The Aunt Who Came to Dinner (7.20)

[J. Rickley Schneider]

Robin's Nest could use a smoking hot maid.

So could my house.

[SignGuyHPW]

I thought that this one was a really interesting episode. It was unique in that it was the only time that Magnum ran an investigation at the behest of a relative. It was also one of the few times where we saw the house hold staff inside of the estate (not to mention it was a temp).

There were a few issues I had with it. The scene with with Magnum at the Hall of Records was just really not realistic enough for me to be good comedy. The line closing with that many people in there just as Magnum was about to talk to someone allowing all of those people to rush to the other line ahead of him was dumb. Then you have a sailor starting a fight with a civillian just hours before going on duty which is possible, but not over the issue that caused the guy to swing first. I also questioned why Lani would've allowed anyone into the estate without Higgins allowing them in there. A temp letting someone through the gate that she didn't know without prior approval seems really, really odd. The old critic and the failed play writer conspiring to steal Pheobe's play was a bit of a stretch to me as well, but there had to be some kind of side plot involving investigating.

I thought the basic premise of the episode was really, really good. People may not recall how much of a topic that Alzheimer's disease was in the late 80s as it was starting to get noticed as an actual disease affecting older people. The acting as a confused Alzheimer's patient was great. A lot of times the people suffering can recall things that happened to them decades before much more clearly than things that happened in the most recent few weeks. Magnum's confusion as his Aunt didn't seem to know him or where she was would be a natural reaction in that time period as a lot of people didn't know much about the disease or how it affected people. Higgins and Magnum, seemingly, realising that Pheobe's mental state may not be totally rational without outright saying it was a great scene between the two of them. It was also interesting to see Higgins trying to accomodate Magnum's aunt despite his frustration with her putting heavy demands on him and his staff.

For the people debating the family relationship here is what I got from it (right or wrong): Phoebe was married to Thomas' uncle Sully which was his mother's brother. We know that Sullivan was Magnum's mother's side of the family. Sully is a common nickname for Sullivan so it's not surprising if most people referred to the uncle as Sully, including his wife. Magnum's middle name being the same as his mother's maiden name was probably a coincidence. It happens. My cousin married a woman whose last name was the same as his mother's maiden name despite the two families not being at all related. I'd also guess that Uncle Sully was much older than Aunt Phoebe considering he passed away in 1955ish and Phoebe was looking to be 55-60 30 years later. Could've been some kind of accident or something, but if he was 15-20 years older then a heart attack wouldn't have been out of the question at all.

[charybdis1966]

This was a curious episode, as others have already stated it seemed like a usual “(almost)never heard of before relative turns up requiring TM’s help yet the story side stepped into a completely different direction at the end.

While the peril for Aunt phoebe situation was the foremost plot consideration I found myself inexplicably thinking the extremely photogenic and eye catching maid was a plant for Phoebe’s stalker due to the camera lingering on her – I even thought she may have poisoned the scones as TM seemed to be toying with his rather than eating them; shows how much I misread the plot!

I liked how there were hints of Phoebe’s Alzheimer’s - when she said “How am I ever going to get this place sorted” or words to that effect in relation to her room at Robin’s nest. I thought that was a bit cheeky, rearranging your room when you are a guest.

Then the rambling trains of thoughts later in the episode however I could relate to her angst about getting bad reviews or not being able to write material of the quality that would come to her own high standards.

I have a writer friend who goes through the agonies of writers block and frustration of negative reviews when her plays are premiered. I would often ask her why she puts herself though it if it causes so much grief but it seems the creative urge over rides the self-preservation that non writers have when deciding whether to carry on doing something that can be hurtful.

This episode was probably one of the earlier instances of Alzheimer’s affecting a character and it reminded me of a more in depth exploration by the TV adaptations of another one of my favourite crime characters, the Swedish detective Kurt Wallander. It’s best to look at the latter half of the thirds season of the Swedish TV adaptations (Avoid the BBC Kenneth Branagh versions like the plague, I can’t stand them!) here: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0907702/epi ... t_eps_sn_3

Overall, an average seeming episode initially improved by the sombre ending.

[K Hale]

On reflection, I was somewhat surprised that Higgins did not reprimand Lani for showing Dennis Parker all the way into the house when they were having tea without checking first to see if Phoebe wanted to see him.

Well, Lani was Phoebe's employee, not Higgins'. It would have been out of character for him to reprimand her.

No, she was a temp who Higgins hired to replace the regular housekeeper, Keo, who was visiting her sister on Maui. I thought Lani was going to figure into the plot and turn out to be spying for whoever was stalking Phoebe, but it just went nowhere. As to why Higgins didn't reprimand her for bringing Parker to the tea table, a good employer does not rip into their employees in front of other people, it's humiliating. I would like to think he said something to her later about not letting every Tom/Dick/Harry into the house, however. Plus how did Parker get onto the estate in the first place?

This is one of my least favorite episodes. I found Phoebe really annoying with the way she swept in and took over the place. Yes I get the dementia thing. Both my parents. But Phoebe had a dismissive, irritating air to her even when she was lucid. Magnum didn't think it was out of character so we can only presume that is just her personality.

Total downer episode saved by Higgins' discomfort at being railroaded into having sappy poetry read to him in front of all those ladies (the poem Higgins replies with is all about being hunted by one's enemies) and Agatha's Blanche du Bois impression. Best line though was when Magnum found out he had been expected to read the poetry aloud: "You wanted me to READ it? I thought you just wanted me to READ it!"

[Steve-O]

I liked the episode. It was somewhat different in that it stands out from what we have come to expect from MPI by taking on a serious health issue. Tackling a topic like this kind of came out of nowhere and the same tack was never really taken again. Barbara Rush executed well. The unspoken humidor interaction between TM and Higgins was very good— and the unspoken interactions between TM and Lani were an amusing study of modern primal behaviour.

They should have had Katherine Kelly Lang on more often. It looked as if she and Magnum had some "chemistry" there. LOL

Yes, I agree. But based on the flirty chemistry here, might the knock-on effect have caused Thomas and the decorum of the show to regress?
I loved the expression on Higgins' face when Lani leaves him without more tea after offering Magnum some. Not to mention Thomas' self-satisfactory smirk after she has left.

With regard to the use of Sullivan, perhaps TM's parents just chose the surname of Phoebe's husband to be Thomas' middle name. It would make TM's middle name not coincidental and satisfy the idea that Phoebe's "Sully" was not a blood-relative. Further, TM resembling Sully could easily be as coincidental TM resembling Burt Reynolds: all are not blood-relatives (and btw, Sully must therefore resemble Burt Reynolds as well).

I think some of the better scenes showing the tidal pool, beach and wall area were shown in this episode.

[MaximRecoil]

With regard to the use of Sullivan, perhaps TM's parents just chose the surname of Phoebe's husband to be Thomas' middle name.

His name was Thomas Sullivan Magnum IV, so his middle name came from his father (and grandfather, and great-grandfather).

It would make TM's middle name not coincidental and satisfy the idea that Phoebe's "Sully" was not a blood-relative. Further, TM resembling Sully could easily be as coincidental TM resembling Burt Reynolds: all are not blood-relatives (and btw, Sully must therefore resemble Burt Reynolds as well).

Sullivan is Magnum's mother's side of the family (established in "Forever in Time"), which means that his mother's maiden name is Sullivan. If Pheobe Sullivan's "Sully" (who is Magnum's "Uncle Sully") isn't a blood relative, that would mean that Pheobe Sullivan has to be a blood relative (i.e., Magnum's mother's sister), which means she married someone named Sullivan ("Sully" is short for Sullivan) and kept her maiden name because it was coincidentally the same as her husband's last name. Of course, that's technically possible, but the more likely scenario is that "Uncle Sully" is the blood relative (i.e., Magnum's mother's brother), and Phoebe became a Sullivan when she married him.

[purpleflirp303]

Watching this episode, again after all these years, really hits home. My mother passed 3 years ago after a 10 year battle with Alzheimer's. Every scene brought back some memory of my mom's struggle..I thought the episode was very realistic and I could sympathize with Tom's confusion about what was happening to his beloved Aunt. When he said that life had let her down..well..the whole episode brought me to tears.

[Aloha Friday]

Was Magnum's dad's middle name "Sullivan"? I know typically, when families have generations named II, III and IV, etc., it usually follows first name, middle name as the same each generation, but I have also known people to do that with just first name. Maybe TM's middle name is his mother's maiden name. I will have to go back to maybe Home from the Sea and see if they use the middle name for his father. Does anyone know off-hand?

[Chris109]

They should have had Katherine Kelly Lang on more often. It looked as if she and Magnum had some "chemistry" there. LOL

Yes, I agree. But based on the flirty chemistry here, might the knock-on effect have caused Thomas and the decorum of the show to regress?
I loved the expression on Higgins' face when Lani leaves him without more tea after offering Magnum some. Not to mention Thomas' self-satisfactory smirk after she has left.

I forgot about her. Just looked her up. Very voluptuous that didn't really show up in MPI episode. I see she's my age and unmarried.

(adjusting tie) 𝙄 𝙙𝙤𝙣'𝙩 𝙠𝙣𝙤𝙬, 𝙬𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙙𝙤 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙠? 𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙠 𝙖 𝙥𝙧𝙞𝙣𝙘𝙚𝙨𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙖 𝙜𝙪𝙮 𝙡𝙞𝙠𝙚 𝙢𝙚--

[ENSHealy]

EPISODE: 7.20 The Aunt Who Came To Dinner

Famous guest stars:

Hawaiian shirts: 1

Tigers Cap: 1

Island Hopper shirts: 1
Shirtless Magnum:
OMG: 1
Higgins Organizations: 1
Higgins musings:
Negotiations:
Gun Play:
Bullet wounds:
Body Count (by Magnum):
Little Voice:
I know what you’re thinking: 1
When I write HTBAWCPI:
Investigator corrections:
4th wall breaks:
Magnumometer: 6
Magnumometer Moments: https://vimeo.com/741629133

An error in the Episode Guide: Moe is not a used car salesman he is a rental car agent.

It seems like TM is in the same outfit for an extremely long time, from about 3:00 until 31:30. Could all that have happened in a single day?