Deja Vu (2) (6.2)

[J.J. Walters]

The Covent Garden Market. Fantastic! Thanks guys!

[Icepick]

Yip, Covent Garden. Ironically I used to live in the building at the bottom of picture with the very small Google Earth copyright text over it. I sure miss pints at the Punch and Judy!

[Little Garwood]

I've become fascinated by this episode. When it first aired it seemed like such a big deal to me (I was thirteen) and it seemed so...exotic...that they were filming this episode in England. When I watched it last year, I became fascinated all over again. I don't know why, maybe it's the imagery, the fact that the UK is so different from Hawaii. I've always been an anglophile of sorts and I liked the idea of the gang having to go abroad to set up Robin Master's new digs. As much as I like this episode, it seems a little 'cool" to me, and I keep trying to warm up to the episode. The gang seem weird, with Rick and TC acting strange and Magnum preoccupied, as is Higgins with his father. I think the ideas should have been fleshed out more and maybe this would have succeeded as a single episode. It was also a shame that Peter davison had such an uninteresting role. He had just finished his tenure as the Fifth Doctor Who and this may have been one of his first projects after that time.

Guess I'll have to watch this one again! It calls me!

[Little Garwood]

I just watched Deja Vu again and I'm wondering about Stokesy. Was he part of the assassination team? He stares back at Magnum and walks away, but what was his role supposed to be since he wasn't the real Inspector Stokesy?

What was the significance of the boy in the sailor suit?

[Agatha]

Fast forward four months, Garwood. I just watched Deja Vu again, too. And am a bit confused as well.

I did catch the reference to Sadat's assassination that was attributed to one of Ivan's "triggers" in Did You See the Sunrise? I think we've already talked about how none of the writers could ever imagine that we'd be watching these episodes MANY times...enough times to look for...and find...their flubs and inconsistencies.

It's my understanding that the "fake" Stokesy is actually Duncan Scott...the one member of Scorpio 6 that got away. But I thought he was arrested when Magnum saved the "whoever that was" that was about to be assasinated. So why was he standing around outside of Penelope's place when Thomas went to say goodbye?

Also...I'm not sure that I understand what Jeffrey...or is it Geoffrey...wanted to talk to Thomas about. It sounds like Thomas thought Geoffrey was still "in"...in the service? Still an assassin? The pictures before each "mission"...the people and places and assassinations that Thomas and Penelope identified through the pictures. Was he hoping that Thomas would team up with him again?

If that's true, then he didn't know Thomas very well at all! Thomas would NEVER have done that! Or maybe that's an indication of just how "mad" Geoffrey had become. Because even if Geoffrey had been alive, Thomas would have done just what he did...STOP the assination! It would have been the end of their friendship.

Remember when Tyler McKinney was trying to talk Thomas and TC and Rick into helping him rescue JJ Kincannon from Cambodia? He said something about how Thomas used to be the best at "going in and bringing back the scalps." I didn't understand that reference at the time...thought he meant bringing back information...like reconnaissance. But now I think he was talking about the assasinations that Thomas and Geoffrey's team did. Yes? No?

I don't know! What does anyone else think about this?

[Little Garwood]

Fast forward four months, Garwood. I just watched Deja Vu again, too. And am a bit confused as well.

I did catch the reference to Sadat's assassination that was attributed to one of Ivan's "triggers" in Did You See the Sunrise? I think we've already talked about how none of the writers could ever imagine that we'd be watching these episodes MANY times...enough times to look for...and find...their flubs and inconsistencies.

It's my understanding that the "fake" Stokesy is actually Duncan Scott...the one member of Scorpio 6 that got away. But I thought he was arrested when Magnum saved the "whoever that was" that was about to be assasinated. So why was he standing around outside of Penelope's place when Thomas went to say goodbye?

Also...I'm not sure that I understand what Jeffrey...or is it Geoffrey...wanted to talk to Thomas about. It sounds like Thomas thought Geoffrey was still "in"...in the service? Still an assassin? The pictures before each "mission"...the people and places and assassinations that Thomas and Penelope identified through the pictures. Was he hoping that Thomas would team up with him again?

If that's true, then he didn't know Thomas very well at all! Thomas would NEVER have done that! Or maybe that's an indication of just how "mad" Geoffrey had become. Because even if Geoffrey had been alive, Thomas would have done just what he did...STOP the assination! It would have been the end of their friendship.

Remember when Tyler McKinney was trying to talk Thomas and TC and Rick into helping him rescue JJ Kincannon from Cambodia? He said something about how Thomas used to be the best at "going in and bringing back the scalps." I didn't understand that reference at the time...thought he meant bringing back information...like reconnaissance. But now I think he was talking about the assasinations that Thomas and Geoffrey's team did. Yes? No?

I don't know! What does anyone else think about this?

You pose some interesting questions, Agatha! Thanks for responding with such thoughtful...thoughts!

I've already admitted a fascination with this episode. Both for the unanswered questions---or plot holes--and for how the show itself was changing beginning in season five with the increasing mysticism and "magical" aspects the show always had but relied on more here. I hope someone can come up with answers to our nagging questions, and even if they're not the definitive ones, my imagination will no doubt be entertained by the ones we offer!

Side bar: My own fascination with this episode includes how I was drifting away from MPI and other childhood passions. I remember Deja Vu being one of the last episodes that really made an impression on me, but I also didn't like the unanswered questions and the mysticism what with Thomas' "little voice" becoming more like a psychic ability. But part of what pulls me into this episode is how I was changing as a person then; I have strong, yet mixed emotions about this particular episode.

Sorry for the digression; this show does that to me, as does the arrival of Summer.

[wilko]

Here's something that does'nt make sense. Flub perhaps?

At the end of the episode when Magnum "kidnaps" Higgins, he puts a hood over Higgin's head so that he would not be recognised. He then drives Higgins to the Higgins estate to see his father. As they pull up in front of the house Higgins demands to know who has kidnapped him and then Magnum takes off the hood. Higgins then opens the car door on his own...........so his hands were'nt tied? Then why did'nt he take off the hood for himself?

[lutherhgillis]

Man, I can;t get a good grip on my opinion of these episodes (Deja Vu). They are a little crazy, a little interesting, a little perplexing, and a little bit like they missed a great opportunity. I didn;t care for the divination part one bit. That crap was simply rediculous.

They also missed some really good opportunities. They should have dealt more with Jeffrey's connection to the spook outfit. What was in the letter mailed to Hawaii? How deep did the rabbit hole run? What other work did jeffrey do? Why did his fellow spooks kill him? Why didn;t the guys have a brawl in an English bar?

So many opportunities and they missed most of them...

[Jay-Firestorm]

Part two of this feature-length story that is obviously very special to me.

[rating=9.0]

Thomas and Penelope get close to each other as they investigate Geoffrey’s mysterious death, but there are unexpected twists in the case. Meanwhile, Higgins can’t find the courage to visit his estranged father. A good conclusion to the story…

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This review contains spoilers.

This reasonable feature-length / two-parter continues, and as I said in my review of Part I, it is a special episode to me personally, as I only live a few miles away from London.

After a decent but awkwardly paced first half, things really find their footing in Part II, and although the story isn’t perfect (I feel there may have been a few missed opportunities), none the less I found it an engaging and likable watch.

I still wasn’t sure about Francesca Annis playing Penelope – I just couldn’t warm to her. Also, I felt the romance between Magnum and herself was a little forced and unnecessary. I got the whole plot element that Magnum was effectively taking Geoffrey (her deceased husband)’s place, but even so, I felt it was a bit awkwardly done. Magnum and Penelope presumably sleep together (he spends the night at her house, if nothing else), and bearing in mind that her husband and Magnum’s great friend had only been killed a few hours previously, I didn’t feel that this aspect of the story sat well at all.

But other than that, I enjoyed this second half of the story. Magnum’s prophetic dream was interesting, and something that, by this stage of the series (and bearing in mind other seemingly telepathic stories, such as season four’s classic ‘Home From the Sea’) we as the audience had learnt to accept.

Of note is the voice of Robin Masters in this episode – instead of traditionally being voiced by the great Orson Welles, as the character had been on all other ‘appearances’, on this occasion Robin is voiced by a different actor, Red Crandall. Robin would be heard in the series one more time, later in the season in ‘Mad Dogs and Englishmen’, where he would be voiced by an uncredited actor.

The only thing that lets this story down in my opinion is the climatic revelations about Geoffrey being a hit man. On first viewing, I found the explanations very hard to follow, and it was only several viewings later that I began to piece it together. I found that the script in this section of the story let it down and could have been much clearer.

But I do like the final scene, where Higgins is finally reunited by his estranged father (also played by John Hillerman). It is a nice scene to round off a decent story.

On the whole, this is a nice feature-length / two-parter. It is more engaging than most of the previous season’s episodes, and being set close to where I live, stands as a very special episode to me personally.

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Other notes, bloopers and misc.:

* As I said on Part I, when Five broadcast this story in 2002, they took the feature-length version and edited it onto two halves themselves. Part I ends as Magnum and Penelope kiss, with a caption reading ‘To be continued…’ superimposed.

* …Their version of Part II opened with clips from Part I, lasting 1:18, with a ‘Previously…’ caption at the beginning. Considering that they made this themselves, it is actually well put together.

* When they made the feature-length versions of episodes into two-parters, a scene or two were normally edited out for timing reasons, and it was the case here. Between parts I & II, the scene of T.C. in the bar, where he first meets Shadea, and the follwing scene of Rick retiring to his room for the night, only for Mackerras to tell him about the ghost, are lost from the story. This leaves a bit of a hole in the story – the scene of Rick being awoken by ‘the ghost’ the following morning, scaring off all the staff, holds up, but there is a plot hole as to how T.C. meets Shadea – in this version, he is just seen waking up after spending the night with her – despite us never seeing him meet her in the first place!

[J.J. Walters]

Great review as usual Jay!

Seeing as how you're from the area, did you (or do you) happen to spot any notable filming locations that were not covered in the episode guide? I would love to have as complete a list as possible for this unique episode.

Thanks

[Jay-Firestorm]

Great review as usual Jay!

Seeing as how you're from the area, did you (or do you) happen to spot any notable filming locations that were not covered in the episode guide? I would love to have as complete a list as possible for this unique episode.

Thanks

I'm working on this as we speak Despite living very close to London, I actually very seldom venture there (far too busy for me!), so I'm not too up to speed with locations, but I'm showing bits of the episode to family members to try and and put together a list.

[Little Garwood]

James, could you upload the version of the end credits that play at this episode's end? It's simply the greatest rendition of the MPI theme ever...and it's extended! There are some great drum fills in that.

[J.J. Walters]

LG, I've added it to the site.

http://magnum-mania.com/Audio/Theme_Son ... ja_Vu.html

Great version!

[Little Garwood]

Bee-yoo-tee-full! Thanks, James!

[nha trang]

Definitely interesting to see the gang in London! I agree that the episode wasn't what it could have been, but it is better than quite a few other episodes as well.

It did seem in poor taste to have Magnum bed his military buddy's widow (before the funeral?)

I don't know that this storyline really required 2 hours to tell, but I guess that was one of the luxuries when Magnum aired, because I can't remember watching any 2 hour episodes of any of my favorite TV shows growing up!

The scene with Magnum and Higgie walking among the flowers on the Robin's Keep estate was very beautiful indeed.