Foof

Foof or Phoof is the unofficial name for the black and white "preview" at the beginning of each act of an NCIS episode.
This tradition has also expanded into the spin-off shows, NCIS: Los Angeles, NCIS: New Orleans and NCIS: Hawaii.
==NCIS==
The foof/phoof made its debut appearance in the NCIS Season 2 episode, Lt. Jane Doe (episode) and as such, has aired in every single episode of NCIS to date except for NCIS Season 1 and the first three episodes of NCIS Season 2, See No Evil (episode), The Good Wives Club (episode) and Vanished (episode) of NCIS Season 2.
As such, each episode has had a total of four or five foofs with the majority of the foofs including the main characters. In recent years, though, they have been expanded to include a recurring or one-off NCIS character while giving NCIS a very unique quality and separating it from other shows.
NCIS's creator and Executive Producer Donald P. Bellisario creates the noise by hitting a microphone with his hand although it sounds like a light-bulb exploding.
In the NCIS Season 3 debut episode, Kill Ari Part 1 (episode), and unlike in previous episodes which had the characters moving to some degree even after the foof itself happened, the foofs from "Kill Ari Part 1" began using freeze-frames which has continued to be used to this day which means that every time a foof happens, then the foof itself will end with the people standing still like a photograph of some sort.
When the NCIS Season 5 premiere episode, Bury Your Dead (episode) aired, the foof was again changed so that it would end on a different one compared to the one originally shown in the first "preview" which has continued to be used to this day. 
In the NCIS Season 5 episode, Leap of Faith (episode), the three-second teaser being shown at the beginning was changed so that it was NOT for the end scene before the intro (like in past episodes) but it was actually for the scene after the intro leading into the first commercial break.
Foofs are mostly in black and white - but not always completely so due to the fact that at the end of the NCIS Season 7 episode Code of Conduct (episode), Anthony DiNozzo Junior inadvertently displayed a flash of color. Having taken a sip of 'coffee' that Ziva David had bought him, he smiled, revealing that she'd played a Hallowe'en prank on him - his mouth had been stained blue. When the foof occurred, Tony's teeth remained blue while everything else in shot turned monochrome.
This happened again in the Season 11 episode Homesick (episode) as the final foof showed Gibbs and the entire squadroom shrouded in the black and white freeze frame while the Christmas tree was left untouched.
Again on the Season 18 debut episode Sturgeon Season, the foof into the first commercial break had a red tone.
In recent years, the foof has been upgraded to not only include main characters but also recurring and one-off characters as well.
==NCIS: Los Angeles==
Beginning with the NCIS: Los Angeles Season 1 premiere episode, Identity (episode), the "foof" is not unlike the original NCIS series, instead focusing on a single character or group in a photo. 
It will instead give off the sound of a camera rapidly taking photographs with the images themselves displayed in black and white while also showing previous or upcoming scenes from the episode.
With the exception of the NCIS: Los Angeles Season 11 episode, A Bloody Brilliant Plan (episode) which had the images or photos in color, all of the images are usually in black and white.
As of NCIS: Los Angeles Season 14, the foofs seen at the beginning of the episode play out as normal but on the last foof showing an image from the episode, the screen goes white instead of remaining on the image in question like it did in the past.
In the UK and Ireland in episodes of NCIS: Los Angeles that air on Sky One and later Sky Max, the foofs/phoofs or previews of past or upcoming scenes are edited out altogether, presumably due to the concern that it might trigger a seizure in those who suffer from Photosensitive epilepsy and instead of showing the previews, the episode will usually go to a commercial break, showing the "NCIS: Los Angeles" title card or just display a single black and white photo before the new act begins.
==NCIS: New Orleans==
Beginning with the NCIS: New Orleans Season 1 premiere episode, Musician Heal Thyself (episode), the foofs are all in color and will incorporate the freeze-frame position similar to NCIS but a different sound for the foof is used and like the NCIS series, will sometimes end from a different angle or scenario compared to the original foof.
==NCIS: Hawaii==
The newest show in the NCIS franchise, NCIS Hawaii or NCIS: Hawai'i displays a similar foof to the original "NCIS" series with the foof itself appearing the end of an act with the main NCIS: Hawaii character retaining the original color while everything around them freezes and is a light blue color.
The foof only appears at the end of an act on NCIS: Hawaii, breaking the long-running tradition of having a foof appear at the beginning and end of an act which has been a tradition for NCIS, NCIS: Los Angeles and NCIS: New Orleans.
Category:NCIS Trivia
Category:NCIS: Los Angeles Trivia
Category:NCIS: New Orleans Trivia
Category:NCIS: Hawaii Trivia