Why, After 20 years do we still like Magnum?

[OUTHOUSE]

Outhouse, you forgot #11

Zeus and Apollo

Correct you are sir.

[Tom_Magnum]

No one ever responds to me! (WHY!!!!???!?)

[lutherhgillis]

Outhouse,

#3 can be explained by mutual respect. Both men respected the other for their accomplishments.

I love how this show played homage to the WW2 and Vietnam veterans.

Rock on, MPI!

[Steve]

No one ever responds to me! (WHY!!!!???!?)

Sorry Tom_Magnum, I think we were all just responding to the question, but your answers, as the others, were dead on, intelligently thought out, precise and of course, written from the heart by a true gentleman and scholar........(Feelin' better big guy..LOL!)

[Tom_Magnum]

Thanks Steve... i feel better now....

[VM02]

I think its been mentioned on other threads, But I think the reason MPI is still enjoyable to watch and holds up so well is that it really was a "perfect storm" of sorts, and I use that term deliberately since the post I vaguely remember use that term as well. I think. If I get some free time soon, I'll see if I can find that post.


- Characters and Casting - I'm not sure that it would have been better to do much better here. The relationship between the 4 main characters with TM as the pivot is not only believable but compelling as well. These guys are such good friends. It shows. Theres also the acting level involved, my word, try to watch an old Knight Rider or Buck Rogers episode. Yeack.

Location - Its gorgeous/ Paradise/ and not Los Angeles as all the rest of the shows of the day seemed to be.

Change of Pace/Twists - even though the premise of the show is in and of itself a twist from the standard PI drama, I think the Series threw in enough "odd" episodes (ex: Legend of the Lost Art) or changes of pace (ex: Home from the Sea) or even different styles (Comedy-->Drama)to keep things fresh.

Continuity - It seems fairly standard today that what happened last week impacts what happens this week, but as I recall this was fairly novel at the time. Was Magnum among the first to do this? Dallas? Also the plot lines that weave throughout the eight seasons tie the show together.

- Plots - we all have our favorites, but I think the real strength of the show is the "bad" ones. Check out the thread around here somewhere about the least favorite episode and you will find several mentioned, but also often notice that someone will say - but I like that one. Compare a "Bad" MPI to the decent episodes of other contemporary series and the MPI episode blow it away. probably for some of the reasons mentioned above.

I guess for me it always comes back to the characters....

[arri]

I was very young when It was on TV. I was born in 80. Although I do remember watching it as a kid. I was infamous for giving the eye brow shrug al-la Magnum during the early 80's.

I really got back into it watching occasional re-runs in college and then buying the first season on DVD a few years ago.

I believe it to be a combination of things that peak my interest (in no particular order).

1) Location/scenery : Beautiful Landscape and beautiful women.

2) Friendship: I have some close friends but friends like TC and Rick would be hard to top. At times it seemed like they are working more for Magnum than contributing to their own professions.

3) Higgins - Magnum Relationship - Really unexplainable. I think the best dialogue relationship story throughout the process of the series. The Robin Masters / Higgins Question.

4) The lifestyle......Needs no explanation.

5) Portrayal of Vietnam Vets for its time period was very cutting edge. Vets were not portrayed in an overly positive nor negative light. Merely coping with past events.

6) Going all the way and killing your enemy (Did you see the Sun Rise). While controversial it is nice to see a show go for the jugular. I for one am tired of seeing the bad guy get away or get locked up all time. Sort of an Anti-Hero mindset.

7) Magnum had faults. He was no Superman. Something you could relate to. Would do anything for the ones he loved but not always the smartest thing to do.

The look. Something about the 80's. There was always this sense of "fun" with the clothing and fashion of the time (see hawaiian shirts and aviators).

9) Narration. I love the way Magnums thoughts were portrayed through narration. He did a excellent job of not only explaining what was going on, but also provided context for "why" he was making certain decisions.

10) The fourth wall.

Thanks...true on all accounts for me as well

[arri]

arri wrote:

I did mean "shoddy" thank you. I grew up in the 80's and am fully aware of the styles...that wasn't my point. I completely agree it was ground breaking but on other fronts. Yes, I liked that Magnum was human and it showed his flaws...didn't always get him man, sometimes he got beat up, the femme fatale commited suicide...I get that. I am not speaking of cheesey in the 80's zeitgiest. I am talking about predicatability, the one-liners, and the otherwise great script being compromised by far fetched schemes that weren't needed...and not indicative of all episodes.

Thank you for clarifiying that, and I get your point. But I still disagree with your assessment. Having watched 1960's and 1970's television, as an adult, I did not find the episodes predictable, in fact they were quite fresh and ground-breaking at the time. Far-fetched schemes were the norm then...with some shows you had to do some big-time suspension of disbelief to enjoy an episode...my case in point...watching an episode of Quincy, M.E. recently, (which was a series that was made during the 1980's). Quincy is a doctor/medical examiner. For some reason he was at the beach trying to gather evidence of some sort. (Why he was doing investigative work was a question that came up in my mind frequently while watching this show!) A guy not related to the plot keels over right in front of Quincy and he determines that this guy just had a heart attack right in front of a hot dog stand (which looks like a very flimsy 4th of July fireworks stand.) He asks the guy behind the counter if he has an extension cord. Wow! He does. Quincy takes his pocket knife and fashions a make-shift defibrillator out of it. He then asks the hot dog guy if he will plug the cord in. He does. (Wow! An electrical outlet so close to the water!) And Quincy brings this guy back to life with two live wires of an extension cord on a WET sandy beach! In the next scene they show the guy on the stretcher just before he is going to be put in the ambulance. Quincy then has a long conversation with the attendants about his care on the way to the hospital. Quincy walks away and the guy STILL hasn't been put in the ambulance yet! Yikes! Talk about suspension of disbelief!!! I think Magnum was far more realistic in the portrayal of characters than any other show of that time. JMHO!

DE-NILE is not a river in Egypt...some of the episodes took a turn to "Far Fetched" town. The thing that bothers me is that it wasn't indicative to all the episodes. And to make your argument by making comparisons to "Quincy" is offending by any Magnum standards.

Don't want to get off the point here. I like Magnum PI. I may not dress up with a Detroit Tigers hat and go to a function in Las Vegas like "Trekkie" nerds but I like the show. Any person grounded in any reality can see some episodes were Cheesey and scripts far fetched. My question is why do I still like it??? Even as an adult.