J. "Digger" Doyle (1.17)

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22
13%
9.5 (One of the Best)
49
29%
9.0 (Excellent)
47
27%
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35
20%
8.0 (Pretty Good)
10
6%
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4
2%
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J.J. Walters
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J. "Digger" Doyle (1.17)

#1 Post by J.J. Walters »

This is the official MM thread for J. "Digger" Doyle (1.17). All discussions and reviews for this episode should go here. If you wish to rate the episode, please do so with the poll. The avg. score will be the official 'community rating', which will be used on the episode page (updated monthly).

This thread is also linked in the episode page of the Episode Guide.


Original Air Date: 4/9/1981
Magnum tries to impress a beautiful "fan" of Robin's by showing her the Robin Masters estate, only later does he learn that he has been duped and she is actually a top security expert hired by Robin to test the estate's security. She enlists Magnum's help when Robin's life is threatened if he publishes his latest manuscript.
Last edited by J.J. Walters on Fri Dec 28, 2007 5:04 pm, edited 2 times in total.

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IslandHopper
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#2 Post by IslandHopper »

Additional Flubs for J. "Digger" Doyle:

1. There are several flubs in this one scene. WATCH FOR THE GLASS OF FRUIT JUICE AND THE AMOUNT OF JUICE IN THE GLASS AND THE COLOR OF THE JUICE. After Magnum finishes his run on the beach he sits down at a beachside table with Rick, where Rick is drinking fruit juice and reading a book on fruit juice.

(i) When Magnum first sits down at the table Rick's glass is full and is a dark color. With the camera behind Rick and focusing on Magnum across the talbe, you can see Rick take a small sip of his drink. At this point the glass is still full and dark in color. While talking, Rick then holds up his glass and you can tell the glass is not as full as it was before Rick's small sip. The sip Rick previously took would not have accounted for the visible decrease in the glass. The color of the fruit juice looks lighter also.

(ii) Then the camera angle is from behind Rick again, looking at Magnum, and the glass once again has more juice in it then it did just prior in the other shot. Then the camera is looking at Rick as he hands the glass to Magnum and the glass is only about half-full. Now, when Magnum takes a sip from the glass, the glass is full again and the color is once again darker.

(iii) When Magnum hands the glass back to Rick the camera is once again behind Rick and the glass is full and dark in color. Once Rick takes the glass the camera goes to a frontal shot of Rick taking a sip, and the glass is about half-full again and lighter in color. As Rick puts the glass down the camera cuts to a shot of both Rick and Magnum, and the glass that Rick is taking a sip of is suddenly full again and dark in color.

2. This Flub is one of my favorites. After J. Doyle cons her way into Higgins' study and pulls the gun on Magnum and Higgins, she uses the red telephone to call Robin Masters. After a brief conversation with Robin, she hands the phone to Higgins, who speaks to Robin for 7 seconds. From Higgins' 7 second conversation with Robin, Higgins launches into a 61 second, detailed dialogue about the attempt on Robin's life, StarGuard, J. Doyle, Robin's plan to pick-up all of his tapes from one of his estates, etc. During Higgins' dialogue, Magnum interrupts Higgins briefly, but then Higgins continues with his dialogue. The question is: How could Higgins have gotten 61 seconds of very detailed dialogue from a 7 second conversation with Robin? This scene requires you to abandon all logic. I love it.

3. And of course, the most famous flub of this episode, which has already been mentioned by JAMES J. WALTERS in the Episode Guide, occurs when Magnum is climbing the mountain stairs with Higgins on his back after rescuing Higgins from Lazeronics. In this scene, Higgins was portrayed by a dummy. Not the most realistic dummy either.

I think this is one of the better plots of any episode in the 1st season. Maybe not the best, but one of the best. I don't know if it came across as well on TV, but it was still a good episode.

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Shermy
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#3 Post by Shermy »

This episode is all about Erin Gray in that blue and red bikini. Some of you don't realize what kind of psycho-sexual hold this woman had on young impressionable minds around this time...from Buck Rogers to Silver Spoons.

But seriously, this is definitely one of the season's best. It's hard to believe that this was intended as a spin-off, since the later Two Birds of A Feather is so dull. A great setup with Magnum getting tricked, and the rescue of Higgins is a definite highlight.

My favorite scene is when Digger leaves Magnum sitting at the table with Rick. He is still sore about being outrun on the beach, and tells himself that there is no way she could beat him on a surfski: "I was tempted to go out there and prove it, but then, that would be childish."

Cue the Magnum theme as we suddenly see Magnum on his surfski pulling up behind Digger's! :lol:
IslandHopper wrote:2. How could Higgins have gotten 61 seconds of very detailed dialogue from a 7 second conversation with Robin?
Answer: Higgins is actually Robin Masters!

Okay, maybe not. But Magnum could've taken this as an early clue for his theory. Higgins was obviously concerned by the slip-up, otherwise, why did he go to all the trouble of hiring someone to fly onto the estate as Robin?! :lol:

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#4 Post by J.J. Walters »

IslandHopper wrote:2. This Flub is one of my favorites. After J. Doyle cons her way into Higgins' study and pulls the gun on Magnum and Higgins, she uses the red telephone to call Robin Masters. After a brief conversation with Robin, she hands the phone to Higgins, who speaks to Robin for 7 seconds. From Higgins' 7 second conversation with Robin, Higgins launches into a 61 second, detailed dialogue about the attempt on Robin's life, StarGuard, J. Doyle, Robin's plan to pick-up all of his tapes from one of his estates, etc. During Higgins' dialogue, Magnum interrupts Higgins briefly, but then Higgins continues with his dialogue. The question is: How could Higgins have gotten 61 seconds of very detailed dialogue from a 7 second conversation with Robin? This scene requires you to abandon all logic. I love it.
Haha! That's hilarious! For some reason, I didn't actually notice that when I watched the episode. Too busy trying to spot new artifacts in Higgins' study, or something. Threw off my concentration. ;)

And thanks for the info IH, I'll add it to the Episode Guide.
Shermy wrote:This episode is all about Erin Gray in that blue and red bikini. Some of you don't realize what kind of psycho-sexual hold this woman had on young impressionable minds around this time...from Buck Rogers to Silver Spoons.
LOL! Ain't that the truth! Silver Spoons, hehe.


I love the estate drawing that we see in this episode, which of course looks almost nothing like the real estate!:

Image

Oh, so that's where the guesthouse is! That clears everything up for me. :roll:

Great episode, though!
Higgins: It's not a scratch! It's a bloody gouge!

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Doc Ibold
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#5 Post by Doc Ibold »

I always liked this episode as it seemed to really illuminae the fact that these 4 guys were friends, and Higgins became less of a caricature of an uptight British guy, and an actual member of the group.

The Higgins rescue was CLASSIC. It seems that whenever Higgins is comehow incapacitated, he always delivers his best lines!

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#6 Post by Higgiebaby »

Got this clip off youtube.It's about 8 minutes enjoy.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8vZ7-xGU ... ed&search=

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mauimudpup
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#7 Post by mauimudpup »

Shermy wrote:
Answer: Higgins is actually Robin Masters!

Okay, maybe not. But Magnum could've taken this as an early clue for his theory. Higgins was obviously concerned by the slip-up, otherwise, why did he go to all the trouble of hiring someone to fly onto the estate as Robin?! :lol:
When watching this I realized that alot of the things that shows that Higgins isn't Robin are shown to us and Magnum never witnesses. (Of course there is the problem that he see Robin on the helicopter and says he gave the tapes to him)


I think I just saw this one for the first time since it first aired. I remembered Erin in the tight buck rogers suits but I think she looks better in this.


The one thing that really interested me though is wondering about Robin's other estates. Are there other estate caretakers and guests at them (ala Higgins and Magnum?) I'd like to think so. I'd assume Robin arranges for interesting characters to live on his estates so he can get story ideas.

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Doc Ibold
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#8 Post by Doc Ibold »

Well, there is definately Robin's Keep in England, majordomoed by an Ian McCareins.

Other than that, not other "estates" are explicitly mentioned.

We know he has various apartments, chalets, etc, but aside from Robin's Keep, these are the only 2 estates

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#9 Post by mauimudpup »

I shouldn't have said estates. I would expect though that all of Robin's other properties are as large as "Robin's Nest".

I forgot about Robin's keep.

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#10 Post by J.J. Walters »

Welcome mauimudpup!

In this episode, we learn that Robin has an apartment in Manhatten, a villa in Andros, and a chalet in Innsbruck. No mention of majordomos, but it's propably safe to assume each place has one.
Higgins: It's not a scratch! It's a bloody gouge!

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#11 Post by mauimudpup »

Thanks. Ya its that line that just made me think that all his other properties likely have interesting folks. Makes me wonder if that could have made it as a spinoff.


And how did the bad guys decide to go to Hawaii instead of one of the other three possibilities. Maybe I just missed that.

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#12 Post by Steve »

Just caught this episode again on a local Chicago station. I know this is probably due to my middle-aged, overactive hormone and still infatuated with Erin Gray mind of mine, but I always found it interesting that Tom Selleck and Jackie Ray divorced shortly after this episode. I always pictured Jackie walking in on Tom and Erin "studying lines" together.........LOL!

Steve
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lutherhgillis
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#13 Post by lutherhgillis »

In response to the flub:

" After "Digger" cons her way into Higgins' study and pulls the gun on Magnum and Higgins, she uses the red telephone to call Robin Masters. After a brief conversation with Robin, she hands the phone to Higgins, who speaks to Robin for 7 seconds. From Higgins' 7 second conversation with Robin, Higgins launches into a 61 second, detailed dialogue about the attempt on Robin's life, StarGuard, J. Doyle, Robin's plan to pick-up all of his tapes from one of his estates, etc. During Higgins' dialogue, Magnum interrupts Higgins briefly, but then Higgins continues with his dialogue. The question is: How could Higgins have gotten 61 seconds of very detailed dialogue from a 7 second conversation with Robin? This scene requires you to abandon all logic. (Noted by IslandHopper)"

According to the later episodes where Magnum pieces together that Higgins is really Robin and the other guy is a hired actor "with a voice like Orson Welles and a body like Truman Capote", it explains how Higgins could get a 7 second call from "Robin" and then give 61 seconds of dialogue in order to explain. Higgins knew the whole story from the beginning.

It raises the question however, that wouldn't Higgins have also known that the tapes were hidden in plain view along with Jefferson Starship, Blondie, and Styx in Magnum's quarters?

The series as a whole required us to abandon all logic but isn't that what TV is all about?

Good day.

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#14 Post by IslandHopper »

lutherhgillis wrote:In response to the flub:

" After "Digger" cons her way into Higgins' study and pulls the gun on Magnum and Higgins, she uses the red telephone to call Robin Masters. After a brief conversation with Robin, she hands the phone to Higgins, who speaks to Robin for 7 seconds. From Higgins' 7 second conversation with Robin, Higgins launches into a 61 second, detailed dialogue about the attempt on Robin's life, StarGuard, J. Doyle, Robin's plan to pick-up all of his tapes from one of his estates, etc. During Higgins' dialogue, Magnum interrupts Higgins briefly, but then Higgins continues with his dialogue. The question is: How could Higgins have gotten 61 seconds of very detailed dialogue from a 7 second conversation with Robin? This scene requires you to abandon all logic. (Noted by IslandHopper)"

According to the later episodes where Magnum pieces together that Higgins is really Robin and the other guy is a hired actor "with a voice like Orson Welles and a body like Truman Capote", it explains how Higgins could get a 7 second call from "Robin" and then give 61 seconds of dialogue in order to explain. Higgins knew the whole story from the beginning.

It raises the question however, that wouldn't Higgins have also known that the tapes were hidden in plain view along with Jefferson Starship, Blondie, and Styx in Magnum's quarters?

The series as a whole required us to abandon all logic but isn't that what TV is all about?

Good day.
I don't believe that Higgins is really Robin Masters, and I don't believe the show ever resolves this question. In fact, in Resolutions Part II, Higgins tells Magnum at the end that he "lied" about being Robin Masters. We have discussed this question several times in other threads.

As I have said in a previous post, the main reason why I would say Higgins is not Robin Masters is because of the episode, "J. Digger Doyle." In that episode, the bad guys were trying to steal Robin's tapes of his newest novel. Robin even came to Hawaii and was picked up by TC in his chopper in order to retrieve his tapes from Magnum. If Higgins was Robin Masters, wouldn't he have known where the tapes were? Magnum said that Robin had given him the tapes for safe keeping. Why would Higgins have gone through this elaborate charade of the tapes kept in Magnum's guest house if he was really Robin, especially considering that there were bad guys willing to kidnap and kill in order to get the tapes. Would Higgins have willingly endangered Magnum, TC, Rick and himself and exposed them to automatic weapons and possible death merely to perpetuate this charade? I don't think so.

In a previous post, James brought up the episode of "Bird Man Of Budapest," which also negates the possibility of Higgins being Robin Masters. In that episode, Robin's former teacher was coming for a visit. If Higgins was Robin, he would have known right off that she was an imposter. I don't think that Higgins would have gone through this charade either, especially considering that the woman, who was not Robin's teacher, but a Soviet agent trying to kill the birdman. Again, this involved possible death to TC, Magnum, and Higgins, which I'm sure Higgins would not have allowed to happen.

Therefore, I still believe the flub relating to Higgins' 7 second conversation and subsequent 61 second dialogue is not only a flub, but a shocking flub. :) Higgins is not Robin Masters.
The answer is obvious, old man. Logic is irrelevant. It's simply Tropical Madness. (J.Q. Higgins)

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#15 Post by grundle »

lutherhgillis wrote:I Jefferson Starship, Blondie, and Styx


And also Bach, Beethoven, and Mozart!

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