Log 24: A Rare Occassion (Episode 17, Season 2)

Episode 43

Ohmygawd, I'm so excited! It's time for "Log 24: A Rare Occassion"!
Get ready for off-duty fun, a weird yellow polo shirt, just the right amount of levity, and a very special guest star!

Synopsis:

Jim and Jean host a barbecue and invite Pete. Will the partners be able to keep their minds off of work during this rare occasion? 

The Story:

Pete and Jim arrive at the station with a prisoner in custody. Their prisoner, a career criminal named Frankie, was picked up after snatching a purse. Although he's about to be locked up, Frankie is pretty happy, he's just in time for supper at the jail. 

"Too bad I can't do my time here. Couldn't you arrange that Malloy?"

Mac and Malloy are happy that Frankie is a fan of their accommodations.

Inside the station, Reed writes the arrest report while Malloy supervises. The rookie officer wonders if Frankie will ever learn. Malloy doesn't think so.

"You heard what he said, he likes our chow."

Since his partner doesn't want to have a serious discussion about Frankie's inability to change his ways, Reed changes the subject to their upcoming day off of work. He asks the senior partner if he is still planning on coming over tomorrow.

"Yeah, but can't you and Jean think of anything better to do on your day off?", answers Malloy.
Reed, frustrated with his partner's lack of enthusiasm, pauses before answering.

No, he and Jean can't think of a better way to spend their day off. She's really looking forward to having Malloy over, she even left Jim a note to remind Pete about the get-together. Malloy assures Reed that he will be there, he'll even bring the steaks.

Reed returns to writing the report, but both he and Malloy are distracted by what they hear coming from the radio in Mac's office. The dispatcher announces that 1-Adam-57 is in pursuit. Reed, Malloy, and two other officers enter Mac's office to better hear the broadcast.

"Rush hour, great time of the day for a pursuit," comments Malloy.

They follow the pursuit over the radio until the dispatcher announces that 1-A-57 and the suspect have TA'ed, officers injured, ambulance en route. Mac leaves for the scene of the accident while the other officers return to their duties.

Reed takes the jail keys out of Mac's desk, it's time to take Franky for chow.

Later, in the locker room, Pete and Jim discuss the officers involved in the pursuit and the traffic accident. Both Fiorello and Chavez are married with two children each. They are still in emergency while the suspect only has minor bruises. Jim can't make sense of it and looks to his partner for answers.

"He slams into two parked cars and hits Chavez and Fiorello and ends up with a bump on his head. How do you figure it?" asks Reed.

"You don't," replies Malloy.

When Mac enters the locker room Malloy asks what the scene of the accident looked like.

Mac reports that it looked "like a pile of steel spaghetti".
He goes on to tell them that Fiorello and Chavez are on the critical list.

Pete and Jim react to the news that Mac has just delivered.

After hearing about Chavez and Fiorello, Pete's not in the mood for a party. He suggests that they postpone tomorrow's barbecue.

Jim doesn't want to cancel, Jean is looking forward to it. She says it's going to be "a rare occasion".

The next day Jean is getting ready for the barbecue when the doorbell rings.

It's Pete with the steaks. Beef being delivered by a beefcake. Yummy.

Pete then removes his jacket to reveal this. What the hell is going on with this polo shirt? Why is the crocodile is so low? At first I thought that maybe this yellow Izod Lacoste polo was a factory second, purchased at a discount by the Mark VII wardrobe department.

But, then I did some research on the subject and found these pictures of Clint Eastwood wearing Izod Lacoste polo shirts in the 1960's. The crocodile on his shirts are pretty low, too. 

So, I assume that the croc used to be placed much lower. Then someone realized that these shirts would look much better if the embroidery weren't hovering around or below the wearer's nipple. Also, in case you were wondering, the crocodile (and it is a crocodile, not an alligator) is the mark of the Lacoste brand. But, many Americans associate the iconic reptile with the brand Izod. This is because Lacoste licensed it's brand to Izod in the 1950's. You can read more about it here. 

Before Pete can join Jim in the garage, the fourth guest for the cook-out emerges from little Jimmy's nursery. 

It's Ruth Bannister, a friend of Jean's with an annoyingly breathy voice. Jean wants these two to get acquainted while she goes to work.

Ruth introduces herself by letting Pete know that Jim calls her a "predatory animal". (If this is how she introduces herself to every eligible bachelor she meets, it's no wonder that she is still single.) When she is not stalking her prey, Ruth is a computer programmer.

Pete is shocked that the ravishing Ruth is a computer programmer, "You coulda fooled me," he says.

Ruth is also surprised by Pete's occupation, she doesn't think he looks like a cop.

The party moves outside where they are soon joined by Jim. Once he and Pete  are together, their conversation turns to Fiorello and Chavez. Jim called the hospital as soon as he got up and Pete stopped by the hospital on his way over to the Reeds. Both are still on the critical list and the doctors say it could go either way.

I really want to focus on Martin Milner's other assets, but I keep staring at that crocodile. I also think this shirt is too big on Milner, which could be another reason why the embroidery is so dang low.

Jean doesn't want to hear any more talk of Chavez, Fiorello, or the accident for a few hours.

"OK, we've settled that,"she interjects.

Jim seems perturbed with her outburst and an uncomfortable Pete is caught between the irritated couple. Ruth comes out with the drinks and notices that the mood is no longer jovial.

"Is this a party or a wake?" she asks.

Jean replies that it will be a party if Pete and Jim stop talking about the accident. As soon as Jean mentions the accident, Ruth's curiosity is piqued and she wants to know what everyone is talking about. After Jean has another outburst and Jim explains what happened, Pete changes the subject and asks about the truck Jim is rebuilding in the garage. 

While the boys head off to look at the truck, the girls remain at the picnic table to prepare the salad and talk about the boys. Not that she's considering it, but Ruth wants to know what it's like being married to a cop. At first Jean is perplexed by Ruth's query. "Why? Should it be different being married to a policeman?" she asks. Ruth argues that the badge on his chest does make a difference, he works "crazy hours" and gets involved in "wild things". Jean admits that it's not all fun and games, but she's very happy. Finally, Ruth asks if the officers hurt in the accident were married. 

Over in the garage, Jim shows Pete the truck he's rebuilding. Jim values his partner's opinion, but right now he's more interested in what Pete thinks about Jean's latest project. "What do you think of her?" he asks.

"Are you sure you want me to tell ya?"

Is this a different polo shirt? The croc on the one in patio scene was so much lower and the sleeves were longer, too. The sleeves on that one ended right at his elbows, these end at the bicep. The whole shirt just seems more form-fitting here.  Or maybe these scenes in the garage were filmed after the scenes in the backyard and the shirt was washed in between. Perhaps it shrank when laundered, which would account for the more snug fit in the garage.

"Not the truck, I mean Ruthie."

Pete thinks she's nice and he's not at all surprised when Jim tells him that she is looking for a husband. He thinks "just about 99%" of all unmarried women are looking for a husband.

Their male bonding is interrupted by Jim's neighbor, Mrs. Richmond. She's worried about her only son, Tim. He left school over an hour ago and hasn't been heard from since. Tim is helping Jim rebuild the truck, if he stops by the Reeds' garage, he'll let Mrs. Richmond know.

When the boys return to the patio, little Jimmy has joined the party. His lack of teeth means he won't be getting one of the steaks Pete brought, so Jean is feeding him some milk. When Jimmy is done with his bottle, Jim convinces a reluctant Pete to hold his son.

 The Reeds then bestow an unexpected honor upon Pete.

"How 'bout that, Jimmy? The first time your godfather's ever held you."

"Godfather?"

"I accept."

Everybody's happy and Ruth thinks Pete looks like a natural with a baby.

When Pete hears Ruth say that, he immediately passes Jimmy back to his father.

Jean then takes Jimmy inside for a nap. She must have been drinking too much of whatever is in that Tupperware picture and forgot that Jimmy just woke up from the nap he was taking when Pete arrived. Once she's gone, Jim seizes the opportunity to ask Pete about Chavez and Fiorello again. He then goes inside to call the hospital for an update.

Now that she and Pete are alone, Ruth uses this time to kill any chance she ever had with Pete. First she asks Pete why he and Jim keep talking about the accident, Jean worries enough and there's nothing they can do about it. She goes on to tell Pete that Jean has changed a lot since high school, she's now happy and settled. Ruth doesn't understand how that can be.

"Because she married a policeman?"

"To be perfectly truthful, yes," replies Ruth.

Jean returns from the house and announces that the adults have the next four hours to themselves. (Four hours? What was in that bottle?) But, before the grown-ups can get freaky, they are interrupted by another minor.  It's Tim Richmond shouting at Jim to let him in the garage. Tim sounds distressed so Pete and Jim go to investigate.

Ohmygawd! It's a teenaged David Cassidy!!!!

The men drag the stumbling and seemingly intoxicated Tim across the yard to the patio, Jim and Jean help him the rest of the way into the house. A bemused Ruth thinks Tim is a quite a young, drunken swinger. Pete knows it's not alcohol that has put Tim in this state.

"Offhand, I'd say he's been dropping pills."

Pete meets his partner in the living room where Tim is resting on the couch. 

Tim feels awful, but he's still very polite to Pete. "How do you do, sir?" he asks after Jim introduces them.

Pete finds no tracks on Tim's arms or pills in his pocket. His partner calls Mr. Richmond at work and tells him to come right over.

After Jim hangs up the phone, Tim begins to tell them how he went to a party after school.

"Sort of a party, that is."

[What do you think you are, kid? Some kind of rock star?]

Mr. Richmond rushes right over to the Reed residence. At first he thinks that Pete is out of his mind for believing that his son is on Seconal. But, Tim soon tells him that Pete is right. He went to a party after school and took some "red devils" that were supplied by a guy he never saw before named Skat. After Tim tells them about the party, Jean and Ruth come in and report that someone is in the garage.

Pete and Jim enter the open the garage and see nothing amiss. Jim thinks Jean is seeing things until Pete reminds him that they had closed the garage door earlier. A wrench then comes flying from the other side of the truck straight at their heads! Pete and Jim grab their mustachioed assailant and ask his name. Instead of answering, he asks Jim, "What's your name, cop?".  "Who said we were cops?" retorts Jim.

"I can tell by the smell," replies the suspect.

Pete compliments him on his "bloodhound's nose" and places him under arrest for trespassing and assault.

They bring the mystery guest into the house and Tim identifies him as Skat, the pill pusher from the party. Sure enough, Jim finds pills in Skat's pocket.

When Jim asks Skat what he was doing in the garage, Skat tells him that he was  concerned about his friend Tim. Tim knows this is a lie, Skat threatened to kill him because of his friendship with Jim. Mr. Richmond offers to save the state a lot of money, he'll take care of Skat himself. Pete decides to call Foothills Division instead. While he is on the phone, Tim's dad reminds him that the worst is yet to come. 

Tim will have to face his mother when he gets home.

Later that night, after all of the excitement is over, the Reeds snuggle up together on the floor while Pete and Ruth talk on the couch. 

Ruth is amazed at how happy Jean and Jim are now when there was tragedy just a few minutes ago. Pete disagrees, he doesn't think what happened was a tragedy. Catching Skat was a huge break for the Foothills narco division and a they got a dangerous criminal off the streets. 

Jim comments that Ruth isn't doing too well with Pete. Jean blames it on Pete being a "hopeless" happy bachelor. Perhaps Ruth would rather be a happy bachelorette instead of a policeman's wife or girlfriend. 

The quiet time ends when the phone rings. It's Mac, he needs Pete and Jim to report for duty, a Jazz Festival in West Valley is getting out of hand. 

"MacDonald said something else. He heard from the hospital, Chavez died."

Jean, knowing that Mrs. Chavez will need someone, asks Jim to drop her off at the hospital. Being a new mother, she forgets to secure reliable child care for before making the decision to leave the house. Luckily, Ruth volunteers to watch Jimmy without even being asked.

Pete will finally get to change out of this shirt!

During the credits, Jean gets her purse while Jim writes down instructions for Ruth; and Ruth laments letting Pete get away. If only she could have looked past his occupation and that polo shirt.

The End

My Evaluation:

You already know that I'm going to give this one the highest rating of all the ratings I've invented. This episode has it all: uniforms, Mac, off-duty clothes, an apparel-related mystery, Jean Reed, Jimmy Reed, hot guys holding a cute baby, and David freaking Cassidy! There is nothing here that I don't like, nothing at all. 

Since I don't really have any dislikes to talk about, let's talk about Jean Reed instead. This is the last time we will see her until the final season and then she will literally be a different person. It will also be made clear in the last episode that Jean is not happy with her husband's chosen profession. We see some of her frustration as a cop's wife in this episode, she wants Jim and Pete to stop the "shop" talk so they can enjoy this rare occasion. At first Jean seems petulant  and selfish, she wants the boys to stop talking about the accident so they can focus on "her" party. But, after Ruth talks to Pete on the patio, one wonders if Jean doesn't want to hear about the accident because it reminds her of the dangers her own husband faces everyday. At the end of the story, she leaves for the hospital to comfort Mrs. Chavez, clearly embracing her role in the support system for LAPD families.

"Log 24: A Rare Occasion" , you are one of my favorites. You gave me lots to look at and think about and you have David freaking Cassidy. You've earned the rating of:

Do you agree? Let me know what you think of this one in the comments. See you next time! KMA-367