#sallen

I remember getting to read the script for the first part of the backdoor pilot before it aired thanks to a friend with some connections. Some things were changed from the script, including that Sam was originally doing the Renko undercover role. I'm guessing they knew they couldn't just hide LL Cool J's role with OSP so they changed it. But Shane Brennan also recalled how they were about to shoot the first scene with Chris and Todd, and they were talking in the van. No one knew if it would work or not, and so everyone on the other side of the camera held their breath and then "Action." And it worked instantly.

The show was about the things that shape your identity, and who you are, with the exploration of how the roles we play in different parts of our lives impact that. G Callen could not have had a more polar opposite partner in that area alone. G never felt like he could settle into being someone without knowing his past, and he always felt like something was missing. He was incomplete and broken. His undercover work only benefitted from that: a blank canvas not committed to anything really, who also probably tried out different traits when he was in character.

Enter Sam Hanna: a man who couldn't be more self-assured and aware of who he is. He's confident with great strength of character. Who you see when you meet Sam Hanna is exactly who Sam Hanna is. He's a mountain of morals, honor, and duty. In a way, yes, his service and career are a big part of who he is, especially since he was raised by a father who was also in service. But it's less that that life gave him those character traits and more that they fit so well into them. Sam never faltered on undercover work, but it was, for obvious reasons, not an obvious choice for him. It created a natural challenge, and at that point in his career, Sam needed one. He never likes to go without a challenge for too long because you should always keep growing.

They made for a great pair to complement each other at work. G had a tendency to go too far in and lone wolf into danger, and he was allowed to do it because he got results. But Sam Hanna's job was to be a partner and get the job done. And he was not about to let G go too far in. There was a balance of pulling each other that was so organic it couldn't help but creep into their personal lives, as well. G needed to learn to let someone in, and Sam Hanna was persistent with a huge heart. Sam had been surrounded with people with traits similar to him for so long, that it didn't hurt to mix it up and even created a challenge -- which we know Sam loves and is always up for. They challenged each other. They helped each other. And they cared for each other.

For a show that was no stranger to "testosterone undertone," toxic masculinity territory is always a danger. Most of the characters on this show definitely have bases in tropes, especially network procedural tropes. However, the people they cast have helped make them so much more. What follows is an opinion, but I stand by it. (Also, while I'm talking about Callen and Sam specifically here, this extends to other characters on this show, especially the male ones.) They ended up with Chris and Todd, two men who are extremely frank about feelings and emotions in real life, and who aren't afraid to hug and say they love each other in interviews. Often the Sallen banter just rang so true to conversations Chris and Todd had probably been overheard having on set, so it makes even more sense that their offscreen traits and relationship made their way into the show, as well. I seriously doubt we would've ended up with so many casual "I love you's," hugs, and HAND HOLDING between two grown men in this career if they had different actors.

I cannot overstate how important it is that this relationship not only existed, but existed for 14 years on a network channel, specifically the one with some of the most traditional overall values in their shows.