They actually killed off Franks

I like(d) Franks but I'm with you, at least they didn't kill off a regular! I hate it when shows do that just for ratings. Poor Gibbs... (Remember Kate? I really liked that character but I think the actress wanted to leave so they killed her off for that reason.)

I suspect Franks may still turn up either in a flashback or as a ghost.

Well they do get Mike Franks killer in the last show of the year. At least this year doesn't end with a big cliff hanger although they have left a new question open for next year. NCIS seemed to be getting ready to kill off somebody for more than a year now. I thought they were going to do it last year and I thought it would be Franks or Jimmy. I didn;t expect any of the main characters to get knocked off because all of the actors are under contract for next year. Somebody would have to want out (like "Kate" did) to get killed off the show.