Katsumoto got to fulfill a fantasy.
Gordon, a closet foodie and amateur chef, showed off his knife skills while pursuing kidnappers on Magnum P.I. Season 5 Episode 13.
His foray into a restaurant kitchen was part of a case, as Juliet and Thomas had been hired by the owner of the ritzy Chez Aloha to locate Kanoa, his missing executive chef.
Milo, the owner, thought the kitchen staff might better understand what had happened to Kanoa.
But since Magnum and Higgins had recently dined there, they needed someone the staff wouldn’t recognize to get them to gossip.
Poor Katsumoto. He didn’t realize that the high-pressure kitchen environment which he had entered didn’t lend itself to talking.
He was also quickly dubbed “Microwave” since new chefs at such restaurants don’t tend to stick around very long.
Well, Gordie didn’t. But that was because the investigation took a different direction, eliminating the kitchen staff as suspects.
But before he left, Katsumoto rescued Jason, the acting executive chef, from a couple of burly men threatening him. How did him displaying such hand-to-hand skills not blow his cover?
Indeed, his taking Jason’s favorite paring knife and disappearing must have then.
Thomas and Juliet following Kanoa’s tracks painted a conflicting picture of the chef, which slowed the hunt for him.
His making cash deposits at the same ATM for several weeks was odd behavior.
But there was a simple explanation for it as he had been moonlighting for a catering company that operated near the ATM.
The caterer for whom Kanoa worked said that Kanoa had shown up high the last time he’d seen him, which didn’t ring true based on what Milo had told them about his character.
Then, the two men intimidating Jason weren’t Kanoa’s dealers but rather two ex-cons Kanoa had helped get into the restaurant industry.
One shot down the notion of Kanoa using drugs and mentioned Kanoa’s new girlfriend on the down low.
The fact Olivia, Kanoa’s girlfriend, had just been abducted, like possibly Kanoa had been, let them know they were on the right track.
The fact the geniuses who kidnapped Olivia used a car that could be tracked helped speed up the solution to this case.
Kanoa was at the museum gala, under duress, along with the caterer and the kidnappers. Gordie pieced together that they were part of a robbery gang that Thomas discovered was targeting the gala.
It hardly seemed fair, didn’t it, that those five oblivious robbers found themselves up against a former spy and a former Navy SEAL. It was little wonder Magnum could pick them off one by one. They were too arrogant based on their past successes.
It was great that Katsumoto got to help Kanoa prepare that private thank-you dinner for Thomas and Juliet without the pressure of a restaurant rush. That taste of the real world must have satisfied his curiosity about being a professional chef.
Now, on to the “ Magnum is cheap” debate since Higgins kept hammering on that topic.
I would argue Thomas is frugal. He uses his charisma to acquire what he needs efficiently. He already enjoys some of the finer things in life by serving as the security chief for a wealthy author. Why would he need to flash around money?
Yes, he should have answered Juliet’s inquiry, and he did, eventually. He’s a private person, and it took a while for him to respond.
It made sense that he was sending money home, although having it go to his private eye mentor was an unexpected twist.
Kumu and Cade’s look at Hell Valley, the Japanese internment camp in Hawaii during World War II, was heartbreaking.
You couldn’t help but feel for George, who blamed himself for losing track of his sister May at that children’s camp near the war’s end.
His family was never the same, thanks to the overzealous imprisonment of American citizens based on their ancestry.
Cade was affected by George’s story. He knows what it’s like to be unable to find someone you care about. It wasn’t that realistic that Cade could accomplish in an afternoon what George couldn’t over decades.
It was a bittersweet turn that May had died. But at least George could video chat with her family, especially his namesake nephew George.
Finally, there was progress on the T.C. recovery front after a down week on Magnum P.I. Season 5 Episode 12.
Rick is always there for T.C., but he’s not much of a baseball coach. No wonder T.C. had Cade put a spy-cam on the game.
It was enjoyable to see Larry Manetti’s Nicky betting on the game, although you’d have to wonder why. Any appearance by a Magnum O.G. is a good one.
Rick knew what the team needed, which wasn’t him as a coach.
They needed T.C. So when they fell into yet another hole, he streamed a pep talk from T.C. to them, and they rallied to win.
Rick also understood what T.C. required, bringing the kids along to cheer T.C. on as he completed his walk along the bars.
Hopefully, that was the first step back toward T.C.’s complete recovery.
To follow Thomas and Juliet’s relationship, watch Magnum P.I. online.
What did you think of Katsumoto as a chef?
Did Kumu’s project make you think?
Is T.C. now on the mend?
Comment below.
Dale McGarrigle is a staff writer for TV Fanatic. Follow him on X.