Ohara

No one really remembers this and it deserves more...

However somewhere along the line people stopped casting Pat Morita in comedic roles, and that is a pure shame. Because, really, it's shows like this that you can see where the man is brilliant.

It's a police drama, but it's a police drama with a lead that has a sense of time that only really comes from an understanding of how comedy works. So, of course, it stands out from the rest.

But it also makes for a solid show. Pat Morita is a comedian first and foremost, but one that can use those skills to wonderfully adapt to a drama without crossing that line.

It's a rare and forgotten gem

This crime drama is interesting and entertaining, but neither Pat Morita nor any of his co-stars have the stage presence or charisma necessary for a prime-time TV show.

As for Pat Morita, a leading man doesn't have to be tall in stature (think Tom Cruise or Robert Conrad). But "Ohara" needed to be more commanding, and more dynamic. The Oriental mysticism, the quirks about not driving, not wanting to use a gun, are interesting. The martial arts fights and the police action scenes are good. But the stories usually devolve into soapy drama after the first commercial break.

The producers made noticeable changes in Season 2. Ohara gets a new partner, other new cast members appear, there is a new opening theme song. The writers add comedy in at least one episode (Shaver stumbling around in the forest). In a final desperate attempt to keep the show going, Obama and Shaver quit the Police Department, and become Private Investigators. But it was too little, too late. Ohara just couldn't pass the prime-time TV test.

I remember watching this when I was about 8 years old back in the day, and I actually still have some episodes I return to from time to time. It was similar to the NYPD Blue / New York Undercover style shows but came before them. I believe because it followed Hillstreet in a time that cop dramas weren't big it didn't make a lasting impression. I doubt we'll be able to find it anywhere, but it was a neat show at the time.