Blessing starts production of 3rd season for 'Hawaii Five-0'

Alex O'Loughlin and executive producter Peter Lenkov untie a maile lei during a blessing ceremony this morning before the start of production for the show's third season.

Work on the third season of 'Hawaii Five-0' began today with a traditional Hawaiian ceremony at Manoa Valley District Park, a few blocks from a neighborhood where filming was to take place.

Kahu Blaine Kamalani Kia, the show's cultural adviser, told the crowd of about 100 to bring positive energy to their work.

The attendees included producer Peter Lenkov, series stars Alex O'Louglin and Daniel Dae Kim, new series regular Michelle Borth, new recurring star Christine Lahti, and occasional guest stars Taylor Wily, Teilor Grubbs, Dennis Chun, and Al Harrington. Three other series leads, Scott Caan, Grace Park and Masi Oka, were not scheduled to be on set today.

The show ended its second season in a cliffhanger, with Park's character Kono Kalakaua tied up and thrown into the ocean, Caans character Danny Williams in a custody battle, Kim's Chin Ho Kelly finding his wife near death, and O'Loughlin's Steve McGarrett uncovering another layer to the "Shelburne" mystery, the subplot that has driven the show for the first two seasons.

Lahti, who will play McGarrett's mother, called the ceremony "wonderful." 

"I've done a lot of shows and never experienced anything like this," she said.