This episode ably summarized Steve and Danny's relationship.

Also two totally unexpected characters from the past returned Hawaii Five-0 Season 9 Episode 21.

Sadly, it wasn't Chin and Kono.

Instead, it was Ricky Schiff and Mr. Pickles from Hawaii Five-0 Season 5 Episode 17.

Nope, no one ever expected (nor cared) to see the fledgling weed peddler/exotic-pet dealer and the cat ever again.

They got thrown together with Danny and McGarrett under the most tragic of circumstances.

Related: Hawaii Five-0 Season 9 Episode 20 Review: Ke Ala O Ka Pu (Way of the Gun)

Agnes Miller, Mr. Pickles' owner, died and put Danny, Steve, and Ricky all in her will. The woman enjoyed a sheltered existence, and that trio was the only people ever to visit her.

Granted, McGarrett and Danny just borrowed her apartment to perform surveillance on a suspect. But they made an impression on her.

Danny thought he was going to get rich quick and retire like Agnes's will was the lottery.

But no, Agnes bequeathed six figures to the Humane Society. Danny and Steve inherited a box full of porcelain cats, while Ricky was the new owner of Mr. Pickles.

Of course, things couldn't be that simple. Ricky was living at a halfway house after his recent incarceration, so the other two ended up with unwanted guardianship. 

It was amazing how quickly the rest of the squad begged off ownership of Mr. Pickles with a litany of lame-ass excuses. Jerry's cat-scratch fever was the best, for sure.

Related: Watch Hawaii Five-0 Online: Season 9 Episode 20

That left Ricky and his web site with a demonic-cat image to find Mr. Pickles a new home, and hilarity ensued.

I truly think Ricky did want to adopt the cat but realized how irresponsible he truly was.

Since Steve had Eddie (and Junior? I lose track) at home already, he really couldn't bring home another pet.

That left Danny. I truly believed he was going to adopt Mr. Pickles, despite his endless kvetching. Who knows?

He still might have, after the caterwauling fadeout.

The most telling scene was when Danny and McGarrett realized they shared the qualities of cats and dogs, respectively.

Perhaps that's why they're always squabbling like cats and dogs. That makes sense.

Related: CBS Cheat Sheet

Another personal development is that there may finally be something happening on the Tani-Junior front.

After the better part of two years of them having a brother-sister vibe, something more is building.

Tani's asking him to go with her to a friend's wedding (both avoiding the word "date" like the plague) is the first step in that direction.

I'm just hoping the wedding happens onscreen.

I think Junior's been amenable to the idea of the two of them getting together for some time.

But he's been cautious, fearing a misstep would ruin their work relationship.

Tani, on the other hand, is all about running headlong into danger.

So it makes perfect sense that she would make the first move.

Besides, isn't every procedural required to have some inappropriate, on-the-job coupling?

Hawaii Five-0 has been missing that since Chin and Abby left, and Abby was offscreen so much that the work-related awkwardness just wasn't there.

The real question is if the sparks start to fly this season or not.

I'm skeptical because there can't be many episodes left this season.

There was something of a case, right? Otherwise, Grover, Adam, Jerry, and Noelani would have had little to do.

Wait, I almost forget the heart-to-heart between Grover and Adam, buried as it was after the crazy cat cutups.

It was nice of Grover to take Adam's emotional pulse and dispense some big-brother wisdom on him.

It's heartening to see Adam has hope after what's been a tough couple of years.

And that's for a guy that's been imprisoned for a good stretch.

Now that Salvation has gone away, Adam can become something more than a glorified backup, the second or third guy through the door.

Then again, that will probably have to happen next season as well.

Back to the case, such as it was, wedged in among the character developments.

As soon as that pile of bones and ash was too easily identified as a private eye, it was obvious that something he'd stumbled onto had gotten him killed.

And, hey, how about that maroon in the middle stealing the TV of the private eye who he had hired to find his wife's lover, and whose alibi for the murder was his girlfriend?

It's a good thing we live in a time when every bit of data that a person has created can be yanked down from the virtual heavens.

Otherwise, how would Five-0 be able to piece together what the P.I. had been working on?

It's the deus ex machina of the modern TV age. It used to come from the microscopic world of forensics.

Now it's the magic box plucking out just the right clue at about the 45-minute mark that sets investigators on the right path.

How did Joe Friday survive without it? Today we need more than just the facts, ma'am.

Yes, it was fitting that the father who had never given up on finding his long-lost daughter finally gets her back.

Related: Get CBS All Access via Amazon Channels for Hit Shows, Exclusive Originals & Live TV

But another way of looking at it is the brainwashed daughter loses the only father she has known for the past two decades and has to start over with a man she barely remembers.

Still, it was justice, even if it was messy.

After a rerun, excuse me encore next Friday, it's into the home stretch.

Don't forget to catch up during the break.

It's super simple since you can watch Hawaii Five-0 online right here via TV Fanatic.

Is Steve the dog and Danny the cat?

Would they make a good children's book?

Should Tani and Junior get together already?

What do you want to see over what's left of the season?

Comment below.

Dale McGarrigle is a staff writer for TV Fanatic. Follow him on X.