Hawaii Five-O: Season 4

The fourth season of Hawaii Five-0 marks the beginning of the era where Jack Lord looks very different than he did in the first three seasons.There is much debate about this among Five-0 "junkies", of which I am one. Most people I've talked to really don't seem to notice it. But being naturally picky, and having worked in television myself and having married a man who worked in television for 34 years, I tend to notice things that others don't.But whether anyone has a background in television or not, all one needs to do is place a closeup of Jack Lord in either Seasons One, Two, or Three next to a closeup of Jack Lord in Season Four.There's been some changes made.Personally, my belief is that he had cosmetic surgery at the end of Season Three. I don't see that there's any problem with that, but lots of fans get angry when this idea is voiced. But women do it all the time, and actors who star in a long-running series and are bandied about as some sort of sex symbol have pressures put on them [and put pressures on themselves] to maintain an image that the star is younger than their chronological age indicates. And this certainly had to be the case with Jack; the series was so popular when it went into its 4th season -- and Jack by then was over 50 -- there had to be pressure to maintain his looks, and that only could be done cosmetically.My response to all that is: So what?Female stars have been doing it for decades, and often when the choice was to have cosmetic surgery, shift to playing characters who were older women, or stop appearing in movies altogether. And in many cases women DID stop acting. Few female actresses permitted themselves to age on camera and do it gracefully -- Bette Davis and Joan Crawford come to mind. Others, like Greta Garbo,simply vanished from public view for the rest of their lives.The same decisions face male actors, and it seems naive for people to refuse to consider that it could be otherwise.All that said -- Season Four contains many of my favorite Five-0 episodes. "Highest Castle, Deepest Grave" is one of them, and for years I've been trying to find out who wrote the piece of music Mr. Mondrego was playing on the piano when McGarrett shows up early in the show. It's definitely a classical piece, but not a piece with which I'm familiar. It could be Liszt or Rachmaninoff, for example. It's NOT Chopin, Beethoven, or Mendelssohn. And it's certainly not Bach, who always uses a light touch.If anyone knows the answer, please tell me!Season Four was really a great year for Five-0. There are no bad shows, period. [To me, bad shows are those in which we barely see McGarrett. I'm not a Danno fan, and all the Five-0 "junkies" out there who know me know I've never been a fan of James MacArthur -- and it's too bad; I keep looking for a show where he looses his persistently wooden manner, but it happens only rarely -- "Beautiful Screamer" is probably the only show where he delivers a really good performance [and lots of people disagree with me here].But to me, a show without McGarrett, or with very little McGarrett, 9 times out of 10 will be a show I rarely watch.But Season Four doesn't fall into this category -- it's Season Six when we begin the period, mercifully short, when there were too many shows with too little McGarrett. It's perfectly understandable at the time -- Jack was tired, and Five-0 was an extremely physically demanding show -- and prior to that time he appeared in virtually EVERY scene within a single show. Although Jack kept in very good physical shape, he was discovering that his body wouldn't take the pounding energy that the show had always demanded. And the "joys" of growing older are NOT fun; our bodies simply will not do what they used to do with practically no effort.Fortunately for fans, it was a temporary move because McGarrett fans objected wildly, and the show soon returned to lots and lots of McGarrett in almost every show. I'm not sure how fortunate that was for Jack.It is important to remember, too, that during the mid-1970s through the time the show ended in 1980, there was very powerful pressure on all TV series to cut down, or preferably cut out, violence.One has to remember what it was like to live during those years. Television was receiving LOTS of overwhelming congressional pressure -- and pressure from viewers who found themselves with young children -- to cut out violence. In a crime series, this is a directive that is very hard to do.But these are subjects for reviews of the pertinent seasons; I just want to comment here that the middle and later years of Five-0 were written with very powerful, very vocal pressure to curb TV violence. If one is not familiar with the culture of the 1970s, one cannot possibly understand the way Five-0, and many other shows, went through such a dramatic sea change during this period.That pressure had yet to hit TV series shows. And for me, when it comes to Season Four, my recommendation is: If you're a fan of the show, GRAB SEASON FOUR QUICKLY! It's a season full of real winners!

While other seasons, preceding and subsequent, had standout episodes, season four, as a whole, was a standout, featuring outstanding performances from guest stars, well-written and executed scripts, and the last hurrah for the original foursome (Jack Lord, James MacArthur, Kam Fong, and Zulu who would depart at the end of this season).The show really got into its groove in a grand way with the first installment, "Highest Castle, Deepest Grave," reminiscent of the classic movie "Laura" with rare guest appearances from France Nuyen, movie veteran Herbert Lom, and respected acting coach Jeff Corey. Not only do they excel in their portrayals, star Jack Lord does well as he becomes enamored by the painting that hides a dark mystery.Besides that particular episode, other noteworthy ones were:"No Bottles, No Cans, No People" - Henry Darrow ("The High Chaparral") is featured as an unscrupulous crime boss intent on proving to other "hoods" on the mainland that he is a force to be reckoned with."3,000 Crooked Miles to Honolulu" - Buddy Ebsen, late of "The Beverly Hillbillies" and before "Barnaby Jones," guests as a criminal genius who thinks he has a flawless plan to make a fortune off of stolen travelers checks."Two Doves and Mr. Heron" - noteworthy solely for the appearance of a young John Ritter and the late Vic Morrow in a part that is rather provocative for the era"And I Want Some Candy, and a Gun That Shoots" - featuring Jeanne Cooper before she became "Mrs. Chancellor" on "The Young and the Restless" and a young Annette O'Toole. The episode also allows Lord a chance to give commentary about the state of mental hospitals "revolving door" policies."The Burning Ice" - Former child star Jackie Cooper gives a rare performance as a doctor whose wife is apparently randomly murdered for her jewels but things, as always, are not all as they appear to be. Lou Antonio is quite good as the sympathetic suspect.Guest Norman Alden is mostly heard and not seen in "Rest in Peace, Somebody," a taunt episode about a possible assassination plot on an unnamed victim."A Matter of Mutual Concern" proves there is no honor among thieves."Nine, Ten, You're Dead" showcases character actor Moses Gunn as a washed-up boxer who runs afoul of a shady promoter (Albert Paulsen). Guest Frank Webb, who would die tragically three years later, plays an unlikely hit man."Odd Man In" - Hume Cronyn comes back one more time as wily con man Lewis Filer."Bait Once, Bait Twice" features a pre-"M.A.S.H." Loretta Swit (her third appearance as guest on the show)"Skinhead" - commentary on racism and also quite frank in its sexuality"While you're at It, Bring Me the Moon" - Barry Sullivan guests as an eccentric millionaire, a la Howard Hughes. Other guests include "repeat performers" Milton Seltzer and Ed Flanders."Good Night Baby, Time to Die" - Beth Brickell and William Watson are antagonists in this well-crafted tale."Cloth of Gold" - Ray Danton, Jason Evers, and Jay Robinson guest as the unlikely targets of an mystery murderer, using a most ingenious modus operandi."Didn't We Meet at a Murder" offers three hit "men," all unlikely candidates for the job.The final episode, "R & R & R" delivers a frightening guest turn from Alan Vint and also comments on the tragedy of war.Surprisingly, one of the weakest episodes in the whole compilation is the two-parter "The 90-Second War" with the return of McGarrett's main nemesis Wo Fat (Khigh Dhiegh). Though it also stars movie veterans Donald Pleasance and Dana Wynter, along with returning Roger C. Carmel as Col. Mischa Toptegan, the installment seems rather bloated and slightly confusing, devoid of the usual good storytelling involving Wo Fat.But that one, along with a couple of other "clunkers" doesn't lessen what is arguably one of the best in the show's twelve-year run.The re-mastered set has good sound, outstanding clarity of picture and color.Great music scores, a staple of the series, are supplied by Morton Stevens and Don B. Ray, among others.

Por primera vez llega la paqueteria después de mediodía (Milagro), siempre llegan los paquetes de amazon después de las 7 pm, como siempre bien empacado, en buenas condiciones los dvd ,y a disfrutar una tarde de 📺 tele como dijeran en el canal 5 de aquellos años, recomendable la 4 a temporada.

This is a new 4th season of Hawaii 50 when seat belts was not used. New sealed set was a bargain with 24programs. Even the phones back then were wired to each other. I was there when city patrol cars were hardtops. Beautiful Hawaii in all its glory. No tent city or graffiti back then.

私が子供の頃に見ていたドラマがDVDで買えるなんて夢にも思ってませんでした。それもマルチリンガルで西語もバッチリ。是非ともお勧めします！

OTTIMO COFANETTOCONTIENE TUTTI GLI EPISODI DELLA QUARTA STAGIONE RIMASTERIZZATIUNICA PECCA C'è SOLO L'AUDIO IN INGLESE R NON CI SONO I SOTTOTITOLI IN ITALIANOCONSIGLIATO PER GLI APPASSIONATI DELLE AVVENTURE DI MCGARRETT!

Very Pleased with this item Thank you