Last
Saturday evening, my wife and I decided to watch the new season of
X-Files, but gave up after two episodes. We're going to keep watching
just in case it was our own mood that was incompatible, but neither
of us were impressed at all. I'll probably do a separate post on this
subject when I've either watched the whole new season or given up for
good.
Today I
want to talk about what we ended up watching instead. We decided to
give the new version of Hawaii 5-0.
The
original, which I have never seen, ran from 1968 – 1980 and was at
the time not only the longest running law enforcement show but the
first cop show to span over a decade. It has since been joined by,
and in some cases outdone by, shows like Law & Order, Law &
Order: SVU and NCIS.
Even if,
like me, you've never seen the original, you have in fact most likely
been affected by it. This is the show that created the famous line:
Book 'em Danno, which has
become a classic catchphrase. The term 5-0 (pronounced
five-oh) has since become synonymous with police throughout the US.
In fact, when I was watching The Wire, I had to look up why the drug
dealers were yelling 5-0 to warn each other that the police were on
the way. It's all due to this show.
OK, enough
history. What my wife and I wanted was a show that has action, style
and good writing, but isn't too dark. These days it seems every show
has to be so very Grim-dark, and it get's annoying after a while. I
love Grim-dark, but enough is enough. Luckily enough, the new Hawaii
5-0 was
exactly what we wanted.
Like the
title says, it's set in Hawaii, and the 5-0 comes from Hawaii being
the 50th state in the union. The show oozes so called
scenery porn, gorgeous landscapes and that blue ocean. Where a show
set in, say, New York would show street scenes to solidify the
setting, you get beautiful vistas instead. The actors are good, which
they should be seeing as they are all veterans of shows and films
like The Shield, Battlestar Galactica, Lost and the Oceans 11-13
movies.
The
writing is in my opinion excellent. Snappy, witty but not too over
the top. Beyond this, the show has heart, it's serious yet
lighthearted enough to feel relaxing when the Grim-dark becomes too
oppressive.
I feel I
should point out the guest stars as well, Norman Reedus and Peter
Stormare all within four episodes. Not too shabby.
We watched
the four first episodes eagerly, and I'm looking forward to watching
more. I can absolutely see why someone wouldn't like it, but I urge
you to give it a shot, if you come across it.
That's it
for this time, until we meet again, have a beautiful week!
