Detective Sergeant Daniel "Danny" Williams is a police Detective who originally worked in New Jersey but moved to Hawaii to remain close to his daughter, Grace Williams.
He is also currently a member of Five-0 and the partner of Steve McGarrett. When Steve is absent, Danny will assume the role of acting leader of the team.
Danny's badge number is 7576 as revealed in "E Malama".
Background[]
Danny grew up on the mainland, in the state of New Jersey. His family consists of his younger brother, Matt Williams, his sisters, and parents. When Danny was a beat cop, his future ex-wife, Rachel Edwards, rear-ended his car to get his attention. As he puts it, "The driving lessons turned into dates, and dates turned into a two bedroom, and she (Rachel) woke up married to a cop." Later, they had a daughter named Grace. It is not known what happened between them, but Danny and Rachel ended up having a divorce. When his now ex-wife remarried and moved to Hawaii, Danny reluctantly went along to Hawaii, to be able to see to his daughter.
Danny's father is a firefighter in New Jersey. His mother is presumed to be an excellent cook, as her lasagna was, "the last thing I want to eat before I die," according to Danny, until he tried Cocoa Puffs.
Personality[]
Unlike Steve, who is typically calm and in control, Danny is nearly always displaying one emotion or another. The most obvious is anger, as he possesses a very hot-headed nature with a vicious temper to match. He's also the most outspoken of the team and quite possibly the whole H50 Force and HPD, regardless of where he is and who's around to hear him.
Despite his often off-putting, and at times offensive, attitude, Danny is also one of the most openly affectionate characters and fiercely loyal to his friends and family.
Of the four main members of the task force, Danny is the most vocal. As his partner and, as Danny calls him, an animal and Neanderthal, Steve is the person most often on the receiving end of one of Danny's long-winded explanations of what, exactly, is wrong with the current situation, as Danny expresses a deep dislike for Steve's methods, such as going into a house without back-up, and isn't afraid to tell him so as loudly as he pleases. He also often does so over simple things like his dislike for his ex-wife's new husband.
Despite his abrasive personality, both Steve and Meka cite Danny as a great cop with good instincts. He is also shown to comfort the victim/victim's family when they are in distress, presumably because Danny is a father.
Although Danny moved to Hawaii, he only did so to stay close to his daughter, Grace, whom he loves dearly. He also spends most of the time trying to impress her or worrying about her safety.
In the episode, "E Malama", Danny threatened to kill a business man if he ever endangered Grace again after she and Rachel were victims of a carjacking. At the end of "Loa Aloha" when he confronts his brother about his crimes, Danny chose to say goodbye rather than shoot him.
Danny was shown to be fiercely protective of his family as seen in the episode, "E Malama" where he threatened to kill a businessman who had unknowingly endangered the lives of Danny's ex-wife, Rachel and daughter, Grace.
In the Season 2 episode, "Mai Ka Wa Kahiko", Danny's dark side emerged with a vengeance where after shooting Stan Edwards, his ex-wife's husband in the shoulder, Danny shot Rick Peterson, his ex-partner in the right kneecap much to the horror of Steve, Kono and Chin and very calmly yet coldly threatened to kill Peterson by shooting him in the head if he did not tell Danny where Grace was. This suggests that Danny is willing to do anything to guard Grace, maybe even resort to killing or threatening someone to ensure her safety.
Danny's darker side again emerged in the Season 3 episode, "Ho'opio" where he beat up two suspects during the investigation concerning the murder of a young girl and the subsequent disappearance of another, presumably due to the fact that the girls bore a striking resemblance to Grace.
During the interrogation of one suspect, Danny knocked the suspect off his chair, forcing Steve to physically restrain him while during the interrogating of a man and his wife believed to be the kidnappers responsible, Danny later hit the man once, prompting Steve to ask for Danny's two badges albeit temporarily. Danny later gave them to Steve and proceeded to beat the man while Steve calmly walked out of the house as the punching was heard.
Much to Steve's confusion, Danny despises Hawaii, calling it a "pineapple-infested hell hole." This point is further proven by the way that he does not care at all what the locals think about him wearing a tie. Danny does not like the water either; it is hinted that Danny does not like the water because he cannot swim. However, halfway through Season One, Danny is seen trying to surf. In Lana I Ka Moana, Danny tells Steve that he actually used to love the ocean, but started hating it when his best friend Billy died on the ocean while swimming towards Danny to help him. Danny actually did dive into the ocean once during a case.
Although Danny denies it, Steve observes that Danny likes Hawaii. When Danny first met Steve, it seemed that Danny hated Steve more than Hawaii itself. Danny also didn't like it when Steve kept calling him "Danno." Likewise, Danny mockingly calls Steve "Steven." Even though Danny tries to hide it, they have become friends, and deeply care about one another, and completely trust each other. Danny also expresses concern about Steve's behavior, as he believes that Steve needs professional help for his inhumane behavior and attitude. Like the rest of Five-0, Danny is shown to have complete loyalty to Steve.
Since "Heihei", Danny's relationship with Rachel is less strained than it was in the beginning of the series, especially in "Loa Aloha". Danny is shown to dislike Stan Edwards, Rachel's husband.
Skills and Abilities[]
As an officer of the Hawaii 5-0 task force and the second in command, Danny is skilled in a variety of areas:
- Observational Skills - Danny displays strong awareness of his surroundings.
- Firearms Training - Though not as great as Steve or Kono, Danny is still proficient in the use of police-issue firearms.
- Adept in Water - If the situation requires it, Danny a capable swimmer.
- Hand to Hand Combat - Though Danny seems to prefer not engaging in hand-to-hand combat, when he must, he has demonstrated that he can defend himself while in the field.
- Interacting with Children - Danny is sympathetic towards kids (most likely due to being a father) and is quite skilled in dealing with them or with other parents.
- Interrogation/Questioning Suspects - While less physically intimidating that Steve, Danny is a good inquisitor, able to get the information he wants from people.
- Diplomacy - Danny is a skilled negotiator, capable of talking to people and getting the desired effect by just using his words.
- Good with dogs - Danny is known to be able to control and befriend dogs.
- Multilingual - He is shown speaking Spanish in "Powa Maka Moana" (¿Tienes llaves? - Do you have the keys?), and in "I Helu Pu", he tells Steve that while working to bring down the Russian Mafia back in Jersey, he picked up a few Russian phrases, such as, "This vodka tastes like piss."
Trivia[]
- In the pilot episode, drove a Mustang GT 5.0 before switching to a 2010 Camaro RS up until the episode "Popilikia" before switching to a 2010 Camaro SS, that got destroyed in the episode "Aloha ke kahi I ke kahi" being replace by a '14 Camaro Z28.
- Originally used a SIG Pro SP2009 before switching to a Heckler & Koch P30 in "Ke Kinohi" which he continues to use to this day while his back-up weapon is presumably a Smith & Wesson Bodyguard 38 which is seen in "Mai Ka Wa Kahiko".
- Was seen wearing ties up until the Season 1 episode, "Ua Hiki Mai Kapalena Pau" and from "Oia'i'o", he began wearing button-down shirts which he has done to this day.
Appearances[]
- Hawaii Five 0- Season 1 to 10 Has appeared in all episodes of the series so far.
- NCIS: Los Angeles- Season 3 episode, "Touch of Death".
Season One[]
Danny had been living in Hawaii as a cop for six months when he was assigned the murder investigation of John McGarrett. This brought him into contact with John's son, Steve and as such, after Steve became the leader of the unnamed Task Force, later renamed Hawaii Five-0, Danny was appointed the second-in-command and also Steve's partner in the field despite Danny having some resentment towards Steve.
However, the team later grew to accept and value Danny's skills as seen during "Malama Ka Aina" where Danny gave them information about Frankie Salvo, a crime boss he had presumably encountered or heard of during his days as a cop in New Jersey.
In "Ua Hiki Mai Kapalena Pau", Danny fell ill after touching the body of a man to check for a pulse. This incapacitated him for a time and he suffered convulsions, forcing him to be taken to hospital for treatment. Agent Jenna Kaye later realized that Danny had been infected with sarin. As such, Danny was eventually treated for sarin and he later made a full recovery.
In late S1-early S2, Danny was revealed to be having an affair with his ex-wife. The two have since split up, and she has reconciled with her husband.
Season Two[]
Danny finds Dr. Gabrielle Asano as his new girlfriend.
When Steve heads to Japan to find Joe White, Danny takes temporary control of the team and even travels to Los Angeles with Chin Ho Kelly to help NCIS Special Agents G. Callen and Sam Hanna stop the spread of Smallpox which occured in the last few seconds of the Hawaii Five-0 Season 2 episode, Episode:Pa Make Loa (Hawaii Five-0) and concluded in the second and final part of the Hawaii Five-0/NCIS: Los Angeles episode, Episode:Touch of Death.
Danny in the Ops Center. From the NCIS: Los Angeles Season 3/Hawaii Five-0 Season 2 crossover episode, "Touch of Death".
In the NCIS: Los Angeles episode, Danny butts heads with NCIS/LAPD Liaison Officer Detective Marty Deeks who jokingly regards as Danny's hair as being "bulletproof" while Danny develops a fear towards towards the NCIS: Office of Special Projects Manager Henrietta Lange.
In the finale, he is fighting Rachel, his ex-wife for custody of Grace, as she and Stan are planning to move to Las Vegas.
Season Three[]
Danny meets Steve's mother in the first episode and even informs Steve of Wo Fat breaking out of prison as well as the fact that Dr. Malia Waincroft, Chin's wife has died.
Following an appearance in family court, Danny gains custody of Grace. He doesn't have to relocate from Hawaii to Nevada.
In "I Ka Wa Mamua", an important event from Danny's past in New Jersey is revealed: the death of Det. Grace Tillwell, his partner whom he later named his daughter after in her memory.
Quotes[]
(On his daughter's nickname for him) "When Gracie was three, she tried to say my name and all that came out was 'Danno'."
(To Steve) "Do you realize how much of your life revolves around armed conflict?"
"A grenade. He has a grenade. Why do you have a grenade? He's got a grenade."
(To Steve after he blows the door open with a grenade) "Come on! What is the matter with you? You need help! I will pay for it!"