The other factor of note the show aired in 1971. The anti-gun themes then were some of the same ones used today.
Here are the themes I remember off the top of my head
--Goon was able to purchase a rifle, scope, and 500 rounds at a discount and without presenting an ID. There was federal paperwork to fill out but it was ignored.
I don't think there was very much paperwork to fill out in 1971 that couldn't be sidestepped -- the NICS check was the result of the Brady law in the 1990s. 4473s were likely in effect (since 1968 IIRC).
--How easy it was for the mentally disturbed to gain access to firearms.
--The goon was an accomplished shooting sports enthusiast
--He was was owner of multiple handguns.
--He was under treatment for mental issues but was released because the system didn't have sufficient beds to keep him detained.
--His first sniping episode occurred in Vietnam resulting in a medical discharge. No injuries. Second episode was him shooting out the windows of a girls college dorm. Again no injuries. Third and final episode resulting him killing 2 cops and injuring a third.
Let's not forget the "Virginia Tech" shooter (Cho? --IIRC), also mentally disturbed yet he obtained guns. Just because you're not supposed to doesn't mean you can't. Cho, IIRC hadn't been "adjudacted" to be mentally deficient so he "fell through the cracks," as it were.
Did McGarrett manage to shoot someone at 100 yds. with his .38 snubbie and hit him in this episode? He was doin things like that all the time. He also drove around Oahu like a maniac.
It sounds like a standard plot that was used in many episodes of 1970s TV shows -- especially the Vietnam connection. We're supposed to believe anyone who served in 'Nam came back a mess and would spontaneously start shooting up the town. Actually all wars create veterans who are "shellshocked," or "have seen the elephant," but most vets come back and resume normal lives and are kind to their families and pets.
The "antigun" mene was also found in many TV shows .... some really laid it on heavy .... others didn't.
I recall a scene in
"The Streets of San Francisco" where Karl Malden's character, Lt. Stone, in pursuit of some thug, remarks about guns,
"we should have them, everyone else should not." Now I guess if you've just ducked a couple of bullets you might think that, but still, that was pretty heavy handed.
Many of the TV writers however simply recycled plots and didn't give these things a lot of thought.
I note
another episode of
"The Streets of San Francisco," where I thought the storyline was bizarrely similar to an old
"Naked City" story. Looking at the writer of the story in
both TV shows ----
BINGO!He'd
RECYCLED HIS OWN STORY!!
Hollywood does things fast and cheap.
