At what age did you discover MPI?

[N1095A]

I was just wondering at what age everyone discovered the greatest television show ever made. I am 48 years old, and I've been a Magnum, P.I. geek since I was 10. And I'm absolutely not ashamed of my obsession.

[ZelenskyTheValiant (Ivan)]

I was just wondering at what age everyone discovered the greatest television show ever made. I am 48 years old, and I've been a Magnum, P.I. geek since I was 10. And I'm absolutely not ashamed of my obsession.

Aha, interesting question.

Here's my story. My MAGNUM fandom is fairly recent (maybe 6-7 years) but I grew up with reruns of the show playing in the background (in the mid-90s) without ever really getting into it. Throughout the 90s as a young teen I fed myself on a steady diet of reruns of shows mostly from the 80s. FIVE-O was the exception. My mom was a huge fan of the show and loved Jack Lord so I started watching that show as well. That show was kinda tricky for me because at that age I didn't quite get the more complex stories so I couldn't appreciate all the episodes as I do now as an adult. I loved the episodes that dealt with serial killers or psychos or snipers or kidnappers or whatnot - in other words episodes that were easy for a young teen to get into. But the more complex crimes (i.e. white collar crimes and other twisty plots) tended to be less interesting to me or went over my head. At that age I was more into KNIGHT RIDER, THE A-TEAM, T.J. HOOKER, etc. Later I got into AIRWOLF as well. Basically if it had action and lots of car chases it was a safe bet I was into it.

Back to MAGNUM... certainly looking at this show now with grown-up eyes and comparing it with the shows that I loved as a kid I can see why I didn't get into it then. MAGNUM certainly has held up better than any of those 80s shows. It's less cheesy than the others and has a heart that the other shows simply didn't have. This show has more weight to it, plus superior acting. Of course none of these things matter to you when you're just a young kudu buck like I was. MAGNUM simply didn't offer as much in the way of action and thrills as the other shows did. KITT turbo-boosting over things was the coolest thing on the planet! Plus the car TALKED!!! Cars flipping in the air on THE A-TEAM was thrilling, plus the 4 guys were legit funny! Every episode of T.J. HOOKER opened up with some crime occurring, followed immediately by a wild car chase which usually resulted in the police cruiser getting totaled. AIRWOLF was more of a slow-burner but I watched it just for the exciting finale where in every episode the baddies' aircraft would get blown out of the sky (accompanied by that awesome Sylvester Levay score). MAGNUM simply didn't offer these things in regular doses like those shows did so it didn't really draw me in. I think the other thing was that it was on a different channel so probably when I was watching THE A-TEAM on one channel this was playing on a different one. I remember that FIVE-O used to follow MAGNUM and I would tune into FIVE-O then. Maybe I didn't give it a fair chance then but I think even if I did I probably wouldn't have appreciated the dynamic between the characters that I so love today (especially between Magnum and Higgins). The thing is that even when the main story is rather weak or boring there's always a subplot that very often saves the entire episode and it usually involved Magnum and Higgy! I love that!

How I eventually became a fan? Well, I visited Hawaii in 2008 and having already been a big FIVE-O fan I did lots of location scouting and of course I stopped by the front gate of Robin's Nest (that was about the only location I knew from MAGNUM) so when I got home I was on a FIVE-O kick for a while, viewing the DVDs which were coming out around that time. Then once I was done with FIVE-O I got curious about MAGNUM. I loved being in Hawaii so I gotta give MAGNUM a shot, right? At least watch it for the scenery and try to recognize familiar locations. I think I first saw Ugliest Dog in Hawaii or maybe Thicker Than Blood (watched it on IMDB video) but wasn't particularly impressed. I think I also saw The Black Orchid and thought it was merely okay. But I heard about Did You See the Sun Rise? and how highly praised it was so I got the first disc of season 3 from Netflix and watched it at home. Wow! I was blown away!! So then I decided I was going to go back to season 1 and watch it from the beginning. I saw the pilot and was blown away! Wow! The next few episodes were also very good, excellent even (particularly No Need to Know, Skin Deep, Never Again). I realized that I gravitated more towards the somewhat darker Vietnam-themed episodes, but it wasn't long before I was enjoying even the really silly fare. Before I knew it I was hooked. The rest, as they say, is the hell of it....

[KingKC]

I was 29 when MPI first came on the air in December of 1980. I loved it from the pilot episode. At the same time I was deciding that there was no further opportunity for advancement in my job and it was time for a change. The change became a 450 mile relocation away from a comfort zone that included my hometown, all my friends from the neighborhood as well as college and a steady lady-friend. The first night alone in a new and much bigger city was a Thursday and Thicker Than Blood came on. A year later Simon & Simon followed to sandwich in between MPI and Hill Street Blues. Those next three years may have been the most significant years of my life both professionally and personally. I followed all three shows to the end continuing to relocate to advance in position and salary. As someone else remarked in another topic, Thursday in the Eighties was the best night in TV history...and MPI was part of it.

[NotthatRick]

I was 24 when it came on. Watched it from beginning to end.

[Cagliostro]

May 2nd 1988, I was 7 years old and remember watching the finale with my Dad on vhs because he recorded the night before and was watching it.

[Mad Kudu Buck]

I too started watching when I was around 10. I watched it all the way to the final episode, but I started losing interest in later seasons as the quality dropped off. I noticed a quality drop off in most American shows at the time. After Magnum ended, I had already mostly stopped watching American TV and had switched to British TV until they killed public television in 1989/90 (both in the US and Canada). I didn't watch TV for at least half a decade, then only occasionally (Simpsons, Seinfeld & Star Trek NG) until they killed analogue. I haven't watched TV (broadcast or cable) since then.

I like to watch shows from the 50's-80's, when television was entertainment, not propaganda.
(yes.. there was propaganda back then too, but only 5-20%, not today's 85-100%)

[jeffran]

Around age 13 or 14 for me, season 3, either first broadcast or summer reruns. I watched it until the end, but beginning with season 5 I was mostly disappointed and hoped it would return to the feel of seasons 3 and 4 (it didn't).

I didn't catch earlier seasons until the series ended and was syndicated. Episodes were broadcast locally around 11 or 11:30PM so I caught the first few seasons in college.

[ZelenskyTheValiant (Ivan)]

I too started watching when I was around 10. I watched it all the way to the final episode, but I started losing interest in later seasons as the quality dropped off. I noticed a quality drop off in most American shows at the time. After Magnum ended, I had already mostly stopped watching American TV and had switched to British TV until they killed public television in 1989/90 (both in the US and Canada). I didn't watch TV for at least half a decade, then only occasionally (Simpsons, Seinfeld & Star Trek NG) until they killed analogue. I haven't watched TV (broadcast or cable) since then.

I like to watch shows from the 50's-80's, when television was entertainment, not propaganda.
(yes.. there was propaganda back then too, but only 5-20%, not today's 85-100%)

Hey Kudu Buck,

It's interesting that you say around that time (mid-80s) the quality dropped off in most American shows. I think the general consensus is that the quality went up around this time. TV got more serious and more gritty. I think most people consider the late 70s and early 80s to be mostly fluff television. Early-to-mid 70s was TV at its peak (ALL IN THE FAMILY, FIVE-O, KOJAK, COLUMBO, M*A*S*H, etc.) and then mid-80s was sort of a renaissance with MIAMI VICE, THE EQUALIZER, COSBY SHOW, ROSEANNE, CHEERS, etc. Now, I personally agree with you that I have more fun with early 80s TV than mid-to-late 80s but I think the general consensus would go against us. I never cared for ROSEANNE and MIAMI VICE I can only take in small doses (there's only so many episodes you can watch about 2 undercover cops dealing dope). I actually preferred Stephen J. Cannell's HUNTER over MIAMI VICE. Both were darker shows than the norm at the time but HUNTER at least had more variety in its stories and didn't come across as pretentious and flashy as MV. Just a more straight-up cop show.

But I totally get what you're saying. The early 80s gave us MAGNUM, KNIGHT RIDER, THE A-TEAM, SIMON & SIMON, HART TO HART, REMINGTON STEELE, T.J. HOOKER, etc. Sure some of these were pretty cheesy but maybe that was part of the fun. Just good entertainment without too much propaganda or social issues creeping in. That's the problem with Hollywood today - it's all 100% agenda and politics. Entertainment takes a back seat.

[Pahonu]

I too started watching when I was around 10. I watched it all the way to the final episode, but I started losing interest in later seasons as the quality dropped off. I noticed a quality drop off in most American shows at the time. After Magnum ended, I had already mostly stopped watching American TV and had switched to British TV until they killed public television in 1989/90 (both in the US and Canada). I didn't watch TV for at least half a decade, then only occasionally (Simpsons, Seinfeld & Star Trek NG) until they killed analogue. I haven't watched TV (broadcast or cable) since then.

I like to watch shows from the 50's-80's, when television was entertainment, not propaganda.
(yes.. there was propaganda back then too, but only 5-20%, not today's 85-100%)

Hey Kudu Buck,

It's interesting that you say around that time (mid-80s) the quality dropped off in most American shows. I think the general consensus is that the quality went up around this time. TV got more serious and more gritty. I think most people consider the late 70s and early 80s to be mostly fluff television. Early-to-mid 70s was TV at its peak (ALL IN THE FAMILY, FIVE-O, KOJAK, COLUMBO, M*A*S*H, etc.) and then mid-80s was sort of a renaissance with MIAMI VICE, THE EQUALIZER, COSBY SHOW, ROSEANNE, CHEERS, etc. Now, I personally agree with you that I have more fun with early 80s TV than mid-to-late 80s but I think the general consensus would go against us. I never cared for ROSEANNE and MIAMI VICE I can only take in small doses (there's only so many episodes you can watch about 2 undercover cops dealing dope). I actually preferred Stephen J. Cannell's HUNTER over MIAMI VICE. Both were darker shows than the norm at the time but HUNTER at least had more variety in its stories and didn't come across as pretentious and flashy as MV. Just a more straight-up cop show.

But I totally get what you're saying. The early 80s gave us MAGNUM, KNIGHT RIDER, THE A-TEAM, SIMON & SIMON, HART TO HART, REMINGTON STEELE, T.J. HOOKER, etc. Sure some of these were pretty cheesy but maybe that was part of the fun. Just good entertainment without too much propaganda or social issues creeping in. That's the problem with Hollywood today - it's all 100% agenda and politics. Entertainment takes a back seat.

I would argue that many people today consider TV series today to be of higher quality, at least in terms of writing, than most big-budget feature films. Hollywood's feature films are geared toward international distribution more than ever because of potential over-seas revenue, and the result is action/adventure/superhero/fantasy films that translate well into just about any culture or language. TV shows are of late getting larger budgets, and on cable stations particularly, more freedom than ever in story-telling. Shows like Breaking Bad, The Sopranos, Mad Men, The Wire, Game of Thrones, etc... are highly regarded for their writing and production values.

For what it's worth, many critics consider this a new, third "golden age of television" and lament the decline in current feature film creativity. The second is considered to have begun in the mid-80's as you stated, and of course, the original of the 1950's. I certainly spend more time watching these kinds of series than I ever do going to the movies to see Fast and Furious #? or Spiderman #? On a side note, the golden age of film in the 1930's is nearly undisputed, but many film historians have come to consider the 70's, after the collapse of the studio system and the rise of director-driven films, as the second golden age of film. I find it interesting that the period largely falls in between the TV peaks in creativity. Just some observations.

[ZelenskyTheValiant (Ivan)]

Good observations, Pahonu. Actually the first half of the 70s was a creative period both on the small and big screens. It's the second half of the 70s, with the birth of the summer blockbuster (especially STAR WARS in '77) that things started to go south a bit creatively. The same thing followed on the small screen. As for present day cable TV yes I've heard it being said that TV today is better than ever before, but personally I find much of today's output way too dark and gloomy for my tastes, well-written as it may be. So it's either ridiculous nonsense like all that superhero junk in the movie theaters which I can't stand or crappy juvenile remakes like the new FIVE-0 on prime-time TV or the disturbing and gloomy stuff on cable. I guess I'm just stuck in "classic TV shows" territory.

P.S. I hope we aren't derailing this thread.

[Higgins (aka Bondtoys)]

It was the 7th May 1985, when Squeeze Play aired on german TV for the first time and I‘ve just felt the next morning that something has clicked.

From casually watching Magnum PI every week just like Kojak, Starsky and Hutch and others, it suddenly felt far more important to me.

I rushed to town and spent high money on a VCR (System Video 2000) and from there on taped every single episode.

I filled the gap of the gone episodes by paying 5DM for each episode to someone who has made a business out of storing episodes of popular series and then copying them to private buyers.

I was 20 at that time.

[Mad Kudu Buck]

[...] and then mid-80s was sort of a renaissance with MIAMI VICE, THE EQUALIZER, COSBY SHOW, ROSEANNE, CHEERS, etc.

I hated all those shows (especially Roseanne - oh God how I hated Roseanne!). I also hated the A-Team and All In The Family. I didn't mean that all shows before the mid-80's were great or all shows after mid-80's sucked.

When I talk about quality, I'm not just talking about quality of writing, but photography, lighting, music, editing - even the film stock used. These all got worse after the mid 80's. Modern camerawork is jerky and drunken, editing is hyper fast, lighting is flat and boring and music is either simplistic repetitive crap or whatever latest hit song they can cram in. (also simplistic repetitive crap)

The writing is certainly more elaborate and complex in modern television, but that writing is absolutely filled with propaganda to manipulate the thinking of the audience. An example is Mad Men. I watched it (DVD from library) because I thought I'd love it, because I like the time it's set in, but I became so disgusted and enraged that I had to stop watching. They're not showing what it was actually like in the 1950's & 60's. They're showing a warped, modern interpretation by people who don't even know (or care) what it was actually like, but want to push a message - using the visuals of the period.

[KingKC]

I would still go with the Eighties as the best decade of TV. Add in Moonlighting, Cagney and Lacey, L A Law, St. Elsewhere, Airwolf, Wonder Years, Night Court, Golden Girls, Dukes of Hazzard, Murder She Wrote, Newhart and the list can go on and on. With Thursday of MPI, Simon and Simon and Hill Street Blues I think it was the most memorable. I realize though that each of us have eras in our lives that may have been more prominent.

[MaximRecoil]

When we first got a TV when I was 9 (1984). Prior to that Mom had always objected to having a TV, but in '84 Dad overruled her. I had seen one episode not long before we got a TV, at my neighbor's house, "I Witness", which is still one of my favorite episodes.

It was around that time that MPI went into syndication, so it was being shown every weeknight at 7 o'clock (on Thursday nights we got to watch two episodes in a row), which allowed me to catch up on the older episodes, and it was during that time that it quickly became my favorite show. Fortunately, my older brother and father liked it too, so there was no conflict about watching it every time it came on.

[Pahonu]

Good observations, Pahonu. Actually the first half of the 70s was a creative period both on the small and big screens. It's the second half of the 70s, with the birth of the summer blockbuster (especially STAR WARS in '77) that things started to go south a bit creatively. The same thing followed on the small screen. As for present day cable TV yes I've heard it being said that TV today is better than ever before, but personally I find much of today's output way too dark and gloomy for my tastes, well-written as it may be. So it's either ridiculous nonsense like all that superhero junk in the movie theaters which I can't stand or crappy juvenile remakes like the new FIVE-0 on prime-time TV or the disturbing and gloomy stuff on cable. I guess I'm just stuck in "classic TV shows" territory.

P.S. I hope we aren't derailing this thread.

I absolutely agree, there definitely was an overlap in the early 70's. My favorite TV series of all time is the Rockford Files followed by David Janssen's Harry-O which both debuted in '74, the same year as the Godfather II which, I think, unusually is better than the original, and Chinatown. Wow! The late 70's on TV saw Charlie's Angels, The Love Boat, and Fantasy Island leading the ratings!

Most film historians agree Jaws was the beginning of the summer blockbuster, but Star Wars certainly cemented it as a cultural phenomenon. I also agree many more recent TV series are pretty dark, like Breaking Bad and especially Dexter. Some pretty well written comedies like The Office and Arrested Development also emerged. Also, Curb Your Enthusiasm appeared, which wasn't entirely written. LOL!

I think the photography of today's series is also superior to much of the late 70's and early 80's TV series, and that's reflective of the budgets today. Not everything is in the shaky, quick cut style that has emerged in the last couple of decades. Witness how many members of this forum are interested in getting higher quality images than the old, over-the-airwaves images we used to watch these shows in. Miami Vice helped usher in feature film-level photography to the small screen, and hi-def technology has without question improved the visual quality. Also, think of all the flubs and continuity errors we spot in these beloved old shows too. We look past them now, but that's not acceptable today.

I guess, for me a lot of the 70's and 80's shows I'm drawn to, are at least in part for nostalgic reasons. They have a lot of great qualities, but in many ways weren't crafted to the same level as many of today's series for both time and budget reasons. So many TV series today are almost like some of the classic miniseries from the past, but they show the episodes in 10 weeks rather than 10 days, for example. How many shows besides the network's, make the 26 or, later 22, episodes per season that was the standard. Today they have the time and budget to simply do better work.

All that being said, I don't think the new MPI looks good at all. I suppose I'll watch the pilot, but based on the fact that I've never even seen a Fast and Furious movie, I doubt I'll like it. I have been a bit surprised at the intensity of emotion that many people have shown toward it, but I'm not a particularly emotional person, so I can't always relate to the passion.

I'm also sorry if I hijacked the thread, but it's a fun discussion. I watched the series from it's original airing when I was 10. My mom, along with many other moms I'm sure, watched it for obvious reasons.