Transitions (8.11)

[marlboro]

Why would they bring the real manuscript to the cliff at the end?

The writing wasn't very strong in this episode. I have no idea why Luther Gillis was even included since he had almost nothing to do.

[Doc Ibold]

Why would they bring the real manuscript to the cliff at the end?

The writing wasn't very strong in this episode. I have no idea why Luther Gillis was even included since he had almost nothing to do.

EXACTLY!

[SignGuyHPW]

I wasn't too much of a fan of this one really. It had its moments, but I thought that it was kind of a weak story overall when it had a lot of potential.

I was never, ever a fan of the whole "Higgins is really Robin Masters" storyline. For them to focus on this heavily gauranteed for me to not like it too well. Luther showing up to hang out with Magnum because his fiance (whom he had promised to marry earlier in the series) had left him and was about to marry someone else seemed a bit forced. It's odd that Luther would just pick up and go to Hawaii on a whim every so often. It also made Magnum look kind of bad when he makes TC fly him to where he wants to go when he knew TC had promised the day to his son. If Magnum had plans with Lily then there's no way he'd drop it and investigate someone tampering with the helicopter or whatever. He'd have put it off until later. I also didn't understand why they would take the actual manuscript to the cliff knowing that Robin had already been paid a substantial amount for it and couldn't just recreate it. Another thing I didn't like was that Higgins alluded to it being a possible Pulitzer prize winner, but that got dropped and it was just a typical Robin Masters novel with the same style and content as usual. If they had revealed it was a completely different type of book than his usual fare that would've been interesting. Another huge point that never got settled was that Higgins discovered a $20,000 error by the accountant. Then the accountant showed up to let him know about a huge error he'd made in the books. They never really said if the error was a legitamate one or if he had embezzeled funds. It was just not made too clear and should've been a key point.

I did like how they were preparing for the series finale by having Magnum pack up his things and wanting to visit his family suddenly before he was back in the service. The talk about transistions was really good foreshadowing on the part of the writers. I could tell easily that it would be Luther disguised as Higgins towards the end, but I kind of liked how they played it. I think if they had taken the main plot of Higgins was responsible for the loss of a Robin Masters manuscript and put it in an earlier season (say 3 or 4) that they'd have gotten a stronger episode. With Robin having been paid, Higgins being duped by a phoney telegram, and Magnum being the only guy that could save Higgins' job it had a lot of potential. Since they were so focused on Magnum's theory that Higgins is Masters that they played it too cutesy and not something serious. Magnum mainly treated it as a game and with the comic character of Luther being involved it was like two seperate episodes (Higgins in a serious one and everyone else in a comedy ones) getting blended. I'd loved to have seen this one as a serious one or as a twist have Robin show up at the end with the REAL manuscript to reveal he'd known about the plot and sent Higgins a phony.

[EZiller]

I gave it a 9. Good story, action, comedy, really all the elements we enjoy in MPI, plus our final appearance of Luther Gillis. As a former fan of the St. Louis football Cardinals, I appreciated that Luther was going after "the scrungos from Phoenix who are trying to steal our football team." Well, they ended up in AZ in the fall of 1988, but I'm sure Luther gave it his best shot.

I always liked the Higgins is Robin story line that they developed the last couple years. Thought it was brilliant and this episode heavily gets into it. Also like Randi Brooks as Susie, the frustrated novelist who is trying to kill Higgins [who she thinks is RM] she looked really hot in the swimsuit in the party that Luther threw at TM's place. Top Ten MPI babe-Cougar Division.

[StaveIsle]

This is a really good, fun episode with a cool mystery/twist. The climax was kind of hokey, but overall the episode is a nice lead-in to the series finale.

It's good to see Luther, the lovable 'ol gumshoe from St. Louie, again. I've always been a big fan of this character. And hey, he knows how to throw a party, huh. His guesthouse party was really swingin'!

Love the opening scene with Magnum going through all of his "stuff". He appears to have another handheld computer game, maybe a Coleco sports game of some kind...



... and notice the "Cat Lover" award. In "Photo Play" he received a "Cat Lover of the Month Award". Here he has a "Cat Lover of the Year award!

I really, really like the "change/transitions" narrations from Magnum. Grandfather Sullivan sure was a cool guy. I want to go hunting for wild asparagus sometime.

Is it just me, or did anyone else think "Supermac" when hearing about "Malcolm MacDonald"?

If you want a good chuckle, at the 25:24 mark, when Luther is walking with Suzi and Cleo on the estate lawn, take a look at Suzi when Luther says, "Wham!". It's a you-have-to-see-it-to-believe-it, involuntary, ... uh, upper body ... "flinch".

I liked the pile of Indy gear from the previous episode too. And yeh...quite a 'flinch'.

[marlboro]

1. Randi Brooks...hubba hubba!

Holy crap - she's the hooker with the annoying voice in Steve Martin's "The Man with Two Brains"!


"Dook dook dook, dook of oil oil oil"

[K Hale]

I'd have liked this one more if Magnum had not spent almost the entire time behaving so childishly. He was really a jackass here and way out of character.

Just so many sad things here.

[#1 Buzzettes Fan]

I feel this was an inappropriate episode to be situated immediately before the finale. I agree that they were pushing too hard with the Higgins being RM notion. After Paper Wars, I could tolerate maybe one or two subtle hints at the idea but then it should have been laid to rest. I never subscribed to the theory especially when all of Robin's friends would have had to been duped all those years. Too many contradictory events early in the show.

Also, Luther Gillis didn't need to resurface after A.A.P.I. in my opinion. I would have preferred one last solid mystery with just the core guys at the KKC. Maybe show some other parts of the club, or have Robin arrive there only to be found held hostage. Something epic! A commie missle threat would have been tense. All the cast bunkered in reminiscing of their friendships. I think Benson had an episode like that already though

[SeamanWolfe]

While not the best story - this episode stuck with me for the quote from his grand father (featured on the episode recap on this page). To paraphrase - Change is inevitable, it is almost always for the better, but the transition can be tough. He follows up later in the episode saying how you make the transition is as important. He throws a quick aside at the end of the story "at least I think that is what he said"

I think about that anytime I have a big change coming (switching jobs, starting a new project....)

[charybdis1966]

My first viewing of this episode and it was ok; I quite like Luther Gillis and his smart repartee yet I found the plot a bit clumsy and disjointed.
I noticed further up this thread some one mentioned a Malcolm McDonald as “Super Mac”.
Now I immediately thought of the Arsenal (an English football, soccer as you guys say, team) striker from the 1970’s. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malcolm_Macdonald

Of course it’s not the one you guys meant, but a bit of schoolboy nostalgia came my way when I read that.

[Luther's nephew Dobie]

My first viewing of this episode and it was ok; I quite like Luther Gillis and his smart repartee yet I found the plot a bit clumsy and disjointed.
I noticed further up this thread some one mentioned a Malcolm McDonald as “Super Mac”.
Now I immediately thought of the Arsenal (an English football, soccer as you guys say, team) striker from the 1970’s. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malcolm_Macdonald

Of course it’s not the one you guys meant, but a bit of schoolboy nostalgia came my way when I read that.

charybdis,
May I ask your opinion of John Hillerman's accent, does it work for you as an Englishman? Or do you sometimes hear his Texas accent come through? I always thought
John did a terrific job, but hey I'm from Jersey and have enough problems speaking the mother tongue myself.
Not the Isle of Jersey, New Jersey the state.

[charybdis1966]

charybdis,
May I ask your opinion of John Hillerman's accent, does it work for you as an Englishman? Or do you sometimes hear his Texas accent come through? I always thought
John did a terrific job, but hey I'm from Jersey and have enough problems speaking the mother tongue myself.
Not the Isle of Jersey, New Jersey the state.

Hello Dobie,

when I saw MPI on it's original run I was sure John Hillerman (JH) was english - and when I saw him in a sitcom at the time (I can't remember what it was called) he sounded american so I assumed he was putting on, what I thought then, was an unconvincing american accent.

I would say JH got the accent at least 90% right and it was only when I saw the reruns in the 90's and later that I noticed a few discrepancies - ones I only noticed because I had by then learnt JH was a Texan.

The main one is how he puts the emphasis on the second syllable in details (duh-tails; an englishman would put emphasis on the first syllable, as in dee-tails). Other than that I completely can believe he was brought up in home counties England and JH did a tip top job on the voice, one he modelled on Laurence Olivier IIRC.

[Luther's nephew Dobie]

charybdis,
May I ask your opinion of John Hillerman's accent, does it work for you as an Englishman? Or do you sometimes hear his Texas accent come through? I always thought
John did a terrific job, but hey I'm from Jersey and have enough problems speaking the mother tongue myself.
Not the Isle of Jersey, New Jersey the state.

Hello Dobie,

when I saw MPI on it's original run I was sure John Hillerman (JH) was english - and when I saw him in a sitcom at the time (I can't remember what it was called) he sounded american so I assumed he was putting on, what I thought then, was an unconvincing american accent.

I would say JH got the accent at least 90% right and it was only when I saw the reruns in the 90's and later that I noticed a few discrepancies - ones I only noticed because I had by then learnt JH was a Texan.

The main one is how he puts the emphasis on the second syllable in details (duh-tails; an englishman would put emphasis on the first syllable, as in dee-tails). Other than that I completely can believe he was brought up in home counties England and JH did a tip top job on the voice, one he modelled on Laurence Olivier IIRC.

charybdis,
Thank you - or should I say 'ta' - for your most enlightening post! I'm so glad an excellent actor like John Hillerman put in the hard work getting the accent right.

By the way I think Hillerman would have been a hoot as yet another of Higgin's half brothers, an ocker from beyond the black stump in the outback, pounding back Victoria Bitter.

My Aussie pal has been teaching me Strine, so for the hell of it I thought I might also respond to your above reply in what passes for their version of English:

"charybdis, you bloody ripper. I took a squizz at your post and bugger me sideways if you didn't put in the hard yakka sussing out Hillerman's accent, so good onya cobber the first shout is on me."

[charybdis1966]

charybdis,
Thank you - or should I say 'ta' - for your most enlightening post! I'm so glad an excellent actor like John Hillerman put in the hard work getting the accent right.

By the way I think Hillerman would have been a hoot as yet another of Higgin's half brothers, an ocker from beyond the black stump in the outback, pounding back Victoria Bitter.

My Aussie pal has been teaching me Strine, so for the hell of it I thought I might also respond to your above reply in what passes for their version of English:

"charybdis, you bloody ripper. I took a squizz at your post and bugger me sideways if you didn't put in the hard yakka sussing out Hillerman's accent, so good onya cobber the first shout is on me."

Ha ha, that's excellent Dobie and I agree there was good scope to explore John Hillerman's range with a few more half brothers from across the world.

The dedication and skill of the actors in MPI continues to shine through all these years later as well as the chemistry between the four regulars to remind us what a great show it was.

[Pahonu]

charybdis,
Thank you - or should I say 'ta' - for your most enlightening post! I'm so glad an excellent actor like John Hillerman put in the hard work getting the accent right.

By the way I think Hillerman would have been a hoot as yet another of Higgin's half brothers, an ocker from beyond the black stump in the outback, pounding back Victoria Bitter.

My Aussie pal has been teaching me Strine, so for the hell of it I thought I might also respond to your above reply in what passes for their version of English:

"charybdis, you bloody ripper. I took a squizz at your post and bugger me sideways if you didn't put in the hard yakka sussing out Hillerman's accent, so good onya cobber the first shout is on me."

Ha ha, that's excellent Dobie and I agree there was good scope to explore John Hillerman's range with a few more half brothers from across the world.

The dedication and skill of the actors in MPI continues to shine through all these years later as well as the chemistry between the four regulars to remind us what a great show it was.

I agree generally, although it took a while for Manetti to get the Rick character, I think. Manetti even commented that after the “Bogey Rick” character from the pilot was dropped, along with the night club, he wasn’t given much if any direction on the character.