Magnum, P.I.

If you drew even a single breath between the years of 1980 and 1988, you know this show. You might not know you know it, but Magnum is part of your soul. What's great is that once you go out and buy this set, you'll realize that it's a bigger piece of your soul than you'd thought. I'm wiling to bet that even the crappy theme song that was used for the first half of this season rings a bell. You can't think of it now -- you CAN remember the brash, catchy, action/adventure theme song that was adopted after the first few episodes -- but you'll remember that old song and say, "Oh, yeah. I never knew this was the original Magnum theme." And then the episodes start. From the very first minute of the pilot, you get to see why this was one of the top-rated TV show of the eighties. There are car chases, Vietnam flashbacks, competent mysteries, astoundingly good comedy, sexy stewardesses, gravitas, suspense, drama, exotic locations, and remarkable consistency. What's crazy is how quickly the show hit its stride. This set contains a couple crossover episodes and specials from later seasons, and -- aside from the opening credits -- it's very tough to tell the difference between those and the first-season episodes on the discs. The cast and crew went into the show with confidence, and a pretty clear idea of what they hoped to accomplish. So the writing is great right off the bat. The cast jelled instantly; even though their characters weren't fully fleshed-out, they played like actual people. (It kind of makes you realize how often other TV shows -- and movies -- are filled entirely with stock characters, stereotypes and cardboard cutouts.) Larry Minetti as Rick is particularly grand as the proprietor of an eighties club, and the stellar John Hillerman nearly steals every scene as the overbearingly British Retired Sergeant Major Jonathan Quayle Higgins. But let's have a word on the subject of Tom Selleck. This is the guy who was originally cast as Indiana Jones, but had to bow out because Raiders of the Lost Ark was scheduled to begin shooting at the same time as Magnum's first season. Did he make the right decision? It's tough to say whether Thomas Magnum is a better or worse character than Indiana Jones, but it's obvious that there wasn't a bad choice to be made there. He's absolutely delightful as Magnum, though, so let's just say that he made the right call. To quote Magnum, "I woke up one day, age 33, and realized I'd never been 23." Arrested adolescence found the perfect actor in Tom Selleck, it seems. He plays the part of Magnum perfectly, but more than that, he anchors and holds together the cast and carries the stories quite ably. Overlook the bad wardrobe and hair that clamor for screen space. This was 1980, and frankly, the hairstyles seen here were remarkably tasteful for that year. Not timeless by any stretch of the imagination, but tasteful. Very first spoken line of the series: As two Dobermans are charging and Magnum is trying to pick the lock on a chain-link fence... "Don't look at the dogs. Work the lock," Magnum tells himself. "Work the lock. Don't look at the dogs. You looked at the dogs!" So good.

magnum P.i. is one of those classic shows that has pure coolness written all over it. Ive grown up watching this show..and let me tell you...it NEVER gets old... lets just hope they dont remake this..because it wouldnt be the same.. You have great characters..like Thomas magnum, Jonathan higgins (Higgy baby !) Tom's war buddies T.C, and Rick..as well as supporting characters like Ice Pick, mack, Lt tanaka, luther Gillis ,,...all these characters are well written. and you actually care what happens to them... theres great locals (hawaii) stunning sunsets...action, drama, beautiful women, romance... exciting storylines .. theres Zuess and apollo plus, the Ferrari too :) hmm did i mention the beautiful women? lol :) magnum P.I has it all... plus, its also cool when Thomas "breaks the 4th wall" and looks right into the camera...it makes you feel like your right there plus the voice overs are done as an homage to the 40s detective stories... this show was the soul of the 80s...and it still rocks in the 21st century thanks to dvd.. work the lock...dont look at the dogs..work the lock..you looked at the Dogs!!

I love the show, and the first season sets the tone perfectly. Watching Magnum PI never gets old; the only thing dated is the clothes. The setting is great, but it's the cast that carries the show, particularly its star, Tom Selleck. The first season establishes the group dynamic with Magnum, Rick, T.C., and Higgins. I must admit though; I didn't always get the contribution of Rick-his access to Icepick maybe? Tom Selleck was the greatest star of the 80s; I remember that he was always the correct answer to any game show question about male tv stars. Magnum PI broke television ground in addition to just being entertaining. There are references to Magnum's "team" in Vietnam throughout the series, and it was always positive. This portrayal of Vietnam vets may make sense now but in 1980, it wasn't always the norm. Beginning with the first episode, the two-parter, "Don't Eat the Snow in Hawaii, "flashbacks to the team's Vietnam experiences are used as both plot and background on the characters. On a lighter note, the guest stars are great too. I especially liked some of the hotter female stars, particularly Erin Gray as J."Digger" Doyle. Also, the bonus episodes feature Morgan Fairchild and Sharon Stone from later seasons. This show's got it all: wit, suspense, sex-appeal, even history. Wouldn't we all love to live like Magnum?

Thomas Magnum (Tom Selleck) was one of the best of the flock of memorable TV detectives of the 1980's, and this is the first volume of his adventures. When we first meet him in the two-hour pilot, "Please Don't Eat the Snow in Hawaii" (yes, the title makes sense, but only after you've watched it), he's a 34-year-old private investigator (he hates to be called a "private eye") who served as a Navy SEAL in Vietnam (and is still occasionally troubled by dreams and flashbacks), then in the Naval Intelligence Agency at Pearl Harbor--two experiences that have made him cynical about most things official--before he "beached himself" a year ago. Somehow he met Robin Masters, a famous and fantastically successful novelist with an estate on the island, and was offered free occupancy of its guesthouse in exchange for acting as backstop security for Sgt.-Maj. (Retired) Jonathan Quayle Higgins III (John Hillerman), the self-proclaimed "major-domo"--actually a glorified caretaker--of the place. Once there he contrived to also obtain use of Robin's red Ferrari, though he often has to wheel and deal with Higgins to keep it. Though most of his off-camera cases seem to be low-paying divorce jobs--at one point we find out that he hasn't "had $200 in his checking account since he left the service," though what he spends his money on isn't clear--he has his share of intriguing and dangerous ones, and these are the focus of the series. In solving them he often calls on two former teammates from the war, T.C. (Roger E. Mosely), who has translated his experience as a chopper pilot to ownership of Island Hoppers, a tourist flying service, and Orville "Rick" Wright (Larry Manetti), a cocky, wiry, street-wise native of Flatbush, formerly T.C.'s door gunner, notable for his shady contacts and ability to find out almost anything; in the pilot he owned a disco, Rick's Club Americaine, but after the series was picked up he was made manager of the King Kamehaha Club, a private outfit on the beach where Magnum--as the permanent guest of Robin Masters, who's among the most prominent members--spends a lot of his time. Like all the detective series of its era, MPI (as it was called by its fans) had to find something to make itself unique among a crowd of other such shows, and what it chose was the relationship between Magnum and Higgins. Higgins, despite having been only a noncom, was clearly reared an aristocrat (in future seasons we learn that he attended Sandhurst, the British equivalent of West Point), and has a tendency to look down his nose at Magnum, whom he regards as a lazy, uncultured freeloader--which is unjust, because while Magnum does prefer to live in faded jeans and aloha shirts, he runs the eight-mile beach route from the estate to the Club every morning, swims, paddles a surf-ski, plays sand volleyball and (when he can con Higgins into letting him use the estate courts) tennis, looks quite dashing in a suit, is cool-headed in moments of peril and capable of fast, graceful action--it's a treat to watch him move. Higgins also has what Magnum considers an annoying habit of launching into long tales of his army service during and after World War II at the drop of a hat ("This reminds me of...," he'll begin, and you never know whether the story will end up perilous or humorous), and flatly states that he doesn't "like the way you live...[or] the way you drive [the Ferrari]...[or] your friends..." He and Magnum are perpetually locked in conflict over the car, Magnum's use of the estate wine cellar/tennis courts/hot tub/big-screen TV, and Higgins's two Dobermans, Zeus and Apollo, who share their master's dislike of him. Yet as the series proceeds, Higgins apparently finds Magnum growing on him: he once says that he's "glad you're all right," and another time, after Magnum has agreed to move out in order to get Higgins's help in clearing T.C. of a smuggling rap, Higgins not only provides the help but ultimately maneuvers him into staying on. Magnum is a slightly quirky, very attractive, soft-spoken but definitely masculine character who often provides voice-over narration that brings us up to speed on his thoughts on a situation or what's been going on when the camera wasn't looking. The series exteriors were filmed on location in Hawaii, and some of the scenery--especially the sheer cliffs past which T.C.'s chopper sometimes flies--is incredible. The set includes three double-sided discs and a single, containing all 18 first-season segments (including the pilot, aired as a two-parter), plus "Kiis Don't Lie/Emeralds Are Not a Girl's Best Friend," the crossover with Simon & Simon: Season Two (which isn't on the latter) and "Echoes of the Mind," a two-part fifth-season episode featuring Sharon Stone, which is also available on the Fifth-Season set.

Finally, MAGNUM's abbreviated 1980-81 Season was put on DVD with each and every episode complete and uncut like it originally was during MAGNUM, P.I.'s whole 8-year run on CBS with the exception of each episode on this DVD being commercial-free, which is wonderful and even better than having to worry and wait about all the commercials we'd have to watch in between even on CBS, plus all these episodes of MAGNUM on COZI-TV, WGN, USA, and A&E don't even compare to how they're all shown on this DVD, since every episode had too many deleted scenes with too many commercials added in between to allot for time whenever MAGNUM, PI was shown in reruns on on both cable TV and syndication. In addition, each episode of this detective drama also includes a brief summary along with it's original air-date of this 1980-1981 Season of MAGNUM on CBS and includes closed captioning on them too, but it's just too bad they couldn't make MAGNUM's 6th, 7th, and 8th Season DVD box set like this one, because it would've made them even better. For instance, the original air-dates to each of this seasons episodes are 12/11/80-DON'T EAT THE SNOW IN HAWAII(a.k.a. The Pilot Episode) 12/18/80-CHINA DOLL 12/25/80-THANK HEAVEN FOR LITTLE GIRLS & BIG ONES TOO 1/8/81-NO NEED TO KNOW 1/15/81-SKIN DEEP 1/22/81-NEVER AGAIN, NEVER AGAIN 1/29/81-THE UGLIEST DOG IN HAWAII 2/5/81-MISSING IN ACTION 2/12/81-LEST WE FORGET 2/19/81-THE CURSE OF THE KAMEHEMEHA CLUB 2/26/81-THICKER THAN BLOOD 3/12/81-ALL ROADS LEAD TO FLOYD 3/19/81-ADELAIDE 3/26/81-DON'T SAY GOODBYE 4/2/81-THE BLACK ORCHID 4/9/81-J. "DIGGER" DOYLE 4/16/81-BEAUTY KNOWS NO PAIN Additionally, the First Season shows us how the former Navy Intelligence officer & Vietnam veteran now turned private investigator Thomas Magnum(Tom Selleck)got started along with his love/hate relationship with his Navy buddies from the Vietnam War T.C.(Roger Mosley) and Rick "Orville" Wright(Larry Manetti), along with the often exasperated British butler Jonathan Higgins(John Hillerman)and the dogs(Zeus & Apollo)and explains the estragned relationship and situation that Magnum and Higgins had with the so-called famous Robin Masters even though Robin was never shown on the series, even though the snazzy red Ferrari Magnum always drove was Robin's, which even said "Robin 1" on the license plate throughout MAGNUM's whole 1980-88 run on CBS. This 1980-81 Season was also one of the funniest seasons of this private detective drama as well and was my second favorite season of MAGNUM, P.I. as well as the season that made Magnum(Tom Selleck)the sexiest & most charming detective on TV back then, especially in the early 1980's along with the fact that MAGNUM was in its honeymoon phase of the show during this season too despite the fact that this was only half a season. This is also the season that made Tom Selleck a superstar and a sex symbol along with the fact that MAGNUM, PI came out a year later from playing his role as fellow gumshoe(Lance White) on the detective drama THE ROCKFORD FILES, which was an inspiration to MAGNUM, P.I., but it just so happens that MAGNUM had made its debut on CBS 11 months after NBC had abruptly cancelled the ROCKFORD FILES in the Winter of 1980, due to James Garner's back & knee problems. Additionally; it was also interesting seeing guest stars like *Gretchen Corbett in "The Curse Of The Kamehumeau Club" episode after her co-starring days as Rockford's sexy attorney girlfriend(Beth Davenport) in the first 4 seasons of the ROCKFORD FILES which was of course before Corbett left Rockford in the Winter of 1978 due to a salary dispute. *Rebecca Holden in the "Missing In Action" episode before her co-starring days as KITT's technician(April Curtis) on KNIGHT RIDER in its 2nd Season *Erin Gray in the "J. Digger Doyle" episode before her co-starring days as Kate Summers on SILVER SPOONS and during her co-starring days as Buck's foxy sidekick(Col. Wilma Deering)on BUCK ROGERS *Lance LeGault in the "Missing In Action" episode before his co-starring days as the hard-nosed Army nemesis(Col. Decker)on THE A-TEAM and before his co-starring days as Magnum's hellbent Navy nemesis(Col. Green) on MAGNUM *Noah Beery, Jr. in the "All Roads Lead To Floyd" episode after his co-starring days as Rockford's retired long suffering truckdriving father(Joseph "Rocky" Rockford) on the ROCKFORD FILES *Ted Danson in the "Don't Say Goodbye" episode before his co-starring days as Sam Malone on CHEERS and before his co-starring days on BECKER *Judy Chapman in "The Black Orchid" episode before her co-starring days on YOUNG & THE RESTLESS and DAYS OF OUR LIVES *Laurie Hendler in the "Thank Heaven For Little Girls & Big Ones Too" episode before her co-starring days on GIMME A BREAK *Anne Lockhart in the "Lest We Forget" episode after her co-starring days as Lt. Sheba on BATTLESTAR GALACTICA *Edward Grover in the "No Need To Know" episode after his co-starring days on the short-lived NBC series SUPERTRAIN in the Winter of 1979. The 1980-1981 Season of MAGNUM, P.I. was also the season that became almost a spin-off of HAWAII 5-0 and the ROCKFORD FILES. This season takes me all the way back to memory lane to the recession we had going on back in 1981-1982 when we had all those budget cuts going on during Ronald Reagan's presidency after winning the presidential election in November of 1980. So now that Universal has all 8 seasons of MAGNUM, PI out on DVD, I can hardly wait till Warner Bros. finally puts the detective drama MATT HOUSTON out on DVD, since I liked that show too along with the fact that MATT HOUSTON was a very popular private detective show in competition with MAGNUM during MATT HOUSTON's 1982-85 run on CBS's rival network(ABC), not to mention the intriguing slight resemblence between Magnum(Tom Selleck)and Houston(Lee Horseley), except Houston was a lot more fortunate, a lot tougher, a lot huskier, and a lot spunkier than Magnum ever was along with the fact that Magnum was always broke and Houston never was since Magnum was just a Hawaiian beach-bum private investigator who lived rent-free on a rich man's estate in Oahu, Hawaii; but Houston was a filthy-rich Texas style private investigator & former Vietnam Vet who lived high on the hog in a swanky penthouse in Hollywood & had a detective agency in Downtown LA that only did detective work on the side as a hobby & would often pay people money in $100 bills to get information to get leads & solve his cases along with the fact that Houston was like the Rolls-Royce in private detective shows who always wore spiffy 3-piece suits as opposed to Magnum usually wore more casual clothes like Hawaiian shirts, blue jeans, shorts, & often wore a Detroit Tigers cap. Therefore you could say that MATT HOUSTON was like a rich-mans MAGNUM since Houston outclassed Magnum in many ways since Magnum couldn't even touch Houston, especially since Houston lived the kind of lifestyle that Magnum would've envied and wanted for himself, but unfortunately MATT HOUSTON tanked after its 3-year run on ABC since MATT HOUSTON took a nose-dive in the ratings since it started losing a lot of viewers thru MIAMI VICE when it debuted on NBC in the Fall of 1984 resulting in MATT HOUSTON's cancellation in the Summer of 1985 when MAGNUM's 6th Season was underway on CBS which simply goes to show you that sometimes old things and old ways are better than newer ones, which is probably another reason why MAGNUM, P.I. outlasted MATT HOUSTON which also takes me all the way back to memory lane to when both MAGNUM and MATT HOUSTON used to be on KTLA every Monday thru Friday at one time back in the early Fall of 1987 kicking off with MATT HOUSTON at 5PM followed by MAGNUM, PI at 6PM. As a matter of fact, people used to tease Lee Horsley(Houston)a lot by asking him if he was trying to copy Tom Selleck(Magnum), but Horsley would always answer "No, but I'm flattered you see a resemblence" although Horsley knew people were just trying to hassle him, but Horsley would never take it personally because MATT HOUSTON was a very popular TV show just like MAGNUM was, despite the fact that MAGNUM lasted 5 times longer than MATT HOUSTON did and unlike Tom Selleck, Lee Horsley was never a sex symbol either. Fortunately Paramount will be releasing MATT HOUSTON-Season 1 out on DVD on March 9th, 2010 and is available for pre-order, which is wonderful news for all you MATT HOUSTON fans out there. In the meantime, I hope Universal re-releases this MAGNUM, PI-Season 1 DVD box set on single-sided discs to avoid all the skipping & freezing that I keep getting on these double-sided discs on this box set, especially on the "Missing In Action" episode along with the freezing & skipping I kept getting on KNIGHT RIDER-Seasons 1, 2, and 4; MAGNUM, P.I.-Seasons 1, 2, 3, and 4; A-TEAM-Seasons 2 and 4, MIAMI VICE-Seasons 1, 2, and 3; etc.; which is why Universal now only makes their DVD's on 1-sided discs only like MAGNUM, PI-Seasons 6, 7, and 8 instead of putting them on 2-sided discs like MAGNUM'S first 4 seasons including this one, but I would hate to have to purchase the MAGNUM, PI-The Complete Series box set to be able to watch this 1980-1981 Season on Single-sided discs instead along with MAGNUM'S first 4 Seasons of course.

I've watched most of the set, a few observations: 1) Having shows on both sides of the DVD was unnecessary cost-cutting. You don't see this with the more recent shows put on DVD. 2) DVD number 2 has production quality issues - constant skipping and fluttering. Same issue with the set bought from both amazon and wal-mart. 3) I cant put my finger on it, but the show theme music doesnt sound quite the same as it did on the original series - perhaps some remixing? Other than this, I thoroughly enjoyed watching the shows again - much better than what passes for TV entertainment today. I would recommend waiting until they fix the quality issue before buying.

I just got the DVD of Magnum P.I. the first season and let me tell you what it's great! Sure, it doesn't have tons of bells and whistles or extras, but what it does have is 22 episodes. 18 of them are from the first season 1980-1981 and the other 4 episodes are from other seasons including a two parter from 1984 with a very young Sharon Stone. And the two parter cross-over with Simon and Simon from 1982. I must say the first thing that will blow someone away is the video quality, these episodes don't look like they were made 24 years ago! The colors are so bright and alive that you would swear that it was made today. If anything I'm ready for season 2 of Magnum to come out soon because this is great! (That and Miami Vice, because seeing what they did with this release I can't wait to see what MV looks and sounds like.) I do think this is great because this was one of the (and I hate to use this term but here it is.) "must see tv" of it's day. This is well worth the money and the wait and a good starting point for people who were too young to remember the show during it's CBS run or are turned off by the looks of the tv reruns.

This first season of beloved Magnum P.I. does not get you off to a slow start, but rather as Magnum's Ferrari, starts you off into the series beginning at 60 mph in 4 seconds or less. This season is not so much an introductory season as much as it starts you off in a deep dive. The first season goes strong until the end & continues into the next seasons. You don't miss a thing. The theme song is different in the beginning, but soon enough you get eased into the beloved & popular theme song introduced into the episodes, & by the second disc, flip side, the episodes start off with the beloved theme song. The fifth disc contains some bonus episides including one from season three (Ki's Don't Lie) with Morgan Fairchild & Simon & Simon. The conclusion or continuation of this episode is in a bonus feature episode from Simon & Simon. There is also a two episode feature (1984 original broadcast) from season 5 (Echoes of the Mind) with a beautiful, young & disturbed character (Diane Dupre') portrayed by Sharon Stone, with whom Magnum has fallen very much in love with . . . What could be better than to start off with Season One!?! Also with this series you can always watch the epidodes over & over because there is so much action & happenings & the characters are so full of personality that you can never get tired of watching the episodes again & again or really remember all the details to every episode. This note added August 2, 2012: HOLY XXXT! WOW!!! the prices are now $10.49!!! ALL SEASONS! Take advantage of this extraordinary price. I only wish I had bought the series with these prices!

I bought this set thinking it would provide me with little more than a few nostalgic chuckles, as has regretfully been the case with other 80s shows. But Magnum is class. The interaction between Magnum and the other main characters (particularly the brilliant Higgins) is excellent, generating genuine laughs and fondness. The show is happy to mix such light-hearted laughs with more serious elements, and some of the episodes in which Magnum and the team revisit their memories of Vietnam are quite moving - especially if the time in which the show was first aired is considered. But first and foremost Magnum is top-notch entertainment; classic detective stories (the noir-style voiceover is inspired) with a tropical twist, driven forward by a talented and eminently likable ensemble. Even 25 years on, every woman wants to be with Magnum; every man wants to be him. Even given the tash.

en lo particular me gusta esta serie y la encontré a buen precio

Keine Frage - VIELE haben darauf gewartet: Magnum PI auf DVD. Was man bisher über das Set lesen kann, scheint schon ganz gut: Nettes Cover, die *komplette* erste Staffel und dazu noch eine Bonus-Disc, die die Crossover-Episode "Ki'is don't lie / Emerelads aren't a girls' best friend" mit Simon & Simon und den Zweiteiler "Echoes of the Mind" mit Sharon Stone enthalten wird. Ich gehe persönlich davon aus, dass die DVD die auch im TV (13th stret) übliche Qualität haben wird, was heissen soll, dass es schon manchmal Farbunterschiede geben wird - ähnlich der "Best Of" Box, die ja auch scvhon auf Deutsch erhältlich ist. Hoffen wir also auf 2 Dinge: 1.) Hoffentlich kommt die komplette Serie auch auf Deutsch heraus und 2.) Hoffentlich bald ;-)

A posséder et à revoir absolument : un classique des années 80 qui dura 8 saisons et ne connut ni téléfilms de suite ni reboot. Un spin-off sympathique à signaler : Simon et Simon. Je conseille Riptide aussi. Amicalement. Philippe.

Tom Selleck is the best actor to portray Thomas Sullivan Magnum. I adore that man especially with his dark hair, dark manly moustache and especially his hairy chest hair. What a wonderful actor he was during the Eight years he starred in this show. This show is in permanent Syndication and wonder why I didn't appreciate him more.