Captain Furillo (the always terrific Daniel J. Travanti) has his hands full making negotiations with various street gang leaders about the President's impending visit. LaRue (smoothly played by Kiel Martin) gets himself into trouble when he accepts a bribe from crooked drug-dealing detective Ralph Macafee (Dan Hedaya in top slimy form). Meanwhile, Renko (Charles Haid) and Hill (Michael Warren) have tremendous difficulty getting their acts together and working as a team. The plot concerning the fraught relationship between Renko and Hill culminates in an especially moving scene in which the cops make amends; the acting by Haid and Warren in this striking scene is simply topnotch. Moreover, LaRue has some nice moments with his partner Washington (the supremely engaging Taurean Blacque) and Belker (Bruce Weitz growling it up with customary teeth-gnashing gusto) has a few funny bits when his mother sets him up on a blind date. Better still, this episode concludes with a lovely scene between Furillo and his bitter ex-wife Fay (Barbara Bosson doing a bang-up job again with a potentially annoying and unlikable character) that speaks volumes about their complex relationship. Nick Savage as the bald black pickpocket from the pilot makes an amusing encore appearance and a very young and baby-faced David Caruso pops up as Irish gang leader Tommy Mann. Director Robert Butler stages a couple of exciting foot chases with genuine skill and aplomb. But this episode scores strongest with the way it illustrates how police work can intervene with one's personal life (Furillo is having a hard time getting any decent downtime with Veronica Hamel as his patient, but increasingly fed-up lawyer lover Joyce Davenport) and the great peril the average patrolman puts himself in every day on the job.
4 Reviews
This is such a great series.
Hey_Sweden18 January 2020
The men at Hill Street Station are still busy preparing for the Presidents' arrival in the neighbourhood, and the gang members are still loudly voicing their opinions on the matter. While nothing is really resolved on that issue, another story thread finds closure, as Hill and Renko deal with remaining feelings after they'd been surprised and shot in the debut episode. The ever-hilarious Belker reluctantly agrees to a blind date arranged by his mother. LaRue finds himself in some trouble when he seems to accept bribe money from a crooked detective (well-cast guest star Dan Hedaya). And Frank is thrown for a loop when ex-wife Fay tries to strong-arm him into paying more child support. Yet, her vulnerability towards the end of the episode - not to mention Joyce's wise advice regarding the subject of divorce - obliges Frank to realize that he doesn't really bear Fay any ill will.
It's a tribute to the writing talents of Michael Kozoll and Steven Bochco, the creators of the series, that this plays out so compellingly. Everything is played with such sincerity, yet there is still some room for humour, of course. Pickpocket (the priceless Nick Savage) makes another appearance, during which Belker gets the standard call from his mother. There are truly heartfelt, tender moments between the cast members: Michael Warren & Charles Haid, Daniel J. Travanti & Veronica Hamel (who take a bath together), and even Travanti & Barbara Bosson, with the latter making Fay less shrill and more sympathetic than usual. At the end of it all, we realize what a good man Frank is.
The roll call has its own moment of levity, with Esterhaus commenting on the spelling mistakes made by graffiti artists in the restrooms.
David Caruso appears again as an Irish gang member; look also for character actor Art Evans ("Fright Night", "Die Hard 2") in a small role.
Eight out of 10.
It's a tribute to the writing talents of Michael Kozoll and Steven Bochco, the creators of the series, that this plays out so compellingly. Everything is played with such sincerity, yet there is still some room for humour, of course. Pickpocket (the priceless Nick Savage) makes another appearance, during which Belker gets the standard call from his mother. There are truly heartfelt, tender moments between the cast members: Michael Warren & Charles Haid, Daniel J. Travanti & Veronica Hamel (who take a bath together), and even Travanti & Barbara Bosson, with the latter making Fay less shrill and more sympathetic than usual. At the end of it all, we realize what a good man Frank is.
The roll call has its own moment of levity, with Esterhaus commenting on the spelling mistakes made by graffiti artists in the restrooms.
David Caruso appears again as an Irish gang member; look also for character actor Art Evans ("Fright Night", "Die Hard 2") in a small role.
Eight out of 10.
The President Is Coming
Hitchcoc5 July 2021
A few more scenes repeated from the Pilot. Frank is faced with all sorts of gang unrest when it is revealed the President is going to tour the battleground area of the city. Deals must be made with each of the leaders. Look for David Caruso who represents the Shamrocks (an Irish gang, I guess). J. D. Gets in over his head and Hill and Renko have confrontation over trust. Phil is dating a high school girl but there is something else in the offing as he is responsible for what is being done by a decorator. Frank and Joyce are working on their relationship. Faye gets herself arrested after going after Frank and needs his help.
"Politics as Usual" marked another fine ep of "Hill Street Blues"
tavm5 April 2018
This third ep of the late Steven Bochco's "Hill Street Blues" continues the planning of the visit of the President as well as Hill and Renko's issues with each other concerning the aftermath of both being shot. Meanwhile, Furillo is also having to deal with his ex-wife's suing for more child support payments and LaRue has to deal with his getting some money from an arrest of another officer from another precinct. Once again, Bochco and Michael Kozoll wrote another fine ep of "HSB" with a nice surprise from Bochco's then-wife Barbara Bosson playing Fay Furillo, Frank's ex, with a little less shrillness after it's discovered what happened to her at the end of this ep, "Politics as Usual". Highly recommended.
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