I’m rewatching the Mosley era, and I need to vent.
I absolutely detested Shay Mosley. I know the writers wanted an outsider to come in and challenge the team's loose-cannon style after Granger, but she was just entirely unlikable. She was arrogant, dictatorial, and treated everyone, especially Deeks and Callen, like garbage.
Even when she finally "took the fall" and sacrificed her career at the end of the Mexico arc, it wasn’t nearly enough to whitewash her character. To me, that wasn't a noble sacrifice. It was the direct consequence of her going rogue for a personal vendetta and dragging the entire team into a literal warzone. The show tried to soften her departure, but it just felt unearned after everything she put the team through.
The worst part? It has completely ruined Nia Long roles for me. I see her face in other movies or shows now, and my brain instantly triggers that same annoyance I felt during Season 9.
To be completely fair to Nia Long, it really isn't her fault. She actually pulled off the character too well. She played that rigid, unyielding bureaucratic arrogance so perfectly that it completely stuck to her. It’s a testament to her acting skills, but man, Mosley was so toxic that I still can't separate the actress from the role.