One Picture is Worth (7.3)

[IslandHopper]

North Shore is a great movie. Turtle was awesome.

And that makes sense that Tom Lupo worked on the film, he was probably on Oahu already. Neat tie in IH.

Thanks RC. Yeah, North Shore is one of my favorite movies. If you don't already have the DVD, you may want to get it. There are some great bonus features including the interviews with the cast including John Philbin (Turtle) and the Directors/Producers commentary which reveals a lot of information on sets, the actors, filming techinques, etc.

[rubber chicken]

That's cool. I think I'll ask for it this Christmas.

[MyGod!]

re-watched last night, it does have a very well-done action scene, and good team-work between TM and the painter. Typical of season 7 that while average for that season, it's still above-average in terms of the overall Magnum pantheon.

[J.J. Walters]

Does anybody know the name of the classical piece that is heard at the beginning of this episode? Composer?

Here is the audio...

Thanks

[N1095A]

Tom Lupo looks a little like another favorite of mine, Walter Matthau.

[Carmen]

Does anybody know the name of the classical piece that is heard at the beginning of this episode? Composer?

I don`t know, that is one of those pieces everybody has heard sometimes and does not know it - unless it`s my friend Sigrid whom I`ll ask .
But, it sounds like Mozart to me.

[Carmen]

Vivaldi: The Four Seasons - Spring
(you can listen to it on Youtube)

[J.J. Walters]

Thanks Carmen!

I feel like a fool for not knowing such a popular piece! My knowledge of classical music is woefully weak.

[Carmen]

James - just like me. I had to ask my friend Sigrid and: She asked her little 6 year old girl to listen too - she also knew it

[Jay-Firestorm]

Although it sags a bit in the middle, this is a pretty good episode IMO.

[rating=8.5]

Carol asks Magnum to protect a deaf artist who was the only surviving witness of a violent armed bank robbery. But the culprit is determined to see that she never makes it to testify. A pretty decent episode…

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This review contains spoilers.

Well, after the shaky feature-length / two-part ‘L.A.’ at the top of the season, here we are back into the more familiar MPI fare.

This is the show’s obligatory ‘deaf’ episode – it seemed every popular action / investigation / whatever show in the 1970’s and 1980’s felt obliged to do at least one episode centring around a deaf or blind character.

The deaf Linda is well played by Stephanie Dunnam, and thankfully the character is not presented in a patronising or preachy manner (as was sometimes the case in other shows of the era that attempted such a story).

We also get some nice Higgins scenes, as he communicates in sign language behind Magnum’s back, and we even find that he is a keep amateur painter.

Sadly, after getting off to a promising start, the plot sags slightly in the middle, when Linda disappears, and the gang have to search for her. Here things descend into a more typical, generic hunt, which is a shame, as the story started off really well.

…But at least this does lead to one highlight scene where Higgins is forced to pose as Magnum – complete with cap and Hawaiian shirt. This is almost a precursor to the eighth season episode ‘Pleasure Principal’ – I wonder if this is where they got the idea?

Anyway, thankfully things pick up again in the final act, and the shootout at Linda’s remote hideaway is pretty good.

All-in-all, not perfect – the sag in the middle is its main flaw, but even so, a very good episode, and a sure sign that the show was picking up again around this point.

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Other notes, bloopers and misc.:

* The title of this episode is occasionally incorrectly billed as ‘A Picture is Worth…’

* When Linda pulls up outside the bank at the beginning, we hear her humming… - except that at several points she is seen to open her mouth, as if the tune she is humming was dubbed on in post-production.

* From this episode, Carol has a shorter haircut (that does not suit her so well IMO).

* The DVD version of this episode has all of the act breaks abridged.

* When Five broadcast this episode in 2003, they edited out shots at the climax of Linda making the petrol bombs. Things like this are sometimes edited if there are concerns that young viewers may try and copy it, but it is another of those things that seems to come down to whoever is editing that episode (see some of my previous reviews for more examples!). Either way, the petrol bombs that Magnum throws out of the windows appear out of nowhere in this version.

* Just a thought, but does anyone on the forums know sign language? I'd love to know the story that Higgins tells Linda.

[jetranger]

Hi all,

It may be a bit of a stretch to call it a plot hole but I found the conversation between Magnum and Carol at the estate starting at about 14:50 where they discuss that the shooter Wilkins "may suspect they have a witness", that "his attorneys are asking a lot of questions" and that this means Wilkins may be suspicious about the existence of a witness strange enough to be noticeable.

Wouldn't the fact that Wilkins had been previously picked out in a line up pretty much confirm there was a witness capable of identifying him?

[Carol the Dabbler]

Right on, jetranger! Same thing occurred to me when Hubby & I rewatched this episode last night. Like you, I wouldn't exactly call it a plot hole (since the DA's office was making an attempt to protect Linda in any case), but it sure does strike me as a real "Duh!" moment.

[Carmen]

Hey Carol!! Where have you been so long??

[Carol the Dabbler]

Hey, Carmen! Long story -- let's just say I got distracted by life. Hubby & I just started Magnum's 7th season as our supper-time viewing, so I'll be dropping by from time to time. Thanks for the welcome-back!

[Carol the Dabbler]

I was wondering if the location given for Linda's house is a real place, and if so, whether those scenes were actually shot there -- rubber chicken?