Magnum on Ice

After Jessica Fletcher appeared in Magnum. Part 2 sees Magnum in a Hawaiian jail. It seems he shot the assassin twice and Captain Frank Browning does not like Magnum.

This leaves Higgins and Jessica Fletcher trying to get Magnum out on bail. Jessica also tries to get to the bottom of the case. Someone is trying to frame Magnum.

Just as soon as Magnum is out on bail, there is another murder and at the scene. Captain Browning finds Magnum's cap.

Higgins is horrified to find out that the gun used for the second murder was stolen from Robin Masters estate.

Well it was fun to see Higgins flirt with Jessica Fletcher. As a mystery though it really was not that interesting apart from a few of the actors chew up the scenery.

The recap at the start of the episode means you do not have to watch the preceding episode of Magnum.

whereas American TV from the 70s was littered with "cross-overs" and guest appearances from other shows, it was a rare thing to see in the 80s, and was not something the world would see again until the 90s when shows like Friends and, to a lesser reliant extent Seinfeld, picked up on the concept. the reason for this could be the vast scales which both Magnum and Murder, She Wrote reached with this stunning climactic episode; a height which neither show would never, arguably, reach again.

whereas Angela gives a conventional, superb performance, it was in this episode in particular that Selleck really came into his own in embracing the character of Magnum. the performance he delivers was one he would not equal until the infamous prison sequences in An Innocent Man, and several keys to unlocking the later, more complex relationships Magnum had with TC and Higgins are latent within the subtext of this show. if you never really cared for Murder, She Wrote, you are nonetheless encouraged to bear witness to this episode if you wish to fully understand Magnum.

American television really didn't get as good as this particular episode again until the early 90s series of Doogie Howser, MD. this is must-watch viewing for anyone who sees a television set as something more than a background noise in their lives.

Jessica visits Hawaii and gets caught up in a murder, chief suspect is Magnum, who is arrested and placed in jail, it falls on Jessica to put the pieces together.

It's very much a fun episode, once you get past the opening Magnum episode, which is a little bit slow, the conclusion is actually quite satisfying.

Firstly the production values are rather good, it's nicely filmed, it's definitely vibrant. The beautiful Hawaiian setting looks glorious, the sound of the sea etc all add to the quality feel.

Lansbury and Selleck make a really good duo, once you get past the Mr Magnum. She has an extra twinkle in her eye.

Find of this one. 8/10

A few days before "Magnum on Ice" debuted, Jessica Fletcher guest starred on "Novel Connection". Now, in "Magnum on Ice", it's a continuation of the story.

In the previous episode, it ended with Magnum shooting an assassin dead....and it looked as if the story was complete*. However, although there must have been many witnesses, bullets from BOTH guns and all, now suddenly the police are holding Magnum and charging him with murder. This isn't logical. What also isn't logical is the scene of the shooting is not exactly the same as the previous episode...and was slightly altered to fit the plot of episode two.

I really wish this had NOT been the second part and they'd just had Magnum on "Murder, She Wrote" on some other case. This is because the plot to "Novel Connection" was pretty bad...confusing and really not much fun to watch. Why exactly? Well, the people that Magnum was trying to help in the first episode were annoying...and Pamela, in particular, kept treating Magnum like dirty...which made no sense. As for Higgins, he wasn't much better...and I had no idea why. I also have no idea why the women who were potential targets of the assassin didn't do anything to protect themselves and went to a party...where the assassin was there to kill one of them.

Back to this episode. After the police arrest Magnum, Jessica decides to investigate the case. She finds a shell casing from the assassin's gun...which is odd since the police apparently didn't look very hard. Had they found it, they likely should have never arrested Magnum. Well, logic would seem to dictate this. Instead, when Jessica brings the shell casing to the cops, the lead detective is a jerk and thinks this has nothing to do with the case...which certainly was baffling.

Many things people say and do in the two episodes were baffling....as if they were written by folks who had never seen the shows nor consulted with each other on parts one and two. The characters are inconsistent, often annoying and it was a frustrating program. Overall, I really wish I'd just skipped both episodes. The stories weren't well written and the stars deserved better.

By the way, part of the episodes rests on the use of a gun with a silencer. Well, a silencer doesn't silence a gun...only makes it not quite as loud...so this portion of the show is, well, not great. But, with so many problems, this is very, very minor.

*According to IMDB: "In the Magnum crossover episode Magnum, P. I.: Novel Connection leading up to this episode, it showed that Paul Mayfield was shot in the chest. On this episode, it is repeatedly stated that he was shot in the back with the bullet hitting his spine.". Didn't anyone care about this and other details?!

A Jessica Fletcher/Magnum crossover! It's pretty exciting. This is actually the second half of a two parter, the first half airing on Magnum. The episode is great as they always are, but there are some huge missed opportunities. They could have struck up some sort of subtexty romance between Hillerman and Lansbury, since their characters are so much alike. Not to mention they're in Hawaii and Jessica doesn't wear one single Hawaiian costume. It's obvious this is more Magnum than Murder She Wrote. Jessica's character acts a bit off. Jessica Walters (aka Lucille Bluth) makes her second guest appearance since she was murdered in season one. The greatest injustice is that the legendary Dorothy Loudon is given such a boring character to play. Dorothy was the queen of overacting and in this she's too subtle. On a side note, Angela left her Tony Award winning run in Sweeney Todd to appear in Murder She Wrote. Her replacement? Dorothy Loudon. John McMartin is another Sondheim alumnus who appears in the episode. The Hawaiian music is something straight out of Spongebob Squarepants. I would have liked to see an episode where Magnum comes to Cabot Cove. Just think of the possibilities! This is an adequate episode, if not just for the novelty of seeing JB with the Magnum gang.