Joe White (Terry O’Quinn) returns to tell Steve about Shelburne, now that Wo Fat is safely behind bars (raise your hand if you believe that’s going to last. Anyone? I’m glad he wasn’t killed though, and I get to watch Mark Dacascos be evil next season, too). But Joe doesn’t get a chance to say much before Fryer’s dead, and Max has been shot by an ex-con who then steals an HPD squad car, is chased around Honolulu, winds up in HPD HQ and blows it up. And if that description sounds breathless, that’s because it is.
The team does their amazing face-match thing and discovers their female suspect was reported dead five years ago. They go to their ‘favorite dirty cop’ Delano (one of the not-Alec Baldwin brothers) who was on scene at her supposed death. He’s so clearly in on it, I was surprised Steve didn’t punch him for kicks on the way out. Luckily Max comes out of surgery to give them the heads-up on the shooter being wounded. Did no one else notice the blood trail? Thank goodness there’s a crack 5-0 team when HPD can’t follow blood trails and figure out a shooter was hurt. This tidbit of information leads to a big shoot out in an animal hospital. The lady villain kills two people for no apparent reason other than sheer evil, but she’s dispatched by one of McGarrett’s patented Hero Moves. The team thinks the case is solved and they can go home, but with fifteen minutes left in the episode, we know there’s more.
Steve goes to Japan with Joe to look for Shelburne, who turns out to be his mother. I don’t think this is much of a shock, as there were not all that many choices that made any sense for why Joe would hide it from him. I also think the mere identity of Shelburne is not enough payoff for stringing us along about it all season, when we lack explanations, but at least the revelation is done so next season we can move on.
Let’s get to the most important part of this final fifteen minutes. My girl Kono is drowning! While I’m sure she’ll be back, since I can’t imagine this show without Grace Park, it is still pretty wrenching to see.
Chin takes Delano from prison because Kono’s been kidnapped, because of course Delano’s masterminding the whole thing for revenge. But Chin finds out not only is Kono kidnapped and being held off shore in a boat, but Malia’s also being held. Delano makes him choose, and Daniel Dae Kim does some lovely work here with his desperation and anger at the sheer cruelty of Delano’s horrible game. Chin rushes to Malia — hopefully he phones Adam as a non-police option to find Kono — but tragically he finds out the choice was never a real one: Malia’s been shot, but still hanging on, and Kono is dumped in the sea.
So the season ends with an old-fashioned cliffhanger with two lives in balance. There was no actual death in the family, as promised in the title (unless we count Fryer, which I don’t), but four months is a long time for Kono to hold her breath! Or for me to hold it waiting for spoilers…
Next season will have to deal immediately with rescuing Kono (no other option is acceptable), saving Malia (not saving her is also unacceptable), and Steve’s confrontation with his mother. But it also sets up some potential longer arcs — tracking Delano (and shooting him down like a dog) and Wo Fat’s inevitable escape/release from prison. I hope next season also features Adam Noshimuri’s return to have more shower scenes with Kono, and Grace never, ever leaving Danno because she and Daddy Danno are the cutest.
Clacked by Liz Tamura 
on May 15, 2012 @ 09:22 EST5EDT
I so rarely guess a big reveal correctly so when I do it always is a surprise. I started second guessing myself almost up to the last minute. I can’t wait to see who they hire to play Mom. A brunette or dark blonde with killer cheekbones – I just can’t think of anyone who fits that bill in the right age category.
I am sure Kono will be physically fine (mentally might be another issue) she was a surfing champion so the ocean is a known quantity and you just know that Adam is coming to the rescue. We saw so little of Malia that her death would only impact the viewer as much as it impacts Chin. Not to say that it wouldn’t have an impact, just not a stop watching impact.
The Rachel and Danny thing felt strange. Really, you are going to pull the moving away thing again! I could have seen it if it happened right after Grace was kidnapped and Stan was shot but they just dropped it in.
I suppose these blogs will pick up as we get closer to the season, sort of like the 2012 elections, major issues and all kinds of important cliff-hangers, but most people are not interested until after Labor Day, at the earliest. But as to Kono in particular, I think that the producers do not plan to get rid of Grace as Kono in the new season for the simple reason, and I hope she realizes this, that they would lose a lot of viewers if they did. I am a frustrated GP fan, who is very much aware of her acting ability after watching her get killed or die at least 4? times in that great science fiction space opera, Battlestar Gallatica. I would watch some of the other things she has appeared in but they were mostly on Canadian TV so by the time I saw them they were already cancelled. Some who are not familiar with her other work may think she can only be eye candy, and kick ass, but trust me she can really act. Don’t let me get started on why the heck she is not getting movie roles. That being said I also think the story line that H50 is developing would not work if she were dead. McGarrett has his issue with Shelburne, and I predicted that Baldwin brother would come back to probably mess with Kono and Kim (that part I did not see coming but it makes sense) and that issue is not done yet. Sharpshooter Kono has two villians to dispatch if she survives, Baldwin, and Wo Fat, and if you think that actor is not coming back you would be batty. I am hoping that either she figures out a way to get her hands free and gets to the surface to have her hottie gangster/Princeton boyfriend come rescue her (oh the plot twists with that), or that this bad toothpick guy is really an undercover agent and saves her (yes its possible, look how McGarrett got out of jail from season 1), or Kim had figured out a way to get help to her while he checks out his wife, or some other brilliant idea. The writers are evil, and as long as their evil saves my favorite character(s) I say bring it on. -:) All of this could be poppycock and my fan heart could be broken, but I don’t think so. With all the obvious story lines laying out there I think season 3 will be just as kick-ass as Kono’s kicking some bad guy or girls ass. Everybody has a reason to be really pissed, and I love that as a fan. So don’t kill off Kono, but let her deal with the psychological issues of almost drowning (acting, yessss,) then once she does, look out!!
And I know the producers hope that the interest in the show will be as least as hot as the interest in the presidential, senatorial, and house races, except this is a lot more fun.
Besides I don’t want to have to watch Castle. I like Nate Filion from Firefly, but he is no Grace Park
I read on twitter that Christine Lahti will have a recurring role next season. Does anyone know if she will be playing Steve’s mom?