Gillian

DVD, Starsky & Hutch S2 (Gillian)

I'd previously felt that this was one of the lesser episodes of the season, along with the first part of 'Murder At Sea,' mainly because of the sleazy nature of the story, but seeing it again I realised how good an acting piece it was for both Starsky and Hutch as they struggle through the horrors of life on the street, or at least, the realities of what that can entail - it's not so much them against insurmountable odds, the Grossmans never looked to provide one of their most difficult challenges to overcome, but that this time they're hit where it hurts. There's a reason superheroes dress up in masks to fight crime, and that's because if the villains knew their true identity, their families and friends and anything about their private life would become threatened. S&H don't have the luxury of such anonymity, but in their case that's where their power derives from: the law, its full weight, and when you consider Captain Dobey, that's a hefty force to wield! Usually their reputation is all they need to discourage criminals; they're well known on the streets (which always makes the big red and white car a bit of a giveaway!), but sometimes they come across those that aren't in the know that this is S&H's city, they don't know that these are cops who are going to put everything on the line to foil evil. Such are the Grossmans, Al, and his Mother, Olga - they came from Cleveland so they're relatively new in town and set on taking over all the grimy pornography, prostitution and no doubt other nasty things beginning with 'p.'

It was a little too soon for an episode about a blonde cop's blonde girlfriend as we'd just gone through that pain in the preceding episode where Hutch's longtime girl, Abigail Crabtree, was brutally attacked in response to being Hutch's girlfriend. And now we're in a similar situation. I suppose it may be realistic in that Hutch was so torn up about Abby leaving town that when Gillian came along (I don't think we're told how they met, but with the amount of bowling going on, it could have been at the alley!), he was instantly smitten. Whatever the reason, he's really gooey in this episode, properly, romantically taken like we've not seen before. It gets a bit sickly when they're staring into each other's eyes and talking about how it's like being in a room full of balloons, red balloons, and yet Gillian's afraid that one will pop… I think we can forgive Hutch for such soppiness when he's just lost Abby, and his newfound love causes some interesting results: the biggest thing is (like Abby), he's suddenly aware of his own mortality during a firefight in an alley causing him to freeze when he should be backing up Starsky. He beats himself up about it, but it's fascinating to see such a usually confident, secure character placed of doubt - he's experienced true happiness and he's loathe to let it go, affecting his judgement. Starsky's not accusatory at all, even taking Hutch's side against Hutch's own self-condemnation, but it's clear that things can't proceed like that, which is why when the pair take on the baddies in the Royal Theatre at the end, it's like regaining faith in each other. Not that Starsky ever lost it.

Starsky's an incredibly good friend in this episode, one reason why I bumped the rating up from an average to a good episode. Not only does he put up with Hutch's romantic airheadedness and poetic ramblings, he supports his pal in the strongest ways at his most vulnerable time. We've rarely seen such closeness, such true friendship displayed (I think back to an episode like 'The Fix' in which Starsky cares for Hutch after he's been addicted to drugs and is at his lowest point in the gutter or trying to go cold turkey), but it's always there below the surface. They don't usually talk about it, they tease each other, have a laugh, deal with the often tough job they do, but because there's this great philial love that they instinctively know the other has, they have complete dependence on each other and complete faith so that when a time of testing comes, they know they can depend on the other and that's what makes them successful. It goes back to the pilot, talking about it being them against the world, only truly being able to rely on each other. Of course they have Huggy who provides great help over the course of the series, but he's got his own agenda sometimes, as good a friend as he is. And Dobey also backs them up tremendously from his position of authority, but has to answer to his superiors in the end. Which means in the 'toilet bowl' of the city it really is at its purest, Starsky relying on Hutch, Hutch relying on Starsky, a bond which is incredibly strong.

These are definitely the ingredients for a 'negative' story: the two cops reiterating their interdependence against all else; the dirty back alleys; the seedy 'trades' that go on in grimy streets. It's all there and I would certainly place it in that category, only the second to meet that criteria so far this season. But in keeping with Season 2's lighter mood in general, this is still playful and fun, and more importantly, as grim as the subject becomes it's superceded by the theme of deep friendship and self-sacrifice that lies at its heart, more than a knockabout comedy episode - the depths of the bad encountered bring out the heights of the good, and so despite being an example of the city at its worst, it's showing S&H at their best and Starsky in particular at his most noble. While Hutch is tested by finding great joy and then having that taken away from him, it's not so simple for Starsky who's faced with a difficult situation and hard decisions to make - it's about how he can best help his partner, whether by telling what he knows and risking alienation, or by confronting Gillian and giving her a way out without having to tell Hutch that his new girlfriend is actually a prostitute, held under the thumb of the Grossmans.

It isn't easy for her, either, as she wants out of the organisation and it takes great courage to throw away the 'good life' with its trappings of a nice place, plenty of money, but essentially, slavery in a gilded cage, for the unknown, even more to confront those that have controlled her and threatened her. But she can't live under that law any more and stands up to her controllers, sadly leading to death at the hands of Al. If she'd only trusted Hutch and told him instead of keeping her shame to herself, she could have been saved, he would have protected her, I'm sure. He might have been disgusted and drawn back, but he seemed to be so serious about her that he would have come around to realise she needed his help (and Starsky would have prompted him, too). Starsky shows great character when he goes to Gillian. It's an awkward situation, but everything he does is for Hutch's benefit, regardless of the expense to himself - he offers Gillian money to take off and explore her dream of opening a boutique, so that she'll be out of Hutch's life for good and also away from the Grossmans, a tactful, roundabout way to let her know he's onto her secret. She in turn realises things can't go on as they were, and with Starsky's ultimatum she'll have to tell Hutch the truth, or he will. Still, she could have confided in Starsky and explained how difficult it was with the Grossmans hanging over her, but she resolves to work it out on her own and meets her end.

Starsky's most trying moment comes at the same time as Hutch's - far worse than the revelation of her true line of work, is that revelation coming after she's dead and unable to explain for herself, and for Hutch to see his hopes dashed. It's unsurprising that, after feeling so high, he would come crashing down, reacting badly, even punching his friend for giving him this news, desperately not believing the truth until Starsky's emotional pleas get through. It was a relief in some ways that Hutch still had work to do, to redress the balance, to react to the horror and do something practical. Yet, and this is one of the most important points, once again he doesn't seek revenge, as tempted as he must have been to kill Grossman, or to take out all his anger and hatred on the man's thugs, but he has far greater self control than that, able to restrain himself and be professional in catching the crooks and let the law deal with them, even when Grossman's gutter mind makes Hutch suffer even more. He could easily have killed Grossman and explained it away as being the only option in the firefight, but he's an honourable man, a true hero, as was Starsky, the kind of heroes you rarely see.

I was surprised that S&H never really had a punching match with the Grossman's goons - we see a couple of bouncers outside their office when S&H pay their inevitable visit, reminding me of the health club heavies of 'Kill Huggy Bear,' but while there is some fighting in the cinema, it's more of a shootout, and in general, the episode doesn't have much action. That doesn't make the quandary any less compelling, seeing Starsky faced with such a problem, or Hutch attacked so personally as he had been in 'Vendetta.' It might have been too soon to end with a blonde cop's potential blonde girlfriend again, but I did feel the end scene, which so often can be jarring after such drama, was handled more sensitively. It's made clear that a month has passed, so Hutch is no longer grieving, and it wasn't too silly or funny as to take you out of the thought-provoking story that had just played out. It's usually a bit formulaic, ending with an action scene, then featuring a tag scene of humour to leave on a happier note before the lively credit music kicks in, but it's not always done sensitively enough, so I'm glad they wrapped up well, with another example of Starsky looking out for his best buddy.

But who goes bowling alone? The blonde girl can be seen throughout that end scene in the background, fiddling with her shoes or whatever, and it's funny that Hutch sees through what suggests to me that this is a setup by Starsky and his current girlfriend, Nancy, because the girl says the same thing about bowling as the slightly odd Nancy, but Hutch decides to just go with it anyway. Nancy was one of the few weird people in the episode, none of which go far into that category. She was a bit dippy, but that was all. Mrs. Grossman was the most wacky, but in a creepy way with that creaky old voice and face, and her childish behaviour, such as when slapped by Gillian she whines and wails like a true bully that's been stood up to, after threatening Gillian. She's also devious in keeping up the appearances of a sweet old dear, and that Grossman Enterprises is a wide-ranging company, with as much interest in 'Grossman Tricks and Puzzles,' as any other form of 'entertainment.' It's a weird combination of two villains, a man and his old Mother, but it's an archetype, I suppose, and I'm sure it's been done many times, though I can't think of specifics from this series. Al is as equally creepy and odd, with his facial ticks and devotion to his Mum despite being capable of murder. In this strange characters category you could possibly include the silent tramp that points S&H to the shoeshine booth, and Pepper, the shoeshine woman that's doing Huggy's shoes in his main scene. Again, it's a shame Hug doesn't have much to do, but at least he appears, unlike Dobey.

Perhaps the most important 'odd' character is Eddie Hoyle, another returning character from Season 1 (with his endearing way of calling S&H 'Starpy and Hup'). His simple incomprehension of the murder of Lonely Bloggs sets the episode off with an affecting opening. He asks why anyone would want to kill someone like he and his friends because "we're nothing." This sad and horrible sentiment is reiterated by Harry Blower (another returning actor from Season 1, though in 'The Hostages' Richard Foronjy had played Gibson, a different character), owner of the 'adult' Stardust bookstore, who shows no concern for the death at the back of his premises because who cares about winos and people like them? S&H's distaste is clear, and having a character like Eddie come back, even if only for the one scene, gives us reason to care about the death, invests us into what's happening, which is always a wise way to begin an episode.

There aren't as many things to tick off, but there's a namecheck for actor Robert Redford (again, after 'Savage Sunday'), and the Boston Strangler (whom Hutch sarcastically claims to be going out with when Starsky calls him up) - it would have been better if he'd said the Las Vegas Strangler, but not in the best taste, considering what was lost in that investigation. In his bliss, Hutch walks over his own car bonnet again, and in fact, both cars are featured, Hutch's looking as rundown as ever. His healthy or obscure food obsessions come up again - when in Starsky's car he eats boysenberry jam (or 'jelly' in American!), on toast, much to Starsky's displeasure. It's also notable that both their apartments are featured again. Gillian's apartment, with it's lavish decor and large fireplace, looked like a set that's been used before or would be again, and the same could be said for Grossman's office - I couldn't help noticing the red carpet, and it's surprising how many villains have this colour covering their floors. I can't recall if Amboy did, but I feel like Stryker or other people in Season 1 did. Probably to hide bloodstains… The only thing I questioned, besides the likelihood of anyone going bowling alone, especially someone who wasn't any good at it ("I know, I've never been bowling before, so I think I'll go and try it out."), was who called in the attack on Lonely? The place was deserted when S&H speed in, but the crime had been reported by somebody. Maybe they just had the sense to keep out of the way, and there were plenty of windows someone could have seen out of, so I'll give them the benefit of the doubt.

This was another episode to show how confident the production was by this time, and far from it being one of the first to let the side down, aside from the subject matter it had much to recommend it. It's about as down as this season had gone so far, talking about the gutter and dregs of society, but it was also about the will to get up out of the gutter and start anew. In the end that desire cost Gillian her life, but perhaps striving for something and failing was better than living under tyranny, so despite the negative aspects this also had positive things to ponder. The music wasn't restrained, quite upbeat and sure of itself (I even caught some electronic in there, too), which is one of the things that make the episode less depressingly negative. The powerful scene when Hutch hits Starsky and collapses in tears is one of their best ever, so it's no wonder this was used again in one of the clips shows. And finally, an observation: Gillian Ingram made a much more obvious impact on Hutch than Abigail ever did, despite her various appearances and impression of being there behind the scenes, but I don't know whether to read that as due to her Gillian's death, or that Abby was just there in the background rather than being truly at the front of Hutch's mind.

***