‘CHiPs’ Retro Recap: ‘Home Fires Burning’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

​Deep down, we all know that get rich quick schemes are a joke. Because as we get older and wiser, we come to learn that hard work and dedication are the foundations to creating the financial security we seek. But if we all know that these kinds of shenanigans don’t work and cause us trouble when we attempt them, why then do people continue to try to get rich quick, with minimal steps? Well, there’s no easy answer on that matter, but sometimes it can involve a moment of weakness and financial desperation, or fatigue in trying to make it to the top can come into play. Or as is the case in the next episode of CHiPs, maybe getting some fat cash in your pocket real quick, is a wonderful way to stick it to the man.
 
Because ‘Home Fires Burning’ introduced us to some slimy Creeps of the Week named Andy and Tom and these guys had quite the wonderful fraud related scheme going on. In essence, they would look for people who were selling their mobile homes and contact them with an interesting proposition, one that would involve the destruction of said motor home in a fiery fashion so that everyone would get a lovely payout from the insurance companies and people were getting in on this scam without giving it a second thought. Because these guys were good, and everything seemed to be going along without a hitch, that is until they offered the scam to a man named Ray Evans. Which shouldn’t have been a problem for them, since Ray was all-in on the plan.
 
But the actual complication in question arose from the fact that Mister Evans paid a security guard extra to keep a closer eye on his RV. So, when these guys made their attempt to burn Ray’s mobile home to the ground, they almost killed the guard while he was having a little nap within its walls. Which of course allowed for Jon and his cohorts to put a little squeeze on Evans since they responded to the call and saved the guard’s life, and they were able to reveal the scheme in question and use Ray as bait to finally bring these guys down. And while this wasn’t exactly the brainiest of plot points to work with, what made it so worthwhile and so fascinating, is the sheer fact that this entire trio of villains, really were excited at the prospect of ripping off insurance companies and teaching them a lesson and that really was a new place for this series to go.
 
However, while that was awesome and tense to watch in its own right, there were some lighthearted moments to be found in this one as well. After all, the couple that constantly battled over their camper brought about some hilarious and breathtaking moments and the entire piece involving Ponch’s desire to soup up his charity squad to win, allowed for some chuckles to happen as well. Because he put an incredible amount of effort into ensuring a win, only to discover that their opponents were a literal circus act from the now defunct Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus. If anything, all of these elements made this a pretty by-the-numbers episode of the series and there’s really nothing wrong with that.
 
Because this was an entertaining story, one that definitely keeps your attention, thanks to all the details it features and there’s really only one flaw when it comes to this particular tale in that, it was a little strange to see Ponch disappear from the forefront of the story. Because there was just no need for it and while it was nice to spend time with Jon for a change, this show really has a different feel when these two are split up, which speaks to the perfect casting and the performances of Larry Wilcox and Erik Estrada, since these two actors play off of one another so well. But while that was weird, the story and its quality stands on its own and for now the best thing we can do, is just back and enjoy this incredible ride. Because this series is cranking out great episode after great episode as season four rolls on. Until next time.

---