‘CHiPs’ Retro Recap: ‘Moonlight’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

The age-old phrase ‘time flies’ holds a lot of gravity in modern times, simply because there is so much truth to it. Because just like that, we look up and realize how much time has passed us by. It could be related to some kind of anniversary or life milestone, or a birthday of someone close to us, but one way or another that realization comes, and we are flooded with warm memories of yesteryear. Yet while these moments are a big deal to us and something we discuss often with family and friends; it is something that isn’t explored in storytelling all that often for reasons unknown. It could be related to the fact that most of these milestones are supremely personal in nature and it’s hard to properly examine them on the silver or small screen in relatable fashion. But here and there, it does pop up in popular media.
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In fact, the next episode of CHiPs tackled that part of our lives head on, by celebrating the fact that Ponch and Jon have been partners for four years. But it sure didn’t seem like that was going to be the case early on in ‘Moonlight’. Because our dynamic duo really didn’t think too much of it, they just went about their day and even Sergeant Getraer told the staff to just let it be since there were other things to worry about right now. But a series as endearing as this one wouldn’t let that kind of milestone be glossed over in the slightest, so it found a way to celebrate it in a more cerebral manner, by injecting a little blast from the past into this particular tale. Because once again, Robbie and her father Charley, the two key figureheads with Davis Trucking; found their way into the story.

Because Ponch and Jon came to discover that someone was using big rigs to dump toxic chemicals in the hills, and who better to help them find the culprit than the truckers that know everybody? But unfortunately, the person that Ponch and Jon were looking for was supremely close to Robbie and Charley. In fact, our Creep of the Week was a man named Gil, who was Robbie’s husband and soon-to-be father of their child and he did this heinous act to pay off some gambling debts. But despite his best efforts to keep this a secret, the investigation slowly unraveled his web of lies and the outright discovery of this shady deal forced Charley to help out on one last dangerous run, in the hopes of saving the company from going under. But as is often the case on this show, the plan went to hell and thankfully Ponch and Jon were there to save the day and dispense a little justice.

But while at first glance that plot doesn’t exactly engender celebratory thoughts, it is relevant to their four years of riding together in a deeper fashion. Because the return of the Davis clan serves to remind us that these two have touched a lot of lives and done a lot of good in their community and in regard to Robbie and Charley, their business might not have made it this far without Ponch and Jon’s help, and that’s a cool way to look at their time together on the road and of course, we did get the true celebration at the end of the episode. Because Ponch and Jon both made some nice sacrifices to make the day special and they had some wonderful things to say about one another and while this should have been joyous in nature, it came off as supremely bittersweet.

Because in many ways, this particular tale closes the chapter on everything that’s come before it. For this is the season when change comes to this fictional universe and once Steve McLeish appears on screen, that’s when the decline of this series begins. So perhaps it is fitting that these two characters celebrate what this series has accomplished now, since there may not be an opportunity to do so later. But all dark clouds aside, this still was quite the quality episode. Because you can’t go wrong with a celebration of friendship, and it was quite wonderful to see the Davis family return and see them survive another roadblock on the highway of life. But either way, the clock is now ticking in regard to the future of this series. Which means we should bask in the wonder of this celebration for as long as possible, because it won’t be long before things start to change at CHP Central. Until next time.

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