Death and Taxes (7.6)

Rate, review & discuss the episodes from the seventh season

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How Would You Rate This Episode?

10 (Perfect!)
53
35%
9.5 (One of the Best)
58
39%
9.0 (Excellent)
23
15%
8.5 (Very Good)
7
5%
8.0 (Pretty Good)
4
3%
7.5 (Decent)
3
2%
7.0 (Average at Best)
0
No votes
6.5 (Not So Good)
0
No votes
6.0 (Pretty Bad)
1
1%
5.0 (Just Awful)
1
1%
 
Total votes: 150

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Carol the Dabbler
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#61 Post by Carol the Dabbler »

J.J. Walters wrote:For a gritty strip club, Hotel Street's legendary Swing Club sure has some strict rules...

Image

No Soliciting
No Weeds (plural?)
No Loitering
No Blocking Entrance
No Table Ho... (Hogging?)
No Loud Talking (??)
No Gambling
No Dancing

I guess you're just supposed to sit there quietly and enjoy the show.
Talk about things we were never meant to notice!

OK, in real life, somebody was having fun.

In the Magnum universe, these are probably just the Official Rules, which the management can point to whenever the cops are hassling them. "Hey, we don't allow that sort of thing."

This otherwise pointless gesture reminds me of a sign that used to be (maybe still is) on the base of the war-memorial statue by the courthouse in Terre Haute: "No Spitting on Statue." Actually, spitting might have helped wash some of the pigeon poop off the statue's shoulders. My brother pointed out that perhaps they should change one letter of the sign and move it to the top of the statue's head, where the pigeons could see it.
Carol

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MagnumsLeftShoulder
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#62 Post by MagnumsLeftShoulder »

Excellent episode! Although I'm not a huge Genesis fan, their song "Mama" really added to the tension of this episode. We get some cool outdoor scenes of the estate, Thomas wears my favorite shirt (Academy Tee) of the series, and we see him on the ocean on his surf ski after not seeing that at all in season 6. I even like that we and TM don't get a full explanation of the killers motives. I see that this one originally aired on October 29, so I guess they wanted a creepy episode to air near Hallowen. One question though, where were Rick and TC going and what was that stuff they were loading in the van at the beginning?

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Carol the Dabbler
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#63 Post by Carol the Dabbler »

N1095A wrote:I noticed at the end when TM is getting on his surfski, he's not wearing the team ring or the bracelet. .... I wonder if that was an oversight, or maybe he was trying to disassociate himself with Collins for a little while.
Or maybe he took them off for fear of losing them in the ocean? I don't recall whether he wore them while on his surfski in any earlier episodes, but even if he did, he may have thought better of it this time (perhaps part of the "growing up" theme?).
Jay-Firestorm wrote:... this episode is the first appearance of Joe Santos as Detective Nolan Page. Santos played Detective Dennis Becker in ‘The Rockford Files’ ....
Little Garwood wrote:"Where was Tanaka?" ... Having Santos there and not any regular cast members made it clear that this episode was something intense.
I enjoy Joe Santos in other types of roles, but when he's playing a police detective, I can't help thinking "Dennis Becker." Little Garwood is probably correct, that "they" thought of Tanaka more in terms of comedy, but he was also in some very effective serious scenes. Perhaps Kwan Hi Lim wasn't available at the time, but I believe that they displayed a lack of judgment with this bit of casting -- I not only missed Tanaka, but also found the Becker connection distracting.
Jay-Firestorm wrote:And then, there is the red herring – how many of us expected the Ripper to be revealed as the reporter, Jeff Spangler? I certainly did.
Me too!
MagnumsLeftShoulder wrote:I see that this one originally aired on October 29, so I guess they wanted a creepy episode to air near Halloween.
Wow, not your typical "Halloween" episode! I would never have made that connection. But I bet you're right, MLS.

*********

This just occurred to me -- I've always felt sorry for Rockford, having Freddie Beamer stalking him and imitating him. But maybe Freddie's not so bad, considering the alternative!
Carol

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nha trang
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Great episode

#64 Post by nha trang »

Really great episode, kind of reminded me of Laura with Frank Sinatra and "Way of the Stalking Horse."

Did they all have songs from Genesis now that I think about it?

Anyway, I really like episodes like this with the Genesis soundtrack, I think it adds to the suspense and takes some pressure off of needless dialogue. At least it works well for the grittier, more mature episodes like this.

Include the fact that this episode references the Mag's 4th of July tradition and it's an easy bet for a 9.0 rating, I would have rated higher but to me 10.0 is a holy grail, and I think it could have been a 9.5 if it was a two parter.

Always great to be back watching MPI and talking about it with you all!

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miltontheripper
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#65 Post by miltontheripper »

Obviously by my screen name this is my favorite episode, clearly a 10! It had great action, a clever plot, and a great villain! Am I crazy or is Milton borderline hilarious with his stupid riddles and cackling laugh (and ridiculous appearance lol). I love his wise old owl comment as he's dying by that pool. I was surprised with the grittieness of this epsiode, very dark. Quite honestly it reminded me a lot more of Miami Vice than Magnum. I can watch this one again and again.

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Styles Bitchley
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#66 Post by Styles Bitchley »

miltontheripper wrote:Obviously by my screen name this is my favorite episode, clearly a 10! It had great action, a clever plot, and a great villain!
Certainly one of the best and most memorable episodes of the series. It's one of the few I actually remember watching during it's original run.
"How fiendishly deceptive of you Magnum. I could have sworn I was hearing the emasculation of a large rodent."

- J.Q.H.

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MaiTaiMan
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#67 Post by MaiTaiMan »

This is one of my all-time favorites---wild, bizarre, eerie, freaky, suspenseful, captivating, and intriguing! :)

That dude's voice is so freakin' scary...and that "sick" little giggle!! That would be enough to raise the hair on my neck for sure! :o Even though the rhymes "cracked" me up...they were so dimented and twisted too--crazy!! :shock:

Perfect ending as well--blunt and to the point...but also leaving you somewhat hanging. You're left wondering...what caused this guy to go psychotic--especially since supposedly Magnum had proved his wife was not having an affair, several years before.

I love both "Magnum" and "Miami Vice"....and I'll have to be honest and say this episode was very "Vice-ish"! It showed the darker and grittier side of Honolulu--some of it at night. The "haunting" and eerie music by Phil Collins (Genesis) playing in the background, plus Magnum wore pastel colored shirts in several of the scenes. The style of the ending, too, was an "MV" type conclusion. But...it all worked, and worked superbly!

Love watching this one...and can see it over and over, and still be freaked out by that whacko! Perfect...and I rated it as such. :)
"It was more ironic than a Robin Masters novel--she thought he was dead, he thought she was dead...and only the chauffeur knew the truth! He should have been the butler!" "Lest We Forget"

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miltontheripper
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#68 Post by miltontheripper »

MaiTaiMan wrote:This is one of my all-time favorites---wild, bizarre, eerie, freaky, suspenseful, captivating, and intriguing! :)

That dude's voice is so freakin' scary...and that "sick" little giggle!! That would be enough to raise the hair on my neck for sure! :o Even though the rhymes "cracked" me up...they were so dimented and twisted too--crazy!! :shock:

Perfect ending as well--blunt and to the point...but also leaving you somewhat hanging. You're left wondering...what caused this guy to go psychotic--especially since supposedly Magnum had proved his wife was not having an affair, several years before.

I love both "Magnum" and "Miami Vice"....and I'll have to be honest and say this episode was very "Vice-ish"! It showed the darker and grittier side of Honolulu--some of it at night. The "haunting" and eerie music by Phil Collins (Genesis) playing in the background, plus Magnum wore pastel colored shirts in several of the scenes. The style of the ending, too, was an "MV" type conclusion. But...it all worked, and worked superbly!

Love watching this one...and can see it over and over, and still be freaked out by that whacko! Perfect...and I rated it as such. :)

Exactly my thoughts. Milton is so ridiculous he's almost funny but then completely creepy when you find out what he's capable of! Great episode.

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snp389
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#69 Post by snp389 »

A great show. Very different. And as a lot of fans have stated, the inclusion of a different music source - Genesis - is a perfect touch for the scene.

Croix de Lorraine
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#70 Post by Croix de Lorraine »

I can't believe so many people thought Spangler was the killer. When we partially see the killer talking on the phone it's very clear that his facial features, age, etc are very different.

Also, although I was at first disappointed at not seeing Tanaka, I think the Joe Santos character works much better with his lines and the general plot. It was kind of necessary to have a hostile cop so Magnum felt alone against the killer, and at that point Tanaka was a friend.

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Doc Fred
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Re:

#71 Post by Doc Fred »

IslandHopper wrote:
Spangler is obviously grateful that Magnum saved his life. After Magnum unties him, Magnum says "Just do me one favor Spangler." Spangler says "You saved my life, you name it." Magnum then says "Don't mention my name." Spangler looks up at Mangum very sincerely and says "You got my word on it Magnum." The next scene cuts to a shot of Magnum reading the newspaper article written by Jeffrey Spangler with the headline that reads: “PRIVATE EYE MAGNUM GUNS DOWN RIPPER.” Nice. :lol: The text of the article also mentions Magnum's name. What, did Spangler have his fingers crossed when he promised Magnum he wouldn't use his name? To add insult to injury, Spangler calls him a Private Eye in the headline. I wonder if this was intentional to illustrate what a little worm Spangler is, or if the writers forgot about Magnum asking for his name not to be used?
I also paid attention to this part... My feeling is that the writers were telling us what a miserable piece of slop Spangler was, and perhaps reporters in general. I also have no use for so many "knights of the keyboard", as Ted Williams called them.... from experience.
Woof, woof... thirty years uglier!... woof, woof...

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Re:

#72 Post by Doc Fred »

Shermy wrote:
I love the way she promises not to pick an expensive restuarant. There's just something about the way she says it...anyway, yes, Maggie was very hot.
:D Yes, yes... I sure agree with you about Maggie... As I saw her the various episodes, I always thought Magnum might eventually end up with her... and if the show had continued past season 8, maybe he would have.
Woof, woof... thirty years uglier!... woof, woof...

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Doc Fred
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Re: Death and Taxes (7.6)

#73 Post by Doc Fred »

I'm with all of you who think this was one of the better shows... I gave it a 9. A really heavy show like this was a nice change of pace, and very welcome.

I also liked the different scenes from around the estate, seeing parts of it that weren't seen before. I got a bit disoriented when Magnum, Rick and TC were together in the early part of the show...

I kept waiting for Magnum to deck Spangler after knowing him, and would have shouted "YES!" if he had.... Yeah, and I was sort of rooting for Collins to terminate Spangler when he had him at his mercy. Magnum shouldn't have untied Spangler at the end, but just let him lay there all tied up until the police finally came to mop up. ... or maybe just dumped him into the pool.

One little flub I detected. At about the 34-minute mark, they show a photograph of Magnum, Spangler and Page, with Spangler having the red face. It's taken from a lower angle, looking up at them. But, if our killer took the picture, he'd have taken it from his room, which was one floor level higher...

Does anyone else think Maggie had her eyes on Magnum?
Woof, woof... thirty years uglier!... woof, woof...

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Doc Ibold
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Re: Death and Taxes (7.6)

#74 Post by Doc Ibold »

Doc Fred wrote:I'm with all of you who think this was one of the better shows... I gave it a 9. A really heavy show like this was a nice change of pace, and very welcome.

I also liked the different scenes from around the estate, seeing parts of it that weren't seen before. I got a bit disoriented when Magnum, Rick and TC were together in the early part of the show...

I kept waiting for Magnum to deck Spangler after knowing him, and would have shouted "YES!" if he had.... Yeah, and I was sort of rooting for Collins to terminate Spangler when he had him at his mercy. Magnum shouldn't have untied Spangler at the end, but just let him lay there all tied up until the police finally came to mop up. ... or maybe just dumped him into the pool.

One little flub I detected. At about the 34-minute mark, they show a photograph of Magnum, Spangler and Page, with Spangler having the red face. It's taken from a lower angle, looking up at them. But, if our killer took the picture, he'd have taken it from his room, which was one floor level higher...

Does anyone else think Maggie had her eyes on Magnum?
For sure. There was definitely a lot of sexual tension there from her end, unfortunately it didn't seem to be reciprocated by Magnum. I think out of building the relationships, it just made more sense nd frankly worked better from a chemistry standpoint between TM and Maggie.

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Re: Death and Taxes (7.6)

#75 Post by Stelth »

Random thoughts on : Death & Taxes
A solid 10! This is one of the few MPIs I actually remember watching in prime time. It was as good as I remembered. The killer's knife is a Buck 119. The Genesis song was used to great affect. Normally I prefer the whole cast to be prominent but this one lent itself to being so Magnum-centric. A dark episode like this, when contrasted with one of the light-hearted funny episodes, creates the chiaroscuro which made the series great. Maggie was a hottie. Magnum should have hooked up with her. I liked how some of the mystery died with the killer. That made it more realistic for me.

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