Turns out Daniel Dae Kim isn’t the only one excited about Hawaii Five-O’s special episode focusing on the incarceration of Japanese Americans.
Guy Aoki of the Media Action Network for Asian Americans and a columnist for Rafu Shimpo was among a number of Asian Americans invited to a special screening of the December 13 episode.
Producers were inspired to produce the episode after seeing Hold These Truths, a play by Jeanne Sakata based on the story of Gordon Hirabayashi.
Daniel Dae Kim, who is friends of Sakata, sponsored six performances of Hold These Truths in Hawaii and invited the Five-O producers.
According to Aoki, the entire episode centers around the incarceration and includes a visit to the site of the actual Honouliuli camp, one of five incarceration camps in Hawaii.
Wrote Aoki: “I am pleasantly surprised and deeply moved. This special episode, which you shouldn’t miss, will air Friday, Dec. 13, at 9 p.m.”
You can read Aoki’s review in the Rafu Shimpo, along with a response from the show to criticism it is casting fewer Asian Americans.