A discussion of history, setting, and why the reboot fails

[Reef monkey]

I posted a musing in the general Magnum PI talk subforum, because mostly the article is about why history and Hawaii's landscape and cultural connections to East Asia were so important to the soul of the original series, but since I end it on why therefore Hawaii has no such importance in the reboot, I thought I'd post a link here. Please post any comments on the original thread.

https://magnum-mania.com/Forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=3771

[Pahonu]

I posted a musing in the general Magnum PI talk subforum, because mostly the article is about why history and Hawaii's landscape and cultural connections to East Asia were so important to the soul of the original series, but since I end it on why therefore Hawaii has no such importance in the reboot, I thought I'd post a link here. Please post any comments on the original thread.

https://magnum-mania.com/Forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=3771

Hey Reef Monkey,

I enjoyed the thoughtful analysis. Having seen the first half of the reboot now, I've been thinking about the Hawaii setting and might add a few thoughts.

It's so true how Hawaii became another character in the series, but it's important to note that it wasn't the original intention. Perhaps serendipity brought all the right elements together, to all our benefit. This has been discussed elsewhere, but when Bellisario wrote the script it was to be set in the LA area, and called Cutter. With the ending of Hawaii Five-O, CBS wanted to continue using its relatively new Diamond Head Studios, so the switch was made. What a fortuitous change it was.

I also think it's good to remember, now that we're all feeling nostalgic for the original series, that the Hawaii of the 80's show wasn't really 80's Hawaii. Bellisario intentionally tried to evoke the Hawaii of decades earlier depicting it as a pre-modern paradise. I think that's perhaps what many of us find so jarring about the reboot's depiction. It's not just thirty years later, but generations later, really.

Just some thoughts to add.

Still paddling, I hope.

[Mrs. Higgins]

I refused to watch it. Did it suck more than the Five-0 reboot?

[T.Q.]

I refused to watch it. Did it suck more than the Five-0 reboot?

Yes.

I thought early H50 was okay... ‘til they killed off Wo Fat.

À la cuisine!

[Reef monkey]

I posted a musing in the general Magnum PI talk subforum, because mostly the article is about why history and Hawaii's landscape and cultural connections to East Asia were so important to the soul of the original series, but since I end it on why therefore Hawaii has no such importance in the reboot, I thought I'd post a link here. Please post any comments on the original thread.

https://magnum-mania.com/Forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=3771

Hey Reef Monkey,

I enjoyed the thoughtful analysis. Having seen the first half of the reboot now, I've been thinking about the Hawaii setting and might add a few thoughts.

It's so true how Hawaii became another character in the series, but it's important to note that it wasn't the original intention. Perhaps serendipity brought all the right elements together, to all our benefit. This has been discussed elsewhere, but when Bellisario wrote the script it was to be set in the LA area, and called Cutter. With the ending of Hawaii Five-O, CBS wanted to continue using its relatively new Diamond Head Studios, so the switch was made. What a fortuitous change it was.

I also think it's good to remember, now that we're all feeling nostalgic for the original series, that the Hawaii of the 80's show wasn't really 80's Hawaii. Bellisario intentionally tried to evoke the Hawaii of decades earlier depicting it as a pre-modern paradise. I think that's perhaps what many of us find so jarring about the reboot's depiction. It's not just thirty years later, but generations later, really.

Just some thoughts to add.

Still paddling, I hope.

Thanks, and good points about original intent - sometimes things just come together beautifully by accident and take on a greater depth. And oh yeah, still paddling, just got out there the week before last, though for the last year or so, my kayaks have had to share my attention with a sailboat.

[Pahonu]

NICE! What are you sailing? I forget if you've told me before. I was just out on my Columbia 28 with my son on the night of the reboot premier. I didn't watch it until yesterday.

[Reef monkey]

I got a JY 15 back in February 2017 to teach my daughter, who is now 11, how to sail. One day I'd like something bigger, but we're somewhat constrained by the waters we sail in, West Bay, part of Galveston Bay, is really shallow. I hadn't sailed since college, but it really comes back to you fast, the JY 15 isn't much different than the 420s we used to race. And it's super light. I'm able to push it off and crank it back onto my dock (on rollers) by myself with little effort.

[Pahonu]

I got a JY 15 back in February 2017 to teach my daughter, who is now 11, how to sail. One day I'd like something bigger, but we're somewhat constrained by the waters we sail in, West Bay, part of Galveston Bay, is really shallow. I hadn't sailed since college, but it really comes back to you fast, the JY 15 isn't much different than the 420s we used to race. And it's super light. I'm able to push it off and crank it back onto my dock (on rollers) by myself with little effort.

I wasn't familiar with the design and looked it up. It looks like a fun one to sail and race, though the fleets seem to all be on the east coast. We don't have anything like those shallow waters here in SoCal. If you anchor more than 100-150 yards offshore on nearby Catalina Island, you have to put out 150 feet of rode.

My son learned on Naples Island Sabots and even did a little low level racing when he was about 12. He was a quick study, but ultimately volleyball won out. At least I have crew around now. He enjoys just going out and day sailing with me still. Hopefully you'll have the same with your daughter.

[Reef monkey]

I was never too much of a racer, my school’s team wasn’t super competitive, more a club that attended about 4-6 regattas a year, and three at least twice as many parties. I was just on it for access to the boats and the social aspect. So I won’t miss not having a fleet to race with. Chasing other sailboats around a triangle doesn’t do it for me, I just like being on the water and going where my whim takes me.

[9NExtUpT]

Maybe this plays a role, maybe not, but here are my thoughts...

Between the Internet and presenters like Rick Steves, I think we've moved past the era of gazing longingly at travel brochures. What once held the promise of a once-in-a-lifetime experience has since become available on TV and your smart phone. The days of Orson Welles telling tales to friends gathered in a bistro have long since passed. The seclusion that once provided "old world charm" has been invaded by technology, be it in Europe or the Pacific.

Until the destruction of Pahonu, I'd imagined someday seeing at least that last tidbit of the Hawaii I'd caught glimpses of through TV back then, but the sad fact is that it no longer exists. Sure, the jungles are there, and maybe the locals are a bit better off being able to sell things on Amazon, but the mystique of the place has, I suspect, been trampled over by commercialization.

Perhaps I'm just being nostalgic, but I think that such things play a role in why a show set in Hawaii isn't such an amazing thrill as it used to be. In the same vein, the sheer ubiquity of media has made us all into jaded old farts who've "seen it all before", and so even truly clever rehashes of old plots ring a bit hollow for us.

[MagnumsLeftShoulder]

Perhaps I'm just being nostalgic, but I think that such things play a role in why a show set in Hawaii isn't such an amazing thrill as it used to be.

You're right. Hawaii isn't the destination that it used to be. More people have the means to take the trip and so they go instead of just daydreaming about it. When was the last time you saw a TV commercial for "Visit Hawaii"? All the commercials now are for the Caribbean Islands. Somebody ought to set a show there for a change of scenery and culture.

[Reef monkey]

Of course even back in the 70s Joni Mitchell was talking about Hawaii when she sang “they paved paradise and put in a parking lot “ in Big Yellow Taxi. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=94bdMSCdw20