BOOB TUBE REVIEW: Hawaii Five-O "Ma Ke Kahakai" (Season 1, Episode 20)

Source: CBS

I was waiting with anticipation for the premier of this episode after weeks of sitting through reruns and because this episode includes the acting debut of Iron Chef Masaharu Morimoto.  The local news station here was able to interview Chef Morimoto about this cameo appearance on Hawaii Five-O.  Apparently, after years of Iron Chef challenges in Japan and New York, Chef Morimoto has grown quite comfortable in front of the camera and it was a pleasure to see him outside of the kitchen.  He is quite fond of the show and loves Hawaii, so this opportunity (as well as great publicity for his new restaurant) was welcomed by the master chef.

This episode starts with McGarrett taking Danny hiking near Kualoa to see the ancient Hawaiian petroglyphs.  Their recreational and cultural activity soon turns into a homicide investigation when they spot a body on a ledge.  McGarrett almost faces death when he falls down the side of the mountain and a boulder knocks him out.  Danny quickly calls for assistance and McGarrett is airlifted out of the mountain.  McGarrett suffers a sore body and a broken arm.

Meanwhile, back at Five-O headquarters, Kono and Chin Ho are busy trying to identify the body and piece together the puzzle pieces.  From the body, Danny collects fish scales and pays a visit to the fish docks.  After some creative coercing with a notorious drug pusher, Danny and McGarrett trace a sale of ehu fish to Morimoto in Waikiki.  At the restaurant, the "dynamic duo" finds Chef Morimoto testing out his new karaoke machine for the restaurant.  Chef allows the two in his kitchen to look at his shipment of fresh fish for his sushi restaurant, and the two find a bullet lodged in one of the fishes.

The team uses forensics, and other information to identify the body as Jack Nahm, a fisherman who took a second job at a small airfield to make ends meet.  They also learn that Nahm was searching online about a recent crime where a wealthy teenaged boy raped and killed a young woman and disappeared; thus, managing to evade the police.  Piecing together this information and other clues, the team figures out that Nahm was killed because he saw the boy being put on a private plane thanks to his father to escape the authorities.  The team arrests the boy’s father for harboring a fugitive and track down and arrest the boy.

Also, Kono and Chin Ho visit their Auntie Emele on her deathbed.  Kono figures out that Uncle Keako stole the money Chin Ho was accused of stealing in order to save his wife by acquiring a donor kidney from the black market.  As a result of Chin Ho protecting his uncle, he took the fall and was kicked off the force.  Uncle Keako wants to come clean, but Chin Ho insists that what's done is done and he is better off now that he is part of Five-O.

All in all, I liked this episode because we are finally provided a piece of the puzzle to figure out the source and reasons for Chin Ho being kicked off the force.  However, it was kind of difficult to recall plot lines from previous episodes, which caused the present storyline to lose a little of its luster.  While the show writers are clearly trying to provide a continous storyline (i.e., Wo Fat), the connection is a little tenuous, especially as it juggles the main weekly storyline.

Next episode:  Sean Combs guests stars on the show to provide a sample of his growing acting chops!