I Do? (3.17)

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9
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20
21%
8.0 (Pretty Good)
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31%
7.5 (Decent)
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18%
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J.J. Walters
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I Do? (3.17)

#1 Post by J.J. Walters »

This is the official MM thread for I Do? (3.17). 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: 2/17/1983
As part of his plan to catch the thief in a family-owned business, Magnum pretends he's married to the CEO's niece, who has unusual feelings about men, marriage, and Hawaii's most eligible P.I.
Last edited by J.J. Walters on Fri Dec 28, 2007 5:43 pm, edited 2 times in total.

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IslandHopper
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#2 Post by IslandHopper »

Although this episode has its moments, this is a middle-of-the-road episode for me. For some reason, I find the Marsha MacKenzie character played by Katherine Cannon very annoying, not quite as annoying as the Goldie Morris character of "Old Acquaintance" fame, but almost. :shock:

One of my favorite scenes from this episode is when TC, Rick and Harry come over to the cottage for dinner. As Marsha is serving the dinner you can hear the sound effect of a fly (or flies) buzzing around each portion. :lol: The sound of the flies buzzing around combined with the look on the faces of Magnum, Rick, TC and Harry is great. I'm not positive, but that particular sound effect sounds like the same fly that was used in the episode "Solo Flight."

The episode guide has noted that in this episode Magnum is seen watching the USC/Notre Dame football game. You have to listen carefully, but the commentator during the game sounds very much like Pat O'Brien. James, what do you think?

The episode guide already lists the flub of Magnum referring to himself as a "Private Detective." This is a major flub because we all know Magnum goes out of his way to make sure he prefers the title of "Private Investigator."

Additional flubs include:

1. While at the wedding reception talking to Higgins and TC, Rick, is drinking champagne from a plastic champagne glass. As Rick drops his plastic glass, the glass is already empty, but when the camera follows the glass as it bounces on the floor you can see a puddle of liquid (presumably champagne) already on the floor which is supposed to be from Rick's glass, but is clearly not.

2. Although extradorinary efforts were made to make believe that Magnum and Marsha actually got married, it is interesting that the one detail they forgot was to give Magnum a wedding ring. You can clearly see Magnum's bare left ring finger at the reception when he has the cake in his hand and drops it on the plate, and while he is talking to Andrew MacKenzie at the reception. He is not wearing a wedding ring at the Rainbow Room at the KKC the next morning, or at work. You would think that they could have at least had him wear his "team ring" on his left hand.

3. When Magnum is seen wearing the long white "lab" coat while trying to get into door #8 several crates fall on top of him. After the first set of crates fall, Magnum falls to the ground, then a second set of crates come crashing down and Magnum rolls out of the way and ends up on his back. After Magnum ends up on his back you can see on his left side of his coat the rectangular pattern of the protective padding underneath the coat. It is very defined with the corners protruding distrupting the natural form of the coat. I imagine that particular coat was chosen so that the padding could be hidden underneath for that stunt.
The answer is obvious, old man. Logic is irrelevant. It's simply Tropical Madness. (J.Q. Higgins)

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#3 Post by J.J. Walters »

Heh, no wedding ring! Too funny.

I didn't add #1. There could have been a puddle from somebody else at the reception. ;)

It's hard to tell with Marsha nagging Magnum to death (!), but I don't think that's Pat O'Brien's voice. It's similiar, but I don't think it's him.

One interesting fact I just noticed in this episode is that the guesthouse has cable TV (in 1983)! Magnum mentions watching a repeat viewing of the USC/Notre Dame game "on cable". The guy has it all, doesn't he.
Higgins: It's not a scratch! It's a bloody gouge!

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#4 Post by Doc Ibold »

Just saw this episode and have come to this conclusion:

Marsha MacKenzie is being added to the list of characters that irritate me to no end, that being Goldie Morris, Shelly Faraday, Betty Windham, and whoever that reporter guy was from "Heal Thyself".

Ugh, I gotta feel for Magnum on this one.

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#5 Post by J.J. Walters »

True, but she's oh so smokin' hot! :)
Higgins: It's not a scratch! It's a bloody gouge!

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#6 Post by Doc Ibold »

James J. Walters wrote:True, but she's oh so smokin' hot! :)
Sometimes it's just not worth it, friend!

:lol:

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#7 Post by IslandHopper »

Actually, I think she looked better in "Thank Heaven For Little Girs And Big Ones Too." Maybe it's the hair. In the season 1 episode, she had that Kate Jackson (although a blonde) '70s hair style and by the time season 3 came around she had the '80s style "big hair." I always thought it looked strange. Plus, in season 1 she wore what looked like white "Levis" as opposed to those frumpy dresses in "I Do." :)
The answer is obvious, old man. Logic is irrelevant. It's simply Tropical Madness. (J.Q. Higgins)

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#8 Post by Doc Ibold »

IslandHopper wrote:Actually, I think she looked better in "Thank Heaven For Little Girs And Big Ones Too." Maybe it's the hair. In the season 1 episode, she had that Kate Jackson (although a blonde) '70s hair style and by the time season 3 came around she had the '80s style "big hair." I always thought it looked strange. Plus, in season 1 she wore what looked like white "Levis" as opposed to those frumpy dresses in "I Do." :)
I quite concur!

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Carol the Dabbler
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#9 Post by Carol the Dabbler »

IslandHopper wrote:The episode guide already lists the flub of Magnum referring to himself as a "Private Detective." This is a major flub because we all know Magnum goes out of his way to make sure he prefers the title of "Private Investigator."

Additional flubs include:

2. ... they forgot ... to give Magnum a wedding ring.
Sorry, IH, but I beg to differ on two of your points:

What Magnum stereotypically gets bent out of shape about is being called a "Private Eye" or a "P.I." (as in the title of the show!). I don't offhand recall him ever being called a Private Detective before (or objecting to it), though he does as a rule refer to himself as a Private Investigator. (But my memory could be failing me here, so if you can cite a counterexample, please correct me!!) True, it's an inconsistency, but people do use different words sometimes.

They were very consistent about it being a single-ring wedding. (Remember, this was the early 80's, when double-ring ceremonies were still somewhat new/optional.) The minister refers to "the giving and receiving of a ring."

And James, I believe Magnum was watching Gunga Din at the honeymoon cottage, not in the guest house (Note 5).

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#10 Post by IslandHopper »

Carol the Dabbler wrote:
IslandHopper wrote:The episode guide already lists the flub of Magnum referring to himself as a "Private Detective." This is a major flub because we all know Magnum goes out of his way to make sure he prefers the title of "Private Investigator."

Additional flubs include:

2. ... they forgot ... to give Magnum a wedding ring.
Sorry, IH, but I beg to differ on two of your points:

What Magnum stereotypically gets bent out of shape about is being called a "Private Eye" or a "P.I." (as in the title of the show!). I don't offhand recall him ever being called a Private Detective before (or objecting to it), though he does as a rule refer to himself as a Private Investigator. (But my memory could be failing me here, so if you can cite a counterexample, please correct me!!) True, it's an inconsistency, but people do use different words sometimes.

They were very consistent about it being a single-ring wedding. (Remember, this was the early 80's, when double-ring ceremonies were still somewhat new/optional.) The minister refers to "the giving and receiving of a ring."
Carol,

There are several examples throughout the series where Magnum corrects the person referring to him as a "Private Detective," however, the only one I can cite off hand is in "Find Me A Rainbow." When Magnum first meets the limo driver, Donald Burns, at the Chic Limo garage, Magnum reveals that it was his client that gave him his (Burns') name. Donald Burns then says "Private Detective, huh?" Magnum corrects him and says "Private Investigator." Magnum has made this correction on many occasions.

I know I haven't been around as long as some other members, but I have never heard of a "single ring" ceremony, or never realized that double ring ceremonies were new in the 1980s. I can only speak to my own experiences, and it has always been my experience that both the bride and groom exchanged rings during the ceremony. My parents were married in the '50s and they had a "double ring ceremony." All of my brothers and sisters who were married before the '80s had double ring ceremonies. I had a double ring ceremony. All of my friends have had double ring ceremonies. In fact, my friends would catch all kinds of grief from their wives whenever they did not wear their wedding ring. Carol, you may be right about the single ring ceremony, but it's news to me.
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#11 Post by SelleckLover »

My husband and I were married in 1973 and we had a double ringer. :D Not trying to prove a point here, I'm just saying.... :D

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#12 Post by golfmobile »

I have to go with the "single ring" idea. I'm on my third husband (maybe I should be Golfie Mame . . . .) and my first husband (1971) wore a wedding ring, my second (1984) did not, and my third (1992) does. So, while I think it would have made more sense and a more viable "pretend" marriage if he did wear one just for the episode and his "cover," I don't see that as a major flub.

So I'm not saying it was necessarily more prevalent for a groom NOT to wear one in the 1980s, but it was possible that the bride was the only one who was given a ring. As I said, my 1980s marriage did not have one for the groom. I think a lot of this was caused by the "freedom" that became to be "allowed" in the 1980s where the wife didn't have to take the husband's last name and the husband didn't have to wear a ring (particularly if it would be a problem in his career -- TV star, welder, private investigator trying to be undercover, etc. . . . . ) However, if you're trying to "fake" a marriage, there should be a ring for each. So I'd vote this as a non-issue for a flub -- too many options available, if you see what I mean.

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#13 Post by Carol the Dabbler »

IH, thanks for the info on Magnum's reaction to "Private Detective." I haven't seen the episode you mentioned for several years, so I didn't remember that part. I guess I will have to restate my earlier comment to say that it would have been an even worse flub if Magnum had referred to himself as a "Private Eye"!

Apparently, double-ring weddings were fairly common a few decades earlier than I thought -- Wikipedia says "... by the late 1940s, double-ring ceremonies made up for 80% of all weddings...." But newspaper accounts of weddings still tended to mention either "single-ring" or "double-ring" long after the late forties, certainly into the 70's, so both options were considered "normal" then.

I agree, in the 80's, a double-ring ceremony might have been more convincing. But, come to think of it, the whole "wedding" was done on the cheap (plastic champagne glasses, etc.), so the single ring fits right in.
Carol

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#14 Post by J.J. Walters »

This episode features one the best bits of "Higgins History" ever:

In Alexandria (probably 1938), Higgins was forced to feign matrimony (reason undisclosed) with not one, but three daughters of a Bedouin Prince. "As a young Lance-Corporal who had experienced but one affaire de coeur in my 22 years, the prospect of an impending wedding eve with three hot-blooded Bedouin was indeed an awesome one! Fortunately, as the youngest daughter dosed the dying campfire and plunged the tent into pitch blackness, I recalled a particularly relevent chapter from Rommel's classic treatise on tank warfare"... (Magnum throws a pillow at him) :shock:

LOL!
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#15 Post by lutherhgillis »

This is a decent epi but Katherine Cannon plays the part of a suuuuuuper biiiiiitch! I would have slapped her very early on in the episode. :wink: :wink: :wink:

As far as the success of MPI being related to the perfect storm of characterists, I remember seeing this episode during its first run. I was extremely disappointed at the time seeing Magnum move out of the guesthouse and get married (supposedly). I could tell that something would never be right about breaking up the perfect storm...

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