‘CHiPs’ Retro Recap: ‘Fast Money’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

​We like to think that television shows as a whole, are well-oiled machines. The kind that are able to react to just about any internal crisis that comes their way, so that great storytelling and solid entertainment value can be maintained. But the fact of the matter is, everyone involved behind the scenes is human, and when trouble arises, the response is human. Mistakes are made, scripts are shaky and even the talent struggles with unexpected changes. Which is why season five of CHiPs has seen its ups and downs, because of the unfortunate drama behind the scenes. But those issues would not last forever, and eventually Erik Estrada would make peace with the producers and it would seem that the next episode of this series, serves at the beginning of that healing process.
 
Because ‘Fast Money’ is a tale that has that classic CHiPs feel to it. Plus, it features actual interaction with Steve and Ponch and Jon, something that seemed impossible since Caitlyn Jenner (who then identified as Bruce) was clearly being set up to be Ponch’s replacement if the contract issues went south. But here they were in this tale, hanging out as if they were old friends and Steve even went so far as to help Ponch out around his apartment since the landlord was selling the place to another property manager and it was just wonderful to see this happen and it was equally as impressive to see all these smaller moments connect to something bigger. Case and point, Jon’s new sweetheart, who was a bonded courier who saw her industry under fire thanks to some creative Creeps of the Week.
 
For a pair of dudes named Rado and Gillis had worked out the perfect crime with an inside man at a local Los Angeles bank. And in essence, their contact, a one George Selkirk, would call this duo when a courier would pick up a large sum of cash and they would go to work in smooth and magnificent fashion. Because they had a tricked-out van, one that could clamp down on the courier’s car so Rado could bully the courier into giving him the cash, and this is a plan that worked like a charm. But Rado saw an opportunity to be more efficient, and that motivated him to modify the van to the point where he was actually able to lift cars off the road. Which made escape impossible and it made the capture of our villains impossible since they would just dump the car and escape, leaving the poor courier to likely crash. Something that would in turn motivate CHP units to respond to the accident first, over giving chase to the van.
 
But once CHP Central had an idea how these guys were operating, they hatched an incredibly resourceful sting operation to bring them down, one that involved Harlan’s big brain. Because he was able to design a car that could spring a magnificent trap on these guys. Because this car was lined with a ridiculous amount of lead so that it would instead lift the van when the bad guys deployed their little toy. Plus, it also featured a freakin’ grappling hook so the van couldn’t veer off and escape and wouldn’t you know it? When the time finally came to spring the trap, this enhanced car actually worked and it only took a matter of minutes for these crooks to give up and try to escape on foot. But they didn’t get far because everyone was on their tails and just like that, they were behind bars.
 
If anything, this is a flawless episode of CHiPs, through and through. Because once again, the villains had depth, and it takes the collective minds of Central to bring them to justice. Plus, there’s thrilling stunts and epic chase scenes and most importantly, everyone has everyone’s back in some form or fashion. Because it really is a huge treat to see Steve McLeish trying to help out Frank Poncherello at every turn. And it is equally as wonderful to see everyone come together in this tale to help Ponch keep his apartment and well, one can only hope that this return to form continues along. Because more of the same will help everyone forget about that silly behind the scenes dispute for the time being, so we can all enjoy some quality adventures on the highway. Until next time.

---