If it wasn't bad enough in the previous entry where Steve James wasn't promoted to be the star when Dudikoff temporarily exited the series, the producers don't even call him back for this entry! Actually, upon carefully looking at the movie, it DOES seem that it was originally written for James to return; Bradley is given a sidekick character that you can easily picture James playing, and Dudikoff's character gets involved only when he's told that his "friend" Bradley is in trouble, even though there was previously no evidence they were friends - both being signs of a quick rewrite.
I'm willing to bet that the reason James didn't return was his own decision instead of the producers - the movie didn't end up giving his role a whole lot to do. Also, the end results just aren't very good. Certainly, it's a notch up over the terrible part 3. For one thing, the production values are a significant step up. Also, the movie starts off very promising with a not-bad action sequence. But after that part of the movie ends, the movie quickly collapses. Bradley is again an uncharismatic lead (who fortunately is moved offscreen for much of the movie!), and Dudikoff (who finally appears halfway through the movie) seems alternately bored and annoyed to be there, though he is clearly more confident in his martial art sequences. There's also very little action, a very slow-moving plot, and some *unbelievably* bad editing. The climax does bring back some action, and also has a number of unintentionally funny moments, but it's too little too late.
