Magnum P.I. reboot

[3fingers]

T.C. could get Higgins every time with "Higgy baby."

 

[Seb Lucas]

There must be room for an affectionate remake with all the right elements and a bit of Rockford Files warmth and fun. Magnum had some of that charm and was certainly one up on The Fall Guy or Knight Rider. I have to say though that Network TV didn't really please me in the 1970's-80's, it was generally pretty childish stuff and it wasn't really until Hill Street Blues that I was able to sit through a show all the way without grimacing.

 

[Lean'n'mean]

If it does come to fruition, it risks becoming just another shoot 'em up cop show with nothing in common with the original but the name like the dreadful reboot of 'Macgyver'

 

[Zombie_61]

There must be room for an affectionate remake with all the right elements and a bit of Rockford Files warmth and fun. Magnum had some of that charm and was certainly one up on The Fall Guy or Knight Rider. I have to say though that Network TV didn't really please me in the 1970's-80's, it was generally pretty childish stuff and it wasn't really until Hill Street Blues that I was able to sit through a show all the way without grimacing.

I considered shows like Rockford Files and Magnum, P.I. to be action/adventure dramas with some comedy thrown in, while The Fall Guy was more comedy with some action/adventure thrown in. As such, most of the people I knew who watched Rockford and Magnum took them a little more seriously, while Fall Guy was just for fun. I had only previously seen Lee Majors in shows like The Big Valley and The Six Million Dollar Man/The Bionic Woman in which he played his characters rather seriously, so for me part of the fun of watching Fall Guy was seeing him poke fun at himself; before that, I was unaware he even had a sense of humor.

This version of Magnum could work if they find the right "hook", i.e. something that makes people want to watch the show. I read on IMDb that, in addition to casting Jay Hernandez as Magnum, they've cast Perdita Weeks as Juliet Higgins and Zachary Knighton as Rick Wright, and a website called Deadline Hollywood says they've cast Stephen Hill as Theodore "TC" Calvin, so it seems they have the primary characters in place. I'm largely unfamiliar with these actors and I have no preconceived notions about whether or not they're "right" for their respective roles (as we know them), so I'm taking a "wait and see" position before I pass judgement.

 

[Edward]

The speculation over Higgins being a woman reminds me of the fans of the original British Sherlock who reacted with fury over LUcy Liu being cast in the Watson role in the same-premise show Elementary because they said they didn't want a romantic relationship between the leads.... and then went back to falling all over themselves to find and celebrate every single homoerotic nod to the possibility of the same in Sherlock.

 

[Zombie_61]

The speculation over Higgins being a woman reminds me of the fans of the original British Sherlock who reacted with fury over LUcy Liu being cast in the Watson role in the same-premise show Elementary because they said they didn't want a romantic relationship between the leads.... and then went back to falling all over themselves to find and celebrate every single homoerotic nod to the possibility of the same in Sherlock.

Back in the 1990s when The X-Files was deemed a hit, quite a few people I knew liked it but regularly expressed concerns that Scully and Mulder would eventually become romantic partners as well as professional partners, and that it would ruin the show as has often happened. One day Chris Carter, the show's creator and Executive Producer, stopped at a local restaurant where a friend worked and when that friend had a moment of opportunity he chatted with Mr. Carter and all but begged him to never let that happen. To his surprise and relief, Mr. Carter smiled and replied, "You got it. I hate it when shows do that too, and it's not going to happen as long as I have any say in it." I didn't watch the show, but as far as I know he was true to his word.

I mention this only to point out the fact that some people working in the movie and television industry are fans just like us, they're aware of the missteps that can ruin a project, and are careful to avoid them. Obviously I don't yet know whether or not this Magnum reboot will be good or bad, but I'm hoping the people in charge are at least smart enough to not turn it into just another clichéd detective show.

 

[Frunobulax]

Back in the 1990s when The X-Files was deemed a hit, quite a few people I knew liked it but regularly expressed concerns that Scully and Mulder would eventually become romantic partners as well as professional partners, and that it would ruin the show as has often happened. One day Chris Carter, the show's creator and Executive Producer, stopped at a local restaurant where a friend worked and when that friend had a moment of opportunity he chatted with Mr. Carter and all but begged him to never let that happen. To his surprise and relief, Mr. Carter smiled and replied, "You got it. I hate it when shows do that too, and it's not going to happen as long as I have any say in it." I didn't watch the show, but as far as I know he was true to his word.

I mention this only to point out the fact that some people working in the movie and television industry are fans just like us, they're aware of the missteps that can ruin a project, and are careful to avoid them. Obviously I don't yet know whether or not this Magnum reboot will be good or bad, but I'm hoping the people in charge are at least smart enough to not turn it into just another clichéd detective show.

Then Mr. Carter will have to explain the baby Mulder and Scully produced.

To be fair, the "relationship" never took a front seat, or even a back seat, to the other goings on in the show, but it's obvious a romance was had.


Sent directly from my mind to yours.

 

[3fingers]

The speculation over Higgins being a woman reminds me of the fans of the original British Sherlock who reacted with fury over LUcy Liu being cast in the Watson role in the same-premise show Elementary because they said they didn't want a romantic relationship between the leads.... and then went back to falling all over themselves to find and celebrate every single homoerotic nod to the possibility of the same in Sherlock.

Lucy is free to do whatever she likes on my television.

 

[Zombie_61]

Then Mr. Carter will have to explain the baby Mulder and Scully produced.

To be fair, the "relationship" never took a front seat, or even a back seat, to the other goings on in the show, but it's obvious a romance was had.

*sigh* As I wrote above I didn't watch the show, so I didn't know that. Ya' just can't trust anyone these days.

 

[Edward]

Then Mr. Carter will have to explain the baby Mulder and Scully produced.

To be fair, the "relationship" never took a front seat, or even a back seat, to the other goings on in the show, but it's obvious a romance was had.


Sent directly from my mind to yours.

If memory serves, the implication was that there had been a relationship between them at some point between the end of the TV show and the second film, but that by the time of the second film they had become estranged.

 

[Frunobulax]

If memory serves, the implication was that there had been a relationship between them at some point between the end of the TV show and the second film, but that by the time of the second film they had become estranged.

I lost track of the timeline around the time of the first movie. But the series certainly didn't dwell on it. There is obvious affection and admiration between the two, but they pretty much steered clear, so @Zombie61's story isn't "wrong;" however, something happened, sometime, somewhere.

Maybe a long stakeout where the aliens never showed up.


Sent directly from my mind to yours.

 

[Edward]

The point certainly still stands: these shows that build so much on an implied sexual tension are always a let down f it comes to fruition at any point other than the very ending (I'm thinking Ashes to Ashes here).

 

[Lean'n'mean]

We must not forget that women watch these TV shows too & apparently they like the possible romantic (men would call it sexual ) entanglements between the main characters.

 

[Seb Lucas]

I considered shows like Rockford Files and Magnum, P.I. to be action/adventure dramas with some comedy thrown in, while The Fall Guy was more comedy with some action/adventure thrown in. As such, most of the people I knew who watched Rockford and Magnum took them a little more seriously, while Fall Guy was just for fun.

I hear you. You're more generous than I am. I consider all of these shows to be light entertainment - they were safe and predictable and you could basically watch them with your mother. One or two of them had some merit.

 

[Edward]

We must not forget that women watch these TV shows too & apparently they like the possible romantic (men would call it sexual ) entanglements between the main characters.

I don't know.... maybe the casual viewer, but all the fangirls I know always detested two leads getting together and killing the show too.

I hear you. You're more generous than I am. I consider all of these shows to be light entertainment - they were safe and predictable and you could basically watch them with your mother. One or two of them had some merit.

Sonce discovering the reruns on free to air television here in the UK, I'm watching a lot of The A Team. Interesting thing is it still holds up - sure it's formulaic and everyone is a terrible shot, and open gun battles in LA never seem to attract police attention, but it's been a long time since I've watched anything with the sheer joy I can still view this.

 

[Fading Fast]

I don't know.... maybe the casual viewer, but all the fangirls I know always detested two leads getting together and killing the show too....

Leads getting together is usually a death blow, but just incase there is any life left in the body after that, the leads will have a baby to ensure no humor or fresh entertainment value remains in the show.

 

[Edward]

Leads getting together is usually a death blow, but just incase there is any life left in the body after that, the leads will have a baby to ensure no humor or fresh entertainment value remains in the show.

It's interesting to see it work or not work in various shows. Even within the same show.... take The Big Bang Theory. The Wolowitzes are great, Shamey is fun, but Raj and anyone seems wholly unconvincing... and what was supposed to be the central Leonard/Penny relationship is, by this point, frankly absurd. I'd love to see them break the mould and end the show with those two splitting up, but sadly that would take the sort of testicular fortitude that is always lacking in that sort of massively popular show.

 

[Zombie_61]

I hear you. You're more generous than I am. I consider all of these shows to be light entertainment - they were safe and predictable and you could basically watch them with your mother. One or two of them had some merit.

I think you might be giving me more credit than I deserve, because that's how I feel about those shows as well--light entertainment. But yeah, compared to some shows on TV these days they were far more "family friendly". My dad didn't watch much TV other than the occasional golf tournament and American college football games if UCLA was playing against USC, because he and my older brother had a friendly rivalry going on between the two. But I watched some shows with mom and others with my older sister. And my wife has fond memories of watching Mannix with her maternal grandfather.

I don't know.... maybe the casual viewer, but all the fangirls I know always detested two leads getting together and killing the show too...

This has been my experience as well. Some women I've known liked it when the lead characters finally gave in to their desires, but they were in the minority and most of the women I know disliked it as much as I did.

It's interesting to see it work or not work in various shows. Even within the same show.... take The Big Bang Theory. The Wolowitzes are great, Shamey is fun, but Raj and anyone seems wholly unconvincing... and what was supposed to be the central Leonard/Penny relationship is, by this point, frankly absurd. I'd love to see them break the mould and end the show with those two splitting up, but sadly that would take the sort of testicular fortitude that is always lacking in that sort of massively popular show.

I think the difference with The Big Bang Theory, and another show from recent memory Castle, is that they made the romantic relationships an element of the show without suddenly making them the focus of the show as so many shows have done. Sure, the various characters were now in their respective relationships, but otherwise they were the same characters dealing with the same situations as they had before.

And I definitely agree with your opinions about Raj. None of the actresses they cast to play potential girlfriends for him had the proper/believable chemistry with Kunal Nayyar (with the possible exception of Alessandra Torresani as Clare). Maybe that was intentional, but at this point I think Raj is going to remain a bachelor until the series ends.

 

[MikeKardec]

If memory serves, Higgins was most effective when he was a wet blanket thrown over the other characters. It seems he was funny because he was the only real adult in the group, the teacher the kids were avoiding or "borrowing" from. He was cool because he was uncool. Somehow I fear it's beyond contemporary TV politics to allow a woman to play that role ... the scold. It's perfect for an older British gentleman, however. John Hillerman was actually a Texan and I believe he was a cousin or something of the sort to mystery writer Tony Hillerman.

 

[Edward]

If memory serves, Higgins was most effective when he was a wet blanket thrown over the other characters. It seems he was funny because he was the only real adult in the group, the teacher the kids were avoiding or "borrowing" from. He was cool because he was uncool. Somehow I fear it's beyond contemporary TV politics to allow a woman to play that role ... the scold. It's perfect for an older British gentleman, however. John Hillerman was actually a Texan and I believe he was a cousin or something of the sort to mystery writer Tony Hillerman.

I don't know.... when you look at it from POV of a woman being the 'adult' in the group, bringing the men-children into line, that's a trope I see all the time on TV.