Distant Relative (4.4)

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AJL · #11 Post by **AJL** » Wed Jan 21, 2009 2:14 pm

I love how when they're visiting Ice Pick in the supposed hot sauna, the two gorillas with the guns are just standing there with all their clothes on, not breaking a sweat.

Steve · #12 Post by **Steve** » Mon Feb 23, 2009 3:07 pm

What struck me as funny about this episode was that they were able to cast so many Flock of Seagull wannabees in Oahu for the Tijuana Tokyo scene (I know, it was the eighties, but come on). Also, how would you like to have been cast as an extra in that scene, then trying to explain to your kids 20 years later the skin tight hot red spandex pants that prominently feature your "bits"........LOL!

#13 Post by **J.J. Walters** » Tue Feb 24, 2009 11:23 pm

Heh! Things would get even more tough as you try to explain why Carol Channing was on the set!

brunoffrance · #14 Post by **brunoffrance** » Sun May 17, 2009 6:29 pm

As usual, on sundays now, the complete familly ( 8 around the table ) voted 9... Great episode with hilarous actions (higgins' planes) and great Terry and his copter show as we were seeing "Apocalyspe now" movie; nearly incredible in the trees but we know how Terry is great when he wants...
First time I note TM crying and it was really well made... i was with him...
Unbelievible situation between Rick and TM with lot of abusive terms that can shock minds in this kind of series but it's the reality life in a such disastrous situation ( death of the Rick's sister).
Here is my point of view ( and my familly).

Bruno.

Jay-Firestorm · #15 Post by **Jay-Firestorm** » Tue Jun 16, 2009 3:37 pm

For some reason, I never fully warmed to this episode when I first saw it some years ago, but re-watching it now, I find it a really good one!

[rating=9.5]

Rick persuades Thomas to escort his younger sister Wendy, who he believes to be prim and innocent, for an evening. But Magnum quickly learns there is much more to Wendy than Rick believes, and soon after, she is found dead. A very good episode…

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This review contains spoilers.

‘Distant Relative’ (working title: ‘Little Sister’) is a very good fourth season MPI episode, and a definite step up from the previous story, ‘Smaller Than Life’.

It starts off with a classic scene with Magnum being awoken at dawn by Higgins and Agatha flying model World War II aeroplanes outside the guest house. For a story that will take us on a rollercoaster ride of emotion, it is a nice scene of comedy before the main plot kicks in.

From the off, I knew Rick would be wrong in believing how prim and proper his sister Wendy is. The sequence of her evening with Magnum is both dramatic and comical (I love T.M. awkwardly trying to fit in at the discotheque, even attempting to dance as he crosses the floor, before wisely thinking better of it)!

As Magnum looks for the missing Wendy, he bumps into Carol Channing. Okay… I’ll admit it, I have no idea who she is. Must be an American thing (I’m a Brit!). But, reading up on this episode, the people who know of her seem to love this scene.

The story is the second Rick-based episode in a row, and is finally one that gives Larry Manetti something to get his teeth into. Although I must say, I did find him to overact at times, even in the scenes before Wendy was killed.

The episode is also notable for featuring both the characters of D.A. Carol Baldwin, and of retired mobster ‘Ice Pick’, played by their regular actors for the first time.
Carol had appeared in the third season episode ‘Foiled Again’ played by a different actress; after playing a different character in season three’s ‘Almost Home’, Kathleen Lloyd takes over the role for the rest of the series from here on.
Likewise, Ice Pick had been played by a different actor in the third season’s ‘Past Tense’; Elisha Cook, after playing another character in season two’s ‘Ghost Writer’ (everybody keeping up??), takes over the role of Ice Pick for the rest of the series.
Both characters would go on to make a number more appearances.

The episode also marks some great acting by Tom Selleck; I really felt sorry for T.M. as Rick laid into him for the death of Wendy. Watching the episode of DVD, I noticed a tear running down his face as Magnum broke down in the study.

The story plays out very well, and kept me gripped throughout. But like all good MPI stories, it has some good humour mixed in, with some very funny lines, but managing not to spoil the serious tale at hand.

It is fun to see Manetti become ‘Rambo Rick’! The climax, with T.C.’s chopper chasing the real killers in the escaping Jeep, is well shot and very exciting, even if it does rather turn into an episode of ‘The A-Team’ (which is no bad thing, as I love ‘The A-Team’!).

Another nice touch to the series is that, after so many ‘old friend’ who would die in a particular episode and never be mentioned again, Wendy is mentioned several times in future stories.

And then, there is the final scene, mirroring the first one, where Magnum is again awoken by Higgins’ model plane. He finally has enough and shoots it down with a shotgun! Classic Magnum.

When I first saw this episode some years ago, I thought it was fair but not one of my favourites; coming to re-watch it again now, I really like it. Probably one of the best of the season.

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Other notes, bloopers and misc.:

* I know it’s not on the DVD, but I wonder if it’s been verified that this episode has no opening trailer? When Five ran the series in 2002-3, the opening trailers for all episodes were cut off, so I can’t compare to those recordings. But I do know that on various DVD releases of ‘Knight Rider’ and ‘The A-Team’, some opening trailers are removed for reasons unknown.

* The DVD version of this episode has the first commercial break abridged (i.e. plays right through without a gap).

* Nitpick: at the Police station, the Officer gives the broken hot drinks machine a tap on the side, explaining to Magnum that the “humidity makes the cups stick”. But there cup comes out from the left hand side of the machine, whereas the Officer taps it on the right; surely he’d have to tap it on the left?

* In the final scene, when Magnum shoots Higgins’ model plane down, if you pause (freeze frame) just before the plane explodes, you can see that in this shot it is actually a bi-plane; I believe this shot to be taken from the third season episode ‘Of Sound Mind’.

* On the closing credits, the shots of the final sequence (mentioned above) are edited differently – we see Magnum taking aim with the shotgun and firing; these shots were not used in the actual episode.

* When Five broadcast this episode in 2002, Rick’s line (from when he finds the two agents searching the hut) of “Don’t give me that crap, you killed her!” was edited down to just “…you killed her!”. Another example of how sometimes they’d leave such a word in, and other times edit it out!

Rutledal · #16 Post by **Rutledal** » Wed Jun 17, 2009 3:48 pm

Jay-Firestorm wrote:* I know it’s not on the DVD, but I wonder if it’s been verified that this episode has no opening trailer? When Five ran the series in 2002-3, the opening trailers for all episodes were cut off, so I can’t compare to those recordings. But I do know that on various DVD releases of ‘Knight Rider’ and ‘The A-Team’, some opening trailers are removed for reasons unknown.

My DVD has opening previews.

Jay-Firestorm · #17 Post by **Jay-Firestorm** » Wed Jun 17, 2009 7:14 pm

Rutledal wrote:
Jay-Firestorm wrote:* I know it’s not on the DVD, but I wonder if it’s been verified that this episode has no opening trailer? When Five ran the series in 2002-3, the opening trailers for all episodes were cut off, so I can’t compare to those recordings. But I do know that on various DVD releases of ‘Knight Rider’ and ‘The A-Team’, some opening trailers are removed for reasons unknown.
My DVD has opening previews.

Mine too, but not for this episode.

Rutledal · #18 Post by **Rutledal** » Wed Jun 17, 2009 10:42 pm

My DVD has opening previews for this episode.

Sorry for not making that clearer in my first post.

lutherhgillis · #19 Post by **lutherhgillis** » Wed Jun 17, 2009 11:08 pm

This one caught me by surprize. I expected the siste would not be the angel that Rick thought she was but I did not expect her to get wasted. The punk club looked eerily familiar. The 80s are a little hazy for me due to age but I remember the club scene pretty well. We had some great bands in our town.

I shared a table with Artemus Pyle from Lynyrd Skynyrd and several members of the Marshall Tucker Band on a few club occasions. Mothers Finest, April Wine, Starbuck, Nantucket, Hank Jr, and many others played clubs and arenas in my town.

Nifty · #20 Post by **Nifty** » Wed Sep 23, 2009 2:33 am

JMHO...

I didn't like it because it seemed too condensed. I think this could have been better as a two-parter, giving more time to develop the Wendy character. Reason is, a blood sister dies - and it seems that they just hurried up to solve the case and get to the final chase (to fit it in one episode). Could have more time on Rick and the mourning period.

IKnowWhatYoureThinking · Wed Sep 23, 2009 1:05 pm

Good point Nifty. I think a two parter would've done this story line some justice.

#22 Post by **Styles Bitchley** » Wed Sep 23, 2009 1:29 pm

Yeah, we move too quickly from meeting Rick's sister - who he's never spoken of before - to getting over her demise. Two-hour special would have been great.

#23 Post by **Styles Bitchley** » Sat Oct 24, 2009 4:13 pm

Overall, I like this episode, but the final scene where Rick dresses up like Rambo and runs across the rocky terrain with his uzi ruins it for me. Manetti just looks so uncoordinated and awkward, I just can't imagine him ever being a soldier in the past.

N1095A · #24 Post by **N1095A** » Fri Dec 04, 2009 2:14 am

In the punk club Wendy orders a Bora Gora Bazooka. Bora Gora is the fictional setting of Bellisario's show "Tales Of The Gold Monkey".

#25 Post by **J.J. Walters** » Sat Dec 05, 2009 7:27 am

Good spot Mike! I always thought she said "Bora Bora Bazooka". But you're right, it's "Bora Gora"! What a great little tie-in to Tales of the Gold Monkey. I love it when they do stuff like this.

Distant Relative (4.4)

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