Hawaii Five-O: Our take after seven episodes.

This is one of the only new shows this blog has ignored, and it is time for us to weigh in on it. It’s a show about an elite crime-fighting task force created by Hawaii’s governor (played by Jean Smart, who we love from 24 and Samantha Who?). The show has a lot of references to the original, like the catchphrase “Book ‘em, Danno” and the theme song. But we think the show is superior to the original, because it is slicker and, obviously, more modern.

It’s actually not bad. In fact, it has the sort of action tone Nikita is trying for (but instead, Nikita’s cases are mostly boring). This is your standard action/cop procedural with all the fun of Hawaii thrown in. Grace Park, as the show’s hot girl, is inoffensive, pretty, and fun. She has a lot to do, and it’s sort of believable, for once. The bad guys almost always turn out to be terrorists. Who knew that was such a problem in Hawaii? There are lots of portly native Hawaiians, shady characters, chases, and hot guys. What more do you want? And oh yeah, the cases are pretty interesting usually and the episodes move fast, pacing-wise (with the possible exception of the pilot).

We like Danno, who always calls out the main character, Steve, for illegally torturing or scaring criminals, even if he doesn’t do much about it except yell. It’s nice to have a character point out that you aren’t supposed to do that, as a cop. Daniel Dae Kim is great, and we love seeing him get steady work after LOST. What the show needs now is an overarching plot arc to connect episodes and keep us coming back. Each episode has been pretty stand-alone, which makes it easy for occasional TV watchers to miss a few episodes. It’s been very entertaining so far for a show that is lacking a big love story or central flirtatious couple. Each episode, by itself, is entertaining and easy to follow, with lots of jokes and action.

The bottom line for Hawaii Five-O: We're pretty sure that this won't end up being your all-time favorite show. It’s not a must-see that you yearn for between episodes. But once it’s on and you are ten minutes into the episode, it’s a must-finish. No need to catch up. If you like action procedurals, just jump in next Monday, because this one is just fun. It's like if Nikita and Chase had a baby, raised it in Hawaii, and it turned out much better than its parents.

Show Grade So Far: B