• 1. While wrapping up the
series, there are quite a few iconic references to previous
seasons. The Miranda Rights are read in their completion.
There is running water in the gym shower and the hospital’s
sprinkler. There is shared food, coffee and a Danish to
stuffed veal and antipasto. Hutch wears his two-leather
jacket. Starsky and Hutch visit a porno theater with Huggy.
And in both ends, a bullet-ridden Torino appears in the
police garage. Name some other symbolic nods. And what,
besides the Starsky Sweater, is missing? (Pilot, Sweet
Revenge, Targets Without a Badge 3)
• 2. Johnny Bagely’s Ernie and Hutch’s Starsky are both
shot and left to burn to death in a building. Compare and
contrast these two characters and their circumstances.
(Trap)
• 3. If Starsky hadn’t seen Gillian at the Venus, how long,
would it have taken Starsky, and or Hutch, to suspect that
Gillian wasn’t on the up and up regarding her profession?
Who would have figured it out first? (Gillian)
• 4. Elaborate on the parallels between Billy Joe/Henderson
and Starsky/Hutch, two sets of characters in a car with one
man a driving fiend and the other begging to stop.
(Partners)
• 5. Would Hutch, without a Starsky in his life, really be
the arrogant ass, as seen when Hutch fakes amnesia? Take
the premise one step further explore, through an “It’s a
Wonderful Life” lens how Starsky and Hutch’s lives would be
without each other in it. (Partners)
• 6. Starsky and Hutch refer to White’s henchman, Foote, as
“Curly” four times. Hutch is perhaps the whitest/blondest
male character in the series. Compare and contrast Starsky
and Hutch with White and Curly. Extra points for
incorporating the action of small hairs on the back of the
neck used when lying. (Losing Streak)
• 7. Hutch refers to he and Starsky as “Lazarus” when
uniform asks him. Perhaps Hutch felt they both returned to
life with this knowledge? (Psychic)
• 8. Corsican Brothers were conjoined, then separated twin
brothers, who felt each others’ thoughts. Discuss Colby’s
possible jealously regarding to how he views Starsky and
Hutch, two men joined at the hip. (Deadly Imposter)
• 9. Sugar Plum is on stage, nattering away. Just as Sugar
says she has, “no drinking problem at all,” John spills his
drink. Jack Ives displays his “drinking problem” spilling
champagne on himself out of glasses and spilling wine on
himself while drinking straight out of the bottle. Pick
three characters in Bay City and describe how real drinking
problems have affected their lives. Extra credit for
mentioning drinks involving a fancy glass and a little
umbrella. (Death in a Different Place, Groupie)
• 10. Harry has sex once every nine months with a woman and
then kills her. Harry appears to have issues with his
father, which is one reason he doesn’t like the name Harry.
A normal human pregnancy lasts nine months, not unlike the
gestational time Harry spends in the boiler room/womb.
Perhaps Harry is practicing a sort of self-annihilation
when he murders women after having sexual relations with
them, unconsciously eradicating his possibility of
repeating the cycle of what he remembers of fatherhood?
(Deckwatch)
• 11. Discuss the boiler room as Hell. (Deckwatch)
• 12. When Jerry hits Kathi, one sees a picture of a shark
on the wall behind her. The shark is same color as Jerry’s
shirt. Describe the possible symbolism. (Death Notice)
• 13. “Degenerates…sickos…bums,” Fifth Avenue calls Solenko
and his bunch. “They give an honest thief like me a bad
name.” Compare Fifth Avenue’s credo to Starsky and Hutch’s
reasoning for the Angel to give them information on the two
hypes that killed Emma Lou. Starsky and Hutch explain to
Angel Huey Chaco and John Brown Harris “give heroin addicts
a bad name.” Then observe the way Starsky and Hutch treat
Cheryl Waite, self-admitted drug runner and possible
prostitute, with a lobster lunch, an offer to stay at
Hutch’s place and help packing for a trip. Where is the
gray line drawn in Fifth Avenue, Angel and Starsky and
Hutch’s heads as they make the distinction between an
honorable bad person and one that is not? (Lady Blue, Bait,
Texas Longhorn)
• 14. As Starsky is bleeding to death on the couch, Hutch
asks him, “What time you got?” Without medical attention,
frankly not much time at all. Does Hutch understand the
double meaning of his question? Does Starsky? (Shootout)
• 15. Ellie Cole and Belle Kates have the same color hair.
Compare and contrast these two characters. (Hostages)
• 16. Jesse quotes St. Matthew, “Beware of false prophets
that come to you in sheep’s clothing and inwardly are
ravenous wolves.” She is saying this about Starsky and
Hutch and plainclothes fuzz, but her instincts are way off
in regards to Kim and “Father.” Then again, she has been
convicted of armed robbery, which perhaps puts her good
judgment in question. Discussion question: Is Jessie as
savvy as she appears to be? (Silence)
• 17. Both
Starsky and Hutch have a wooden six-spoked wheel: Hutch’s
is in his car. Starsky has a six-spoked wheel on his
apartment wall. Imagine a conversation or reason they each
have this visual in their possession. (Jojo, Running)
• 18. Both
Starsky and Hutch get their gun arms tangled in the theater
curtains at the Nuart as they enter the auditorium. When
are some other times Starsky and Hutch physically act like
both sides of the same coin in the same situation?
(Silence)
• 19. Is Starsky’s consumption of some of the popcorn
before he throws it at “Father Ignatius” as a sort of
anti-communion? (Silence)
• 20. When “Father Jonas” clutches Molly / Pete and shakes
her, there is the distinct sound of what sounds like a
rattlesnake. Make three points comparing Father Jonas to a
viper. Extra points for reference to Eve. (Little Girl
Lost)
• 21. Starsky says to Hutch regarding Duke’s apparel
advice, “Everyone is entitled to a mistake.” Hutch makes a
little sneer, “Yeah, right...” Later Hutch, after being
scolded by Cameron says, “We made a mistake, it won’t
happen again.” These comments foreshadow Starsky’s
“mistake” when he doesn’t trust Hutch about Jack and
comments on “his stinking loyalty.” (Las Vegas Strangler)
• 22. Joey steals a watch. Starsky and Hutch take this
seriously but her mom doesn’t. Molly / Pete steals food.
Starsky and Hutch don’t take this seriously but Mike does.
Compare and contrast these two scenarios. Extra points for
intertwining the fact that both girls are played by the
same actress. (Little Girl Lost)
• 23. Discuss the innuendos displayed regarding Venus
Massage---Mrs. Grossman offers “hard candy” to Starsky and
Hutch. Joy offers a massage to Starsky to “take that
stiffness right out.” Mrs. Grossman disingenuously says her
business deals only in whistles and tricks. She gives
Starsky the “wolf whistle.” (Gillian)
• 24. Starsky goes to hospital and misses his pants. Hutch
goes to hospital and misses his jacket. Is this a kind of
medical strip poker? (A Coffin for Starsky, Vendetta)
• 25. Diana and Abby each invite Hutch to dinner, put a
gift on his plate and wait for a late Hutch. Both
relationships end badly. What are the differences and
similarities between these two women? (Fatal Charm,
Vendetta)
• 26. Tommy attacks Eckworth with a baseball bat. If he had
to pick weapons to “match” three of his other victims in a
symbolic way, what would he pick for the laundry worker,
the pimp and Abby? (Vendetta)
• 27. Who is uglier, Leo Moon or Vic Humphries. Why? Extra
credit for not mentioning Moon’s moobs. (Captain Dobey,
You’re Dead, Survival)
• 28. Mac Senior sits on the fire truck after his son’s
murder. The truck is a Mack truck. When Mac Senior tells
Hutch that he told Mac Junior his job as a policeman would
make him come to a bad end, could he have possibly seen it
in this detail? Or is that a job for Joe Collandra?
(Specialist, Psychic)
• 29. Starsky complains that his food is “too greasy.” Take
this as the first clue that he is feeling contrary and run
with it. (Psychic)
• 30. Marianne Tustin says regarding her brother’s affair
with Marsha, “Ted’s one failing. He loved his wife, adored
his kids, but he loved to play.” The very next thing she
says is, “My brother always had a very bad temper, I mean a
really bad temper.” Does Marianne not consider this a
failing? Or having grown up with him, doesn’t take his
temper seriously? Do you think his wife and children feel
the same? (Tap Dancing)
• 31. Hutch says, regarding blood in bathroom, “If it’s
Starsky’s blood it won’t matter.” This is the same man that
told Dobey he didn’t care if he had two minutes, he wasn’t
giving up? (Bloodbath, A Coffin for Starsky)
• 32. Hutch speculates the singing goldfish grew up and
their voices changed. Starsky tells Lisa Peter Pan is
always ten years old, and Starsky hadn’t seen Peter Pan for
a long time. Mitzi comments the puppy will be all grown up
in six months, but Lisa never will grow up, which Mitzi
likes as she loves being a mommy. Hutch comments the bratty
kid at the toy store will grow up and Lisa will stay sweet.
Hutch says, “Kids grow up…the world marches on.” What do
all these things mean for the three characters Lisa, Mitzi
and Starsky? (Nightmare)
• 33. How much of Mitzi’s statement that she loves being a
mommy and is glad Lisa will never grow up a real feeling or
a rationalization for circumstances that can’t be altered?
(Nightmare)
• 34. Al and Olga Grossman mention “this” has happened to
Gillian before. “This” is apparently Gillian falling in
love with a really special guy and wanting to get out of
the prostitution business. Does knowing Hutch isn’t the
first man Gillian has fallen for like she has make her a
more or a less sympathetic character? (Gillian)
• 35. Sonny sings “Glory Hymn of the Republic” while he
tramps about in the canyon. The piano tuner at Huggy’s
plays bits of it as he tunes the piano. Is there a
significance in having the same tune in both places?
(Survival)
• 36. The radio announcer talks about listening. Sonny
complains that no one ever listens to each other anymore
when cops ignore him. Bobby and his mother don’t
communicate well. Hutch doesn’t communicate with Starsky
when he goes to meet Lou. And due to his war injuries,
Sonny’s ability to listen is reduced. Discuss the theme of
communication in this episode. (Survival)
• 37. Hutch, trapped under his car, curses “All America on
wheels, what a joke.” This is the Ford Motor Company that
“put America on wheels,” and Henry Ford used this slogan.
How does this tie in with Hutch’s desperate outburst?
(Survival)
• 38. Burke and Corman say, “If we wanted to snuff him
(Crandell), we could have wasted him resisting arrest.”
Man, that’s cold. These guys have been on the street too
long. Explore these cops in relation to Hutch’s comment
about Mike Ferguson having been out so long he couldn’t
differentiate the forest from the trees. What’s the
difference between these three cops and Captain Dobey,
who’s been out 27 years, longer than any of them? (Iron
Mike, Snowstorm)
• 39. Forest tells Monk, “Why is it you are always wrong?”
Is this true? (Fix)
• 40. Is the episode “Huggy Bear and the Turkey” a distinct
fan non-favorite because of the lack of Starsky and Hutch?
Because until the end, Starsky and Hutch act disinterested
in solving a crime? because it is boring? Because Turquet
as a character comes out of nowhere? Or other reasons?
(Huggy Bear and the Turkey)
• 41. Extrapolate on the possible multiple meanings, verb
and noun, behind the title “The Fix.” (Fix)
• 42. Both Hutch and Slater have a bandage on their left
pinky finger. Hutch cut his when he was making dinner for a
date. Did Ray cut it when he was making dinner for Carla?
Create a scenario that ties this small detail to something
that happened in the episode. (Survival)
• 43. Aside from not ignoring calls and flirting with Chris
less, Starsky and Hutch don’t behave that much differently
after her scathing article than before. (Heroes)
• 44. When Starsky tells Hutch to “play the bad guy for a
change,” is it because he feels he ends up playing the bad
cop more than Hutch? Provide three examples which support
your argument. (Snowstorm)
• 45. Amboy’s henchman says the “weekend take” is $141,000.
This amount of money turns into $140,000 at Dobey’s. Did
Starsky and Hutch siphon off $1000? They “take” money for
Vicky’s daughter so you know they are capable of a little
under-the-radar filching under what they would consider a
good reason. If they did take $1000 off the top, what would
they use it for that would be justifiable in their minds in
the episode with Amboy? (Bust Amboy, Las Vegas Strangler)
• 46. Did Iron Mike recognize Starsky and Hutch from
Harry’s restaurant or not? What are some clues he did? What
are some clues he didn’t? And how would this play out in
his request to work with them? (Iron Mike)
• 47. Is Artie sleeping with Tommy? The other boys? What
are the clues that he is? That he isn’t? (Vendetta)
• 48. Belinda tells Hutch he wouldn’t know how she felt to
be so desperate as to sell Vic Rankin. What is going
through Starsky and Hutch’s minds as they remember Hutch’s
experience with heroin? (Losing Streak, Fix)
• 49. Wally Stone says he “took the rap” for Steve. Does
this mean it was Steve who pushed Jane Elexy out the
window? Steve is clearly going to say something else to
Starsky and Hutch as they go out the door, but changes his
mind. Is there anything else to support the theory Wally
did time for one or more of a member of the Wolf Pack’s
crime? (Murder on Stage 17)
• 50. Starsky gives Hutch “woman advice,” and tells him not
to worry about Diana. Starsky tells Hutch to “count on me,”
which turns out to be a bad decision. Is this Starsky’s
only instance of poor female advice? (Fatal Charm)