It didn't take long for this writer to be blindsided by the retro kick-ass euphoria of Hawaii Five-O on DVD: I was hooked immediately. I’m the particular age of TV-watcher that was too young for shows like Magnum P.I. and Hawaii Five-O in their initial runs, so one of my prime objectives as a TV-on-DVD addict is to catch up on what I’ve missed (and oh, what a journey it has been...). However, this sometimes difficult because, well, to be blunt, some of the TV from the '70s and '80s sucks (I suppose the same is true of TV of any age, but still..).

Yet Hawaii Five-O isn’t just a look-at-the-goofy-clothes nostalgia trip: It’s a damned fun show. Before The Second Season came to my desk, I had heard of the show and was tangentially familiar with the series’ theme song as a pop culture icon, but while I could definitely tell you which show “Book ‘em, Dano” was from, I couldn’t give you anything more.

But after reviewing seasons two through six for DVDFile, I've become a die-hard aficionado, and now: The Seventh Season.

First some background... The basic story structure continues to follow Steve McGarrett (the amazing Jack Lord): He runs a police station on the island state and he’s the ass-kicker of his bunch. Then there’s the governor of Hawaii (Richard Denning) who sometimes comes around to bust Steve’s chops. And then we have the detectives: Dano (James MacArthur), Ben (Al Harrington - who gets phased out during this seventh season) and Chin Ho (Kam Fong). And while I'll definitely agree that The Seventh Season is a business-as-usual affair - the show is consistent, to be sure, but doesn't break free of its narrative paradigm in any real capacity here - but when business-as-usual is kick-ass crime drama, I can't complain. 

In this season, we get a Leslie Neilsen as a cattle baron who avenges the death of his son (We Hang Our Own), a fine-art heist (How to Steal a Masterpiece, a run-in with a seriously twisted psycho who starts reenacting crimes solved by the Five-O squad (I'll Kill 'Em Again), and a collection of other episodes that may not be razzle-dazzle programming, but they serve the spirit of Hawaii Five-O nevertheless. I'd have to admit that this Seventh Season set isn't as involving as its predecessor - it's compulsively watchable, just not quite as air-tight dramatically - but that doesn't mean it ain't great, casual TV entertainment.

I understand there's a certain degree of bias - you're reading a review by a guy who is literally ga-ga for the series - but I would even wager that newcomers to the series might just find more than retro hipness in these episodes. This one's a grand collection of material from a classic crime show that may not be at the top of its game, but even at a few rungs below that, it still kicks ass.

Now THAT merits an 'aloha'...