I have recently begun watching the first season of "Hawaii Five-O" on DVD. I've always liked the show but have noticed a few problems with some of the early episodes. Some have too much singing (such as "No Blue Skies" and "Tiger By The Tail") and others suffer from weird casting decisions (such as Ricardo Montalban playing a Japanese man in "Samurai"). While "By The Numbers" might seem a bit ordinary, it is not hindered by either of these problems and is a good and simple episode.
The show begins with a Private waiting for his wife to arrive for his leave. However, she hasn't arrived and the guy is worried. When a friend tries to get him to come with him to help him spend the money he won with an unlicensed lottery, the Private declines--he's really worried about his wife. So, his buddy (another soldier on leave) goes to town to collecting his winnings and live it up. However, the dirt-bag who sold him the ticket refuses to pay up and stabs him--leaving him to bleed to death.
Later, the Private is depressed--still his wife hasn't shown up and he's gotten no word from her. So, he goes to a bar and talks to a "professional lady"--who works hard to get him drunk. Later, they leave and go to her place--where almost immediately you hear shots. Her boss, the head of the gambling ring is dead--and it looks like this poor drunk soldier might have done it. The plot is interesting and solid--with no obvious plot holes or overly dramatic moments. I don't want to say too much more--as it would give away the plot.
By the way, the Private is played by Johnny Crawford and his IMDb biography page is really, really interesting. Aside from growing up playing a role as a kid on "The Rifleman" as well as a Mouseketeer, he was a professional singer--with a few hit songs under his belt. But, unlike Tommy Sands and Sal Mineo in other recent episodes, he did not sing--a big, bug plus if you ask me. Also, on IMDb he's billed as a Corporal in this episode--this is NOT the case--he was clearly a Private with a single stripe on his sleeve (and is referred to as Private Franklin).
Also, Herman Wedemeyer plays Lt. Balta for the second time. A bit later in the show, he would play Sgt. Lukela. This sort of bouncing back and forth in roles and inconsistency was pretty common on the series--perhaps because there just weren't that many actors in Hawaii to chose from for the show. His IMDb page is also quite interesting, by the way.
The show begins with a Private waiting for his wife to arrive for his leave. However, she hasn't arrived and the guy is worried. When a friend tries to get him to come with him to help him spend the money he won with an unlicensed lottery, the Private declines--he's really worried about his wife. So, his buddy (another soldier on leave) goes to town to collecting his winnings and live it up. However, the dirt-bag who sold him the ticket refuses to pay up and stabs him--leaving him to bleed to death.
Later, the Private is depressed--still his wife hasn't shown up and he's gotten no word from her. So, he goes to a bar and talks to a "professional lady"--who works hard to get him drunk. Later, they leave and go to her place--where almost immediately you hear shots. Her boss, the head of the gambling ring is dead--and it looks like this poor drunk soldier might have done it. The plot is interesting and solid--with no obvious plot holes or overly dramatic moments. I don't want to say too much more--as it would give away the plot.
By the way, the Private is played by Johnny Crawford and his IMDb biography page is really, really interesting. Aside from growing up playing a role as a kid on "The Rifleman" as well as a Mouseketeer, he was a professional singer--with a few hit songs under his belt. But, unlike Tommy Sands and Sal Mineo in other recent episodes, he did not sing--a big, bug plus if you ask me. Also, on IMDb he's billed as a Corporal in this episode--this is NOT the case--he was clearly a Private with a single stripe on his sleeve (and is referred to as Private Franklin).
Also, Herman Wedemeyer plays Lt. Balta for the second time. A bit later in the show, he would play Sgt. Lukela. This sort of bouncing back and forth in roles and inconsistency was pretty common on the series--perhaps because there just weren't that many actors in Hawaii to chose from for the show. His IMDb page is also quite interesting, by the way.
