Magnum Jumped the Shark ...discuss...

Message

N1095A · #31 Post by **N1095A** » Tue Mar 17, 2009 9:52 pm

lutherhgillis wrote:I repeat, Did Murder Whe Wrote jump by doing the awful MPI crossover?

I think maybe they did. They were trying to build the ratings for MSW and there was no real match between the two shows.

According to IMDB, MSW ran for 264 episodes from 1984-1996. That's 12 seasons. The crossover was in season 3 of MSW. If ratings were failing by the third season, how did this awful awful show last for 12? I read somewhere that Angela Lansbury was very well-liked at CBS and it was out of respect for her that we were subjected to it for 12 grueling years. Honestly, I don't think even Magnum and the guys could have made that show any more appealing.

lutherhgillis · #32 Post by **lutherhgillis** » Tue Mar 17, 2009 10:00 pm

Agreed but they made this rediculous crossover for some reason. I know MSW ran 12 seasons but I remember that it started off kind of slow.

(How it ran for 12 years is beyond belief.)

I remember MPI was getting its butt kicked by the Cosby Show on Thursday nights but I cannot remember when CBS moved it to Wednesday. Moving MPI around to Wed then Tuesday (if I remember correctly) did not help it.

I remember Larry Manetti said he thought the show (MPI) had legs and could have run for 10 - 12 years. Do you think that was true? To me, it seemed to run low on ideas starting in season 6.

N1095A · #33 Post by **N1095A** » Tue Mar 17, 2009 10:19 pm

Definately 10. I don't know about 12. A lot of season 8 seemed thrown together, but still was very good. I know I would have watched. As I've said before, MPI had a few klunkers here and there, but mixed in with them were a lot of really great episodes. Even the less than stellar episodes had great moments.

#34 Post by **J.J. Walters** » Tue Mar 17, 2009 10:49 pm

MSW also had four TV movies and a spin-off series, The Law & Harry McGraw!

I enjoy some MSW.... in small doses. As an actress, I like Angela Lansbury. She's a living legend! The show also had a good supporting cast - Tom Bosley, Jerry Orbach, William Windom. I havn't watched the show enough to say if, or when, it "jumped the shark". I've seen some good ones and some really bad ones.

I always thought it would have been great if the show did a "Stephen King crossover". Cabot Cove is in Maine, most of King's stories take place in Maine. And Cabot Cove sure is one evil place, I tell ya that. The number of murders that took place in that tiny town is staggering!

Agatha · #35 Post by **Agatha** » Wed Mar 18, 2009 2:44 am

Can somebody back up a bit and explain what "jump the shark" means? I'm getting it (I think) that it has something to do with changing directions? Or abandoning the status quo? Or maybe I'm not getting it all.

Many thanks for bringing an old broad up to speed!!

N1095A · #36 Post by **N1095A** » Wed Mar 18, 2009 3:07 am

Jumping the shark is a term used by TV critics and fans to denote that point in a TV show or movie series' history where the plot veers off into absurd story lines or out-of-the-ordinary characterizations, particularly for a show with falling ratings apparently becoming more desperate to draw viewers in. In the process of undergoing these changes, the TV or movie series loses its original appeal. Shows that have "jumped the shark" are typically deemed to have passed their peak. -Wikipedia

TankTop44 · #37 Post by **TankTop44** » Wed Mar 18, 2009 3:14 am

I believe the term originated when Fonzie litterally jumped a shark tank in the Happy Days series.

TankTop44 · #38 Post by **TankTop44** » Wed Mar 18, 2009 3:16 am

Found it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MDthMGtZ ... re=related

#39 Post by **Doc Ibold** » Wed Mar 18, 2009 3:38 am

Agatha wrote:Can somebody back up a bit and explain what "jump the shark" means? I'm getting it (I think) that it has something to do with changing directions? Or abandoning the status quo? Or maybe I'm not getting it all.

Many thanks for bringing an old broad up to speed!!

Plus, in sitcom vernacular, its when they bring in the "cute kid" to bolster sagging ratings... see Cousin Oliver in the Brady Bunch, Sam in Different Strokes, Andy in Family Ties.... and GASP Olivia in The Cosby Show.

But the actual reference does come from Happy Days

"EYYYYYYYYYYYYYY"

Agatha · #40 Post by **Agatha** » Wed Mar 18, 2009 5:23 pm

Thanks guys! Now I can cast an informed vote!

I, too, don't believe that Magnum ever "jumped the shark"...for a lot of the reasons that have been mentioned and also because...and I don't know what the ratings were doing but...I don't think they ever needed to.

I have some problems with Jeff McKay's return but I think they mostly boil down to the fact that Thomas was willing to call him Mac. I'm with Rick. "I don't want to call him Mac!" Because he's not! But McKay's new character didn't need to be...he was viable on his own. I didn't like him much or the shows that he was in but he certainly isn't somebody that would boost ratings.

Haven't seen Limbo yet.

Fonzie actually jumped over a shark tank? Oh, my!

N1095A · #41 Post by **N1095A** » Wed Mar 18, 2009 7:11 pm

I'm pretty sure that Jeff MacKay was wanted back on the show because he was well known and liked there. Remember he left to do another show which didn't last. Killing Mac in "Sunrise" was a bit drastic considering he could have come back as Mac if that didn't happen. The Jim Bonnic character was great in my opinion for two reasons. 1) I really liked Jeff MacKay. 2) his character was the anti-Mac. Poetic justice after all the years of TM conning Mac, now the tables were turned, and more often than not he was the one conning TM (and the guys). I look at it as very clever on the writers' parts.

Agatha · #42 Post by **Agatha** » Wed Mar 18, 2009 8:41 pm

I hadn't thought of it that way, N1095A! He really was the "anti-Mac!" I guess my hackles just naturally go up when I think that someone is taking advantage of our Thomas...so I didn't even think about the poetic justice angle! This helps me a lotl

But I still wish Thomas wouldn't have called him Mac.

Jay-Firestorm · #43 Post by **Jay-Firestorm** » Sat Mar 21, 2009 11:41 pm

I don't think the show jumped the shark in seasons 7-8 - if anything, it "unjumped". I'd consider seasons 5 and 6 to be the weakest of the show's seasons (though still with some fair episodes), but season 7 saw a rise in quality once again, with some really good episodes. Season 8 always felt a little uneven to me, but at least it gave us a last batch of episodes, and tied up some ends.

lutherhgillis · #44 Post by **lutherhgillis** » Sun Mar 29, 2009 1:44 am

Jay,

I guess if you compare MPI to shows like the A Team, it never jumped. The A Team was one long jump from start to finish. I enjoyed watching it but it never approached reality. It was a Magnum-want-to-be as far as I'm concerned.

It was miles better that Murder She Wrote though.... MSW was a wet dog for me. Talk about not approaching reality. My grandmother watched it for years. That pretty much nails it for me...

Peace out.

Lt. Cook · #45 Post by **Lt. Cook** » Mon Mar 30, 2009 5:54 am

MPI never jumped. Did it have some kooky episodes? Yes. But nothing was a drastic departure from the themes, plots, and characters from previous seasons. An occasional episode stretched believability, but never resorted to kooky stunts. This is possibly the LEAST shark-jumping series in modern TV history (but I MAY be biased)!

Magnum Jumped the Shark ...discuss...

Did MPI Jump the Shark in Seasons 7 & 8?