Ready, Aim..... (20 Jan. 1977)

Because the country of Japan has very strong restrictions on handguns, smugglers can turn huge profits by buying or stealing them in Hawaii and seeking them on the Tokyo black market. A ... See full summary »

Director:

Jerry London

Writers:

Leonard Freeman (creator), Tim Maschler

Stars:

Jack Lord, James MacArthur, Kam Fong

Cast

Episode cast overview, first billed only:
Jack Lord	...	Det. Steve McGarrett
James MacArthur	...	Dan Williams
Kam Fong	...	Chin Ho
Herman Wedemeyer	...	Duke
France Nuyen	...	Iso
Manu Tupou	...	Nahashi (as Manu Topou)
Edward James Olmos	...	Dancer
Jimmy Borges	...	Robert Makala
Nana Nakano	...	Iso's Little Girl
Francis Yoshida	...	Japanese Hood
Rodney Philip Aiu	...	Informant (as Rod Aiu)
Brian Fong	...	Cook
Peggy Anne Siegmund	...	Nurse
John Stalker	...	Mr. Hodges
Carl Smith	...	Junk Yard Attendant

Storyline

Because the country of Japan has very strong restrictions on handguns, smugglers can turn huge profits by buying or stealing them in Hawaii and seeking them on the Tokyo black market. A Tokyo police officer, who narrowly escaped an assassination attempt on the Tokyo street and picked up the assailant's weapon, traces it to Honolulu. He arrives there and tells McGarrett of his find, and the two of them form a task force to find the leaders of a Hawaiian smuggling ring.

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Mystery

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

20 January 1977 (USA)

Filming Locations:

Hawaii, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

CBS Television Network, Leonard Freeman Production

Technical Specs

Runtime:

50 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

4:3

Did You Know?

Trivia

Despite the relatively early air date, this was the next-to-last show filmed during the 1976-77 season (the last one was "A Capitol Crime," airing four weeks later).

User Reviews

Not particularly exciting...and not particularly Japanese.

Sometimes, "Hawaii Five-O" seemingly traveled the world on occasion--with settings such as Hong Kong and Singapore. However, many times these were actually filmed in Hawaii--but they did a good job in maintaining the mirage. However, with "Ready, Aim...", the producers really dropped the ball. Although parts of it take place in Japan and several Japanese folks are in the episode, none of them are really Japanese and it shows. Mostly, they appear to be Hawaiians or of Vietnamese descent. I just thought it odd--couldn't they have found some folks of Japanese ancestry for these parts? After all, a very large percentage of Hawaiians can trace their ancestry there. Apart from failing to maintain the impression of 'Japanese-ness', is the show any good? The show begins in Japan(?) and ends up in Hawaii. The show is about the illegal importation of handguns to Japan and involves a Japanese agent working there and in Hawaii to track down the suppliers. This is Japanese gun laws are VERY strict--and you cannot legally own one. Eventually McGarrett and his men get in on the act and work with Japanese authorities to catch the scum responsible for the imports.

Overall, this is a fairly bland episode--even with the inclusion of a kidnapped kid into the plot. Part of it is because I doubt if most Americans really care about guns flooding into Japan. Part of it is that there just isn't all that much excitement in this one. But mostly, it just wasn't very interesting. However, it could have been a lot worse...such as when Ricardo Montalban played a Japanese man! Yes...this really did happen in season one.