The original Hawaii 5-0, which debuted 50 years ago (!!!), is not only an enjoyable show, but is now a video time capsule.
In this episode, which aired in 1969, the attack on Pearl Harbor is only 28 years in the past.
During those 28 years, a Japanese ninja named Nagata (who, evidently, was a "sleeper" in the US, and was supposed to blow up fuel reserves prior to the attack but did not), has been a patient at a mental hospital. Although his name is known to hospital authorities, the fact that he has been alive for the last 28 years and hospitalized is a tidbit of information that apparently was not known to his wife, family and friends.
Anyway, he escapes, and is suffering under the delusion it is still 1941 and that he is still meant to blow up the fuel reserves. Somehow after his escape he managed to get his hands on a ninja costume and some ninja weapons. He steals some dynamite, killing a security guard with a shuriken in the process.
Then, in civilian clothes, steals a car very clumsily, in broad daylight in front of witnesses, and karate kicks the cop who tries to stop him.
He then goes -- dressed now in a suit -- in search of his now-dead wife at a clock store, and instead finds his daughter, whom he mistakes for his wife in his deluded mental state. He takes her prisoner over her very vocal protestations (she has no idea who he is), holds her prisoner, and then, on the appointed day, somehow manages to get himself, her, and the bomb onto a fuel tank at Pearl without being noticed (ninjas were stealthy assassins, but I believe they usually traveled a lot lighter than that). He wants to blow everything up -- including himself and the girl --at 8:55 am (note: the first attack at Pearl Harbor was at 7:53 am. The second wave came at 8:55 am.).
McGarrett and crew have two hours to search the fuel tanks and surrounding areas to locate the bomb. Fortunately they are being quiet and carrying boom mikes so they can hear the bomb ticking (no, I did not make that up). Of course they locate Nagata and manage to tackle him and get the bomb away from him, which McGarrett then disarms with some toenail clippers (no, I did not make that up either). {Hey buddy your name is McGarrett, not MacGyver.}
What makes this episode weak are the plot holes. Another factor is the casting. Mark Lenard was a fine actor. But he is terribly miscast as a ninja, and as a first-generation Japanese. It just doesn't work: the totally fake-looking epicanthic eyelids do not make up for his stature, his facial features, his hair, etc. He looks like a white guy with a really poor makeup job. In addition, we know he is supposed to be psychotic and delusional. But playing the character as a screaming lunatic, as opposed to someone who really believes he is a ninja on a secret mission, also seriously detracts from the episode.
The very best part of the episode is a martial arts match using sai swords. Tommy Fujiwara, a regular on the show, is always a pleasure to watch and has a small part here.
There are two things about this series that were especially great: first, that they made an effort to teach about Hawaii, its people and its history. Second, and most important, they made an effort to have a lot of non-white actors: Fujiwara, James Hong, France Nuyen, Kwan Hi Lim, Seth Sekai, Terry Plunkett, etc. They had many native Hawaiians on the show. Yes, most episodes featured a lot of white people, but for the time, this show was pretty diverse. So it is hard to understand why they would miscast people, like Mark Lenard in this episode or John Marley in "The Big Kahuna," when they had many fine Asian and Hawaiian actors available.
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