Magnum P.I.: The Complete Second Season Review Score: 6/10 | Date Posted: April 13th 2005 In: DVD Reviews Created by: Donald P. Bellisario, Glen A. Larson Starring: Tom Selleck, John Hillerman, Roger E. Mosley, Larry Manetti Directed by: Various Studio: Universal DVD Release Date: April 12, 2005 DVD Features: Available subtitles: Spanish, French / Available Audio Tracks: English (Dolby Digital 2.0) / 22 episodes on three double-sided discs / Bonus episodes from The A-Team season 2 and Knight Rider season 2 Number of discs: 3 discs Format: Color, Box set Magnum P.I.: The Complete Second Season Review by Robert Falconer, HNR Senior Editor I need to clarify something right off the bat. This might end up being the shortest DVD review I’ve ever written. Not because I’m tired (though I am), not because this show isn’t particularly memorable (it isn’t), and not because I have better things to do (okay, actually I do). This may be a short review because there just isn’t that much to say about Magnum P.I. As Thomas Magnum himself might proffer, and frankly often did in far too many episodes, “I know what you’re thinking.” You’re thinking I wasn’t a fan of this show when it originally aired between 1980 and 1988. Actually, I did watch it semi-regularly as a teen, though in reviewing a few of the episodes I was shocked to discover that I remembered precious little about any of them, which is odd for me. There’s a reason for this, folks, and it’s not Alzheimer’s. It’s a lack, mostly, of memorable characters, believable situations or innovative writing. Then there’s the dreaded ‘aside’. For those of you who don’t know what an ‘aside’ is, it’s a moment when an actor looks straight at the audience as though he or she is letting them in on the joke. It’s practically taboo in drama and considered bad form because it takes you straight out of the story. Well, Tom Selleck’s character, Thomas Magnum would often do this in certain episodes – look at the camera and raise his eyebrows, as if to say: “I’m not really buying any of this schlock either.” And to those who offer the explanation that it was part of the narrative and designed to support Magnum’s diary voiceovers, sorry, but you’re giving the show too much credit for being clever. Actually, I take that back. It was trying TOO hard to be clever…in this case a crutch for mediocre dialogue and plot. Paradoxically, Magnum P.I. was a huge hit during the 1980s, finishing in the top 20 shows during its first five seasons. Selleck, who won an Emmy in 1984 for his performance, played a Vietnam Vet who retires from the military and moves to the Pacific islands to start a private detective agency. It’s not all bad. Really it’s not. But before I come to the series’ redeeming qualities (Hint for fans: “Oh…my…god, Magnum!”) let me give you an example of what makes this show a less-than-riveting experience. In one of the episodes, entitled “Three Minus Two,” Magnum is hired by the lovely Jill St. John (Diamonds Are Forever), a fashion designer, to investigate the murder of her business partner. There are absolutely NO twists and turns in this episode, and you can pretty much figure out whodunit by the end of Act II. Instead, what the episode does treat you to, is a vacuous and poorly executed throwaway scene in which TC (one of Magnum’s friends and Vietnam war buddies played by Roger E. Mosley) has developed a passion for photography and begins snapping shots of Rick (another of their Vietnam buddies played by Larry Manetti) as Rick prepares to open the King Kamehameha Club (the restaurant he manages) for business. As the mindless drivel spouts forth from their mouths, TC frantically shoots about 300 pictures using his motor driven 35mm camera, apparently completely oblivious to the fact that the largest roll of 35mm film that you can buy contains 36 shots. Photographic faux pas aside, the scene is worse than insipid—it’s stupid—and used as filler to prop up what amounts to a weak story. Certainly, there are stronger episodes than the one referenced above, but 25 years of maturing hasn’t been kind to the sorts of histrionics and sensibilities that characterized ‘80s pulp television. Okay, on to the good. The best thing about this show was Tom Selleck (always affable and engaging – and deadly serious when the situation called for it), the scenery (how can you go wrong in Hawaii?), the Ferrari Magnum drove, and, of course, Higgins (John Hillerman), the trusty custodian of novelist Robin Master’s (sometimes voiced by Orson Wells) estate. Higgins’ offbeat, against type persona was one of the series’ most lasting artifacts. The staged scenes between he and Magnum give the show some of its best moments and, ironically, add the most realistic texture. The chemistry was spot-on, and the humorous subtext between the apparently indolent Magnum and the conceitedly conversant, yet kind-hearted Higgins, always enjoyable to watch. Sadly, there’s a complete dearth of bonus features on this disc, unless you count an episode each of The A-Team and Knight Rider as bonus features. I don’t. It would have been nice to see some retrospectives on the part of the cast and crew, but it’s just not to be found on this release. Audio is two-channel. Video quality is spotty. Some episodes are clean and well resolved, others so grainy they practically look like fresco. Pity Universal put less time into this than they did into the design of the slip cover, which is one of the better ones I’ve seen. Each of the three discs gets its own thin plastic snap case, and the three slide into a standard chromecoat package. Okay, maybe not my shortest DVD review, but definitely the most perfunctory. Bottom line: For true Magnum P.I. fans only, or those with a nostalgic penchant for '80s detective dramas.

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