‘CHiPs’ Retro Recap: ‘Return of the Turks’

Written by John Edward Betancourt 

Our parents do their best to raise us right when we’re kids, and that’s why we are privy to lectures and lessons whenever a learning moment arrives so that we are properly prepared for similar situations that we may encounter later in life. But, despite their best efforts, and their wisdom, sometimes there are lessons that we have to learn the hard way and two of them that are easily quantifiable, are learning to let go of the darker parts of our past so that we can move forward in life and also understanding when it is time to leave childish things behind so we can embrace what we have in front of us. And really, I call those quantifiable simply due to the fact that there are specific and measured moments that allow for us to realize the importance of those lessons and oddly enough, those particular lessons and the dangers of ignoring them were on display in the next episode of CHiPs.
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For ‘Return of the Turks’ took the time to introduce to a trio of men who were dealing with those exact lessons and these gents were unable to see how such matters were creating problems in their current day to day lives. Take for example Sid, who found himself desperate to re-live his glory days after having a run in Ponch on the highway since he and Frank and a bunch of other guys used to party hearty back in the day and he expressed that joy to his friend Rudy and well, that need to experience the thrill of youth led to some fascinating moments wherein we saw Sid lament having a wife and child on a consistent basis. Plus Rudy even went so far as to pretend he was an invincible teenager once again by playing bumper cars on the highway and it was just incredible to see the series explore the notion of the mid-life crisis and bear witness to how far in the past these guys were stuck and how little they wanted to grow up and how dangerous that can be.

Yet I made mention of three men struggling with two different lessons and while Sid and Rudy held tight to their youth, a man named Pete battled painful memories of his past. For his brother, Gary, was once a highway patrol officer, and Jon’s partner to boot and unfortunately, he was killed while in the line of duty. And rather than grieve and move on, he saw an opportunity to avenge his brother in noble fashion by wearing Gary’s uniform and using a replica police bike to issue duplicate tickets from Frank’s pinch book and well, this was perhaps the most heartbreaking storyline of this tale since Pete really was struggling to deal with how his brother died and you really felt for him because it was obvious that he was lost and clueless to the fact that he was putting his own life at risk every single time he hit the highways. Because all he needed to do was run into the wrong person one time for something bad to happen and well, this was powerful stuff to say the least because you so rarely see T.V. address PTSD or the long term impact of grief and loss and it was refreshing and sobering to see it here.

However, this is a series that features heroes, the kind who always save the day, and since none of these guys were Creeps of the Week, it took more creative measures to resolve these storylines and well, the episode truly shined when it comes to that. Because rather than bring Pete in, Jon purposely had Gary’s brother pull him over in order to show him the dangers of his actions and he also informed Pete that his options were to either stop now and turn himself in or have Jon come after him, and after realizing how far he’d pushed this and that he could honor his brother by obeying the law, Pete did the right thing and turned himself in. As for Sid, well it took an honest chat with Ponch over a game of pool and some cold beers to help him understand that he had already grown up and left the past behind by being a responsible business owner and a father and a husband, and was richer for it, and that allowed for him to walk away from Rudy’s wild plans and of course eventually, Ponch and Jon were able to arrest Rudy so that he could face the music for ramming into cars on the highway.

If anything, I have to admit that I was supremely impressed with this episode when all is said and done. It was just so incredibly intelligent through and through, and every ounce of it was relatable and realistic and I’m in awe of the fact that life lessons from a cheeky police serial, are still relevant some thirty-plus years after it went off the air, and also that this story found ways to keep things light when the heavy stuff got overwhelming. Because the entire plotline with the young lady trapped in the iron lung, while intense at first, ended in the sweetest way possible, and it was cool to see Frank handle his commendation and its retraction in stride and this was just, a straight up feel good episode because everyone who needed help got it, and they were able to grow in life and it’s just a wonderful thing to see a police serial work to find a happy ending for characters in need. Until next time. 

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