Starsky & Hutch

I hadn't seen "Starsky and Hutch" in a long time until RTV added it to its weekday primetime lineup this week; it only took about 5 minutes of one episode to remember that when pop culture in its various media makes fun of 1970s cop shows, it is making fun of this 1970s cop show.

I don't mean "programs such as this 1970s cop show." I mean this particular show, Starsky and Hutch.

I exaggerate a bit, perhaps, but look at all the elements the series contains, elements discernible from watching even just the opening sequence and theme song:

*Car chases
*Funky music
*Two buddy cops who just won't play by the rules
*A jive-talking informant
*A black authority figure who lives in perpetual frustration at the guys' antics but has to admit they're that damn good.
*Ample opportunities for the stars to show how cool they are (in this one, they go to an outdoor court and hustle a pair of guys at basketball to get info).

I don't mean to sound sarcastic. I enjoyed that episode even if the Is it possible that "Starsky and Hutch" is the quintessential 1970s cop show? Maybe some might wish it were something like "Police Story," a critically acclaimed anthology drama that--hey, what do you know--now follows "Starsky" weeknights on RTV. But I think when most people think "police program from the seventies," they're not thinking of a sober, thoughtful treatise on the various professional, social, and personal issues encountered by working policemen of the times. No, they're thinking good times, over-the-top action, and fun. They're thinking "Starsky and Hutch."