Dream A Little Dream (4.20)

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VM02 · #16 Post by **VM02** » Mon Mar 24, 2008 12:53 pm

I think this episode's storyline would be fairly blah without the flashbacks to what the characters were like in 1979, but I guess that was the intent. It also gives the writers an opportunity to show TM dealing with Michelle that we didn't see in season 1 and a scene of him being "daddy," that foreshadows the Lily relationship. Its interesting to me that he enjoys the role, but in this case doesn't seriously consider taking it on permanantly.

Christopher Anderson's Article, "Reflections on Magnum PI", spends a considerable amount of space dealing with this episode.

#17 Post by **J.J. Walters** » Tue Jun 03, 2008 10:29 pm

Does anyone happen to know the exact make/model/year of the "mini jimmy"?

#18 Post by **Doc Ibold** » Tue Jun 03, 2008 11:45 pm

James J. Walters wrote:Does anyone happen to know the exact make/model/year of the "mini jimmy"?

Looks like an '85 GMC Jimmy to me

#19 Post by **J.J. Walters** » Wed Jun 04, 2008 1:05 am

I thought maybe it went by a different name when the GMC went to smaller size. I see now that it's officially called the GMC S-15 Jimmy.

Thanks Doc

#20 Post by **Doc Ibold** » Wed Jun 04, 2008 2:30 pm

James J. Walters wrote:I thought maybe it went by a different name when the GMC went to smaller size. I see now that it's officially called the GMC S-15 Jimmy.

Thanks Doc

No problem!

The Jimmy nameplate was around until the mid-to late 90's when GM just took the Jimmy name and renamed it "Envoy". Same thing with Blazer to "TrailBlazer"

A P Leyland · #21 Post by **A P Leyland** » Wed Sep 03, 2008 5:16 pm

[quote="VM02"]I think this episode's storyline would be fairly blah without the flashbacks to what the characters were like in 1979, but I guess that was the intent. [quote]

I agree. It's a very pedestrian episode without the flashbacks. Maybe the script was a bit 'blah' and they added the flashbacks to add a little spice? However, I don't ever remember seeing this episode before so to all intent's and purposes it was a new episode. Groovy.

I had hoped, upon watching the pre-credit teaser that we would find out exactly how Magnum ended up at Robin's Nest but, alas it was not to be.

Andy

#22 Post by **ConchRepublican** » Wed Sep 03, 2008 6:17 pm

James J. Walters wrote:
Tuan Vu wrote:Also, does anyone know if that was Rell Sunn at 47:12? I am pretty sure that it was. By the way, a friend and I were there the day they scattered her ashes out in Makaha. It's hard to believe that was 10 years ago.
Wow, great find Tuan! It's very brief, but it is indeed women's surfing pioneer, and Hawaiian legend, Rell Sunn (the "Queen of Makaha")! !

Wow what a sad story. What an impressive woman.

MACattack · #23 Post by **MACattack** » Fri Nov 21, 2008 2:11 am

It was totally awesome to see Magnum looking alot like a hippie!
Alas, the opening sequence was the best part of the episode, and the story winds down to sheer boredom. I think I passed out while watching this episode once on a drunken night!

MACattack · #24 Post by **MACattack** » Sun Mar 08, 2009 4:46 am

I was watching this episode again, and I cant stop thinking about Magnum blackmailing T.C. until flying him to the other side of the island.
Who the heck is the Lizard Lady?

Jay-Firestorm · #25 Post by **Jay-Firestorm** » Thu Jul 09, 2009 12:17 pm

Thursdays’ review. It’s interesting to see Magnum’s life five years previously, but I found the actual plot rather dull.

[rating=8.0]

As he visits her in the present, Magnum recalls his first case in 1979, where he helped a surfing champion who was being threatened. But things in the present day look set to parallel those of 1979. A so-so story saved by its interesting flashbacks…

-----

This review contains mild spoilers.

This episode, dealing with Magnum’s first real case as a Private Investigator in 1979, comes just two episodes after the excellent ‘Holmes Is Where the Heart Is’, which dealt with an event in Higgins’ life in 1976. As such, I find it hard not to compare the two stories.

The episode is directed by Roger E. Mosley, otherwise known as T.C. It is the only episode of the series he will direct, although he will go on to co-write the seventh season episode ‘Missing Melody’.

Of most interest in this episode is how different Magnum’s life was five years previously – one year before the series started. He had long hair, drove a beaten up Volkswagen Beetle convertible, worked out of a small office, and we see the first instances of preferring the term “Private Investigator”, and his first time of asking Rick to run down a license plate, as well as the first bullet in T.C.’s helicopter (and T.C. doesn’t even own this one)!
We also see Rick in his ‘Humphrey Bogart’ phase, tying in nicely with the Pilot, where he was seen as such. (This idea was dropped from the series itself, and I’m glad, as I find it rather silly and grating).

There are some nice ‘time shifts’, as the present merges into the past within the same shot (okay, you probably need to see it to get what I mean!).
The episode also has some fair action, namely the sequence with the Jimmy (updated to a new, later model here) chasing the motorbike along the beach.

But I have to say, beyond the novelty of the flashbacks themselves, I find the bulk of this story rather dull. I wasn’t all that interested in Magnum’s relationship with Karen, and felt that it really dragged in places.

‘Holmes Is Where the Heart Is’ was a perfectly crafted and immensely watchable story; ‘Dream a Little Dream’ is just more of a novelty, and once you look past the flashbacks, it isn’t really one of the greatest. To be fair, it is perfectly watchable (and is by no means the weakest offering of the season – personally I’d give that title to ‘Paradise Blues’), but at best it comes off as one of those episodes that I only watch very occasionally, and is far from being one of my favourite stories.

-----

Other notes, bloopers and misc.:

* Rick and T.C. only appear in flashback in this episode.

* On the opening trailer, Rick is seen standing opposite Magnum as he says the line (in Bogey style) “You see, the one trick of staying alive in this crazy, cockeyed world, is to know when you’re licked”. In the episode itself, he is seen walking towards Magnum across the beach.

* I noticed T.C.’s headset changing within the same sequence, but this had already been spotted!

* The DVD version of this episode has all of the commercial breaks abridged.

* The version of this episode that Five broadcast in 2002 did not have the Beach Boys song at the beginning, instead having the same instrumental that the DVD version would use.

MACattack · #26 Post by **MACattack** » Fri Sep 04, 2009 9:53 pm

Magnum as a hippie. Very poignant!

omdata · #27 Post by **omdata** » Mon Sep 07, 2009 3:00 am

Early on in the episode they seem to intimate the little girl is actually Magnum's daughter, but then they seem to drop this thread very quickly. The episode struck me as kind of a mess, structurally speaking, so it looked like this may have been something they backed out on at the last minute or in editing.

-When Magnum initially meets the girl, they take pains to highlight Magnum's large brown eyes, as well as the girl's...
-Soon after that scene, they mention she met the girl's "father" right after her tryst with Magnum, making it possible for him to be the read dad...

Did anyone else notice this?

#28 Post by **J.J. Walters** » Mon Sep 07, 2009 4:02 pm

Hey, welcome to the site omdata!

What a great observation about Magnum and the little girl in this episode! The thought never even occurred to me before, but, in looking at the scene again, I believe you are right. The scene at the very end where he is holding the girl at the beach also plays into this theory.

omdata · #29 Post by **omdata** » Wed Sep 09, 2009 3:30 am

Been visiting about a year now (about since I started watching Magnum on DVD). Love the site

Somehow I missed out on the show, growing up. I'm really enjoying catching up on it now (along with Miami Vice).

IKnowWhatYoureThinking · Wed Sep 09, 2009 12:56 pm

Welcome omdata. Good observation.

Dream A Little Dream (4.20)

How Would You Rate This Episode?

Is the Little Girl Magnum's Child?

Thanks