation, JD is also more than capable of profound qualities. Viewers saw the depth of JD’s fiercely protective nature in episode 8, “Blonde Ambition.”

JD’s character is in contrast to that of Special Agent DeShawn Jackson. The agent has a caring nature that is more nurturing, whereas JD is more likely to fight or exert force and emotion to get what he needs. JD understands when to color outside the lines to see justice served, like the quintessential NCIS agents portrayed throughout the franchise. While all the characters of NCIS: Sydney have endearing qualities that warrant their presence in the series, JD has a charismatic nature vital to the cast, complete with fascinating Aussie conditioning that keeps the Americans on their toes.

3

Roy “Rosie” Penrose

William McInnes Portrays The Former Navy Medic And Forensic Pathologist

Doctor Roy “Rosie” Penrose, referred to as “Roy” or “Rosie,” is the team’s forensic pathologist. He often stays with Blue at the NCIS Sydney Headquarters to run tests and find answers that can help the team in the field. Doc and Blue have a friendship that blooms throughout the first season. The relationship is modeled on the friendship between Abby Sciuto and Dr. Donald Mallard in the original NCIS series. Similarly to Blue and Rosie, Abby and Ducky often supported their teams in the lab together. In both cases, a relationship of mutual love and respect exists.

Doc’s friendship with Blue and how they comfort one another makes Doc one of the best NCIS: Sydney characters. He is deeply caring, although he has his quirks, as did Dr. Mallard. David McCallum’s character was also set apart from the rest of the Major Case Response Team because he hailed from a different part of the world. The same is true for the doc character, portrayed by Scottish actor William McInnes, setting Rosie apart from his Aussie and American counterparts. While he can sometimes close himself off, it’s also apparent that Doc has high emotional intelligence.

NCIS: Sydney season 1, episode 5, “Doggiecino Day Afternoon,” revealed more intimate details regarding Roy’s home life. When the perpetrator holds the doctor hostage at a doggie café and takes his phone, Roy begs to answer it. The doctor explains that it is because he’s just moved his wife into a care facility, and he’s promised her that he will answer her call no matter what. Roy is genuinely disturbed by the idea that he may be unable to answer her call. Doc’s deep care for the people he loves makes him relatable and one of the best characters.

2

Special Agent DeShawn Jackson

Sean Sagar Portrays The Los Angeles-Raised NCIS Agent

DeShawn Jackson is undoubtedly one of the best characters in NCIS: Sydney. DeShawn is motivated in his work by a nurturing quality that sets him apart from the rest of his team. In NCIS: Sydney season 1, episode 2, “Snakes in the Grass,” Evie and DeShawn uncover an animal smuggling operation. Evie finds dead birds in the trash can. It’s later revealed that DeShawn took the birds from the crime scene. He takes them to Roy because “they’re not trash.” Roy makes a plan to preserve them if needed for the investigation or to bestow dignity on their death otherwise.

At the end of episode 2, Evie acknowledges DeShawn’s tender nature when she calls him a “little Paddington Bear” for wanting to find homes for all the animals displaced in the undercover animal smuggling ring operation that the team disbanded. In other words, DeShawn is the right mix of a highly skilled agent equipped with the care and consideration necessary to do quality police work. DeShawn has another sweet moment in episode 5 when he tries to get information from the perpetrator’s cancer-stricken little sister about her motivations for strapping a bomb on herself.

Overall, DeShawn is curious, open, funny, and cares for the people around him. It makes him one of the best NCIS: Sydney characters because he’s not just a good police officer; he can offer what’s emotionally required at the scene to avoid escalation. A few notes from the Tony DiNozzo character playbook were worked into the character. The way that DeShawn is enduringly curious about Evie’s tattoo is one of them. DiNozzo was always curious about what Kate had tattooed in the original series before her shocking death. The chase facilitates the classic will-they-won’t-they trope.

1

Bluebird “Blue” Gleeson

Mavournee Hazel Portrays The Team’s Forensic Scientist

Blue is an outstanding character in NCIS: Sydney. She’s eager to do an excellent job in her post as the team’s forensic scientist, even if it is only temporary when the season kicks off. Despite her anxious and self-doubting nature (or perhaps because of it), Blue assists the team with intel and often comes up with creative and expected ideas to get the answers she needs. She likes to get into the headspace of the crime scene when she is working, often listening to music that evokes the spirit of the crime, making it fun to watch her character work.

While Blue is similar to the Abby Sciuto character in that they are both neurotic women with a passion for forensics, Blue’s character takes essential departures from the Abby character. While she is building her confidence, it appears that Blue is a multidimensional character capable of immense character development, which is already apparent in season 1. In episode 5, when Blue fears for Rosie’s life as he is held hostage, Blue has a breakdown. The series shows how Blue gets out of it and ultimately saves the day, making a comeback from her defeated moment.

One of Blue’s most endearing qualities is that she reflects the uncertainty and anxiety of the world. The character constantly second-guesses herself, especially in the presence of Mackey, who she profoundly respects but who also intimidates her to no end. Blue, not always having the perfect thing to say and not constantly feeling the best about what she’s just said, makes her a vulnerable and relatable character who is easy to relate to because of how much of her emotion and anxiety shows on the outside. Blue’s authenticity regarding the human condition makes her the best NCIS: Sydney character.