“Book him too, Danno.”

Years:  1974, 1975
Genre:  TV series, Cop, Drama
Country:  United States
Language:  English
Starring:  Jack Lord, James MacArthur, Kam Fong, Al Harrington
Guest stars:  Leslie Nielsen, Perry King, Bruce Boxleitner, James Olson, Sheree North, Ray Danton, Jessica Walter, Sam Elliott, Gail Strickland, Linda Purl, Ed Flanders, Scott Brady, Jo Ann Harris, Keene Curtis
Creators:  Leonard Freeman
Run time:  20 hours 9 minutes
DVD distributor:  Paramount Home Entertainment
Related reviews:  Hawaii Five-O Season Four, Hawaii Five-O Season Five, Hawaii Five-O Season Six

     I must begin my review of Hawaii Five-O, Seventh Season, on DVD October 20th from Paramount Home Entertainment, with an apology to Steve McGarrett.  Mr. McGarrett, I apologize, from the heart, for previously comparing you to David Caruso.  It is with sincere regret that I re-read my review of Season Six of your television program, where I suggested that the similarites are glaring.  I apologize to Jack Lord, the actor who played Mr. McGarrett as well, for my Season Five review where I called you Caruso-esque.  And I am contrite and ashamed when I read my review of Season Four, where I suggested Hawaii Five-O was a blueprint for the career of Caruso as Horatio in CSI Miami.

     The reason I apologize is that I recently watched the Seventh Season of CSI Miami.  At the Seven-Season mark of both shows, a perfect comparison can now be made.  Yes, Lord is intense to the point of being silly.  But he doesn’t take off his sunglasses and put them back on like he’s playing the Record Producer in a porno movie.  And yes, he relies a little too much on intense catch phrases, like “book ‘em, Danno”.  But his supporting cast, including Danno, is actually noticeable in each episode.  When there are guest stars on Hawaii Five-O, they are given equal screen time to be bad guys, like Leslie Nielsen in the episode where he wants to lych a guy on his crazy-guy compound.  And no one in Hawaii Five-O drives a hummer.

     I complain, often, that Hawaii Five-O spawned series like CSI: Miami, and that it helped to ruin television as a result.  But having made the direct comparison, I no longer hold a grudge.  I don’t blame Minor Threat for emo.  They were good, and they can’t help that their message was taken by less talented folks and used for evil.  And I don’t blame Hawaii Five-O for the crap that came after.  It was, is, and will always remain better than all the silliness that has sprung up in its wake.  Bring on Season Eight!

This entry was posted on Tuesday, October 13th, 2009 at 2:10 pm and is filed under 1974, 1975, Cop, Drama, TV series. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.