Directed by Neill Fearnley
Airdate: November 22, 1987
Guest Stars: Dan Gauthier (Mike); Zoe Trilling (Jody)
After a 16-year-old gymnast dies from steroid overuse, Penhall and Hoffs are sent to investigate. Hoffs wears dorky glasses and sweaters, while Penhall mixes in the with the jocks to sniff out the steroid ring. A subplot has Hanson wanting to become a Big Brother to fill a void in his life, only to get involved with the woman running the program.
The episode hits the steroid theme hard, blaming the overtly competitive nature of High School sports and the winning is everything attitude fostered by parents and coaches. Penhall befriends Mike who is heavily into steroids but sympathizes with the challenges he faces. He gets dressed down by Fuller for imbibing one of the substances for fear of blowing his cover (you learn how to throw up).
Hanson wants to be a Big Brother, which leads to an odd tension with Penhall who seems to think taking a child under his wing would be the wrong move. Hanson voices his annoyance at Penhall's tough guy approach to police work. But it all works out for Tom, since he catches the eye of the attractive administrator of the program.
The "steroid" plot felt mostly contrived, but the scripts were smartly starting to focus more on character, specifically the psychological toll of undercover work. The episode randomly ends with a Dragnet denouement, in this case the Jump Street crew failed to help the students' using steroids.
Final Report: B
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