The essential episodes of Adam-12
Watch these 15 in order and you've got Adam-12 — each pick states its reason.
- 01
Log 001: The Impossible Mission
Pilot Episode: Working out of a patrol car designated "Adam-12," Officers Malloy and Reed perform a typical day's work, which includes a high speed auto-chase, the capture of two robbers, and an emergency call to save a suffocating baby. Malloy decides to turn in his badge after his young partner was killed a few weeks earlier. But at the end of the shift, he comes around and decides that he can't let inexperienced Jim Reed loose on another officer, so he decides not to leave the force.
- 02
Malloy and Reed learn of a serial home burglar stealing color TVs. They stumble upon the suspect's car with unusual results. Also, Reed must come to terms with his anger over a drug using mother that endangered her children to score dope.
- 03
Log 011: It's Just A Little Dent, Isn't It?
Officers Malloy and Reed assist a young mother whose baby is threatened by a deranged man and they help a woman being harassed by a spiteful neighbor. Reed worries all evening that the small dent in the fender he caused while backing the car up for fuel might lead to termination, since he is still on probation.
- 04
Log 131: Reed, The Dicks Have Their Job And We Have Ours
Officers Malloy and Reed are involved in a high speed chase, a murder case and a family dispute as they work the P.M. watch. Reed expresses frustration at turning a case over to detectives instead of investigating it.
- 05
Log 091: You're Not The First Guy's Had The Problem
Officer Reed learns that a professional officer has to keep their emotions under control; even when confronted with an abusive drunk-driver, right after clearing an "officer down" call & finding his close friend from the Academy critically wounded.
- 06
Log 071: I Feel Like a Fool, Malloy
In an episode where Reed learns to keep his wits under control, the officers deal with a loud noise complaint where an elderly woman refuses to answer, much less acknowledge, a teenaged girl's desperate pleas for help after the woman learns she was at a house where loud party music is being played, and it leads to a tragic drowning of a 4-year-old girl in a backyard swimming pool. Other calls include a brawl at a pop-spirituality temple on the verge of a schism over meditation styles, and a misused silent alarm at a liquor store.
- 07
Reed tries to pawn off his new litter of puppies to co-workers, strangers, even victims. The officers work a silent alarm, rescue a boy with his head stuck in a fence, and track down a prowler.
- 08
Walters and Brinkman are on a roll lately and like to brag, much to the irritation of Reed. He and Malloy help them out by finishing one of their calls, then rescue a sick teenage girl and arrest the young man who took her in. Back on patrol, they meet an informant who gives them a tip on a big drug buy scheduled for 11 PM. They give the info to Sgt. Miller who asks them to help in the bust.
- 09
Log 015: Exactly One Hundred Yards
On their day off, Malloy and Reed agree to give a talk to a group of fifth grade students, and then offer to let the kids watch them train for the California Police Olympics. But when the tires of their patrol car are slashed and a stopwatch goes missing out of reed's car, the two officers start to suspect one of the children.
- 10
Officer Malloy pays tribute to Officer Tom Porter, who has recently fallen in the line of duty. Malloy recounts the close friendship they developed while training at the academy, as well as the moments where they crossed paths on duty, including the night of the officer's unfortunate demise.
- 11
Sgt. MacDonald's anniversary is coming up and the officers have limited funds to spend on a gift, which is a bottle of champagne, but when the officers pick it up, the owner of the liquor store was shot in an attempted robbery. Malloy and Reed later find the robber dead in a park from a gunshot wound inflicted by the owner. Other incidents include a paralyzed ex-wrestler tearing up a bar, a man driving suspiciously turns out to be the proud owner of several traffic tickets in a 24 hour period, a used car dealer trying to take advantage of a Mexican customer who speaks little English, and two camper thieves pushing a truck with a camper that is too small for the truck bed.
- 12
Malloy finds himself attracted to the new girl in the steno pool, and decides to ask her on a date after learning she's Officer Wells' 25-year-old niece. Out on patrol, he and Reed investigate a report of a prowler in a heavily wooded neighborhood, make a deal with a flower vendor before booking him for unpaid tickets, engage in a high-speed pursuit with a green corvette and investigate a suspicious gardener.
- 13
Malloy and Reed investigate the death of an old man wearing an unusual belt, which leads to the case being turned over to Frauds Division, who finds that Dr. Gantman, running a clinic, is treating a blind seven-year-old patient with a pituitary gland condition but his "treatment" is worthless and preventing a real treatment (removal of the gland). Later, a TV repairman who makes oscillator belts for Gantman is busted for bookmaking and agrees to testify against the doctor, but Gantman demonstrates his "treatment" in open court and fails miserably. Note: This episode, in which Reed and Malloy appear only briefly, was intended to be the pilot for a new Mark VII series focusing on the Los Angeles District Attorney's Office, and was directed by Webb himself. However, no such series came to be.
- 14
Something Worth Dying For: Part 1
Reed's bust of a drug dealer named Sparky was thrown out in court, and after Sgt. MacDonald offers him a chance to join the Vice squad for 30 days to gain experience, Reed volunteers, however the lifestyle and training cause a rift between him and Jean, and Reed quickly discovers how dirty Vice is; he's involved in a bust where a man wants to trade drugs for pictures of young boys, and the assignment is taking its toll on him. Malloy and Officer Woods team up to assist in the arrest of two drug dealers, but Malloy is shot and wounded during the bust and rescued by Reed.
- 15
Something Worth Dying For: Part 2
Reed is awarded the Medal of Valor by the LAPD for rescuing a wounded Malloy from the shootout, and despite Jean's feelings about her husband's new assignment and about him taking the investigator's exam to become a Detective, she decides to attend the ceremony. Malloy and Reed reunite and handle cases; including a typing school B&E where both money and typewriters were suspected to be stolen, a suspicion confirmed by an assistant who allows the officers to freely check the typewriters; and a shootout in a warehouse full of mannequins with two young people.
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