A Girl Named Sue (8.7)

Rate, review & discuss the episodes from the eighth season

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How Would You Rate This Episode?

10 (Perfect!)
1
1%
9.5 (One of the Best)
3
4%
9.0 (Excellent)
2
3%
8.5 (Very Good)
10
14%
8.0 (Pretty Good)
18
25%
7.5 (Decent)
10
14%
7.0 (Average at Best)
14
20%
6.5 (Not So Good)
7
10%
6.0 (Pretty Bad)
2
3%
5.0 (Just Awful)
4
6%
 
Total votes: 71

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lutherhgillis
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#11 Post by lutherhgillis »

To each their own so if you liked this epi, then great but I almost barfed! It was totally campy for me. It was actually a pretty good story but the way they exaggerated the interaction between the characters put it over the top.

Carol Burnett is one of the great ones and it was good to see her again. That Lucky Steele must pay a good piece of bank because Carol was driving a Ferrari like Robin's... I think they listed at 50 - 60k back then.

Did anyone see a correlation between the Lucky Steele detective kit and the backpacker's pal from the Rembrandt's Girl episode?
Last edited by lutherhgillis on Wed Jun 17, 2009 1:59 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Who's Dot Matrix, and what has she got to do with this?

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Frodoleader
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#12 Post by Frodoleader »

An interesting quote from this episode, from Grandpa Sullivan, as related by TM: "You can only get really angry at those people that love you enough to forgive you."

As to quality of episode: not bad, but certainly not real good.
"You are three months at Dak Wei and still you crack jokes?" - Ivan

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#13 Post by A P Leyland »

Oh dear. It's not awful but I'm sure they could have spent the final season more productively.

Andy

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Jay-Firestorm
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#14 Post by Jay-Firestorm »

Phew – I didn’t like this one and thought I was going to be in a small minority, but it seems this one didn’t go down that well with most other members either.

[rating=6.0]

Magnum is hired by a woman to find the missing will of her late father, recently killed in a boating accident. But he finds himself working against Susan Johnson, now a P.I. herself, who has been hired by the girl’s brother, in a family feud. Annoying…

-----

As soon as I saw the opening trailer for this episode, I instantly knew I wasn’t going to enjoy it. And how right I was!

The episode opens vaguely amusingly with Magnum trying to avoid a subpoena over an incident he has witnessed. However, this potentially enjoyable idea (it could have at least rounded out the final story as a b-plot) is soon forgotten as the main story gets underway.

Carol Burnett returns as Susan Johnson, first seen in the fourth season episode ‘Rembrandt’s Girl’. We find that since that appearance, Susan has become a trainee Private Investigator. As I said with my review of ‘Rembrandt’s Girl’, not being American, I wasn’t really sure who Carol Burnett is (until I read up on her), but I found her rather annoying in ‘Rembrandt’, and here, I find her downright terrible!

I’m sure Burnett can be funny with the right material (I’ve never seen any of her other work, so I can’t compare), but in this episode all she seems to do is talk loudly and wave her arms a lot and pull silly faces.

Even beyond Burnett, I find the whole plot of this episode uninteresting. Although there are some good episodes in the eighth, final season, often when watching them I can’t help but wish that they would stop going for so many half-hearted plots and give Magnum a case that both he, and us the viewers, can really get our teeth into.

Not much more to say on this one. I find it very annoying (mostly due to Carol Burnett, I’m afraid), and as such, it is one of my least watched episodes – I hadn’t seen it in YEARS until I came to review it – and it hasn’t got any better with age! I’d say this is the weakest episode of the final season.

-----

Other notes, bloopers and misc.:

* On the DVD version, listen carefully to the opening theme, around the spot where Larry Manetti’s credit comes up – the music ‘slips’ and goes wobbly for a moment. (I haven’t had time to check my broadcast version yet to see if it does the same thing).

* Another episode presumably produced before Pete Carpenter’s death, as it again credits both Mike Post and Carpenter as scoring the episode.

* Rick only appears in one scene in this episode, at the Club near the beginning.
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Carol the Dabbler
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#15 Post by Carol the Dabbler »

N1095A wrote:Anyone else not get why TM gift wrapped Higgins' pistol? We know from later in the episode that TM's gun was damaged, but gift wrapping Higgins' pistol?
Magnum put it in the box so Higgins wouldn't see him with it. As we find out later, Magnum's own pistol was being repaired because he had damaged it breaking out of the warehouse, so he decided to "borrow" Higgins' revolver.

DarCA wrote:I loved when they met in the warehouse and she asked him if he was a "sort of good looking guy".
I was thinking she said something like "an average-looking guy with a mustache," which would be kind of amusing, because in my opinion Magnum would be a kind of average looking guy if he was without his mustache. I love Carol Burnett's comedy work, but this episode does not show her talents to best advantage. As Jay said above, they have her spending most of it screaming and stomping.


When Magnum is talking to the security guard at the marina, it sounds to me like his line about the "Wainwight yacht" might have been a blooper that they decided to leave in, perhaps because her rejoinder about the "pwivate iwand" was so cute.

And yes, we have yet another uninhabited lush tropical island within an easy helicopter ride from Honolulu. Hey, writers, if there did happen to be an uninhabited lush tropical island that close by, IT WOULD BE INHABITED!!! (Whew -- I feel better now!)

There have been comments on other threads about "5-0" being referred to as though it were real in the Magnum universe. I'm wondering whether those references might actually have been meant as tongue-in-cheek. That does seem to be the case with Susan's farewell to Magnum, saying that if he ever needs help, just let her know, and she'll "be here before you can say, 'Book 'em, Danno!'"
Carol

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J.J. Walters
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#16 Post by J.J. Walters »

Carol the Dabbler wrote:There have been comments on other threads about "5-0" being referred to as though it were real in the Magnum universe. I'm wondering whether those references might actually have been meant as tongue-in-cheek. That does seem to be the case with Susan's farewell to Magnum, saying that if he ever needs help, just let her know, and she'll "be here before you can say, 'Book 'em, Danno!'"
Nah, there has been too many other "5-0" references. T.C. once radioed "5-0" from his chopper. ;)
Higgins: It's not a scratch! It's a bloody gouge!

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Carol the Dabbler
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#17 Post by Carol the Dabbler »

Thanks, James.

Does anyone recall if there's ever been a scene on Magnum where someone identifies him/herself as being from "Five-O"? (For example, the voice on the other end of TC's radio call.) Or any other official use of the term?

If not, then perhaps people on Magnum are familiar with the Five-O series, and use the term as slang for some agency of the state police, or for the state police in general.
Carol

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firefly
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#18 Post by firefly »

Carol the Dabbler wrote:

When Magnum is talking to the security guard at the marina, it sounds to me like his line about the "Wainwight yacht" might have been a blooper that they decided to leave in, perhaps because her rejoinder about the "pwivate iwand" was so cute.
i felt that it was part of the script. with her being so taken with tm, a "cute" slip of the tongue on his part gave them a reason to share a chuckle. all a part of magnums masterful "get the needed info technique".

i have to say that i agree that this episode is, well, campy at best. the idea of her copying magnum with the car was cute but the story was sub standard as far as mpi goes.

one question, how is it that magnum gets to the little cottage by the beach first? he had been pulled over for speeding so either she is the slowest driver on the face of the earth or the police on the island are real quick in terms of writing up violations.

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#19 Post by Honolulu Lulu »

Well, I can't let the reviews be too one-sided . . . I loved this episode! I thought Carol did a great job of pulling off a female version of Luther Gillis. And I always enjoy Magnum's interaction with characters who bug the heck out of him.

Tom to Susan: "Nice looking coat! What is it? Unborn linoleum?"

Plus we get to hear Thomas play "Stranger In The Night" on his saxaphone.

C'mon . . . you gotta lighten up and enjoy these two stars who had a high regard for one another in real life, have a good time hamming it up together on screen. I did.
Rack em up!

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Carol the Dabbler
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#20 Post by Carol the Dabbler »

You're right Lulu, there were definitely some good moments in this episode. It's just that the script didn't even begin to explore Carol Burnett's range of talent. If I pretend that I've never seen her in anything else, then I might think this is a fairly good episode.
firefly wrote:... how is it that magnum gets to the little cottage by the beach first? he had been pulled over for speeding so either she is the slowest driver on the face of the earth or the police on the island are real quick in terms of writing up violations.
Naw, police are never quick about writing up tickets (they gotta make sure you lose all the time you had been trying to gain by speeding) -- and Hawaiian cops are presumably sorta laid back on top of that. But Sue is new to the Islands, so she doesn't know the short cuts.
Carol

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Honolulu Lulu
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#21 Post by Honolulu Lulu »

Well . . . I guess I'm just a pushover for the comedy episodes, including this one. It makes me laugh, so I like it. If I think about it, my expectations are higher for the dramatic episodes and their guest stars.

Firefly makes a good point about Thomas beating Susan to the shack. But I think you are right, Carol, we have to assume he knew the short cuts and Susan didn't.

Anyway, glad you responded to my post! Thanks and remember, as one of my other favorite guest stars once told Magnum . . .

"Beauty knows no pain!" :D

Lulu
Rack em up!

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steveadl
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#22 Post by steveadl »

Not the best episode but I still enjoyed it. Definitely agree with JJ, must be the best delivery of 'Oh my God!' from Higgins in the series. :D

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#23 Post by MagnumsLeftShoulder »

I like this one. Its funny and campy. It does seem like just an excuse to get Carol Burnett back on the show and I like Rembrandt's Girl better, but this one has its moments, too. T.C's recorded narration on the chopper tour with the Rabbi is absolutely hilarious! As far as how Susan got a Ferrari, her dad was a counterfeiter, right? Ha! And TM's comment "I got mine for free" cracks me up.

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#24 Post by Tuan Vu »

After reading some of the other comments and reviews on this episode, I was about to just skip it, but then decided to watch a little bit of it and wound up thoroughly enjoying the whole hour!

Yes, it was campy, but it was intentionally campy and silly! For me, it was even funnier than "Rembrandt's Girl". I can't help laughing about the Private Detective kit Sue got (complete with a magnifying glass!).

Also funny was the scene where everyone is sitting in the room together but no one wants to drink from their glass because they suspect it might be poisoned or something.

Another memorable scene is when Magnum has the flirtatious encounter with Julie Marsh and Sue's reactions to witnessing their interaction (and being completely ignored by Julie as if she wasn't even there). I thought the comedic timing and acting was great.

This is just one of those you don't take seriously...and just sit back and enjoy.

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#25 Post by nha trang »

Wow, what a stinker of an episode! Not only does it feel like a rehash of the previous episode, Rembrandts girl, I am also REALLY sick of watching overreacting, whining career women turned private "dicks" or detectives or whatever it is they want to be called that's not "private investigator!"

Sorry if that's harsh, but excuse me if this isn't a complete rehash of the one with meter maid annie potts wanting to be all growed up and a police officer or a detective or whatever it is/was.

Ok, ok, ok, sorry if that was too harsh for our female fans, but this episode seemed to me to just be a one-off in the final season to please the female fans that like to swoon over selleck and have a fantasy of running around with him in their own ferrari.

Wake me up for the next good episode...lol

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