Captain Frank Furrillo (Daniel J.Travanti) is groomed for the mayor's office by a local kingmaker (Granville Van Dusen). Officer Bobby Hill (Michael Warren) escorts his father's casket home for the funeral. Sgt. Lucy Bates (Betty Thomas) begins the process of adopting a runaway boy whose mother is a drug-addicted prostitute. Sgt. Mick Belker (Bruce Weitz) finally marries his sweetheart Officer Robin Tataglia (Lisa Sutton).
Lt. Norman Buntz (Dennis Franz) goes with a former police colleague ostensibly to interview an informant. Officer Andy Renko (Charles Haid) arrests legendary country singer Bobby Angel (Billy Green Bush). Officer J.D. LaRue (Kiel Martin) and his partner Detective Neal Washington (Taurean Blacque) run a sting with the help of a tattooist/snake charmer/fence (Grace Zabriskie).
A very busy day at Hill Street precinct becomes considerably more heated as SWAT team commander Lt. Howard Hunter (James B.Sikking) vandalizes the station-house boiler room causing the temperature to skyrocket.
Unbeknownst to his colleagues, having sustained a concussion and lost consciousness after falling down stairs whilst attempting to find lost equipment he comes to, forgets where he is and believes he has been abducted by the Soviets. He sabotages boiler room mechanisms on their "ship" in order to facilitate an escape.
One of the critically lauded network TV series ever produced Hill Street Blues juggled multiple story-lines and character arcs. In some episodes little happened beyond imparting essential information about characters sometimes tying up lose ends opened in previous episodes. This entry shows us a lot but it is pretty insignificant on its own. The show didn't insult the intelligence of its audience by staging World War III every week.
As with other ensemble cast shows from around the same time, which utilized underused supporting actors of exceptional quality said performers were given more screen-time to construct some of their most believable and moving characterizations. Travanti and Sikking were never afforded better opportunities on the small-screen before or since.