Season 11

by North ť Wed Mar 22, 2017 8:24 am
My morning indoor bike routine has me working through season 11 and I thought I'd share some observations so far...
The Sleeper was a dull episode, not much to say but could have been better
Horoscope was another loser episode with bad acting and writing
Courier was a very poorly written episode but the silly subject matter made it entertaining and fun in an odd way
Philip Christie was better than I remember, the story premise is very good (just forget the real world probability of a police chief on a jury), just sloppy writing and editing took away from its potential. I liked the dynamic between the jury foreman and McG, Jack played his part very well. I found it funny how most of the actors on the jury never uttered a word! Budget considerations I guess?
by ringfire211 ť Wed Mar 22, 2017 6:58 pm
I always liked "The Sleeper", one of my earlier memories of the series. It's a good spy story with an interesting "Manchurian candidate" premise and an above-average classical sounding score by John Cacavas (especially at the beginning). 3/4 stars
I never cared for "Horoscope for Murder" (or its season 12 sort-of sequel "Sign of the Ram") - like you said it's a dull episode. 1.5/4 stars
"Deadly Courier" is one of my very favorites of the season. Far fetched? Sure. But I'm always a sucker for a good brainwashing espionage story. Fine score by Cacavas too! 4/4
Always liked courtroom dramas (was a fan of MATLOCK growing up) so naturally I enjoyed "The Case Against Phillip Christie". McGarrett on a jury is an added bonus! It's basically 12 ANGRY MEN with Jack Lord playing Henry Fonda's role trying to swing the rest of the jurors over to his side. Does that mean Janis Paige is Lee J. Cobb?? 3/4 stars
by Vrinda ť Fri Mar 24, 2017 10:03 am
(just forget the real world probability of a police chief on a jury)
Police chiefs can serve on a jury. Some states don't allow them from serving on grand juries. In Hawaii, police officers are exempt from serving on a jury, but can if they want to.
by John Chergi ť Tue Mar 28, 2017 1:13 am
Good somebody talking about Season 11 Classic Hawaii Five O. I enjoyed Season 11 as Danno, Duke, Steve made a tight knit unit. I thought The Sleeper was a good episode but cramming the body of Dr. Kent into the boat was far-fetched. I think plenty of detectives or feds would have been murdered because Sonja came back. The car stealing made no sense because how would the average car thief know about The March Foundation. The March Foundation looked like a cool, scientific place. In 2017, it would look outdated. Probably 3.5 stars The Sleeper out of 6.
by John Chergi ť Tue Mar 28, 2017 1:27 am
The Case Against Philip Christie was an interesting one. I thought Penny was hot. Would love to come home to her every night. It did not look good for Christie when they found the weapon in his jacket. Plus, he was up on the 2nd floor when the weapon fired. Mr. Mike listed some of the flaws of this episode. I think the judge stated to vote on what was presented as evidence and testimony in the courtroom. It was strange that the judge would listen to McG theory and re-creation.
The courtroom scenes were excellent with the party witnesses testifying. The watcher could narrow down the perpetrator as Minnie & MCG and jurors tried to do later. Love the final scene with the perpetrator revealed but McG only had theory. I think I would have voted Not Guilty. Reasonable doubt with the PI's testimony and nobody saw Mr. Christie fire the fatal shots into Penny.
by John Chergi ť Tue Mar 28, 2017 1:42 am
I agree with Ringfire about Deadly Courier. I thought it was brilliantly creative. Those Asian women were very attractive and disarming. Can see why Mr. Sherman would have consumed the tea like Danny. One small thing missed. Mr. Sherman stated to McG that an attractive woman sat next to him on the plane. I'm curious why they didn't get Sherman to help with a sketch of the woman. They did this throughout HFO getting a sketch artist. Even the Identikit. It was a real mystery. I wonder if the bomb man killed himself accidentally at Hakima's or was he liquidated as a lose end. The ending really was mediocre. A better ending would have Danny taken hostage by the group and forcing the pilot to take off with Danny as a passenger. McG would have to think fast to form a plan to stop the plane from taking off. Probably Deadly Courier 4.5 out of 6 stars.
by John Chergi ť Fri Mar 31, 2017 10:25 pm
I think Season's 11 Best moment was the Number One With A Bullet 2 parter. It was very informative about the music industry and who was behind the scenes. Yvonne was talented singer but also naive to things. Johnny Monroe was 1 cool cat as the singer/songwriter who was frozen out of the music business. I love how things escalated with Sonny K in the middle and the rival mobs.
Other Season 11 highlights include: Stringer. Poor Duke is thrown clear and burning but makes it out alive. Paul Williams great job as a photographer and peddie cab driver. Alika was 1 of the best villains. He had menace to him. The Case Against Philip Christie was an intelligent courtroom drama. Philip Christie placed on trial for the murder of his wife Penny. I've enjoyed Year Of The Horse with more watchings. What did you like about Season 11?
by ringfire211 ť Sat Apr 01, 2017 6:02 pm
Not the biggest fan of Number One with a Bullet. Some fine guest stars save a somewhat dragged-out 2-parter. It has grown on me but it's not must-see Five-O for me. I do love the disco music and Yvonne Elliman's song that she dedicates to Johnny Munroe (James Darren) at the end. She's a pretty good actress too - for a singer. Nehemiah Persoff is great as always and Ross Martin makes his intro as Alika.
Stringer is the better episode though. Paul Williams is just such a bizarre looking character. A singer/songwriter/actor/voice of the Penguin on BATMAN THE ANIMATED SERIES (doesn't he look like a sloppy Penguin?) Williams really was a unique casting choice and he plays it great. Sort of a man child who wants to make it big. Also Alika is much more menacing this time around. I love the scene where he leans menacingly over Stringer (just before his goons toss Kramer out the window) and tells him "I don't think your heard me, keed". The score by Dick DeBenedictis is very good too.
by North ť Mon Apr 03, 2017 8:06 am
Just watched small potatoes, as usual I'm writing this some time later so I forget names but the main actress played her role in a bizarre way, like she was on meds or something. Weak episode overall with the story feeling contrived. The feud with the feds was poorly developed and the undercover element was ridiculous as ever.
by ringfire211 ť Mon Apr 03, 2017 8:50 am
North, I totally get what you're saying about Johnny's girl Gloria (Zohra Lampert) acting like she's on meds. That episode was the first time I had ever seen her and she definitely stood out for me - for that exact reason. Her weird behavior was a strange combination of jealousy, possessiveness, insecurity, loopiness, scatterbrained-ness - all rolled into one! She did look like she was on meds or drunk or stoned. To be honest she always seems to play this type of loopy character. In season 9's "Let Death Do Us Part" she plays the character of Anita Newhall in a similar fashion. The way she talks and acts makes her look like she's a bit slow or mentally challenged or something. Even outside of Five-O I noticed this. I don't know if that's how she's asked to play those characters or if that's just her acting style.
by Mr. Mike ť Mon Apr 03, 2017 9:52 pm
Zohra Lampert is in two Kojak episodes, where her acting style is similar: Queen of the Gypsies (http://kojak.tv/kojak-2.htm#18), where she plays a gypsy woman (one of the show's best-remembered episodes, which would not go over well these days; Lampert won an Emmy for her performance) and The Halls of Terror (http://kojak.tv/kojak-5.htm#18), where she plays a psychiatrist whose life is her work, a somewhat less successful episode.
by North ť Wed Apr 05, 2017 10:36 am
Watched "Distant Thunder" and felt my blood pressure rise for what is an idiotic episode in my opinion. First is once again Danno going undercover despite a dozen plus years as a well known cop in Honolulu including some TV and newspaper coverage. The Nazi angle was OK and typical (just about every drama show in that era did a few Nazi episodes) but the Tamara bit was too much. Contrary to his comment to the contrary he was all typical 70's left wing platitudes; talk of human rights but turning a blind eye but proposing to "get along" with the socialist-communist terror regimes that ruled over 100's of millions of people with no human rights.
I guess Jack Lord or the producers showed their Hollywood political views when he mentioned that it was wonderful that Tamara was up in the polls, not very professional for a policeman on the job. Also the obsession of the "Nutsies" (that was a funny line!) with Tamara seems unrealistic since as anyone who's been to Hawaii knows most politicians (and most residents) then and now are much less "white" than Tamara.
Like many late episodes the story feels stale and McG makes up for lower energy with long winded preaching. There are some good episodes in the last two seasons but this wasn't one of them.
by John Chergi ť Wed Apr 05, 2017 3:59 pm
I thought A Distant Thunder was a decent episode. The Nazi group headed by Stoner was a young looking bunch. Tamara definitely was a left-wing candidate and had a charisma about him. I think Tamara was stubborn at times and should have listened to McG more. It's strange Tamara would not know Danny since McG and Danny were good friends and coworkers. I love the buildup as it started with Stoner's phone calls, the Nazi group demonstrating outside the Tamara speech, the killing of Tamara's dog etc. Danny was believable as Walter Mantell but he was unmasked by the Nazi group. The ending with Stoner was mediocre. A better ending might have Stoner turning the gun on himself and McG making a speech about hate and violence.
by John Chergi ť Mon May 22, 2017 7:25 pm
Watched Year Of The Horse Season 11 as the insomnia won out. As some discussed in the previous forums, it had a James Bond or movie quality to it. Somehow, the Governor is implicated in this drug smuggling ring which is kept under wraps as McGarrett investigates in Singapore to find the connection and to clear the Governor's name.
Year Of The Horse does not earn Classic HFO episode status or Top 20 but has its moments. There is a cool scene with McGarrett and Luke fighting in the cable car suspended many feet above the ground. I found a slight mistake this time around. When they are examining the NAVY ring, Danno mentions that Luke's photo was pending but they jump to another scene. They say they don't know who they are looking for. It would have made better sense to tail Mrs. Sand over as she would have led them to Luke. The ending was a strong one as Luke and the General killed each other in the climax scene aboard ship. That probably was a smart move as there would be many questions had they both lived. Luke's trial jurisdiction for example and the General's involvement in this drug smuggling. JC
by John Chergi ť Mon May 22, 2017 7:40 pm
RIP CAL BELLINI
I was sad to stumble upon that Cal Bellini had passed away this April 2017. I think he was 81 or 82. Most of the Hawaii Five-O regulars here remember him as Tamara Season 11 A Distant Thunder. That's the episode Danno goes undercover as Walter to infiltrate the Nazi group and gather info on what they were planning. I remember him as the screaming psycho Karl in Season 12 Voice Of Terror. Tamara the Hawaiian Kennedy who could forget! It's a shame to see many of the Hawaii Five O alumni dying out the last few years. They left a lasting legacy though and for that I'm grateful. JC
by ringfire211 ť Tue May 23, 2017 11:52 am
Don't forget Bellini as Dr. John Palahana in season 10's "The Big Aloha", an average season 10 episode.
by H50 1.0 FOREVER ť Tue May 23, 2017 5:48 pm
Season 11 was a good one, just different from the early seasons. As I've said before, times were changing. Fashions were different, cars were different, music was different, and attitudes were different. H50 would have looked ridiculous if it had still been producing such 1960s episodes as "Not That Much Different." What hit Five-0 the hardest was Kam Fong's turning 60 and deciding to retire and JMac's feeling ready to do something new and different and leaving the show on top of the early losses of Zulu and Al Harrington. We liked those actors and the characters they portrayed and wanted to see them when we tuned in. No one could have replaced them. They were what Five-0 was all about.
by John Chergi ť Thu May 25, 2017 3:09 pm
HFO 1.0 FOREVER
I'm a big fan of Season 11. I like the tight knit detective work with McG, Danno, and Duke. A good example is The Meighan one. Danno was talking to a friend about stocks and corporations and things. It was very informative. Duke was also working hard in Minnesota and Wichita. Trying to solve the mystery how these banks were being invaded and stripped of cash and jewelry etc. in the malls. Wish they had more suspects than Meighan.
Deadly Courier was an interesting episode. I know it gets some low marks by some voting over the years. The plan almost worked but they could not get out of the airport. I like the light shined in Mr. Sherman's eyes which helped in solving the brainwashing and behavior modification.
Number One With A Bullet I and II strong 2 parter. Again, this was very informative learning about the music industry. How certain mobs in control of these music places can affect an artist's career. Poor Johnny Monroe!
The only Season 11 ones I didn't like were the Linda Please Die episode and A Very Personal Matter. The Bark & The Bite was a light-hearted episode. The Spirit Is Willie was interesting to see if Rolande was indeed a psychic or something more sinister. JC
by ringfire211 ť Tue May 30, 2017 12:39 pm
I think Why Won't Linda Die? is an interesting episode. Directed by Jack Lord too! I really like the schizophrenia/twin personalities angle. During my last rewatch I enjoyed it more than I had in the past.