McCall (Edward Woodward) gifts Harley (Richard Jordan) with another episode, as a Christmas present. Christmas Presence written by Coleman Luck first aired on 16 December, 1987.

A young boy, Mickey (Corey Carrier before he took on the role of Young Indiana Jones) calls The Equalizer for help. He knows that he’s more than a comic book character like his Aunt Phyllis (Jacqueline Brooks) would have him believe.

He and his aunt are being harassed by a group of men across the street from their apartment, striking from their local bar hangout, because they don’t want the boy in the neighbourhood. Why don’t they want a little boy in their neighbourhood?

Mickey has AIDS.

Harley is initially shaken by this reveal, but he likes the kid, and it gives him and the viewers a look into the way people reacted in the 80s to a reveal of this kind.

Harley and Mickey form a friendship, and despite early misgivings, Harley is now committed to not only helping Mickey and his aunt but hunting down Mickey’s missing father (Joseph Hindy) who walked away from the family because Mickey’s mother was an addict and he blames her for Mickey’s condition.

It’s a solid episode. It’s great to see Corey Carrier, but at this point, I am already really tired of adventures with Harley, I’m ready for the return of McCall, and if he’s not ready, let’s get Mickey (Keith Szarabajka) on the job.

So ends The Equalizer’s first (and only) Christmas-themed) episode.

A Dance on the Dark Side was written by David Kemper and was first broadcast on 13 January, 1988.

When a police officer is accidentally killed by his undercover partner, Del Larkin (David Andrews) a woman, Jill O’Connor (Amanda Plummer!) finds herself in trouble when she overhears a phone call that implicates Larkin in the murder.

Larkin is aware of the fact that she has overheard, and has now targeted her, warning her to keep quiet, or she’ll be next.

She turns to, not Harley, though he’s around, but to McCall fir help. Has Woodward completely mended? Is he ready to resume his mantle? I sure hope so.

Most of the police force don’t believe O’Connor’s story or are willing to ignore it in the course of their own investigation, but McCall is ready to prove Larkin is guilty and bring him down once and for all.

But it’s not going to be that easy, there are other things going on, twists and reveals but McCall is dogged and relentless, and Larkin is in his sights.

I loved seeing David Andrews in this episode, he’s one of those actors that everyone recognizes as one of those guys. He pops up in everything, and he always turns in a fantastic performance. I also loved seeing Woodward back to being front and centre. I’m glad he recovered and that he was able to take his role back in full.

Let’s see what he gets up to next time on The Equalizer!