The evolution of the bromance

We are happy to present you with our very first post from a guest writer. Andrea is from Brisbane Australia (hence the screen name Andrea_Briz) and she is a published author in real life. Hope you enjoy her story and as usual Paula’s gifs as much as I did.

One of the main reasons why H50 grabbed my attention from the very first episode – and why I keep tuning in – is the bromance between Steve and Danny. Alex and Scott do a terrific job of bouncing off each other and they have created one of the best crime fighting duos on television IMHO. It seems clear from what we have seen of the two actors – and by their own admission from interviews – that they hit it off from the very beginning. In Aussie terms, they are great mates and this really comes through on screen. Their partnership, whilst off to a rocky start, is certainly honest and believable to me. Over seasons 1 and 2 the bromance has developed, differences of opinion notwithstanding. These differences are often played out through ‘carguments’ which have become a staple of most episodes. Danny’s reactions to Steve’s often OTT policing methods is pure gold (“Your mind is a very scary place”, says Danny) and these moments give both actors the chance to show us their comedic talents. I love the mad, arm-waving responses from Danny and his snippy comments.  Steve’s reaction to Danny is priceless – his face is all, ‘what’s the problem?’ and this makes for great entertainment. That faaaacceee! I could watch these two guys all day and even when some of the episodes have left me wanting in the writing department, they are saved by the bromance. Oh, and a rather nice looking Aussie actor, too  🙂

In a recent article published in USA Today, Bill Keveney reported the following observation from Scott Caan on the two actors’ friendship:
Caan says he and O’Loughlin have a lot in common, including surfing, jiu jitsu and “a nicotine addiction,” and that the buddy element of Five-0 works because they are friends. “It’s hard to go against what really exists,” he says. “If you have a rapport with somebody, that’s going to come out.”

And this, about the bromance:
“In the first season, I feel we sort of ran on getting to know each other as characters. You have a lot more to argue about when you’re trying to decide whether you like somebody or not,” says Caan, as O’Loughlin laughs. “Now, the arguments have turned more into brothers that argue, which is great, too, as long as there’s something to disagree on.”

But it hasn’t always been that way. Danno was not impressed with the Super SEAL in the pilot episode, when they first met after the Governor assigned McGarrett as head of a new special task force. Here’s one of my favourite scenes from this episode:

McGarrett to Danny: “You don’t have to like me but right now there is no one else to do this job”. Danny punches Steve and says, “You’re right, I don’t like you”. I was hooked after that moment, I think.

From this rather hapless beginning, we can track the bromance to the end of season 2. In the penultimate episode, Danny spent rather a lot of time running around trying to help Steve return safely to the island after he’d been in Japan on yet another Shelburne crusade (This, I might add is complete with “What are you wearing?” and later “I knew it, cargo pants” classic lines.  Loved the shout out to the cargoes we have all grown to love, too.). I really like the welcome that Steve gets from Danny when he gets off the chopper in this episode – the brotherly hug is a nice demonstration of how far these two have come.

 

There are so many bromance-developing moments from across the two seasons but here is a selection of the standouts for me:

McGarrett’s, ah, policing methods have given us some classic H50 moments, like my personal favourites:

McGarrett dangling a suspect over the side of a building (1.2)

and the ‘shark cage’ incident (1.3)

and the ‘roofies and air horn’ corker (1.5)

Another favourite is the ‘Neanderthal animal’ comment from Danny after Steve (unnecessarily?) breaks down a door in episode 1.11. This is commonly known as, ‘how to open a door McGarrett style’.

Danny says, in episode 1.17: “Come on, what’s the matter with you? You need help. I will pay for it”. This is said after Steve uses a grenade to open a locked door.  I also like this moment as Alex does such a terrific job of the ‘what’s the problem?’ face.  We can see from his expressions that he has no understanding of why Danny would think that opening a door with a grenade might cause a problem.  I love it!

(Sidebar: Other than the roofie and air horn scene, this one is my teenage son’s personal favourite!)

The list of these Steve/Danny moments is endless and for me they are a vital part of what makes show, well, show.  I’ll say it again, I could watch these two interact all day.

The carguments have become a standard feature of H50 and are an enduring symbol of the bromance. The boys have had carguments about ties, pineapple on pizzas, Danny’s indifference towards the beach, McGarrett’s driving skills and so on and so on. That Danny has to sit in the passenger seat of his OWN car is hysterical in itself. McG totes has control issues! The carguments have given us ruminations over cases and an insight into Steve and Danny’s personal lives. I have read comments on the web about the carguments being too contrived or overdone, but I personally love them and think that Alex and Scott are terrific in these scenes. Snarky Danny and defensive McGarrett are a hilarious combination. The writers have also treated us to a number of emo moments between the two as they slowly learned to share personal stuff, which in turn gave the audience a chance to know them better. Alex and Steve are great at comedy but they also play the more serious car discussions well, too. I like this balance.

 

To say that McGarrett’s family dysfunction has created all sorts of problems for him is an understatement.  Danny, whilst not without his own dysfunction to deal with, is a family man with a close relationship with his daughter, Grace, whom he clearly adores.  The development of the McGarrett character across the two seasons, partly due to his relationship with Danny, could be a blog post in itself. Suffice to say, being around Danny and becoming ‘Uncle Steve’ to Grace has helped McGarrett see what is it like to care deeply for someone and to become emotionally attached to others. I love episode 1.3 where Danny’s ex-wife, Rachel, tries to take him back to court to modify their custody agreement. Steve enlists the help of the Governor to persuade Rachel to change her mind. In thanking Steve, Danny says: “maybe you’re not as alone here as you think you are.”  Vive ohana!

 

The bromance has developed not only on a personal level but also in terms of Steve and Danny working together as crime-fighting partners. They have learned to trust each other and to have each other’s backs, despite Danny’s objections to Steve’s methods. This culminated in the rescue of Steve from North Korea in episode 2.10. Now THAT was having someone’s back!

 

Best bromance moment of the entire two series IMHO. “I heart you” (1.20). Pure gold.

From the sneak peek that we have been given into season 3, it looks certain that the bromance will continue and we will be treated to more classic brotherly bickering, in cars, boats, trains, planes, wherever. Oh, and lots of Steve’s OTT antics and Danny’s arm-waving and snarky comments! Even after only one episode, we have been treated to some terrific bromance moments.  Poor Danny, he’s been relegated to the back seat of his own car and is now called boo boo. These two are now not afraid to put their deep affection for each other on display! The bromance moments provide us with an insight into the two characters and a chance for Alex and Scott show us what they can do. Whether they are emo, pure comedy or line-of-duty moments, the bromance has a good deal to do with why I keep tuning in. Season 3, bring it on!

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