With another episode in the books, it is time for the recap. Based on the switch of episode airing by CBS last week, this week we all finally got to see the return of Chris Vance as Harry Langford. A fan favorite character from a season 7 episode, he was brought back but with a twist in the plot from where the guys last left him. Here is the recap to find out how and what kind of fun him and the guys got themselves into this time. There was a lot going on in this episode, so it is pretty long.
The episode starts off at a Waikiki bar where a waitress is delivering some drinks to some men in the back room which is armed with security. The men are in the middle of a high stakes card game.
There are two FBI officers listening in to the activity in a surveillance truck outside. While the FBI men are talking about how bored they are, they hear gun shots and try to exit the truck, but are trapped by another vehicle that has pinned their door shut.
We then see the wave and hear the music ending the week’s long wait for a new episode. After the credits, we see Steve sanding within the restaurant with Kamekona watching nearby. Kame is telling Steve he missed a spot when Danny walks in with some coffee and something important to discuss. After Steve gets Kame’s coffee, which apparently is not suitable for drinking, Danny shows Steve some swatch color samples. They all look like the same red to Steve but Danny clarifies that they are not, and even one is called blood which he expects Steve to choose. After Steve suggests black, he finds out that Danny has already ordered one and seems hurt he was not asked in advance.
At this point, Kamekona brings up that it is all about the marketing and the color will not matter if no one comes in the restaurant. Technically he has a point. He shows the guys t-shirts that he has had made up for them. It has similar characters to each of them dining at a table with the wording “McDanno’s Bar and Grill.” This was a pretty funny scene and clearly shows that the term McDanno has now gone mainstream.
While Danny is strongly opposing to the idea, Steve receives a call from a familiar old friend.
The next scene has Steve and Danny walking on the beach when Steve calls out to Harry who is getting out of the water. Harry Langford is back in town but is no longer an MI6 agent as he has taken an early pension and is traveling the world. After some banter between the three of them, including a comment referring to a restaurant would be a bad business venture, a beautiful woman is spotted coming towards them.
It turns out she is with Harry as she comes up to him and kisses him. Harry introduces her to the guys as Veronique. They discuss having lunch and catching up when Steve’s phone rings again, but this time it is clearly a case. He seems disappointed that lunch will have to wait.
Now back at the crime scene from the opener, Steve, Danny, and Lou are discussing the new situation at hand. It seems Jimmy Okada was executed along with all of his crew. Okada is the head of a major crime family. Grover says the new girl is getting more of the details.
Cue the new girl who we have known as Tani for a couple of weeks now. Danny makes some reference of how she is jumping in fast, as she reports what has occurred.
Back at HQ, Tani is showing Steve, Danny, and Lou tape from an old deposition of Jimmy Okada. He is stone cold and she reports that after his name, he says absolutely nothing for two hours. The jury was split so he went free.
At this point Jerry enters stating he thinks he knows how Okada and crew were accessed. The waitress, Annie Hughes, is unaccounted for which seems coincidental. Therefore, Jerry thinks that she is the one that allowed easy access for the execution. Steve says that although Okada probably deserved it, they need to find out who did this so they can prevent an all-out revenge war. Tani also adds that Jimmy Okada had a son, named Derek who Steve tells her and Lou to go find and check out.
As Steve and Danny walk toward the elevator comically re-discussing the swatch samples, the doors open. Harry is on it and shares with them that retirement is not all it is cracked up to be, even though he sounds like he is jet-setting with the rich and famous. He asks to join them and help out.
The next scene is in a high end condo penthouse as Tani and Lou talk to Derek Okada. He claims he does not have anything to do with the crime part of the family as his father always wanted to keep him away from that and protected him (Yeah, right). Lou tells Derek if he hears anything to make sure he contacts them. Tani says it is for his protection too. (doubt anyone watching was buying that they would be his first call).
Back with “McDanno” and the Brit, who are now in the car, Steve is driving (of course) and Harry in the backseat. Harry finds the swatches and asks if they are redecorating. Steve explains it is for the restaurant and Harry adds his two cents of using a neutral color so they can liquidate it easily when the restaurant fails. Danny calls him out on his negativity, which is a little ironic, wouldn’t you say.
They next show up at Kamekona’s truck as he might have some info about Okada. Harry meets Kame in what is also a humorous exchange. While Harry compliments the chef, so to speak, Kame also says that Loto Manui would be the guy to talk to about the guns as he is probably the only one that can handle that kind of gun buy on the island. Kame also says there is no way they will get close though, as Loto knows all the cops on the island.
You guessed it, Loto does not know Harry, so the next scene is of Harry at a bar awaiting Loto. He is approached and hit on by an atypical woman for him, and let’s just say not his type.
The scene switches back from Harry waiting to Steve and Danny who are outside in the car backing him up. They discuss whether Harry could handle this as Danny is concerned that he could be rusty.
Loto meets up with Harry and after Harry earns his right to see more guns by having the balls to load the one that Loto gave him and point it at him; he is taken to a truck where all the big guns are held. Steve and Danny are watching as the doors to the truck close with Harry and many thugs whisk him away.
Realizing this is not part of the plan, Steve and Danny follow. Also realizing that he is in trouble, Harry begins to take down the men in the truck one by one. When Steve and Danny approach, the door opens, and Harry has Loto in a hold constricting his windpipe. He is encouraged to let go so they can question him.
We next see Danny questioning Loto while Steve and Harry stand by the car. It is good cop- bad cop and it is clear which one is which. After Loto refuses to help Danny, he is willing to help Steve and Harry after some of their encouragement.
We know this because the next scene is at a warehouse as the men have added Grover to the mix, and all are heading in guns a blazing. They take down all of the opposition except one who decides he can out run them. He might have been able to, but Steve is not even interested in finding out, so he shoots him in the leg.
Next we see the guy that was shot (Viktor) in the chair in the interrogation room. Steve, Danny, and Harry are pushing for info. Viktor says he would never take down Okada even though he might want to, because he knows there is a RICO case on him and the FBI is crawling all over it.
They meet up with Lou in the hallway who says Viktor is telling the truth as all the bullets that took down Okada and his crew came from one gun. Jerry is at the table showing them all how this probably occurred.
Tani walks in at the time and Harry tries to charm her. They also have some light banter including detailing out how he can tell she is new at the job. She does not have that dead behind the eyes look like the others and she is still dressed to impress instead of practically. After all that she says she has a lead on where Annie Hughes is so Steve tells her and Lou to go check out the gun lead and he will take the others go find Annie, leaving Jerry standing alone at the table.
The trio is back in the car and there is once again some banter revolving around retirement with Harry telling Danny that Danny might think he wants to retire, but he will miss the excitement of it all. After all, he assumes that they just go from place to place taking out a few bad guys now and again with argie- bargies in the middle. Perplexed by this term, Steve asks what it is and it seems to be the Brit’s way of describing a car-gument. Harry also refers to how endearing it is that Steve and Danny cannot bear to be apart. Both are speechless with a few good expressions while Harry is smug in the back.
They soon get to Annie’s place, enter, and find her dead on the floor.
Meanwhile Lou and Tani arrive at the Walcott residence as he was the one that reported the gun missing. After looking around, Lou notices that there is something off with his story because the camera he refers to be taken is on the table and other priceless items still remain.
Walcott’s phone rings which he chooses to ignore. However, Lou doesn’t and he picks it up to find Steve calling from Annie’s phone connecting Walcott and Annie to one another. They arrest Walcott but as they do, two SUV’s show up manned with some of the Okada crew. This does not look good so Tani takes the little girl that was there for piano lessons to hide in the tub while Lou tells Walcott that if he moves he will be in the middle of a gun fight and will probably get hit.
A gun battle ensues with Tani and Lou taking out the majority of the crew, but one of them escapes, and so does Walcott.
Steve, Danny, and Harry soon arrive and Lou describes the scene. Danny seems skeptical that a piano teacher could be the lone gunman that executed the elder Okada and his crew. However, they notice there is a back room where they find assault weapons along with many other things including plans and surveillance of Okada and crew.
They all regroup back at HQ which is where Jerry has come up with a motive as to why Walcott would be after Okada. Walcott had seen his young son, Aiden, get run over by a car a few years ago in what appeared to be a hit and run. After putting the detailed pieces together the team decides that Walcott knew all along who did it (Okada) and was threatened or paid off to keep quiet. Annie got involved as she was his girlfriend who he met in a bereavement group after Aiden’s death.
The next scene is back at the high end condo where Derek (the younger Okada) is being informed by his crew that Walcott escaped. This understandably angers Derek and soon he gets a call from Walcott telling him he is next. Derek orders the building to be locked down as he knows he is in trouble.
Meanwhile the whole team, minus Jerry, are on their way to Derek’s as they have figured out what is about to go down.
Back at the condo a very detailed gun battle and plan has started to take place with Walcott gunning after Derek. Derek and Walcott come face to face after Walcott takes out all of security and shoots Derek, wounding him slightly. Walcott is about to execute when the team enters. They ascend the stairs and surround the situation.
Steve, Danny, and Harry attempt to reason with him with Harry even referring back to the occurrence of episode 7.02. He explains he was in the same situation as Walcott and he understands, but killing will not bring back Aiden or make up for the pain. Walcott says he knows and shoots anyway killing Okada and sharing some of the blood splatter. Steve immediately arrests Walcott.
Still at the condo, Harry tells Steve and Danny that he is probably in trouble with his lady as he told her that he was just going out to get some sun screen. Steve says he has an idea to help get him out of hot water.
Next at the McGarrett residence, Harry and Veronique are sitting at a romantically set table in Steve’s living room. Steve and Danny are overheard bickering in the kitchen. They come out of the kitchen and explain dinner isn’t going as planned. Harry decides that he has other plans to get them dinner at a nice place on the island that does not require reservations. Steve seems perplexed once again as to where that might be.
The final scene brings it back to the shrimp truck where Kamekona is serving dinner to Harry and Veronique while the guys watch. It seems as if “Steve’s” still has a really long way to go with getting the customer satisfaction concept down, and probably a lot more before it opens, if it ever does. Hmmmm.
Our rating for this one would be a 9. Chris Vance as Harry fits in quite well with the team especially Steve and Danny. The ribbing and banter is fun to watch. The case of the week was predictable but it was also fun to watch it all come together. Bringing the fun home was the McDanno fun which was comical and timely, delivered perfectly by Alex and Scott, with Chris thrown in the middle. We can only hope that the character of Harry comes out of retirement even more so in the future. Wonder if Chris has any availability as he would be a good addition to the team.
Note: We will not do a scheduled recap next week based on prior commitments for a few of us. If we do one it will be late. The regular recap will be back on November 4th for the November 3rd episode as there is not an episode on the 28th. Hope that provides some clarity.
