A mid-season rewind

“Hawaii Five-0” has put out some amazing and entertaining episodes since it premiered on CBS in September 2013. Perhaps I’ve been dazzled by the heightened drama, strong casting and better writing this season, but I realized while watching “Nā hala a ka makua” (“Sins of the Father”) that it was the 14th episode of season four and I was late in writing my annual mid-season review.

I really have no idea how writers will wrap up a few storylines they started in “Aloha Kekahi i Kekahi” (“Love One Another”) over the next eight episodes, but I have faith.

Well, not complete faith, because executive producer Peter Lenkov and crew love to keep us hanging when it comes to the season finale episode, but I’m crossing my fingers we’ll get some long-awaited answers to a few questions that have lingered the last few seasons.

With the switch from Mondays to Fridays, “Five-0” has really come into it’s own. I’ve said it several times this season; the show seems more mature and stable. The show has always been entertaining, and fans have loved the show despite a few faulty episodes or storylines, so I think the stronger season has a lot to do with it’s earlier hour and positioning before “Blue Bloods,” another CBS police drama.

Perhaps it’s more consistent writing, better guest stars and more concentration on season regulars that’s strengthened the show. Maybe shooting at Hawaii Film Studios in the shadow of Diamond Head — the former home to the classic “Hawaii Five-O,” as well as Tom Selleck’s “Magnum P.I.” and ABC’s hit series “LOST” — has given the show a bit of ratings luck. Whatever it is, this season has been the best overall. I still need to see the remaining episodes to make up my mind completely, but it’s a close race for sure.

So stick with me, folks, as I run down the major storylines and make my feeble attempts at predicting what happens next. If nothing else, it will be a fun trip down memory lane.

WHAT’S NEXT FOR ADAM AND KONO?

Call me sappy, call me a romantic, call me a happy endings kind of girl, but I loved the Kono (Grace Park) and Adam (Ian Anthony Dale) storyline right from the start. And the way Lenkov and crew decided how to resolve their escape from Hawaii was one of the more satisfying storylines “Five-0” has ever put out.

While they fell in love toward the end of season two and went through some major ups and downs in season three, we rooted for these two because, if nothing else, they were so great together. A lot of their relationship seemed to be about saving each other’s lives, but now I hope their relationship will be about Adam rebuilding his life with Kono at his side.

CHIN HO’S HEARTACHE

While it’s been a season and a half since Chin (Daniel Dae Kim) scattered his beloved Malia’s (Reiko Aylesworth) ashes into the Pacific, his grief and loss is still fairly fresh. After the heart-wrenching “Hana Lokomaikaʻi” (The Favor), where we learned more about Malia’s bad-boy brother Gabriel (Christopher Sean), and the impact of Chin’s favor on his life, Malia has obviously not been forgotten.

Yes, he has sweet Leilani (Lindsay Price), and while that seems to make him happy, she is not the girl he has loved the last 15 years. Malia is a hard act to follow, and while I don’t begrudge Chin from finding love and moving on, I wonder if he can really get over the loss of his wife.

A LOU-MANCE IS BREWING

Newest series regular Chi McBride has brought a bit of SWAT swagger to the Five-0 team. I definitely like Capt. Lou Grover’s sarcastic reactions to McG and crew, and have also enjoyed the times he and McG have paired up to work a case. Even when they are reluctant partners, they get the job done.

Yet, we still don’t know Grover’s backstory. And while he’s probably got a dramatic past full of regrets and longing (I’m just guessing; you know how writers love to pull on our heartstrings), he’s told McG repeatedly, “We ain’t there yet.” We all better stock up on Kleenex, because you know when they unleash Grover’s story we’re going to need a few extra boxes to mop up our tears.

MCG AND CATH AND DANNO, OH MY!

Catherine Rollins (Michelle Borth) is certainly no stranger to fans, as she’s been Steve McGarrett’s (Alex O’Loughlin) love interest since season one. While she did not become a series regular until season three, we were used to Cath stopping by to visit, as well as to offer her expert advice and equipment to help the team. The true extent of their relationship was revealed in season three flashback episode “ʻŌlelo Paʻa” (“The Promise”), when we learned McG and Cath had been “hanging out” since his active duty Navy SEAL days before joining Five-0.

Now that she’s a full-fledged member of the team, she’s used her Navy skills to officially help catch bad guys and has not let her love for McG get in the way. But last week in “Nā Hala a ka Makua” (“Sins of the Father”), we did see a very nervous Cath run up to McGarrett and worry over his well-being. Danno (Scott Caan) does mention they both were shot at, yet she only checked McG for bullet holes.

So where does Danno fit in? While Steve and Danno are the best of friends, they have shared McG’s home, and of course, they share a car. I wonder how Cath will affect the McG and Danno bromance.

Danno seems to always get the short end of the stick when it comes to romance; he lost his ex-wife Rachel (Claire van der Boom) as she was pregnant with Stan’s baby and Gabby (Autumn Reeser) to her career. Will new girl Amber Vitale (Lili Simmons) stick around and capture his heart? All’s fair in love and “Five-0,” so for the bromance between our two favorite cops, I hope Danno gets the girl as much as McG is holding onto his, just so both can be happy at the same time.

THE WO FAT MYSTERY, AGAIN

We have not seen our favorite villain since “ʻAʻale Maʻa Wau” (“Fish out of water”), when he was shipped off to a high-security correctional facility on the mainland, still burned and sporting a broken nose — a gift from McG, who wanted a blood sample to find out if Wo Fat was his brother.

While Max (Masi Oka) supplied the anti-climactic answer to the DNA question — Wo Fat (Mark Dacascos) is not McGarrett’s long lost older brother — it does leave the door open for the same question we’ve had since Momma McG (Christine Lahti) walked back into Steve’s life. Why is Doris still wrapped up with Wo Fat? I know we may not find out this season, but I hope one day to know why Wo Fat, who has wanted McG dead the last four seasons, suddenly needs his help and seems to want to protect Doris.

And that, my friends, is where we stand going into the final stretch of season four. Hopefully ratings will continue to increase and we’ll find out soon if there will be a season five. We should also get some much-desired answers to the questions above, but I’m sure we’ll be just as happy to wait for season five for the rest of the story.
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Wendie Burbridge is a published author, playwright and teacher. Reach her via Facebook and follow her on Twitter.