Late Night Retro Television Review: CHiPs 5.22 “A Threat of War”

Posted on June 8, 2026 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Welcome to Late Night Retro Television Reviews, a feature where we review some of our favorite and least favorite shows of the past! On Mondays, I will be reviewing CHiPs, which ran on NBC from 1977 to 1983. The entire show is currently streaming on Prime!

This week, two opponents from the past return.

Episode 5.22 “A Threat of War”

(Dir by Leslie H. Martinson, originally aired on March 21st, 1982)

When Ponch and Baker try to break up a fight between a group of white kids and a group of Spanish kids, they discover that the white gang is being led by their old foe, Billy Rogers (Danny Bonaduce). Billy still knows karate and his attitude has gotten even worse.

Suddenly, another old foe shows up. Andy Macedon (Lewis Van Bergen) says that he’s no longer into the gang life and he’s trying to bring peace to the old neighborhood. Ponch is skeptical so Andy challenges him to a karate match at the youth center.

Everyone tells Ponch that he shouldn’t show up for the fight but Ponch does show up. Ponch back down from a fight? No way. There’s one thing that you can always count on when it comes to CHiPs in its fifth season. Baker might still occasionally get to do something heroic but, for the most part, this is now The Ponch Show. Baker gets to write tickets and occasionally tell people to slow down on the highway. Ponch is the one who gets to sing, dance, flirt, skydive, and just about every other cool thing you could do in California in the 80s. Needless to say, when the show needs someone to take part in a karate match, Ponch is the one who is going to be donning his black belt.

As for the match itself, Ponch and Andy fight each other to a draw and then they shake hands, showing that peace can be achieved. It turns out that Andy was telling the truth! He has reformed! However, Billy Rogers is a lost cause. Not even seeing Ponch and Andy clasping hands is enough to keep him from pursuing the gang life. It would be a sad story if not for the fact that Billy is played by Danny Bonaduce. Instead, it’s just kind of campy.

Considering that this episode revolved around karate, it should have been more exciting. Instead, Estrada just smiled a lot and the episode end up neutering Andy Macedon, one of the best villains that the show ever had. The threat of war was not worth the cost.

Late Night Retro Television Review: CHiPs 5.21 “The Game of War”

Posted on May 25, 2026 by Lisa Marie Bowman

This week …. it’s jet pack time!

Episode 5.21 “The Game of War”

(Dir by Gordon Hessler, originally aired on March 14th, 1982)

While the members of the Highway Patrol try and fail to beat Harlan at chess, Peter J. Stoler (Clu Gulager) plots a prison break. Stoler is one of the leading members of a group of former soldiers. On the weekends, they engage in war games. During the week, they plot to spring their former leader, Rascoe (Johnny Seven), from prison. Peter has just received a jet pack. Unless the Highway Patrol can stop them, Rascoe is going to fly to freedom.

Meanwhile, a process server named Darla Mason (Sandra Kerns) goes to ludicrous lengths to serve her targets. She pretends to have car trouble. She wears old person makeup. She does whatever she needs to do to get her target to lower their defenses so that she can hand them their court papers and say, “You’ve been served.” Process servers are a necessary part of our legal system but I’ve never cared much for any of the ones that I’ve known. It takes a certain amount of cruelty to get close to someone just so you can give them a summons. Darla is a fairly annoying character and I certainly wasn’t upset when Rascoe’s militia abducted her. And when the episode ended with her getting served, it felt like poetic justice.

This episode was nothing special but it held my attention. I mean, how can you not enjoy a little jet pack action? Clu Gulager was actually somewhat sympathetic as the main bad guy. Personally, I think Ponch and Baker should have let him go. Just give him his jet pack and let him fly away. He didn’t mean any harm!

Seriously, they should have given Clu his own show.

Late Night Retro Television Review: CHiPs 5.20 “Flare Up”

Posted on May 18, 2026 by Lisa Marie Bowman

This week, Ponch is in trouble!

Episode 5.20 “Flare Up”

(Dir by John Florea, originally aired on March 7th, 1982)

While saving lives and being a badass at the sight of a highway crash, Baker accidentally inhales chlorine gas and has to go to the hospital. Meanwhile, an embittered young man named Eddie (Alan Stock) claims that Ponch roughed him up at a traffic stop and gave him a black eye. The truth of the matter is that Eddie hit his head on his steering wheel while he was trying to grab a beer can that had been thrown at him by a couple of obnoxious college students.

Baker survives the chemical attack but it looks like Ponch’s days of patrolling the highway might be over. Fear not, though. This is….

You can’t have The Ponch Show without Ponch! Seriously, if Ponch loses his job, who is going to smile in the face of danger? Who is going to disco dance? Who is going to have four women in his apartment, making dinner? CHiPs is a show of the disco age and it doesn’t get more disco than Erik Estrada.

By an amazing coincidence, another chemical spill produces a cloud of toxic gas that is heading straight for Eddie’s grandfather (Harry Carey, Jr.) Ponch risks his life to save the old man and a thankful Edddie drops the complaint. Actually, last week — didn’t someone drop a complaint against Baker after Baker saved someone’s life? Is CHiPs repeating itself?

Of course, it is! CHiPs always repeats itself. That’s kind of the appeal of the show. It’s predictable, it doesn’t require much thought to enjoy, and there’s always another dramatic car crash to which to look forward.

That’s what CHiPs is all about.

Late Night Retro Television Review: CHiPs 5.19 “Silent Partner”

Posted on May 11, 2026 by Lisa Marie Bowman

This week, the California Highway Patrol is thoroughly incompetent.

Episode 5.19 “Silent Partner”

(Dir by Gordon Hessler, originally aired on February 28th, 1982)

This is one of those episodes of CHiPs where two “comedic” car thieves are stealing cars and it takes three high-speed, accident-filled chases before the Highway Patrol finally manages to catch them. Episodes like this are always fairly odd to watch. I’m not really sure if the show’s producers really understood what they were implying with an episode in which a bunch of professional law enforcers can’t seem to catch two buffoons who have no idea what they’re doing.

The first chase leads to an accident that leaves Grossman injured. He doesn’t break his neck but he does have to wear a neck brace, which temporarily keeps him from talking and eating. Those are Grossman’s favorite activities! These car thieves must be stopped!

(Seriously, Grossman was usually the most entertaining thing about this show. Taking away his ability to speak was not a good idea. Needless to say, Ponch can still talk.)

Meanwhile, Baker arrests a man at the scene of Grossman’s accident. Baker thinks that the man (Saul Brandt) must be drunk, just because the man did not react to Grossman’s sirens and he also doesn’t follow any of Baker’s orders. Uh-oh, it turns out that man was deaf and now he wants to file a complaint against Baker! And really, the man is totally justified in doing so. Baker was pretty rough when he tossed him around and Baker really had no evidence that the man had been drinking. Despite being totally in the wrong, Baker is still upset about being written up. Luckily, Ponch starts dating a deaf social worker (Dawn Jeffory) and she helps the man to understand that Baker just made a mistake and he was only in a bad mood because he has to work with Ponch. The complaint is dropped.

This episode featured two good car crashes and a lot of bad acting. It was well-intentioned but I am starting to wonder if maybe the people of California deserved a better highway patrol.

Late Night Retro Television Review: CHiPs 5.18 “In The Best of Families”

Posted on May 4, 2026 by Lisa Marie Bowman

This week, it’s all about sibling rivalry and crashing cars.

Episode 5.18 “In The Best of Families”

(Dir by John Florea, originally aired on February 21st, 1982)

Getrear is not in a good mood.

He’s got a big inspection coming up but the members of the Highway Patrol keep screwing up. Bonnie’s patrol car is stolen while she’s on a coffee break. Baricza’s car is stripped of its lights and its CHP insignia. Ponch and Baker chase the thieves but somehow never manage to catch them. Finally, someone breaks into Getraer’s dry cleaner’s place and steals two of Getraer’s uniforms.

The Highway Patrol is squabbling, as all families do. They worry that Getraer is angling for a promotion and that they’ll have to “break in a new sergeant.” Fortunately, Getraer isn’t planning on going anywhere. Ponch, Baker, Bonnie, Turner, Grossie, Harlan, and Bear all get to keep their surrogate father figure.

Meanwhile, a real family is fighting. Anne Francis has planned the perfect armored car robbery. Now, she just needs her teenaged sons (Michael Morgan and Timothy Patrick Murphy) to steal a patrol car and some uniforms….

This episode had a pretty silly story but that doesn’t matter because it also featured some truly spectacular stunt work. The first crash occurs on a freeway and involves so many cars that it almost becomes a symphony of destruction. A reporter assures us that no one was killed or even seriously injured in the accident but having watched it (in slow motion), I’m not really sure how that could be true. Later, Turner’s car goes flying over a hillside and again, it’s such a spectacular crash that I’m shocked Turner was able to step out of the wreckage.

This was definitely an episode for those of us who enjoy watching spectacular car destruction. This was a pure demolition derby and entertaining in the mindless way that those often are. Even the best families enjoy automotive mayhem.

Icarus File No. 27: Con Man (dir by Bruce Caulk)

Posted on April 28, 2026 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Originally filmed in 2010 but not released until 2018, Con Man is one of the strangest vanity projects that I’ve ever seen.

Originally entitled Minkow, Con Man tells the story of Barry Minkow. When Minkow was a teenager, he started a carpet cleaning business and he quickly learned how to both promote himself and how to lie about how much money he was making. The media ate up the story of the teenager became a millionaire by cleaning carpets. His father (Mark Hamill) was proud of him. His mother (Talia Shire) worried that he was moving away from God. A local mobster (Armand Assante) decided to get involved. It was eventually discovered that Barry was kiting checks, lying to insurance companies, and massively defrauding both his investors and his employees. After being busted by the FBI (represented here by James Caan), Barry Minkow was sent to prison.

In the film, teenage Barry Minkow is played by a young, handsome, and charismatic Justin Baldoni. When Barry gets out of jail, he’s suddenly been transformed into …. well, Barry Minkow. That’s right. Barry Minkow plays himself. Needless to say, Barry Minkow looks nothing like Justin Baldoni. It’s not just that the two men are different ages. It’s also that there’s no way to imagine Justin Baldoni transforming into the gargoyle that is Barry Minkow.

In prison, Barry Minkow is converted to Christianity by a prisoner named Peanut (Ving Rhames). After Minkow serves his sentence, he not only helps the FBI track down other con artists but he becomes the pastor of his local church. Despite his past, everyone loves and trusts Barry Minkow. Everyone talks about how charismatic he is, despite the fact that the adult Barry Minkow delivers his lines in a flat monotone and looks like he should be sitting over the entrance of a cathedral. People who suspect that they’ve been a victim of financial fraud start to come to Barry, asking him for advice. The always humble Barry is concerned that he’ll let people down but, in the end, even James Caan says that Barry is a great guy. “I’m doing the work of God!” Barry proclaims.

Yes, the film is fueled by pure ego. Unfortunately, it took more than ego to pay the bills so Minkow embezzled money from his own church, stole money from his congregation, and resorted to his old track of “clipping” checks to finance the whole thing. Shortly after the film was completed, Minkow was arrested and sent back to prison. (A hot mic caught Minkow bragging to James Caan about how he financed the film. After his arrest, Minkow denied he had ever said that and dared anyone with proof to turn it over. The film’s director proceeded to do just that. Barry Minkow was not only a criminal. He was a stupid criminal.)

As for the film, it sat in limbo for eight years. Eventually, talking head interview with Minkow’s actual victims talking about how much they disliked Barry were sprinkled throughout the film. (Shortly before Minkow starts playing himself, we hear one of his business partners say that everyone told him not to play himself.) The original film ended on a triumphant note. The new film — which was retitled Con Man — ended with real people talking about Barry Minkow going back to jail and casting doubt as to whether or not Barry ever even knew a prisoner named Peanut.

The film is a vanity project and not a very good one. Minkow is a terrible actor and, just in case we forget that fact, he reminds us by trying to hold the screen opposite James Caan and Ving Rhames. (Even Elisabeth Rohm manages to outact him.) As bad as the film is, the story behind it is endlessly fascinating. Barry Minkow was determined to become a star. (Spielberg’s Catch Me If You Can was an obvious inspiration.) Instead, he went back to prison and his vanity project was transformed into a roast. And it probably couldn’t have happened to a more deserving guy.

Previous Icarus Files:

Late Night Retro Television Review: CHiPs 5.17 “Alarmed”

Posted on April 27, 2026 by Lisa Marie Bowman

This week, a supporting character steps into the spotlight.

Episode 5.17 “Alarmed”

(Dir by Phil Bondelli, originally aired on February 14th, 1982)

While chasing a stolen sports car, Officer Bonnie Clark (Randi Oakes) finds herself stuck behind a van that will simply not stop blocking her pursuit. When the van stops for a red light, Bonnie jumps out of her patrol car to tell the driver of the van to get out of the way. The driver of the van turns out to be Toni (Christina Hart), an old classmate from the Academy. A visibly nervous Toni tells Bonnie that she’s working undercover and then speeds off. Bonnie, suspicious of her former friend, makes some calls and discovers that Toni is no longer with the Highway Patrol. Bonnie thinks that Toni is a part of a car theft ring. Bonnie becomes obsessed with putting Toni in prison.

And when I say obsessed, I mean that Bonnie seems to be positively unhinged about proving that Toni is now a criminal. The way that Bonnie grins while telling her plans to Getraer really makes you wonder if maybe there’s something more to this story than just Bonnie wanting to capture a cop-turned-crook. I mean, I dislike a lot of people who I went to school with but I wouldn’t ever call the cops on them. It bothered me that Bonnie wasn’t even curious as to why Toni had become a criminal. And CHiPs, as a show, wasn’t that interested in it either. To me, though, that’s really the only interesting thing about Toni.

Bonnie joined the Highway Patrol at the start of the third season. This is the first episode in which she’s really had the spotlight and, as I watched, I could kind of understand why it took so long. While she certainly wasn’t helped by the show’s writers, there was still absolutely nothing convincing about Randi Oakes’s performance. She delivered her lines in an excited rush and she seemed to be oddly giddy at times. I would not want Bonnie carrying a gun.

This episode also featured cranky old Simon Oakland as a car security specialist who was trying to create a car that couldn’t be stolen. He was upset that his daughter (Elizabeth Daily) wanted to go into the family business. Ponch helped him see the error of his ways.

Finally, there was an odd scene where Baker and Ponch took two dates to a mud wrestling match. Bonnie tagged along with her date. Bonnie was disgusted by the mud wrestling, calling it degrading. Of course, when Bonnie later arrested Toni, the two of them ended up fighting in a muddy puddle.

“Degrading!” Ponch said before Bonnie pulled both him and Baker into the mud. As Toni was led away in handcuffs, Bonnie laughed and laughed.

The highlight of this episode? Ponch’s bike got damaged and burst into flames while he was pursuing Toni. Luckily, there was a lake nearby. Ponch’s plunge into the water was filmed in slow motion. By the standards of CHiPs, it was actually pretty cool.

As for the rest of the episode, it featured what one would probably want from the show. There were a lot of car chases and not a lot of plot. Hopefully, this was not only the first Bonnie-centric episode but also the last one as well.

Late Night Retro Television Review: CHiPs 5.16 “Battle of the Bands”

Posted on April 20, 2026 by Lisa Marie Bowman

This week, it’s a musical conflict!

Episode 5.16 “Battle of the Bands”

(Dir by Leslie H. Martinson, originally aired on January 31st, 1982)

Jon Baker cannot understand the appeal of punk rock. He says that the punk rockers all seem to be suburban kids so why are they so angry? They’re not from “the ghetto,” as Baker puts it.

“Suburbs can be a ghetto too, Jon.” Grossie says.

Grossie, who is definitely my favorite member of the Highway Patrol, explains that he likes to keep up with youth culture and, as a result, he understands the difference between Punk and New Wave. Punk rockers have fans who slam dance while New Wave bands have fans who pogo. Grossie demonstrates how to do each dance while the other members of the Highway Patrol watch. When Getraer demands to know why Grossie is slamming himself against the lockers in the locker room, Grossie proceeds to hop out of the room.

This is all important information for Baker to have because there’s a Battle of the Bands coming up. New Waver Snow Pink (Susan Richardson) is eager to win but her guitars were recently stolen out of her band’s van. Unfortunately, Snow Pink has been targeted by Pain, a punk band that is led by Thrasher (William Forsythe). Thrasher doesn’t care about making good music. All he wants to do is cause trouble!

Now, I will say that Thrasher is kind of intimidating. That’s more due to him being played by a young William Forsythe than anything else. He’s a “punk,” which, in the world of CHiPs, means that he has a mohawk and his two bandmates have shaved heads. (If anything, they look more like Neo-Nazis than punk rockers. Johnny Rotten would have kicked them out of a moving car.) That said, when Thrasher flicks his lighter and talks about trashing the club, you believe that there’s a very good chance that he’ll do just that. Fortunately, the Highway Patrol is there to stop him.

Now, as you probably already guessed, there was no way that CHiPs was going to do a Battle of the Bands episode without giving Ponch a band. Ponch competes and he sings Kool & The Gang’s Celebration. It’s disco vs punk vs new wave! Of course, punk doesn’t really get to compete because the band is arrested. And Ponch really can’t win because then his character would have an excuse to leave the show. So, it’s not a shock when Snow Pink wins the Battle of the Bands.

To be absolutely honest, this episode was surprisingly fun. It was definitely an episode of its era, embracing both music and the moral panic of the 80s. The punks were unconvincing. Snow Pink was actually a pretty good singer. Estrada flashed that blinding grin while singing disco. Baker once again comes close to getting a romantic subplot. Grossie gets a monologue about the ideology of punk rock. What’s not to like? Bury this episode in the ground because it’s a time capsule!

One final note: Baker, at one point, says that Ponch might leave the Highway Patrol to pursue his musical career. It’s impossible not to hear the note of hope in Larry Wilcox’s voice.

Late Night Retro Television Review: CHiPs 5.15 “Bright Flashes”

Posted on April 13, 2026 by Lisa Marie Bowman

This week, it’s lasers and horses in Los Angeles!

Episode 5.15 “Bright Flashes”

(Dir by Leslie H. Martinson, originally aired on January 17th, 1982)

Two dorky university science students — Scotty (Mark L. Taylor) and Richard (Jerry Houser) — have invented a laser that they use to temporarily blind people before robbing them. They blind Ponch in the middle of a race. They blind a group of people in front of a bank. The only person they don’t blind is old cowboy actor Wayne Cato (George Lindsay) but, when Wayne doesn’t chase after them, everyone except for Baker treats him like he’s a coward.

Uhmm, excuse me …. the man is in his sixties! It’s not his responsibility to go chasing after every crook in Los Angeles. Maybe the Highway Patrol should do their job!

Wayne feels so guilty that he does chase the robber when they show up to rob yet another bank that he’s standing in front of. Baker joins in and gets to live his fantasy of ditching his motorcycle for a horse.

This episode was a rare case of Baker getting to the be the main character even though Erik Estrada was healthy and present as Ponch. It was a bit of a silly episode. Why everyone got so angry with Wayne Cato was never really explained. (What was a 60-something retired cowboy to do?) The funniest thing was the ultra cheap laser special effects, none of which seemed to land anywhere near anyone’s eyes.

Again, it was a silly episode. But at least Baker got to ride a horse.

Late Night Retro Television Review: CHiPs 5.14 “Tiger In The Streets”

Posted on April 6, 2026 by Lisa Marie Bowman

This week, there’s a big cat on the loose!

Episode 5.14 “Tiger In The Streets”

(Dir by Charles Bail, originally aired on January 10th, 1982)

Ponch and Baker wonder why someone is digging deep holes in the Los Angeles hills and filling them with raw meat. Could someone by trying to capture a tiger that’s recently gotten loose from a wildlife park? Yes, that’s exactly what’s happening! The owner of the park wants to keep the cops from finding out but, when it turns out that the tiger is a mother and is missing her cubs, only the highway patrol can help Animal Control capture her. Baker likes Stephanie, the Animal Control officer. This is one of the rare episodes where Baker actually gets to have a romance while Ponch stands around and looks awkwardly out-of-place.

As for Ponch, he is more concerned with an ex-con who is at the center of a series of violent confrontations involving various car clubs. I’m pretty sure I’ve seen this plot before. CHiPs has been repeating itself a lot during the fifth season. That said, the car chases led to a slow motion wreck and a scene of bouncing hydraulics. I’ve never been in one of those bouncing cars before. It seems like you would get ill riding in one of those.

Finally, Grossie wants to be a comedian. Harlan is a friend of legendary funny man Slappy White. Harlan gives Grossie a bunch of Slappy’s jokes about how black people are different from white people. Needless to say, the jokes don’t go over that well when they’re told be a white guy in a policeman’s uniform.

This episode was silly but I did like the tiger.