This is a longer recap than normal because I didn't want to miss a moment!
We start out with previouslies of Steve visiting his dad's grave and remembering the day he died, telling Danny how it's been ten years, he's feeling lost right now and maybe needs time away for perspective. Then we see Daiyu Mei giving that guy the message for Steve that she's Wo Fat's late wife. Lastly, we see Danny getting beat up for the cipher and that Steve actually still has it.
We cut to ten years ago in a China province, where Mrs. Fat is making tea for Wo Fat and Victor Hesse who are planning the op to get Hector's brother back. The trace on Steve's phone allowed them to pinpoint the location, the helo would take out the lead vehicle first, etc. Victor points out it only works if Steve agrees to let Anton go and Wo Fat assures him Steve will agree, even though Papa McG hasn't talked to Steve in a long time. Blood is blood. We do flash back briefly to a bloody Papa McG asking Steve on the phone who are these people, Steve? (Awww, so sad.) Wo Fat asks Daiyu Mei to stay because he values her input. Hmm... Back to present day where she's watching Danny and Steve at the cemetery. McG's truck is there this time and she says to follow them. (So, I guess he just left the truck there since last week he told Danny he'd drive?)
Cue music.
Steve is in his truck with Cole. He gets a call from Duke that the crime lab didn't get any prints or DNA from his house after the break-in. Cole says whatever that code is, is worth a lot to someone and he's hoping his ex-NSA guy can deliver. Steve appreciates his help. Cole goes on to say there's only one person outside of Langley with a shot at decoding the cipher, but then says to scratch that there IS someone else. A Navy Intelligence officer he met a couple years back. Super smart. She'd be up for the job, too, but I lost track of her. Steve gets a look as soon as Cole says it's a "she." Her name wouldn't be Catherine Rollins, would it? he asks. (Awwww!) Cole is surprised and says, you know her? Steve smiles and is all, yeah, I know her, man, she was my girl. We were together a bunch of years, but these intelligence types got a habit of disappearing on you, you know?" Cole is looking at him and says, sounds like it was serious and Steve tells him she was the one who got away. What are you going to do?" (Awwww! She was his girl! The one who got away! I was so happy with that little exchange.) Cole is giving Steve a look after he says that.
They stop at an overlook to meet the ex-NSA guy and Cole asks if Steve is okay and hopes he didn't ruin Steve's day by bringing Cath up. Steve assures him he's good. The NSA guy shows up, but Steve gets a frantic call from Danny that he's got a crazy tail. He sends his location and Steve heads over there, leaving the NSA guy looking at them drive away. The tail is all over Danny and Steve hears gunshots through the phone. He's driving on the wrong side of the road to get there and when he finally does, Danny's car is on fire. Steve reaches in the driver's side and his sleeve catches fire. Cole gets an extinguisher and they figure out Danny isn't in the car. Steve immediately calls Tani to get the last twenty minutes of camera coverage at the intersection. Tani says he sounds upset and he tells her Danny's been taken. HPD shows up and he tells them to lock the perimeter down, dust the car for prints or DNA and every officer should be looking for Danny Williams. (Yeah, HPD isn't good at perimeters, Steve should know that by now.) Tani pulls up the traffic cam footage at the Chatting Table and Adam tells her to go back thirty minutes. They're all wondering why they would grab Danny (even though most of them have been kidnapped multiple times, haha), but since whoever took Danny wanted to keep him alive, they'll just treat it like a kidnapping. (Good thinking!) Steve comes in and they all see the footage of Danny being forced out of his car, hooded and led away while his car is set on fire. They run the plates but it comes back to stolen cars. Steve wants all the phones ready for the ransom call.
Danny is chained and bloody, but recognizes Daiyu Mei. He jokes that after what they did to his car they should exchange insurance info. Daiyu Mei is not amused and says that a man with two children should not be making jokes. Danny gets serious real fast and says if she touches his kids, he'll find her and kill her.
Steve comes in and Tani was able to track the two SUVs that took Danny for about a mile, but that's it. Steve wants every single person who has a badge to be looking for Danny. Daiyu Mei calls Steve and says it's good to hear his voice. He immediately tries to get a trace and asks, "Who is this?" She tells him her name is Daiyu Mei and she believes he knew her husband Wo Fat. Everyone looks shocked. Steve asks if she has Danny and she says she does. They each have something the other person wants. She has the person he cares about most in the world and he has the cipher that is rightfully hers. If he delivers it to her, Detective Williams will live. Steve wants proof that Danny is okay so she takes the phone in and shows him a bloody Danny chained up. Danny tells Steve not to do whatever she wants him to do and not to give her anything. Daiyu Mei asks if they have a deal and that Steve shouldn't make the same mistake he made with his father and allow a loved one to die because of his stubbornness. (Steve looks so angry and intense here!) He asks her where the trade will go down and she says she'll text him the info, but he better come alone and do exactly as she asks or his friend dies.
Steve is headed toward the elevator and Adam follows, asking if Steve is going to give her what she wants. Steve quickly explains that he made the mistake of hesitating when Hector demanded Lincoln and it almost cost two lives so he won't make that mistake again. Adam reminds him that the situation turned out fine and they got the woman and her son back. But Steve is all, because of Lincoln, not me. So he's going to trade Daiyu Mei the cipher for Danny's life because that's the only play he's got. Adam sees Steve's struggle and tells him that there was no way he could have saved his father that day because the odds were stacked against him, but now he has Five-0 in his corner and he was telling Adam that not long ago. Let them help find another way. Oh, and there's no guarantee that even if he gives her the cipher she'll spare Danny's life. Steve listens, but says he's going to the trade alone, but he'll call. Adam tells him good luck. Once the elevator doors close, Steve leans against the back wall and thinks about when Victor found out his brother was dead and went ahead and killed Papa McG. So sad.
Steve goes to the meet and Daiyu Mei and her goons show up. Danny isn't there and Daiyu Mei just wants to give him an address of where Danny is. That's not going to fly with Steve. He wants it live- streamed from his phone and proof that he is at that address, otherwise no deal. Daiyu Mei complies and Steve sees Danny and asks if he's okay. Danny tells Steve not to trust her. Steve gives her the cipher and runs to his truck.
Danny tells the goon not to put his phone away and that he should call his family to tell them he loves them because he has no idea what he's stirred up, and the goon punches him. Steve is speeding to the address, telling Tani to put out an All Units alert and send SWAT to the address, he's five minutes out. The goon gets a call from Daiyu Mei to say that McG is on his way, so make sure he finds a dead man. But Danny is climbing the chain to get himself free so when the goon comes in, Danny isn't chained up. He's behind the door! He whacks the goon with the chain and unlocks his cuffs before he takes his gun and shoots another goon who comes in. Danny starts shooting his way out of the house and almost makes it to the front door before a newbie goon shoots him and runs away. (I'm guessing he's a newbie because he just shoots and runs.) Steve has his sirens on and pulls up to the house. He goes in and sees Danny in the doorway. He's unconscious, so Steve wakes him up by touching the bullet hole. Ew. He helps him out to the truck when everyone pulls up. Steve gets Danny in the backseat and Tani drives to the hospital while he holds Danny and calls the hospital to make sure the surgeons are prepped and ready for when they got there. They get Danny to the hospital and he's taken into surgery. Everyone is watching him go and Steve is being told to wait there with his bloody shirt. So sad!
Steve is in the hospital chapel, hands folded, intense, bargaining with God. He says, "If you want to take somebody, take me. Not him. Take me." (It was such an incredible scene. Alex knocked it out of the park.) Cole comes in to say there isn't any news and Danny is still in surgery. He pauses and then tells Steve that they need to get that cipher. They have a photo of it and with any luck his guy can crack it. Steve doesn't think it matters anymore, but Cole is thinking ahead---cracking that cypher will help them figure out why Daiyu Mei wanted it and what she's got planned next. It's the best chance of catching her. All he needs is Steve's permission to take the cipher to his guy. Steve can stay at the hospital. Steve rubs his still bloody hands over his face and tells him to take Quinn with him. She'll give him a hard time and says she wants to stay here and support him, but Cole should tell her the best way for her to do that is to help Cole. Cole gets up to leave and Steve hands him his gun, passing the torch in a way. Cole rests his hand on Steve's shoulder for just a moment in support. It was a really good scene.
Cole and Quinn go to his guy's house, but no one is answering. Quinn offers to go around back, but Cole just busts in. "Very McGarrett of you," Quinn says as they move through the house. They find a blood trail and broken stuff in the kitchen. The blood leads to the garage on the passenger side. Looks like someone put him in his own car and drove off with him. (At least they didn't put him in the trunk I guess.) Luckily the car is electric and probably has GPS so they can track it.
Steve and the gang are waiting in the hospital hallway. Tani is asking why it's taking so long and Lou tries to comfort her and says that he knows it's hard, but it's all in God's hands now. The only thing they can do is be there for Danny and pray for him. "Chin up, kiddo, it's going to be all right." The doctor finally comes out and says that Danny is out of surgery and stable for now. They aren't out of the woods yet, but they cleared a big hurdle. Steve asks to see him and sits down at his bedside holding his hand. They play an amazing song, All for One, and it's such a great moment as the words really speak to the brotherhood these two share.
Quinn and Cole are at a junkyard and we get a glimpse of Danny's old silver Camaro. So sad! (Wasn't that burned when Catherine was kidnapped?) There's a dog there with fresh blood on him so I guess the murderer touched him? They walk through the wrecked cars and find a dead worker and then a pool of blood underneath a smashed car. Guess they found the cipher guy. Quinn calls Lou to update him and tell him that the contact---the only guy on the island who could crack the cipher---was inside his car when it was crushed. So, Daiyu Mei probably forced him to crack the code and killed him, which means she won't be on the island much longer. Cole has an idea and Lou tells him whatever it is, just do it. We're almost out of time.
Steve is at Danny's beside when he regains consciousness and asks why Steve stopped holding his hand. Steve says he thought he'd lost him, but Danny reassures him he can't get rid of him that easy, but he's supposed to be relieved and look happy when someone wakes up. Steve says he's happy, but Daiyu Mei used him to get to Steve and almost killed him. Danny tries to keep it light by saying he's right there, chilling, but to Steve it feels a lot like what he went through with his father. Danny says Steve is annoying him already and that if he had a dollar for every time Steve saved his life he'd have twenty bucks. Steve says it would be a lot more than that before he gets a call from Cole. (So I guess Danny isn't in the ICU? No phones in there. Hmm) Danny tells him to put it on speaker, he's bored, ha! Cole tells him they cracked the cipher and it was coordinates for a cemetery on the island. They send Steve the coordinates and it's where they thought his mom was first buried. Danny tells him to go, so he meets up with Quinn and Cole at the cemetery and head down to the family mausoleum. (Why wasn't Steve's dad buried in there?) His mom's crypt has been broken into and Cole thinks someone took Steve's mom's body, but Steve nonchalantly tells him that the crypt was assigned to her after she faked her death. It's a long story. Ha! He thought it was empty, but he was wrong. She must have hidden something inside of it, then sent him the cipher so he could find it after she died. Whatever it was, Daiyu Mei has it now!
They find footage of goons robbing the cemetery and it looks like there was a bunch of cash in the crypt. One of the goons is named Roland (not a great goon name, poor guy) so they run a trace on his phone and that takes them to the Honolulu harbor. (So reminiscent of the pilot!) The team goes in and there is a spectacular gunfight. Daiyu Mei is running, doing some awesome parkour and Steve is right behind her. The goons are all terrible shots, so the team is fine. After a great chase over shipping containers, Daiyu Mei gets in a forklift. Steve gets on it, too, but falls off when she stops suddenly. The shipping container the forklift was holding nearly crushes him, but when Daiyu Mei comes down to look, he gets the jump on her. She puts her gun down and he asks her if this was all for the money? She says it was about killing her husband, but Steve tells her that Wo Fat didn't give him any choice. She says her husband had every right to that inheritance since he was Doris's son, too. (I can only assume she means since Doris took care of him when he was a kid since the DNA test showed Steve and Wo Fat weren't related.) Steve says Wo Fat was Doris's charity case because if he was her blood, he would never have ordered the execution of Papa McG. Daiyu Mei doesn't answer that and tells him to pull the trigger. Steve pauses for a second, but doesn't do it. She taunts him that Steve has his father's will and Wo Fat said he'd never met a more principled man. Steve doesn't believe her and says Papa McG never met Wo Fat, but Daiyu Mei corrects him and says not in person. (Although there was footage in the governor's office from an earlier season where John did meet Wo Fat. Hmm)
We flash back to show Papa McG answering his front door and getting smashed in the face. Then Victor telling him that his son has something he wants and if he gives it to him John goes free. If he doesn't he'll die. Victor ties up Papa McG and beats him before he calls Wo Fat to say he has Papa McG. Wo Fat wants to talk to him and apologies for the rude introduction, but he hopes Steve cooperates with them. Papa McG asks who this is and Wo Fat introduces himself as the son of Doris McGarrett. They go on to talk about Papa McG suspecting that her death was staged. Papa McG admits he was looking into it, but whatever happens, don't tell my son, it would be too hard on him. Wo Fat says he's a good man and he hopes Steve feels the same protectiveness toward him. Then back to present day where Daiyu Mei says Steve is his father and then Cole shows up. Steve tells Cole to book her. Cole cuffs her while Steve watches. So intense!
A week later, Steve approaches the beach where Danny is sitting in a chair and he sits down beside him. Danny is feeling depressed because he misses the nice nurse at the hospital who brought him Jello. Steve gives him a word of advice not to mistake a caregiver for someone who cares. She was getting paid to be nice to him. (Ha!) Danny wants to know if Steve's all packed, which he is, and points out one last time that there are beautiful beaches all over the place there, with plenty of sand, he could clear his head here. Steve brings up that ten years ago when Danny came out he hated this place. Danny blames him. And also mentions that Steve should have kept some of the money Doris gave him so he could fly first class like a gentleman. Steve is just going to get on the plane. Danny asks him what he's looking for and Steve is very thoughtful and says, "peace." It was his father who brought him back here and kept him here, trying to figure out what he was investigating and now he knows his dad actually knew his mother was still alive. Danny asks him if he's going to walk the earth like the dude from Kung Fu searching for answers and Steve says something like that. It's going to be okay, though. Danny doesn't feel like it's going to be okay, because his main dude is leaving him, but Steve assures him it's not a goodbye forever. He's got a phone right? Steve makes Danny stand up so he can give him a hug. Smiles all around, and I love you man. Danny sits back down and tells Steve not to make Danny come looking for him. Steve walks up to his house and looks back. (*sniff*)
Steve sees Eddie on the couch and goes over to give him his goodbye. (My son was watching with me and teared up at this part!) He tells Eddie he loves him and misses him and also to look after Danno, he's going to need him. There's a knock at the door and it's the gang. Lou walks in with, you thought we were just going to let you leave without a goodbye? Do you remember that time you saved my life? Steve says yeah, but Lou hugs him and says, no you don't, you know why? Because you saved my life when you met me. Love you man. (Awww. Tears already!) Adam is next and hugs Steve and thanks him for always seeing the good in him and for giving him a second chance. He'll never forget that. And they're going to miss each other. Tani is next and she thanks him for everything and says she's going to miss him so much and she can't believe he's going. He tells her he's proud of her and to be good. She smiles and says no. Noelani is next and he tells her he's proud of her and she thanks him for believing in her. Quinn gets knuckles and a hug and thanks him for taking a chance on her and for giving her a family. Steve says she's worth it and she hopes he finds what he's looking for. The gang is hugging each other on the side of the room and Lou is crying. Junior is last. Steve blows out a breath. They clasp hands and touch foreheads and breathe in before saying Ooyah. It is so poignant! They hug and Steve grabs his duffel and heads to the door. Cole is there. Steve shakes his hand and thanks him then asks him to hold down the fort for him. Cole says he's got it. Steve opens the door but turns back to give them all a shaka and says Aloha. A hui hou. (Goodbye. Until we meet again.) He walks out. (So incredibly emotional and well done!)
Steve is finding his seat on the airplane and there's a beautiful sunset as he's leaving. (Symbolic that his time in Hawaii is coming to an end?) He gets a text from Danny saying he misses him already. He's watching out the window and looking thoughtful when a woman asks if this seat is taken. It's CATHERINE! He looks surprised and she says, "Hey, sailor." (I LOVE when she calls him that.) He quickly realizes it was her that cracked the cipher. She admits she did and that Lincoln got hold of her and said he needed some help. Steve says Lincoln is a good man. Catherine jokes that he must be since Steve gave him the keys to Danno's car. (The burned one?) Steve jokes back that they can't have Danny Williams driving his own car and Cath replies, "Like he ever did." It's cute and easy between them. He asks her if she's going to sit down and she nods. While she's getting settled in her seat he can hardly take his eyes off her. They put on their seatbelts and he wipes his palms on his pants. She smiles at him and asks if he's ready? He says, "Yeah," and holds out his hand for her. She takes it and he squeezes her fingers and looks out the window with a smile on his face---like he's happy to be going into the next chapter of his life with her by his side. It was so great! I have waited so long for them to finally take that next step and love that we got to see that. I have seen the rebuild of love and trust between them (you can see my blog post about it here) and this definitely feels like the culmination of that.
(Did you miss last week's recap? You can see it HERE)
After the episode aired, Peter Lenkov, the creator said this in an interview:
I love that vision! So, after ten years, the series is over. What did you think? Did you watch?
4 comments:
Hi Julie,
now that Hawaii 50 has come to an end I would like to thank you for your reviews (and also your Castle reviews) that you wrote and published all over the years. I think I have read them all or at least most of it and I usually had the same opinions about storylines, acting and logical flaws like you.
I was often tempted to make comments to your reviews but the problem is, I watch Hawaii 50 in Germany and in Germany the episodes are aired several months (3-12) after they are aired in the US and so I thought that there is no benefit in trying to discuss episodes that are half a year old and so I did not make any comments. Yesterday, in Germany, episode 11 of the 10th season was aired and on Tuesday next week they will air episode 12 and then Hawaii 50 will go on hiatus in Germany. But now with Covid 19 I doubt that we will see the final episodes of Hawaii 50 in September/October as german voice overdub has to be prepared and the voice overdub studios are closed in Germany at the moment, as far as I know. So I did not read your review of the final episode yet (though I am writing this as a comment of this review) as I do not want to read some spoilers. Yesterday, directly after the airing of episode 11, I read your review of it which you wrote on December 16th, 2019.
Just one question: I think, as far as I remember, some years ago you wrote in one of your reviews that you would like to visit Hawaii at some
point in future. Have you been there since, and if so, where have you been (Oahu, Big Island, ...) and what was your impression?
And a second question: Do you watch the other Lenkov opus that is filmed in Hawaii, Magnum (the reboot), regularly? And if so, what do you think? I, for my part, stopped watching after the first 8-10 episodes. In my opinion they ruined it. I say this, because Magnum was part of my youth in my late teens/early twenties, and exactly Magnum (the original series) made me a fan of Hawaii, wanting to visit it some day. I do not know if I would have a similar point of view (ruined by Lenkov) about Hawaii 50 (the reboot) but I never saw the original series and so I can happily say that during the last 10 years, Hawaii 50 was great fun for me with an excellent cast and often excellent scripts (with the exception of the "Italian restaurant" storyline and the "Doris" stories, beside the "Wo Fat" storyline, where, unfortunately, Doris is necessary. You see, I am not a fan of the Doris character).
Talking about Wo Fat: I think the biggest mistake the story writers made was to kill the Wo Fat character in the fifth season. McGarret's victory over Wo Fat should have been the storyline of the last H50 epsiode ever as it was, as far as I know, in the original series.
Thank you again for all your reviews that made me smile often and stay healthy
Matthias, thank you SO MUCH for your comment! I am so happy to know you enjoyed my reviews over the years. It will be so strange for me not to write them anymore. I would have loved to discuss the show with you! If you ever want to comment on an episode, please do.
As for my trip to Hawaii, I finally realized my dream last April! In fact, a year ago today we were on the Big Island. I loved every minute of my trip there. I would still love to go to Honolulu someday, but am so thrilled to have been to the Big Island. It was amazing!
I haven't watched the reboot of Magnum PI. I'm not sure why I didn't get into it. Hawaii Five-0 was definitely my first love and like you, I loved the cast and most of the storylines. I also didn't care for the restaurant storyline or for the character of Doris. The reasoning behind her character just seemed so convuluted and her motivations weren't ever clear/believable for leaving her children. I do like the actress that portrayed Doris, however, and think she did the best she could with the material she had. I also agree that I wish Wo Fat would have stayed alive until the end. They never did get another Big Bad as good as Wo Fat to be Steve's nemesis. I'll be interested to hear what you think of who they brought back for the series finale!
Thank you again for your comment and please feel free to comment and discuss any episode at any time!
Hi Julie,
This is so tough to write about. I'm still in shock that the show is going off the air, especially since it had such new life and vitality with the influx of Tani, Junior and Quinn over the past few seasons. And it seemed that the bromance was back. But......it is what it is.
I've stayed off of social media for the most part because the hatred is overwhelming. You have the group that hates Catherine, the group that hates Danny, the group that hates Tani, the group that wants Steve and Danny to be gay, and the group that proclaims to know the characters better than the executive producer. Hmmmm.... It got so I just looked at pictures!
For me, the finale was a mixed bag. I LOVED the moments between Steve and Danny. They were funny, deep, poignant. This was the bromance we all fell in love with.
But the story seemed lame. I thought the writers were going to dig into the Champ box to find something to tie into the cipher. And I thought there would be a few twists and surprises. I realize the idea was to recreate the pilot episode situation -- Steve is put into a nearly impossible position to save someone he loves. But it felt forced and lackluster. And dumb in places. For example, Daiyu Mei took the cipher from Steve and just trusted that he was giving her the real thing? She orders Danny's death before deciphering takes place? She lost any leverage she had on Steve at that point. And the end game was money? Seems anticlimactic, although I did like Steve tearing down Wo Fat by calling him Doris' charity case. That sure pissed off Daiyu Mei.
The best scene in the entire ep was when Steve was in the chapel and angrily told God to take him, not Danny. That scene moved me greatly!
I was fine with Catherine showing up on the plane -- I've always thought Steve still carried the torch --- and the EP had stated she would be there for Steve at the end. What I didn't like was Steve leaving the island --- leaving Danny, leaving Eddie, leaving his ohana. I understand that this was Alex's exit from the show, but couldn't he have just as easily retired from the task force and started a new venture? I always thought he should open a flight school. To have him leave the ones who love him most was heart-wrenching, and not logical. It just didn't feel right.
It's probably too much to hope for, but maybe in a year or two Mr. Lenkov will assemble the cast and give us a two hour movie where we catch up with the characters. Steve and Catherine are back after trekking around the world, they have a toddler, and although Steve doesn't go back to 5-0, he assists in whatever big crime is going on at the time and picks right back up with Danny. That would be my dream!
Thanks for your reviews, Julie. I read them often but am not very good at commenting. I guess this is my last chance. *sniff*
Aloha.
Thank you so much for commenting! I, too, am still shocked it's done.
Like you, I was surprised at the strength of feelings in the fandom myself. The show meant a lot to a lot of different people!
And you bring up a lot of good points. Some of the plot didn't make sense. The Champ box was all just to let Steve know his mom was still alive? That's it? There always seemed to be so much more to it than that. Steve found that out ages ago. And Wo Fat being Doris's son didn't make any sense at all, nor the reason she left her kids. She left her own kids to raise Wo Fat because she felt guilty for accidentally killing Wo Fat's mom? What? I never understood that. But now we're supposed to think that she had a kid with the guy whose wife she killed? And Doris leaving Steve more money after she died trying to get money for him and Mary to make up for being a crappy mom didn't make sense either. I had to overlook quite a few things because there just weren't any answers. BUT, like you, I liked the moments between Steve and Danny and showing their brotherhood and Alex really played the emotions of every scene so perfectly! I was surprised Steve was leaving the island and his words to Danny that it was only his dad that had kept him there. That was odd. But I like the idea that the team is just holding down the fort for him for a while until he can deal with his trauma and grief and reconnect with Cath and then come back. I would love to see a movie, like you're saying, and see him with Catherine and his own son. That would be awesome!
Thank you so much for reading. That means so much to me. I loved your insights!
Post a Comment