NCIS actor Gary Cole picked up a particularly meaningful distinction when his castmates started handing out behind-the-scenes superlatives: someone worth turning to on a difficult day.
“You’ve got a lot of great advice,” actress Diona Reasonover told him as she made her case for naming him the cast’s best shoulder to cry on.
Cole, Reasonover and actor Brian Dietzen joined CBS’ “Superlatives” game segment last week, trading nominations for everything from class clown to the colleague most like their character. But underneath the teasing, they offered a glimpse of the friendships that help keep the workplace warm.
Reasonover described Cole as empathetic and insisted that he deserved the shoulder-to-cry-on honor. Her reasoning wasn’t about his résumé or his screen presence; she valued what he brought to a conversation.
“But also, you’re really fun to talk to,” she added.
The discussion widened beyond a single winner, with the cast acknowledging that more than one colleague could offer support. They didn’t describe one particular crisis or private conversation, but the exchange made clear that turning to a colleague for support wasn’t merely hypothetical.
That offscreen camaraderie fits the series’ emphasis on relationships. In its official description, CBS puts the team’s complicated, often amusing dynamics alongside its investigations of crimes involving the Navy and Marine Corps.
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Cole plays Special Agent Alden Parker, while Reasonover plays forensic scientist Kasie Hines and Dietzen plays medical examiner Jimmy Palmer. Their characters bring different skills to the job, and the superlatives game gave the actors room to compare those fictional personalities with their own.
Dietzen initially drew consideration for the cast member most like his character, prompting a decidedly literal comparison with Jimmy. He noted that they shared a height, clothing size and shoe size, though the resemblance had its limits.
“I don’t wear the glasses,” he said.
His castmates also discussed his positive outlook before the conversation moved on to Reasonover. Even a question about fictional characters became an excuse to tease — and compliment — one another.
Reasonover had a funny objection when the conversation turned toward whether she resembled Kasie.
“She just speaks her mind, which is my least favorite thing to do, talk,” Reasonover said.
Her colleagues weren’t buying that assessment. The exchange became another round of friendly pushback rather than a serious argument about who understood her best.
Reasonover has plenty of practice finding the humor in a conversation: her CBS biography lists comedy training with Upright Citizens Brigade and Second City, along with work as an actor, writer and improviser. The game gave that playful side room to surface.
One category required much less deliberation. The trio agreed that actor Wilmer Valderrama, who plays Special Agent Nick Torres, deserved the class-clown title.
Dietzen, meanwhile, became the pick for most likely to go viral on TikTok. He offered a deliberately modest assessment of his online reach.
“I’m getting dozens of views,” he joked.
For viewers who know these actors through tense investigations, the conversation offered something smaller and more personal: colleagues who can trade a joke, accept a compliment and recognize the value of a good listener. Fans can catch up with their onscreen counterparts on Paramount+.
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