Why Amazon needs to save NCIS: Hawaii (but it probably won't)

CBS made the shocking decision to cancel NCIS: Hawaii after three seasons. Amazon needs to do the right thing and save the day.

This was not a cancellation that was expected. Many thought that it might be dropped to half a season, coming in the midseason, but we didn’t expect an outright cancellation. It’s a disappointing move by CBS, especially with the reasoning behind the decision.

Dsepite the strong linear ratings, the series had become expensive. Even with proposed budget cuts, CBS couldn’t make the series work. Fans would have preferred a fourth and final season order, but CBS opted to cancel the series instead.

Amazon needs to save NCIS: Hawaii

This is one of those shows that needs to be on the air. While there are a lot of procedural crime dramas already, NCIS: Hawaii brought a strong female lead—and a woman of color on top of all that. It’s rare that we have a show with a woman in the lead that hits the mark in so many other ways.

On top of that, it brought us a diverse casting. The series made it clear what the people of Hawaii think of white Americans and the feds coming in. We got two women in a relationship in Kate and Lucy, who weren’t just haphazardly put together. We had a chance to see their relationship build and go through struggles now and then.

We also can’t overlook Jason Antoon’s Ernie. The cyber crimes expert was a fun character to have, and we had that chance to see a man take rejection respectfully to give us a look at how a man should really take rejection and move forward.

We need more shows with diversity and inclusivity. Especially when they do it right like Hawaii has.

Why Amazon probably won’t save NCIS: Hawaii

There are a few things working against NCIS: Hawaii, and that’s before looking at the cost of the show. The first is that it doesn’t look like the series is being shopped around anywhere. If it was, Paramount+ would likely be the first consideration, and it’s odd that it hasn’t even moved there. Paramount+ will bring us the second season of NCIS: Sydney and the new Tony/Ziva NCIS spin-off series.

If the show isn’t being shopped around, Amazon wouldn’t even get a chance to step in. If it did, there are questions about whether Amazon would want one series in a franchise. Previous NCIS shows, like Los Angeles and New Orleans haven’t been saved. It does look like this one won’t make it to another platform, even though it really should.

NCIS: Hawaii is available to stream on Paramount+.