The Checklist: Martial Law (S1 Ep14) “Wild Life”
One of the benefits of not being a regular Martial Law viewer back in the day, is that most of the episodes are new to me. Including the episode that I’ll be putting to The Checklist test today, Episode 14 from Martial Law’s first season, titled “Wild Life”.
Unlike most times, when I have Alexa randomly select an episode for me, this particular episode was actually a suggestion by friend of the site and classic TV connoisseur, Andrew Babcock…
#1. Was this an Arsenio Hall episode?
This would seem like a silly question if I was putting an episode from Season 2 of Martial Law to The Checklist test, but it is a perfectly reasonable question for a Season 1 episode. When Martial Law first premiered on CBS on September 26, 1998, Arsenio Hall was NOT a part of the cast. Arsenio’s character, Terrell Parker would not make his first Martial Law appearance until Episode 9 of the first season. And Hall would not make it into the show’s open until Episode 13.
#2. Was the cold open hot?
Sammo Law (Sammo Hung, Eastern Condors) and Terrell Howard (Arsenio Hall), posing as airport employees stop some suspected smugglers who managed to get their shipment past customs courtesy of a crooked customs agent… but they aren’t going to get past the LAPD! This sparks a huge opening fight scene that sees EVERYBODY get involved. Sammo, Terrell, Louis Malone (Louis Mandylor, Bring Him Back Dead), Chen Pei Pei (Kelly Hu)… even Captain Winship (Tom Wright) gets in on the action all before the opening credits roll.
When the dust settles the cops learn that the smugglers weren’t smuggling weapons or drugs… instead, they were smuggling exotic and endangered animals! 2/2
#3. Was there a notable guest star?
The clues to the animal smuggling investigation point Sammo and Terrell in the direction of one, Dieter Vanderval (played by Olivier Gruner of Angel Town and Nemesis fame). Vanderval takes wealthy clientele out on safaris in Africa… and while he admits to being a big game hunter back in the day, he tells the detectives that these days he only shoots animals with his camera… Sammo calls bullshit on that immediately.
Gruner is excellent as the villainous Vanderval and the episode does a great job building up Vanderval’s “heel heat”… he’s killing guys if they mess up, he kills one of his animal suppliers via deadly cobra and he even kills one of his clients, when the client balks at hunting humans (Most Dangerous Game style) instead of the lion that he paid to hunt. 3/3
#4. Do we get Sammo Hung vs. Olivier Gruner?
The humans that Vanderval wanted to hunt were Sammo and Terrell. Which does set up the inevitable Sammo Hung vs. Olivier Gruner battle… there was no way you are going to have a martial artist the caliber of Gruner on your show and not pair him off with a martial artist the caliber of Sammo Hung and “Wildlife” did not disappoint. 4/4
#5. Did the show have a light-hearted ending?
A thread that runs through the entire show involves Terrell’s mother, Dolores (Marla Gibbs), getting remarried. This sub-plot gives the show a break from the action as it progresses and it is tied into a bow (or perhaps the more appropriate knot) in the final scene of the episode. The episode concludes with a glowing Dolores and her new hubby, Ralph (Thom Barry, The Fast and the Furious), are whisked away to the airport by Sammo in his blue Cadillac, while Terrell and the other party guests jubilantly send them off… and to think just before this Sammo and Terrell were being hunted like animals! 5/5
- Final Score = 5/5 (100%) This has been my favorite Martial Law episode to date. Admittedly I am biased whenever a show or movie gives some work to the 90s DTV action stars… but this episode grabbed me earlier and never let go. Plus, you get to see Arsenio Hall go undercover as Wesley Snipes!
