BOOK CLUB QUESTIONS H
"All I know, Captain,
is that every time he does it, the bad guy takes a heavy
fall, and in this business, if something works, stick with
it." (Bloodbath)
• 351. When
Dobey threatens to take Starsky and Hutch off the
Washington-Boseman case, is this the first time he has
threatened to take both men off a case? (Huggy Can’t Go
Home)
• 352. Comment on the symbolism of the color red in "Huggy
Can’t Go Home". Big Red drinks a red pop, Starsky grabs a
red napkin off of Huggy’s bar, Huggy’s sweater is red, Big
Red wears a red shirt to the robbery, the red blood stains
J.T.’s stomach while he lies in the basement, note the
light shining through the red liquid in the basement
bottle, Huggy has a red Cadillac, Huggy's janitor wears a
red shirt, the bagel salesperson wears a red shirt, the
paperboy rides a red bike, the back of Boseman's vest is
red, the bag of money stained by blood... and of course,
the Torino. (Huggy Can’t Go Home)
• 353. When Starsky throws the wedding cake in Hutch’s
face, and Hutch tastes the pie off of Starsky’s face, is
this symbolizing the wedding custom, suggesting Starsky and
Hutch are really meant to be together? (Deckwatch, Terror
on the Docks)
• 354. Rigger speaks into his microphone to Starsky and
Hutch. He says, “They brought Daniel and they cast him into
the den of the lions.” It is a metaphor for what is
happening to Rigger, though his ending does come out as
well. (Targets 1)
• 355. Huggy pushes Jamie on the swing, telling her, “Hang
on Jamie, you’re on your own now,” which is exactly how it
is. (Targets 1)
• 356. Huggy has intense anger at Starsky and Hutch over
Rigger’s death. He also refers to his connection to Starsky
and Hutch as an “already fragile relationship” after he is
beat up by Bagley’s men. Starsky tells Hutch that Huggy
doesn’t seen to be happy to be “part of the team.” What are
some other examples of Huggy not being happy about his role
as their finest snitch? (Targets 1, Trap)
• 357. Starsky and Hutch both have “a bottle of Chianti
here someplace” and locate an unopened one under the sink.
What other things are similar about their apartments? (Foxy
Lady)
• 358. Both Lisa and Emily get involved with bad men
because “he was exciting.” Are there any male characters
that hook up with a woman for the same reason? (Blindfold,
Foxy Lady)
• 359. Professor Gage harasses Hutch for being late,
telling him his apology is Hutch’s “own sense of limiting
convention under the guise of politeness.” While Gage is a
twisted ass, is he right about Hutch’s apology at that
particular moment? (Class in Crime)
• 360. Gage prides himself on preparedness, yet he leaves
the scope in the car. Does he do this out of arrogance,
forgetfulness or does he subliminally want to either get
caught, or shoot Michelle? A pro can hit the target at 70
yards, he tells Michelle he was only 70 yards away from
Allen, she points out she was 65 yards and Todesco measures
it at 71 yards. And to add further intrigue, Gage has to
put his glasses on before he makes the shot. Knowing what
Gage thinks about his abilities and his Philosophy of
Crime, what is going on here? (Class in Crime)
• 361. What do a peach pit and Starsky’s dirty laundry have
in common? (Foxy Lady, Hutchinson for Murder One)
• 362. What is Starsky doing with Hutch’s handcuffs? Is it
a ploy to make John Carelli get him closer to Hutch and
Lisa? Or something else? (Foxy Lady)
• 363. Got the Balls? Hutch bounces a tennis ball on his
table after looking in at sleeping Allison. He tells
Starsky they went into the case with “all the finesse of a
wrecking ball.” Hutch is bouncing a tennis ball when he
hears of Starsky’s heart attack. (Targets 3, Sweet Revenge)
• 364. Dobey says, “I know a lady when I see one.” Jessie
lectures Starsky and Hutch on “wolves in sheep’s clothing.”
Compare these two mistakes of character. (Silence, Foxy
Lady)
• 365. Kalowitz says Edward Crown “had you cold, Starsky,”
and notes Starsky should be grateful to Corman for shooting
him. It appears Starsky saved himself with plenty of time,
making Kalowitz’s statement a little hollow. Is this
symbolic of Kalowitz’s limited vision and bad judgment in
hanging around Corman and Burke and ragging on Starsky and
Hutch? (Snowstorm)
• 366. “Love. It’s going to put him in the poorhouse,”
Starsky predicts. He isn’t too far off. (Fix)
• 367. Track the symbolism of the Candy Bar as it applies
to this episode. (Fix)
• 368. It is Hutch that flat out can’t believe that Huggy
would be dishonest with them, “Ah, come on Starsky, we’re
talking about Huggy!” Starsky just nods, points out that
for “$100,000, a guys’ brains could go out to lunch.” What
makes for the difference in their trust levels in the
reality of Huggy? (Kill Huggy Bear)
• 369. Does Starsky have guilt after telling Hutch that he
still has a long way to go, choosing “he” rather than “we”?
I’d clear off that buffet too, after hearing Starsky say
that too... (Fix)
• 370. Anton Rusz may have not known the seriousness of the
threat with Ginger, but when he writes that Sonia is next,
he is crossing a line that Kathi Carmer has already
crossed. Anton Rusz could have saved the life of at least
one girl if he had decided to tell the police what he knew.
He tells Starsky and Hutch he kept quiet because he was
afraid his cheating the phone company would get him
deported. Starsky and Hutch must feel this is a good enough
reason, as they invite him to their house to cook later. A
lot of characters make selfish, frightened judgments. What
makes Starsky and Hutch feel kindly towards Anton, when
they don’t feel sympathy towards others in similar
positions? (Death Notice)
• 371. Hutch tells Dobey, “I already got a partner, I don’t
need another one.” Is Hutch telling Dobey that if Starsky
dies, Hutch is through too? (Sweet Revenge)
• 372. Despite his flaws as a sicko murderer, Tony Mariposa
has redeeming qualities regarding his mom. He calls her
regularly, is concerned about her being alone, offers to
have her move in with him and tells her he loves her.
Juxtapose Tony’s relationship with his mother to Eugene
Pruitt’s relationship with his mother. (Discomania, Las
Vegas Strangler)
• 373. Hutch says to the car wash guy, “You know your
humanity is surpassed only by your honesty and good looks.”
Starsky tells Huey Chaco, “You are one of the warmest, most
responsive human beings I have ever had the pleasure to
meet.” Starsky and Hutch meet a lot of dreadful people;
what about these two make them make these comments?
(Psychic, Texas Longhorn)
• 374. Fat Rolly disdainfully tells Marty, moaning on the
floor, “I like you cause you’re so fast on your feet.”
Stryker goads his thug, effectively restrained by Starsky
by his own jacket; “I’ll sleep better at night, knowing you
are guarding me.” Explore the idea of these sarcastic
pecking order moments. (Texas Longhorn, Snowstorm)
• 375. “They really got to be coming out of the sewer,”
Hutch tells Starsky at the oilfield. Starsky tells Hutch,
“Nice world, huh?” after pulling Ginger out of the pool.
Hutch tries to cheer Starsky up after his bug-in-the-toilet
bowl comment, combined with at persistent flusher, that “at
least we’re a couple of bugs who know how to swim.” With
all the horrifying things they see in their life, what are
some of the successes? (Pilot, Death Notice, Texas
Longhorn)
• 376. Starsky tells a brutally frank Huggy, “If a sixteen
year old kid isn’t worth it, who is?” What changes
Starsky’s attitude by the time he chastises Hutch about
Kiko? Or is there something else going on? (Pariah,
Running)
• 377. Hutch tells Starsky, “Looking rich makes you
nervous.” Starsky replies it is “these kinky clothes,” he
dislikes. Starsky also doesn’t like the shoes Hutch bought
for him. When Starsky complains about the shoes killing his
instep, ‘the inside of his sole,” is he really referring to
his “soul” instead, implying the whole thing doesn’t feel
right to him? Compare this moment when Starsky notes
Amboy’s house makes him uncomfortable. Is it true that the
finer things in life “offend his grosser nature”? (Bait,
Bust Amboy)
• 378. Hutch is holding two people in front of them who
take a bullet meant for him. The first is Billy Harknes and
the second is the guy in parking lot who attacked him with
knife. Henderson takes the bullet that could have killed
Starsky. Is this considered a fairly major tactical error,
as a bullet has a good chance of continuing through a
second body? Or a matter of luck? Or a screenwriter’s way
of making the story work? (Sweet Revenge, Bait, Pilot)
• 379. Starsky and Hutch tell Cheryl her job is done, “We
just needed your help. You don’t have to bleed for us.” No,
that comes later. Compare the characters Cheryl Waite and
Lionel Rigger. (Targets 1, Bait)
• 380. What is going on when Hutch doesn’t tell Starsky
until they are walking into the warehouse that he told
Agent Carter the wrong address? Is Hutch that sure of
Starsky’s agreement in this plan? Or of Starsky’s knowing
what to do without previous preparation? Telling him they
have no back up and that Hutch doesn’t, for whatever
reason, have is gun, seconds before they walk into the
warehouse seems foolhardy, as well as rude. Is there any
other time that one man makes a decision for the other and
doesn’t tell him despite having the chance to? (Bait)
• 381. In four years, Dobey and Huggy have only one
apparent instance of their bodies touching each other. It
is when Dobey slaps Huggy’s back after getting won ton
soup. (Bait)
• 382. Billy Desmond was an Eagle Scout and straight A
student at the University for two years. What happened to
him to turn him so totally crooked? (Terror on the Docks)
• 383. Explore Starsky’s apparent feeling of ease around
old women, citing his conversations with Mrs. Greene and
Mrs. McMillan and his card playing with Hannah. (Black and
Blue, Deadly Imposter, Deckwatch)
• 384. Starsky and Hutch are two men that have substitute
father figures with secrets, who ultimately disappoint and
come to a bad end. Contrast and compare the Starsky/Blaine
relationship and the Hutchinson/Huntley relationship.
(Death in a Different Place, Birds of a Feather)
• 385. Laura Kanen and Vanessa are two women who make Hutch
very angry. Comment. (Deckwatch, Hutchinson for Murder One)
• 386. There is only one instance of a lit fireplace being
used with a “good” character and it is with Anna. In all
other instances, only the bad guys, including Kira and
Diana, have lit fireplaces. (Body Worth Guarding, Starsky
vs. Hutch, Fatal Charm, Iron Mike)
• 387. Compare the verbal checklist Starsky and Hutch go
through in Hutch’s car in the first episode, to the verbal
checklist they have just before Hutch’s mad dash to save
Joanna Haymes. (Pilot, Psychic)
• 388. Kingston St. Jacques tells Hutch half his drivers
have quit and only a “god-forsaken fool” would apply for a
job at Metro now. Enter front stage, Starsky. (Quadromania)
• 389. Starsky and Hutch get put on the cabbie murders,
replacing Detective Henderson. Have Starsky and Hutch ever
been taken off a case, and replaced by other detectives?
(Quadromania)
• 390. Sex ‘N Steaks. A common lure for copulation with
Starsky and Hutch is the promise “a couple of steaks in the
refrigerator.” (Committee, Satan’s Witches, Fatal Charm)
• 391. Hutch calls himself “Hutchinson” when he scolds
himself. “Hutchinson, you sure picked a winner,” he tells
himself about Diana. When he is deep in Marsha’s lair, he
asks himself under his breath, “What did you get yourself
into, Hutchinson?” What do you think Starsky refers to
himself under similar circumstances? (Fatal Charm, Tap
Dancing)
• 392. Dobey almost takes Starsky off Helen’s case because
of Starsky’s personal interest in it. Yet in Linda Baylor’s
attack Dobey tells Starsky and Hutch, “Knowing how you feel
about Linda, I’m going to assign you to her case.” Why the
difference in how he sees emotional involvement of his
officers in these two cases? (Fatal Charm, Lady Blue)
• 393. Starsky says he would request Meredith next time he
needed a new partner. Of Linda Baylor he says, “I’d trade
her in for you any time,” referring to Hutch. He even calls
Rosie Dobey “Partner.” Would it be harder for Starsky or
Hutch to work with someone other than each other? (Captain
Dobey, You’re Dead, Fatal Charm, Black and Blue)
• 394. Contrast and compare Ted McDermott, Doris Huntley,
Vic Rankin and Freddie in their gambling habits. (Action,
Birds of a Feather, Losing Streak)
• 395. Compare the characters of Ted McDermott and Jerry
Konig, two men who have paid enough and take a brief,
pitiful stab at action. (Bounty Hunter, Action)
• 396. Starsky tells Huggy he has been on the street “too
long” when he mixes up the words “horse” and “whore.”
Starsky tells Hutch “working on the street must have warped
your mind,” when Hutch is cynical about McDermotts setting
up a blind date. What are some other moments that Starsky
and Hutch would recognize as being too long on the streets?
Give examples of some “lighter” moments as well as much
more serious ones. (Death Ride, Action)
• 397. One clue that Hutch was married twice (Nancy and
Van) is that he tells Starsky that Nancy used to run back
inside, thinking she had left the water on. This seems like
a very un-Van-like thing to do (Pilot)
• 398. Starsky and Hutch, in order to get information, have
sex with people as part of their job. Would female
detectives be asked to do the same? What are the
professional implications of these information-gathering
sessions? (Rosey Malone, Ballad for a Blue Lady, Tap
Dancing)
• 399. Rosey Malone admits she has secrets, “Doesn’t
everybody? Don’t you?” Starsky looks down. Anna tells Hutch
a secret, in little test to make them friends, but he
doesn’t reveal his to her. What would Starsky’s secret be,
aside from his being undercover? What would Hutch’s secret
be? (Rosey Malone, Body Worth Guarding)
• 400. Starsky’s Fat’s Domino album is stolen. Hutch’s
Buddy Holly album is melted. Could this be a clue to why we
never see Starsky or Hutch listening to music at home?
(Starsky and Hutch Are Guilty, Game)