You first time watching Magnum PI

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DarCA · #31 Post by **DarCA** » Sat Jul 19, 2008 3:14 am

I didn't watch the series when it first aired - I was too busy working, being newly married to my own brown haired, mustached guy. I started watching seriously several years ago and now watch an episode every day.

Jaybird · #32 Post by **Jaybird** » Mon Jul 21, 2008 3:09 am

I was hooked from the start. I went to grade school in Hawaii. I was a Navy helicopter pilot, Vietnam, so there was a connection. I have a the stash and dark hair, paddle a surfski, frequently travel to Hawaii. My kids were young and we would all watch the show together. The show has stayed with me for 25 or so years now and I never get tired of it. For me anyway, the 80's was the best decade! I feel like I am stuck in a time warp.

lutherhgillis · #33 Post by **lutherhgillis** » Mon Jul 21, 2008 12:13 pm

Thanks, Jaybird. I feel the same.

No offense to you who got acquainted with MPI in syndication or on DVD but you really had to be around as an adult during the 80s to get the real feel of what the show was about. The show is best understood in the context of its time, in other words.

However, you younger guys are proof of the strength of the show to cross generational boundaries. Viva la Magnum!

Coops · #34 Post by **Coops** » Mon Jul 21, 2008 1:56 pm

I think I was at the perfect age for the showl, 13. I was young enough to see it through a child's eye and old enough to get most of the adult themes in the show only as I got older the show got better. I miss this show so much I can't even put it into words. If there was a show that really hit on all cylinders this was the one. No other show had that balance of humor and drama with a seasoning of historical flavor all brought to you in the vivid colors of paradise.

Indeed, viva la Magnum!

Jaybird · #35 Post by **Jaybird** » Tue Jul 22, 2008 1:24 am

The show seemed to be a big hit with the guys old enough to have been to Vietnam. I think Magnum was the first TV show dealing with issues that some vets had upon returning. A trivia answer from Jeopardy named the first TV series as "China Beach" but in reality it was Magnum P.I. Even today, I still think about the guys I know back then.

Many vets returned somewhat disillusioned, just like TM. Some turned their learned skills into a job, like TC. Others just got on with life as it was beforehand, like Rick. One thing they had was the bond which the show brings in with "the ring". The real bond is what they went through. They may gripe about something but they "had their buddies back." Their strengths and weaknesses are out there for all to see, also.

Remember, it was less than a decade from the end of Viet Nam until Magnum PI. That's like going back to 1999 or 2000 compared to 2008. Heck! 1999 was like yesterday. I have a 1999 SUV for cryin' out loud!!

Whatever it is, this series really connects with alot of folks.

Hey! Gotta run. It is exerise time and I am starting Season 6 again!

Lt. Cook · #36 Post by **Lt. Cook** » Wed Jul 23, 2008 6:11 am

I started watching at the age of 12 in 1982. My high school buddies were also fans and lines from the show would often come up in conversation. A couple of years ago I discovered it again on A&E. I found that whenever life got stressful, an episode of Magnum was the perfect escape for me. While as a kid it was just a cool show displaying a fantasy lifestyle of action and leisure, I now find that the characters, the friendship, and the subtle nuances and details keep my attention. Now I find that even the not-so-good episodes are enjoyable because I see it more as an entire epic story where every scene and encounter adds tho the story.

#37 Post by **J.J. Walters** » Wed Jul 23, 2008 2:36 pm

Jaybird wrote:A trivia answer from Jeopardy named the first TV series as "China Beach" but in reality it was Magnum P.I.

I believe that refers to the "first TV show set during the Vietnam War". Magnum was, of course, set in the post-war era. But you're right, Magnum was certainly one of the first shows to explore issues Vietnam War vets faced after returning home. And certainly was the first show/movie to showcase the vets in a positive light.

MaximRecoil · #38 Post by **MaximRecoil** » Tue Jul 29, 2008 5:18 pm

I don't remember exactly. I wasn't taken with the show instantly like I was with The Dukes of Hazzard, the A-Team, CHiPs, and Knight Rider. All those shows had something that immediately grabbed my attention as a young kid. With the Dukes, it was the General Lee of course. With the A-Team it was Mr. T. I'd always been fascinated with motorcycles as a kid, so that's why I liked CHiPs. And of course, what kid can resist an indestructible talking car such as K.I.T.T.?

Okay, so with Magnum P.I. there was a Ferrari, which looked cool to me, but could it talk? Did it jump over creeks?

However, I was getting older by the time I started watching Magnum PI (1984, I was 9 years old), and even though I didn't really care to watch it, I sat through it because Dad and my older brother insisted on watching it. I started following the story lines (something I'd never really done when I was younger, watching those other shows I named), and the show grew on me really quickly. By the time I was 10, it was my favorite show and I looked forward to it all week long, and would discuss the show with my older brother throughout the week. I watched it religiously every Thursday night right through to the series finale in 1988 when I was 13.

It went into syndication the next year, airing every weekday morning at 9 AM on our local CBS affiliate, and I programmed the VCR to record it daily and I'd watch it as soon as I got home from school. That gave me a chance to see the earlier episodes from before I started watching in '84.

pburke29 · #39 Post by **pburke29** » Sat Jan 03, 2009 10:14 pm

I started watching from the first episode, mainly from my Hawaii Five-O withdrawals. LOL. Never missed an episode, even though I was working full time and going to college full time at that time. I just made sure my Thursday night was open to watch Magnum, Hill Street Blues (and Simon & Simon later on).

Now I have all eight seasons on DVD and love to watch an episode every now and then.

Seaver41 · #40 Post by **Seaver41** » Tue Jan 06, 2009 12:28 am

I was 13 or so.....and it was the Ferrari and helicopter that caught my eye enough to check it out in the first season..................and that was it.

I can remember years ago I had never seen the pilot first run so it ewas in early syndication that I discovered it. I just remember being surprised at how little background development was done on the characters....the series hit the ground running with the backdrop of the characters to come as the years unfolded........that in itself was a clever ploy.

MyGod! · #41 Post by **MyGod!** » Thu Jan 08, 2009 1:28 am

remember seeing multiple episodes with my mom (she had a crush on Magnum of course) around age 7 or 8, so 83 or so. I can vividly remember watching some of the shows first run, especially Autumn Warrior for some reason. I have a cut-out of the TV Guide advertisement for the final episode, Resolutions. I remember watching it and being quite sad afterwards, although I think I'd been off and on in my watching ( I was quite young, with alot of energy for sports and such)

Fell of thinkign about watching it for awhile, and then really picked it up in late college on A&E, including watching a whole Memorial day marathon.

Then a few years back, saw the DVDs, and I've been hooked again! Currently working my way thru Season 7. This show always brought me such a warm feeling, mostly due to the comraderie, continuity, and cast. I loved the Hawaii locale. My girlfirend's family is from there and we're thinking of moving there. I really appreciated magnum's strong moral code, and his interactions with Higgins. So Good!

Italian Ice · #42 Post by **Italian Ice** » Fri Jan 09, 2009 4:05 am

I was around 16 when I first noticed the show. It used to be on late on Friday nights, can't remember the channel. I used to come home from working at my dads restaurant to watch MPI, Remington Steele, and Hunter, which is how I discovered all 3 of the shows. This was back in 1993. Scariest thing was I started seeing Tom Selleck lookalikes at the restaurant after I discovered the show, that was starting to scare me! It was warm in the summer and people were wearing Hawaiian shirts here. In Vancouver that's kinda scary

N1095A · #43 Post by **N1095A** » Fri Jan 09, 2009 4:13 am

I was at the ripe old age of 10 in 1980. I saw the pilot and was hooked from then on. My dad and I used to watch it together until he passed away in 1984. I remember in the 5th grade, my teacher reamed me pretty good for drawing the GMC Jimmy while she was teaching. She held the drawing up in front of the class, and asked me rhetorically, what good this was going to do for my education. Funny thing, I learned more ftom Magnum, P.I. than I ever learned in the 5th grade.

Italian Ice · #44 Post by **Italian Ice** » Fri Jan 09, 2009 4:15 am

Ya, I learn more by watching TV than I do in school, even to this day

Somebody really loves that Jimmy too much