Hawaii Five-0 “Na Me’e Laua Na Paio (Heroes and Villains)” 

The gang came back early (yay!) before CBS commences NCAA festivities, with a Comic-Con type episode that diverted to a completely unrelated sex-and-murder mystery. Plus, guest stars D.B. Sweeney and Perrey Reeves!

We start with a poolside misdirect straight from the CSI playbook as a woman seems to lose her son at the pool, then finds him just as a caped crusader crash lands on a cabana from a 10th-story drop. The hotel is the location for a Comic-Con-ish event which begets Steve and Danny wandering through the hotel as they partake of the costumed revelers and Danny asking a plushie “What up, Dawg?”

The victim seems to have been shoved through the glass patio door of a room directly above his own because he was too drunk to realize he was on the wrong floor, he stumbled onto a burglary, and was killed for his trouble. A gold watch at the scene leads back to a wealthy couple, Anne and Richard Davis (Reeves and Sweeney, who we don’t see until it’s a plot reveal) who were previously burgled and had filed a report on the missing items. The 5-0s realize the room at the hotel belonged to Johnny D., a guy committing several high-dollar burglaries and that someone had been in his room looking to retrieve something he stole.

Steve and Danny go check out his warehouse of contraband, and when a snowglobe seems a random thing to pilfer, Steve shakes it and gets a rattle and they find a memory card in the base with sex pics of Richard with a gal who was later found murdered. Turns out he loved her, Anne taped them and found out and went off, aiming a vintage baseball bat, which Dr. Max had conveniently kept fragments of as a newbie M.E. (and apparently paid for the tests himself!), at the girl.  She then sent her trainer after Johnny D. to get the globe back, but he instead killed the Comic-Con-er.

In other news, a very young (Larisa Oleynik who is still the 16-year old Bianca from 10 Things I Hate About You in my head) CIA analyst, Jenna Kaye, descends on Steve with a recording of his dad discussing his need to beg off of a case (presumably the one involving his wife’s “accident”). She tells Steve he can have the tape when he surrenders his files. He does his due diligence and finds out she’s on leave. He confronts her and she admits that her fiancé was killed on the basis of her intel and that Wo Fat is a bad, bad, dude.

Steve agrees to meet her later to share info on his case about the Yakuza and instead of her at the restaurant, Wo Fat saunters in and seats himself across the table, and comments that Jenna is on her way, so she’s being tailed). The boys have a quiet, calm sizing up of each other, complete with the “Say hello to my little friend” remark from Steve that was all over the teaser. They reach a sort of quiet threatening of each other and then CREDITS.

No lingering effects from Matty bailing out on Danny or the cuddle with Rachel at the end of the last episode, so I’m assuming we’ll get back to that. The arrival of Jenna gave Kono and Kelly a lighter load (if that’s possible) so that they essentially comment on a really cold room in the hotel and find the hotel’s crime scene and then step back.

Casting-wise, Larisa is fine as an analyst out of her depth but driven to avenge her lost love. I get a sibling vibe with her and Steve vs. romantic (if that’s where TBTB are going—Oleynik is beginning a recurring arc). Jenna seems too young for Steve, even though the actress is just few years younger than Alex O’Loughlin. Danny expressed an interest and that one I can buy into. I’m guessing that’ll put the heat on Rachel to fish or cut bait about her ex-husband. We also got a little bro-banter with Danny accusing Steve of being a negative “little Pac-Man in cargo pants” (hee!) when he immediately shoots down Danny’s conjecture about Jenna.

Glad to see D.B. Sweeney being used this season, first on The Event and now H50. Somebody give him a show, please.