My second review of the day. This one pretty sums up the fifth season for me – watchable, but not exactly memorable.

[rating=8.5]

As Higgins prepares for a telethon to try and save an endangered species of coral worms, Magnum is hired by a woman wish psychic visions, to try and protect her from being murdered as she “sees” in her latest vision. Not bad, but not outstanding either…

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This review contains spoilers.

This episode very much sums up the fifth (and sixth) season of MPI – it is watchable, but hardly outstanding, and feels particularly flat when considering some of the great stories that have gone before in the series.

The story is the first of several directed by British actor David Hemmings. Hemmings would go on to appear this season in ‘Compulsion’, and as another character in the seventh season’s ‘Out of Sync’. (He also plays ‘Airwolf’s twisted creator Dr. Moffett, and directed a number of third and fourth season episodes of ‘The A-Team’).

The episode can be considered a ‘Hallowe’en’ story, with it’s “spooky” elements involving graveyards, psychic visions of murder, and dead bodies, and being broadcast the day after Hallowe’en 1984.

The story starts off well enough, and is fairly interesting with Laura Bennett’s visions of death. However, as the story progressed, I didn’t feel it had the good pacing of some episodes. I note that the episode has an unusually high number of writing contributors, so maybe this had something to do with it.
(Also, the opening trailer has a spoiler that it is not Laura’s own death that she keeps seeing, but instead Magnum’s. Ordinarily the opening trailers don’t give away too many spoilers, but this one slipped up).

Higgins’ preparing for the telethon starts off quite amusingly, and has several good moments, but ultimately it doesn’t go anywhere, and the final result is slightly disappointing.

I found it easy to deduct who the real villain was – Archie the used car dealer was given far too much screen time and prominence for it not to be obvious.

There are some good moments in the story - there is a good car chase involving the Ferrari mid-episode for example, but the episode never feels to really live up to it’s premise. I can name far worse episodes of the series, but as with many stories of the season, it’s sadly not very memorable.

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Other notes, bloopers and misc.:



I spotted this too - it's actually a similar flub to the skids on T.C.'s chopper - it is an older stock shot of the Ferrari; the updated model has black squares where the headlights pop-up, and a black grill between them; the older Ferrari has a plain red hood.



I noticed this too! I can't remember about the later episodes, but re-watching the series in order, this is the first time that I noticed it. I'm glad I'm not the only one who sees it as a bearded lady!

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JAY FIRESTORM

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As Patrick Jane (The Mentalist) would say, there are no such things as psychics...

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"You are three months at Dak Wei and still you crack jokes?" - Ivan

I didn't particularly enjoy this episode... psychic crazies don't go down well for me as the parameters for suspension of disbelief become warped and well, anything could happen... I don't mind cardboard sharks or dodgy stunt doubles but psychics are just one of those things... if she had never showed up in the first place none of it would have happened... Grrr. Somehow implying that Magnum's little voice is possibly a psychic power is lame!



Also note that in the shot of Magnum driving he seems to be driving at about 1 mile an hour?!

I do like how Higgins is an expert on rare wines though.

This episode is notable for continuing a Season 5 recurring theme of white fedoras as well...

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Don't you ever knock?!

I enjoyed this story, the most remarkable thing being that Laura was able to act on her visions.

I don't think it usually goes like that - the rational part of me starts to poo-poo this kind of thing!

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Sometimes I get so lucky, even I don`t believe it.

First off, some humor. The psychic should relate her visions to Magnum as:

Psychic: "It's you in my vision, you're in the graveyard, but then, wait, someone who looks like you jumps towards me, but it's not really you but some freaky butt-kicking doppleganger..."

Thomas: "Don't worry it's my stunt double."

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Seriously though - I loved this episode, rated it a 9.0. It's not a "core" classic by any means, but I almost enjoy these watchable "backwater" episodes the best. Especially when they insert a little metaphysics of Magnum into the mix.

Magnum faces the concept of Determinism or Fatalism, as noted by his reference to the story of the man who couldn't escape death. He decides not to let the insurance company go to the graveyard to investigate the whereabouts of the rare bottle of wine, and chooses to investigate it himself, even though some may say he thereby places himself in great and needless peril, given the (by now, proven to be reliable) visions of the psychic.

However, Magnum's reference to the above mentioned story about death was quite appropriate (and necessary) writing for the episode, as it explains that if Magnum chose not to go to the graveyard, he may only have found that by staying home, to, oh let's just guess and say re-heat a chili dog and tune in the tigers game, he may have inadvertently met with the grim reaper, even perhaps in the guise of choking on said chili-dog, and ironically would thereby have met death by attempting to dodge it (by having avoided the graveyard).

Notably, Magnum chooses to face this dilemma "head-on," and go to the graveyard with the psychic. He chooses to believe in his free will and ability to meaningfully impact the course of events, which indeed he does with the bullet-proof vest. (The friend of time-travelers and friends of psychics alike). Doc from the movie "Back to the Future" would have been proud, seeing as he had a certain batch of Libyians with AK-47s to contend with himself.

Thus we see the great, self-reliant Magnum. He trusts in his own abilities, but is not reckless or conceited, he is attuned to the "little voice" and knows there is an undercurrent of mystery to life, but one that he can learn from.

I'll save further thoughts on the "Metaphysics of the Magnuverse" for another post, as I feel this aspect of the series to be one of the important contributing factors in my love for the show.

and to end with some humor:

The scene where Higgins berates Magnum as potentially becoming the cause of the extinction of a certain "tri-sected" tropical worm rates only second in my favorite comical Higgins-Magnum moments to the episode where Higgins wakes Magnum from a hangover with the ship's bell!

Sounds like dialogue from a Moonlighting episode!

Nice review nha trang.

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"How fiendishly deceptive of you Magnum. I could have sworn I was hearing the emasculation of a large rodent."

- J.Q.H.

As I stated in my reviews of "Echoes of the Mind" Pts. 1 & 2...I love anything psychological, suspenseful, spooky, bizarre, etc...!

"Fragments" was another awesome example of all those aspects, and I loved the plot! The eerie visions, places they had to go, and that cemetary at the end with the freaky wind in the trees...perfect episode to watch around Halloween time!

This, and "Echoes of the Mind", are two of my favorites of season five, and of the series! I love intriguing and captivating episodes--especially ones that keep you on the edge of your seat, or you can't wait to see what happens next. These episodes fit that "bill" perfectly! I rated this episode "One of the Best"!

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"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"

Anyone else notice that for the second straight episode we have an appearance by the midget from season two's Tropical Madness? Look closely as Magnum is trying to get in his car to get away from all the people auditioning and as the psychic lady is approaching him you see the little guy walk accross the screen behind her. It's funny the way they reused bit characters again and again. Rather than flubs, I like to spot these people as they appear in different episodes/roles over the years.

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Seriously though - I loved this episode, rated it a 9.0. It's not a "core" classic by any means, but I almost enjoy these watchable "backwater" episodes the best.

Wow, that's exactly my opinion as well. The "core" classics, (Death and Taxes, Did You See the Sunrise, Memories are Forever, etc) are certainly 10's but sometimes I find the "backwater" episodes to be equally as entertaining. I love the "Halloweenish" theme of the graveyard at night. Rick trying to get her to read the future for gambling purposes was pretty hilarious as well. A good twist making the car salesman evil, I didn't expect it. Overall I really like this one.

Exactly! I love these kinds of episodes the best--"Fragments", "Death & Taxes", "Echoes of the Mind", "Deja Vu", etc...! I too love the spooky, classic horror setting of the cemetary in "Fragments"--lots of twists and suspense. Awesome!

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"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"