"Rules of Engagement" is an episode of JAG that first aired on September 28, 1999. Directed by Jeannot Szwarc. Written by Ed Zuckerman.
This episode picks up where the previous one left off — with the cocky aviator and Commander Rabb's wingman Lt. Andrew "X-Man" Buxton (Lochlyn Munro) charged with fratricide and violating the rules of engagement.
Buxton makes the reasonable point that the Russians didn't notify anyone that they were operating in the area, and their flag looks eerily similar to the Serbian flag. Not to mention, that the Yugoslav Army uses Soviet military surplus equipment.
Buxton ropes Rabb into defending him at the court-martial. Lt. Colonel MacKenzie is sent from JAG HQ along with Lt. Bud Roberts to investigate the matter and winds up prosecuting. Later, Lt. Commander Brumby (Trevor Goddard) is sent to first chair the case, since Rabb's now technically not a lawyer.
Tropes
- Blood Knight: What Mac tries to characterize Buxton as — someone a little too eager for combat, but Rabb rolls with that, and says that this is exactly the kind of person that militaries should have. And it works, as Buxton is acquitted of all charges.
- Double Entendre: Brumby jokes that tailhooking is a sin before marriage.
- Fridge Brilliance: Why would Rabb, who as Buxton's defense counsel not face an ethical problem, testifying against X-Man in the FNAEB? Because a FNAEB is a Field Naval Aviator Evaluation Board, that only determines an aviator's suitability to keep operating aircraft. It isn't a legal board that can dole out punishments — it can only revoke flight status and ground pilots. By testifying on X-Man's suitability to be a naval aviator, Rabb isn't violating any legal obligations to defend Buxton in a court of law.
- Grounded Forever: Implied to be Buxton's eventual fate. Rabb gets him off on the fratricide charges, but will testify against him in a FNAEB, which will revoke Buxton's aviator status, grounding him forever.
- Ironic Echo: A fairly immediate one from Brumby as he and Roberts observe some fighter jets take off and land on the carrier.Roberts: Look at that, commander. Getting up to fifteen hundred miles an hour, pulling six-G turns, finding a carrier deck on a night like this. You know what the pilots call us? Legal weenies.Brumby: Yeah, well, at least we don't have to get up to fifteen hundred miles an hour, pull six-G turns, or find a carrier deck on a night like this.Roberts: Sorry, commander, I didn't mean to imply you should feel inadequate.Brumby: Maybe they're the ones who feel inadequate, Bud.
- Previously on…: We are given a quick summary of what happened in the previous episode.
- Rank Up, discussed: Rabb was unaware that Mac had been promoted to lieutenant colonel (O-5), so now she outranks him, as he's still a lieutenant commander (O-4).
- Unfriendly Fire: What Buxton is accused of.
- With All Due Respect: Rabb interrupts Roberts's phone call to his wife. "Excuse me, commander, but with all due respect, could you please leave, sir?" Though unlike most usages of this phrase, Roberts is actually sincere in his respect for his superior.
