‘CHiPs’ Retro Recap: ‘Rustling’

Written by John Edward Betancourt 

Shortly after I settled in to watch another episode of the magnificent police serial CHiPs, a particular phrase popped up in my mind; ‘when it rains it pours’. And that saying was at the forefront of my mind, simply due to the fact, that the series allowed for the dark clouds that arrived in the prior episode, to continue to unleash their proverbial fury upon this universe. Because ‘Rustling’ turned out to be quite the bleak story, one that saw Ponch and Jon dealing with one ugly event after another and I have to admit that I was quite taken aback by this. For this series often kept its stories in lighthearted places, and I truly thought the darkness present in ‘One Two Many’ was nothing more than a one off. But sometimes a series wants to see how far it can the push the proverbial envelope and well, this particular tale definitely saw the paper start to tear.

In fact, this one was ugly from the get-go, thanks to a remorseless creep named Ambrose, who took our dynamic duo on a high speed chase through a garage, endangering lives in the process and despite the fact that Ponch and Jon arrested him after he slammed into a parked car, this guy wasn’t done making trouble. For he called for an emergency trial in order to clear his name and he was granted it, and the whole point of having this debacle take place, was to discredit Ponch and Jon’s work, and make it seem as though a mechanical error was to blame for all the trouble Ambrose caused. But thankfully Frank thought ahead and found a way to prove that this guy was as irresponsible as they come and while this plot thread ended happy, with the dude going to jail for a few days, the fact that he was determined to beat the system and discredit two fine police officers definitely set the tone.

Which brings me to the next dismal moment in this story, when the rain clouds burst, so to speak. For shortly after the guys dealt with Mister Ambrose, they found themselves squaring off with a dangerous drunk driver, one who sent a car flying with his reckless driving, and while Ponch continued the pursuit, Jon went to check on the occupant in the car and that’s where this plot line took quite the downward turn. Because not only did Jon and the victim (a young lady named Stacy Wyatt) barely escape from her exploding car, Stacy came to realize that something was genuinely wrong with her body since the pain she initially felt in her legs continued to fade, to the point where she couldn’t feel them or move them, and although Jon did a fine job of keeping her calm and comfortable while they waited for Ponch to arrest the drunk and for the paramedics to arrive, she went into that ambulance facing an uncertain future…

Yet, while that alone would have been plenty for the audience to chew upon, the story still had more challenges for Ponch and Jon to handle. After all, the Creeps of the Week were still lurking about in this story and this time around, our intrepid heroes were on the hunt for a group of shady cattle rustlers. For these dudes figured out how to make some serious money in their industry, by stealing their own cows. That way, they could collect on the insurance money and double up their earnings by selling the herd like normal and well, while this seems to be the tamest storyline yet when it comes to this episode, the COTW’s proclivity for violence is what makes this part of the episode just as dark as anything else since these guys were happy to crack Bear in the skull with their car door, and it took the might of a fire hose to bring these bandits down.

However, all darkness aside, this episode does get credit for at least trying to balance out the bad with a touch of lightheartedness since Ponch does work to put together a surprise birthday party for Jon, something that falls to pieces when it is hilariously revealed that Frank got the date wrong, and there was a lovely little plot thread involving a magician and thankfully, Stacy did regain full use of her legs. But sadly, a lot of these moments came too little, too late, and the sour vibe of this episode hangs heavy over the cheeky finale and well, while it seems as though I’m coming down upon this episode, I should make mention of the fact that I really enjoyed the hell out of this one. Because it was a bold choice to keep the darkness flowing, and it was handled in enthralling fashion and it just goes to show that this series can accomplish anything storytelling wise, and now I’m more curious as to how long this particular ugly streak is going to run on this series and I suppose the only way to find out, is to hit play and see where Ponch and Jon’s adventures take me. Until next time.

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