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The Best Episodes of NCIS Season 3

Every episode of NCIS Season 3 ranked from best to worst. Discover the Best Episodes of NCIS Season 3!

Binge this in 17h 34m•Peaking at 8.7/10

From murder and espionage to terrorism and stolen submarines, a team of special agents investigates any crime that has any connection to Navy and Marine Corps personnel, regardless of rank or position.

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Episode Rankings

  1. #1 Fan Favorite
    NCIS Season 3 Episode 2 - Kill Ari (2)
    8.7/10(1329 votes)

    S3:E2

    Still stressed over Kate's death, Gibbs is even more hurt when Ari kidnaps Ducky and decides to play with his mind. Gibbs sends Tony to follow Ziva, and after Jenny and Gibbs are almost shot to death, he is even more determined to finish once and for all with Ari, and Ziva's strange connection to Ari will be just the help that he needs.

    Director:James Whitmore Jr.
    Writer:Donald P. Bellisario

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  2. NCIS Season 3 Episode 1 - Kill Ari (1)
    8.6/10(1373 votes)

    S3:E1

    After the terrorist's attack, the NCIS team are shocked and are trying to cope with Kate's sudden death, each in their own way. Now, their mission is to collect all the possible info on Ari and find a way to stop him before he does any more damage.

    Director:Dennis Smith
    Writer:Donald P. Bellisario

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  3. NCIS Season 3 Episode 24 - Hiatus (2)
    8.6/10(1131 votes)

    S3:E24

    The NCIS team must work on an assignment against a terrorist group without Gibbs, who is still recovering from the explosion. Gibbs has to fight with memory loss, while he's visited by his mentor and his former boss. Gibbs' help is needed, especially when the team discover that he is the only person who has information about the terrorists' plans.

    Director:Dennis Smith
    Writer:Donald P. Bellisario

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  4. NCIS Season 3 Episode 8 - Under Covers
    8.5/10(1228 votes)

    S3:E8

    When bodies of two hired assassins are delivered to the NCIS team, Ziva and Tony go undercover assuming the victim's identities in order to find the person who hired the assassins for their mission. Gibbs discovers that his team are not the only ones working on the case.

    Director:Aaron Lipstadt
    Writer:Lee David Zlotoff

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  5. NCIS Season 3 Episode 9 - Frame-Up
    8.5/10(1148 votes)

    S3:E9

    Tony is accused of murdering a woman whose body was found at Quantico and the team must prove his innocence.

    Director:Thomas J. Wright
    Writer:Laurence Walsh

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  6. NCIS Season 3 Episode 23 - Hiatus (1)
    8.4/10(1058 votes)

    S3:E23

    While working on an assignment, Gibbs is seriously injured in an explosion, and taken to a hospital, where he recalls his painful past, which he has always hidden from others. The rest of the team must proceed with the investigation and put their feelings towards Gibbs' injury aside.

    Director:Dennis Smith
    Writer:Donald P. Bellisario

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  7. NCIS Season 3 Episode 7 - Honor Code
    8.2/10(1118 votes)

    S3:E7

    When a six-year-old boy informs the NCIS team that his father was kidnapped, the team discover that the missing father is actually a Lt. Commander working on a secret project named Honor, and that he is the only one who has the code that can open the project.

    Director:Colin Bucksey
    Writer:Christopher Silber

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  8. NCIS Season 3 Episode 18 - Bait
    8.2/10(1070 votes)

    S3:E18

    The NCIS team must stop a teenage student from detonating a bomb attached to his body, while he's taking the other students hostage at a Quantico base high school. Gibbs tries to stop him when he enters the classroom, only to realize that there may be someone else controlling the teenage student from the outside.

    Director:Terrence O'Hara
    Writer:Laurence Walsh

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  9. NCIS Season 3 Episode 21 - Bloodbath
    8.1/10(1026 votes)

    S3:E21

    While working on a regular murder case with the rest of the NCIS team, Abby is almost killed by evidence from the case. Soon it becomes clear that the murder was staged, and that someone wants Abby dead. The team discover some enemies from Abby's past, and they must find out who is the person, before they kill Abby.

    Director:Dennis Smith
    Writer:Steven D. Binder

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  10. NCIS Season 3 Episode 3 - Mind Games
    8.0/10(1080 votes)

    S3:E3

    Gibbs is ordered to talk to a convict that is about to be executed, in order to discover information about the place where he hid his victims, but when the plan doesn't work, the team must solve the case in their own way.

    Director:William Webb
    Writers:John C. Kelley, Frank Cardea, George Schenck

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  11. NCIS Season 3 Episode 10 - Probie
    8.0/10(992 votes)

    S3:E10

    While on duty, McGee kills a man who is later discovered to be an undercover police officer. When Jen decides to approve the investigation on McGee, the NCIS team are forced to prove that McGee is not guilty, pushing Gibbs' relationship with Jen to the limit.

    Director:Terrence O'Hara
    Writers:Frank Cardea, George Schenck

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  12. NCIS Season 3 Episode 12 - Boxed In
    7.9/10(1004 votes)

    S3:E12

    While looking for smuggled weapons at a shipyard, Tony and Ziva disappear and it's up to NCIS to find them. Abby tries to find them by tracking down their GPS chips, but they seem to be out of reach.

    Director:Dennis Smith
    Writer:Dana Coen

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  13. NCIS Season 3 Episode 22 - Jeopardy
    7.9/10(943 votes)

    S3:E22

    The NCIS team must protect Ziva when a suspect dies in custody, and her tactic might be the reason why the person died. Things become much more dangerous when the suspect's brother kidnapps Jenny, and demands the release of his brother in exchange for Jenny, but he has no idea that his brother is dead.

    Director:James Whitmore Jr.
    Writer:David J. North

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  14. NCIS Season 3 Episode 4 - Silver War
    7.7/10(1030 votes)

    S3:E4

    When a corpse of a man is found inside a tomb that comes from the Civil War, the team discover that the victim, a Sergeant, was buried alive. During the investigation, Abby tracks down the last phone call of the victim.

    Director:Terrence O'Hara
    Writer:John C. Kelley

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  15. NCIS Season 3 Episode 14 - Light Sleeper
    7.7/10(928 votes)

    S3:E14

    The NCIS team investigate the murder of two Marine wives, and must find the murderers before they attack their next target, another woman.

    Director:Colin Bucksey
    Writer:Christopher Silber

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  16. NCIS Season 3 Episode 17 - Ravenous
    7.7/10(918 votes)

    S3:E17

    When Marine dog tags are found in a national forest by a group of teens, the NCIS team are called in to investigate. While searching for the campsite of the Marine, the team find out that there was another person, possibly a woman, with him. The investigation takes them to an even more higher discovery - there could be a serial killer killing women in the national forest.

    Director:Thomas J. Wright
    Writer:Richard C. Arthur

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  17. NCIS Season 3 Episode 19 - Iced
    7.6/10(912 votes)

    S3:E19

    Gibbs and the team are called in when a couple of kids stumble upon the body of a missing Marine in a frozen lake. As the NCIS team search the frozen lake bed for clues, they come across three more bullet-ridden bodies.

    Director:Dennis Smith
    Writer:Dana Coen

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  18. NCIS Season 3 Episode 20 - Untouchable
    7.6/10(888 votes)

    S3:E20

    When a Pentagon cryptographer is found dead, the NCIS team have to discover whether she was or wasn't a Pentagon mole, and if she committed suicide. As the investigation continues, the team discover that the cryptographer wasn't alone when she died.

    Director:Leslie Libman
    Writers:Frank Cardea, George Schenck

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  19. NCIS Season 3 Episode 6 - The Voyeur's Web
    7.5/10(968 votes)

    S3:E6

    The NCIS team take up a strange case - a Marine's wife was murdered live on the Internet. The investigation reveals that two housewives were running a live Internet sex site and now they are both missing. While looking for them, the team will try to track down the webmaster and solve the alleged murder case.

    Director:Dennis Smith
    Writer:David J. North

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  20. NCIS Season 3 Episode 13 - Deception
    7.5/10(991 votes)

    S3:E13

    When a Lt. Commander in charge of a shipment of fuel rods for nuclear power stations disappears, the NCIS team are called in. The team must solve the case in time, before the person who kidnapped the Commander finds out the secret location of the fuel rods or harms the Commander.

    Director:Leslie Libman
    Writer:Jack Bernstein

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  21. NCIS Season 3 Episode 15 - Head Case
    7.5/10(955 votes)

    S3:E15

    While discovering an illegal automotive chop shop, the NCIS team stumble upon a severed head of a Marine, hidden in one of the cars from the shop. When they find possible suspects, the team will have to find the rest of the body and find the murderer.

    Director:Dennis Smith
    Writers:Frank Cardea, George Schenck

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  22. NCIS Season 3 Episode 16 - Family Secret
    7.5/10(903 votes)

    S3:E16

    When an ambulance explodes while carrying the remains of a Marine's body that was killed in a car crash, the NCIS team are called in to investigate what actually happened. The investigation leads them to some sudden discoveries - the DNA of the victim found in the ambulance doesn't match the Marine's DNA, the ambulance was set up to explode, and the family of the dead Marine is hiding a very important secret.

    Director:James Whitmore Jr.
    Writer:Steven D. Binder

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  23. NCIS Season 3 Episode 5 - Switch
    7.4/10(960 votes)

    S3:E5

    When an officer is shot to death on the freeway, the NCIS team take on the investigation. The first lead, a fact that the victim was leading a double life, take them to a possible solution of the crime, but the tables are turned when the victim's dying message is discovered and it leads them to a totally different clue.

    Director:Thomas J. Wright
    Writer:Gil Grant

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  24. NCIS Season 3 Episode 11 - Model Behavior
    7.4/10(980 votes)

    S3:E11

    A supermodel dies while filming a reality show on a Marine base, and the NCIS team must discover who is the model's murderer. They discover a love triangle between the model and three other men, all suspects.

    Director:Stephen Cragg
    Writer:David J. North

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Season 3 Ratings Summary

"Kill Ari (2)" is the best rated episode of "NCIS" season 3. It scored 8.7/10 based on 1329 votes. Directed by James Whitmore Jr. and written by Donald P. Bellisario, it aired on 9/27/2005. This episode is rated 0.1 points higher than the second-best, "Kill Ari (1)".