N1095A wrote:This episode has one of my favorite Magnum monemts. When Magnum is trying to talk TC into flying Billy Joe to check out a lead, TC is working on the chopper by banging in the open engine bay with a hammer. As the conversation continues, TC casually walks over to his tool box and gets a bigger hammer, then returns to the engine bay. It's a very subtle scene that I find very amusing. It's the old "You need a bigger hammer" joke.
As he is stealing TC's chopper, Billy Joe looks to his left showing the right side of the pilot's headset. Written in in large letters is the name D. JONES on the right earmuff. Being that it is supposed to be TC's headset, are we to assume TC stole it from some guy named Jones? In reality it was likely a headset belonging to pilotand aerial coordinator David Jones.
in that scene at the chopper....TC mutters to himself....."I told him that time".....gave me a good laugh.
Saw TC bangin on his Helo with a mallet. Not a hammer.
""Billy Joe Bob", may very well be my least favorite episodes of the show." terrible ep, agreed. Only saving grace is the extended footage of the Clarence Cooke estate front entrance, front yard and the big back lanai..
The barkeep pulling a cocked loaded shotgun at patrons is TOO much. This would NEVER happen. aside from the fact NO one keeps a shotgun at the bar in Waiks.
I hate magnum telling the redneck "I may have been all buttercups and daisies in there.." gawd DAMMIT! NO one speaks like that. This is so gay. Tom, do not ever do that again.
" I just think that would be fun to walk around and check out all the cats! It might also be a little unnerving knowing so many of them will be watching you as you walk around (The Birds anybody?)."
Been going there for years. Cats feral and otherwise keep to themselves and are mostly unseen. They are not highly in evidence. And they don't give a ratsazz about humans.
Billy Joe Bob Little, a hot tempered Texan cow-boy, wants to hire Magnum to find his missing sister Carol Ann.
After a "friendly" chitchat with the man, TM agrees to investigate but Billy Joe's temper is not easy to deal with.
By mean of various "distracting" actions the p.i. finally manages to find Carol Ann's whereabouts but there aren't good news for Billy Joe.
Second Season begins with this "Billy Joe Bob" episode, not one of my favourite (I usually prefer the "lighter" episodes).
The plot is straight and simple with only a final twist, the acting performances are overall decent.
I like the scene when Magnum tells what he has discovered to BJ.
On the other hand I don't like when BJ enters the sea with his clothes on, it looks strange to me.
The best moments are (as often happens) the ones with TM and Higgins interacting, the whole "recycled vegetation" scene is simply hilarious (Hillerman is great here!).
And the reprise at the end with Magnum fooling him about the manure is the cherry on the top of the cake.
These two scenes save this episode, but it would have been better to use this one as a filler.
As a season starter is not that much.
Plus: Magnum/Higgins scenes (that "Nonsense!" is priceless). Minus: plot a little weak, James Whitmore's character's a little "over-the-top". Best line:
Magnum: Recycled vegetation? What do you mean recycled vegetation? Recycled how?
Higgins: Through a cow.
Notes:
- team ring on right hand.
- starting from this episode a slightly different version of the Post/Carpenter theme is used on the opening credits. New clips are used in the video montage too, including the iconic "snorkeling girl" which I believe will be used through the rest of the show.
- TM's belt with USN buckle is seen for the first time in this episode.
- Again, same actor playing different character: James Whitmore Jr. will return as Nuzo in the two-parts Season Three opening episode "Did you see the sunrise?".
Seth Sakai, already in "All Roads Leads to Floyd" (1.13) will play three other characters in four future episodes.
Jimmy Borges will appear again in "Did you see the sunrise?" (3.01-3.02), "Little Games" (5.12) and "This island isn't big enough" (6.16).
Patrick Bishop's character changes his name from Pat ("Missing in Action" (1.09) and "J. "Digger" Doyle" (1.17)) to Keoki. He will appear in six other episodes.
Robert Apisa was in "The Black Orchid" (1.16) and will be back in "From Moscow to Maui" (2.04), "...By Its Cover" (3.21), "Dream a Little Dream" (4.20) and "Tigers Fan" (8.04).
Danny Kamekona will appear again in five other episodes.
Deborah Takushi had played a waitress in "Adelaide" (1.14).
Deborah Hedquist had played a secretary in "All Roads Leads to Floyd" (1.13).
- about the almost-flub of Carol Ann saying "he told me", Coops' hypothesis makes sense. I have to admit though that it sounded strange to me when I saw the episode as it seems she's really referring to her brother. It would have been better to write that line in a clearer way.
Funny thing: I read there is a cat in one scene at Ito's place (an "extra"?). I admit I didn't notice him. Next time maybe...
Rate: 7
"Zeus, Apollo, get out of my Ferrari!"
"Mr. Masters' Ferrari"
Another great episode with a hot headed Texan. Every few months I rent Magnum P.I. episodes from Netflix even though I had seen them at least once before I get a kick out of watching them again. This was a blast.
Season 2 has a lot of great episodes.
I found the simpler episodes with few characters seem to be the most enjoyable. When they inject too many faces and too many twists it can lose its punch. This is a very straightforward episode.
I just realized I posted a comment only 5 months ago on this thread and guess what, I watched it tonight and loved it, again. This story really threw me for a loop and it makes it even more intriguing when they do this. The police announced a girl to be deceased, and then they were actually hiding that she is alive to protect her in the upcoming prosecution in court of the Japanese Mafia head in Hawaii. I never heard of the police lying about a death but I suppose it is possible. It doesn't work that way in the real world.
The opening scene was also one of the better ones with Magnum throwing punches after just meeting a client.
I found I like episodes more when there are punches thrown but they limit the gunfire. When there is constant gunfire, it loses my interest, just not believable I guess or compensating for a story that is lacking and so they use bullets to compensate.
Love the hot headed Texan, or hate him, I think this episode is underrated compared to so many highly touted episodes that I found lackluster. Just my thoughts.
I bet I will watch this episode again this year and like it just as much.
This was an odd choice to kick of the season imo. I think I would have liked this episode more if it had maintained a more serious tone throughout. The Texas stereotypes were almost at a cartoonish level for a lot of the episode.
I didn't like this one very much at all. Billy Joe Bob was just TOO sterotypical for my tastes. Right off the bat, the guy starts punching random people for no good reason. Magnum taking him with him and having him disobey his wishes made me even less sympathetic towards him. The cops that were tailing Magnum were pretty random and since, usually, Magnum knew and worked with a lot of the cops it didn't seem to make a ton of sense to me that he'd not know them. Ito having no idea who Magnum was and his men not knowing also struck me as odd since he'd been in the newspapers and they should've been able to research his history as an ex NIA officer. I also couldn't explain why Billy Joe Bob just didn't shoot Ito instead of hanging him. It didn't make sense that he had that elaborate hanging in mind when he was carrying a gun.
It was cool to see the mom from Small Wonders in a different role. That and Zeus answering the phone to get Higgins' attention off of him was great.
Gave it a 7, very average. Seemed like a recycled Rockford script. The idea that he could hot wire and fly TC's chopper, not being an experienced chopper pilot, is absolutely preposterous. Somehow I though the whole thing may have been a test run for Whitmore's "Billy Joe Bob" being a spinoff-"bringing frontier justice to the 80's" or something.
I did like Whitmore as XO Gutterman in the first season of "Black Sheep Squadron" which of course included Manetti in the cast, as well as having quite a few of the others making guest appearances in MPI over the years. Black Sheep was a pretty good show the first season, then they completed ruined it by making it a T&A extravaganza with the addition of the hot looking nurses, "Pappy's Lambs." I have no problem with good looking babes in a tv show [like the background scenery in scenes at the KKC!] but Black Sheep was supposed to be a WW2 saga.
N1095A wrote:This episode has one of my favorite Magnum monemts. When Magnum is trying to talk TC into flying Billy Joe to check out a lead, TC is working on the chopper by banging in the open engine bay with a hammer. As the conversation continues, TC casually walks over to his tool box and gets a bigger hammer, then returns to the engine bay. It's a very subtle scene that I find very amusing. It's the old "You need a bigger hammer" joke.
As he is stealing TC's chopper, Billy Joe looks to his left showing the right side of the pilot's headset. Written in in large letters is the name D. JONES on the right earmuff. Being that it is supposed to be TC's headset, are we to assume TC stole it from some guy named Jones? In reality it was likely a headset belonging to pilotand aerial coordinator David Jones.
Nice catching the flub!, I saw another in this episode, at the very beginning where Billy Joe is walking to the KKC, he looks inside TM Ferrari parked at the front entrance, after the punch in the jaw scene, TM Ferrari is now at the opposite end of the entrance...how did it move?
N1095A wrote:I really don't know which was more amusing, Billy Joe trying to talk without the accent or TM trying to talk with it. Either way, great scene in the bar.
I agree! This and the funny ending where Magnum left Higgins to fertilize the lawn were the best parts of this one. I can't say I really liked this episode at all. Not one of my top few worst but just not that good. I found Billy Jo to be pretty ridiculous as a whole, running around slugging people out? Stealing helicopters, I mean who does that. I just didn't find this to be very believable or entertaining. With that being said its still a Magnum and even ones that I wasn't crazy about are far better than other shows:)
