The first couple of years the show had too work the glitches out. Once they got the formula right this was an entertaining show. There were some memorable stories, I like the one with his quarterback friend Darcy. This show had a budget that todays producers would salivate at. A Ferri, a chopper, a mansion, and great locations. Tom Selick grew as an actor in this series, and the 80's over the style is missed with todays shows. Who care's who gets voted off the island, or people making out in the bathroom on the show Friends, I rather watch a show with production vaule, professional actors, directing, and some fun. Time well spent on A&E

Magnum P.I. was the best series of the early eighties. Sometimes the stories were weak (too often, especially in the 2nd season), and the acting hokey, and in the first season the production values were laughable.

However, if it had even an ok storyline, the performances of TC, Rick, Higgins and especially Tom Selleck would emanate with charm, humor, and often believable action.

However, what was most memorable (especially for me, stuck on a horrifyingly dreary school routine), were the open seas, the open skies and general tropical landscape. And of course most importantly, every week a crime or mystery would be solved.

Boy, do I love 80's shows. They had everything-action, women in bikinis, bad guys, cool cars, they had the lot.

In my opinion, this series was Tom Selleck's finest hour. Magnum P.I. lived in a mansion in Hawaii where he had to put up with Higgins who was looking after the house for Mr. Masters. Both had respect for each other obviously but they were always getting on each other's nerves and Magnum also had to put up with two dogs-Zeus and Apollo if my memory serves me correctly-who didn't like him at all.

Of course, like most 80's heroes Magnum had a cool car which he used to parade around Hawaii solving all types of cases involving crooks both small-time and big time. Magnum used to investigate the cases and then engage in a good old fight at the end.

All in all, a good show. And who can forget Magnum's shirts?

John Hillerman & Tom Selleck are a perfect balance to each other to anchor this series. They play off each other very well & even though Sellick used this as a springboard for his entire career, Hillerman is most often remembered for this show. The island setting for this show & the photography are top notch.

Glen Larsen & Donald Bellisario both have done great work in many series with varying degrees of success. Both have had hit shows besides this one, & sometimes not so successful. You don't think of Ba Ba Black Sheep & Battlestar Gallactica when you think of Bellsario/ Larsen, but of Quantum Leap, Knight Rider, Qunicy & Jag among others. Both men were born in the mid 1930's which puts them in the same class.

They have nothing to be shamed of in their work on this series which ran a very successful 164 episodes in the 1980's. The shows hold up pretty well even after all these years. This show was no small part of a successful CBS group in the 1980's. Catch it when you can, as I recently caught the pilot 2 hour premiere on a rerun.

The first show introduces Hillerman & Sellecks characters & the motivation behind the feud they always have during the series run. There is always plenty of eye candy for the guys, to go with the other natural great scenery. Always plenty of action for the detective fan in this show too.

Everyone loved Tom Selleck as the mischief making private investigator Thomas Magnum... This cavalier Casanova who always had teenage boy intuitions via his tiny little voice was the ideal guy, he got to drive a Ferrari, the women thought he was so good looking and athletic, and the male T.V Viewers had an overt admiration of Thomas Magnum's innocent chicanery! Always thwarting Higgins, he was the type of guy everyone wanted to be just like!! This was Tom Selleck's big break, he was a soap opera star before "Magnum" and even a contestant on "The Dating Game" ... "Magnum" is what put Tom Selleck on the superstar map, and since "Magnum" he has been tremendously successful as a big box office movie star!! People identify "Magnum" with Tom Selleck, and love the show because of him!! So did I!!

Classic.

Good show. Its another gem that doesn't need to take its self seriously or be PC.

Its not a police or a detective show. The show is basically about solving personal or other peoples problems.

Higgins and Magnum actor does a splendid job.

I think everyone wanted to be Magnum!! Tom Selleck was hilarious as Magnum PI!! He drove around the coolest car, all the women loved him, and he was a master of dodging in and out of precarious criminal situations in an effortless and likable way! Picturesque Hawaii was another positive aspect to this series!! I visited Hawaii when I was a senior in high school!! In my opinion, it is the most beautiful state in the union!!! Tom Selleck is a fabulously famous movie star now, but I always associated him with being "Magnum" the totally cool detective!! "Magnum" is one of my favorite shows in all of television!! Tom Selleck is a friendly type of actor who has a huge following!! "Magnum P.I." was so popular because your average guy had a definite identifiability with Magnum!! The helicopter scenes were classic, and the athletic interludes of Magnum being the ultimate man, left a very favorable impression on the television audience!! Let's face it, Tom Selleck was the best part of "Magnum P.I." without question... beyond a shadow of a doubt!! I give this show an extremely high rating!! 10 out of 10 is the least of it!

I have several problems with Magnum. First, Magnum too often reads the dialogue, but I suspect it's a way for Tom Selleck to keep from memorizing his lines. Also, there is too much time watching the car doing ordinary things like pulling out of the driveway and same goes for the helicopter. Last, I get tied with the constant bickering between Magnum and Higgins.

I actually happened into the first airing of the pilot episode by pure chance of changing the channels. I was in 10th grade at the time. I faithfully watched Magnum P.I. through its eight season run, and completely enjoyed everything about the program. When a teacher at High School couldn't get his door unlocked, we used to say to him "work the lock, Magnum. Don't look at the dogs" and he would throw the whole class out to "the bullpen" as he called "study hall". Anyway, I remember at one time CBS had "Wednesday's Heroes" Mike Hammer at 8pm, MAGNUM P.I. at 9pm and The Equalizer at 10pm. Anyway, after Magnum P.I. ended after season eight, I did not faithfully follow any TV show every week until "The Shield" premiered on FX! I have purchased Magnum P.I. DVD Sets for season's 1,2,3,4,5,6,7 and 8. I enjoy watching the show as much now as I did when it originally aired. It is something to see that there were no cell phones and no internet information superhighway while the show was on. This is an excellent TV show from the 1980's that has aged fairly gracefully.

In the mid 1970's until the mid 1980's, television offered a vast assortment of action-adventure-mystery thrillers, such as Charlie's Angels, Simon & Simon, and the Rockford Files. And in the middle of the pack was Magnum P.I. Funny how in some ways it doesn't seem that long ago but Magnum P.I. was from another age. All those shows had a certain stylized "look" that is very identifiable and different from today. And at the time, Ronald Reagan was in the White House, the World Wide Web was just a germ of an idea in Switzerland, IBM's new PC had only two floppy drives (no hardisk), and only rich people had answering machines. Most televisions were color but the sound was only mono. Can you believe it was almost 30 years ago at this writing that Magnum P.I. first aired which seemed so fresh and original at the time?

If you were a young American in the early 1980's (I was in Junior High at the time), you were probably familiar with the electric guitar riff that accompanied the slick red Ferrari streaking through the back streets of Oahu in Hawii at 8:00pm on Thursday nights. Magnum was the coolest of the cool. In addition to the Ferrari, he has the best job in the world: he provides security at the estate of a wealthy and faceless mystery-romance writer named Robin Masters who is never seen throughout the run of the show, a bit like Charlie of Charlie's Angels. Although, we never hear him either. His wishes are relayed through his most loyal British right-hand man, Jonathan Higgins, played to the hilt by the incomparable Tony Hillerman. Higgins seems a cross between General Montgomery (of WWII fame) and Prime Minister Gordon Brown. So Magnum has free lodgings which allows him to be a private investigator. His only hindrance is Higgins. And of course Magnum's voice-over adds a bit of the noir investigator flair of the 1940's.

Except for a few episodes dealing with Vietnam (which are some of the best), Magnum rarely rose above the straight-forward pure entertainment TV action sequence. Aside from a couple of excellent actors like Tony Hillerman as Higgins and Jeff McKay as Mac Reynolds, it's entertainment that rarely transcends itself. In the wake of more recent drama series like Law and Order and The West Wing, Magnum's plots seem rather linear and predictable. He is always hired by gorgeous women who probably just finished their stint with Vogue Magazine. And then Magnum drafts his two best friends, Rick and TC, to help him with the case. Unfortunately, both the acting and the writing of Magnum's friends were marginal at best and down-right poor at worst. Sometime during the episode, the woman who hired Magnum might be a potential love interest.

Of course, you always knew who the bad guys were from beginning until the end. They were always in sport coat and polyester shirt without a tie. You know the look, with the shirt collar pulled over the plaid lapels. I guess they never wear ties in Hawii. And there were usually five or six of them working for the head guy, often a drug ring or some kind of political corruption. And of course the bad guys got it in the end, usually being run over by garbage cans in some god-forsaken hideout in the last few minutes of the show.

If you look closely at the show today, in some ways the real talent is Tony Hillerman. Hillerman, a bona fide Texan, plays Higgins with just the right amount of upper-lip (but not too much) to convince you that he is a Brit formerly of the English aristocracy. He has two Doberman Pinschers, Zeus and Apollo, whom Hillerman is always sicking at Magnum, again some of the best moments of the show. The writing for Hillerman along with his acting are some of the most memorable of Magnum, rather than the throw-away characters Rick and TC who seem more like caricatures than people. Strangely, a weird chemistry evolved between Hillerman and Selleck which saves the show from being a total cliché. Somehow the fact they are nearly opposite in every way made for an interesting dynamism which kept the show together. Which holds to my theory that some of the best actors are in fact of the supporting variety rather than the "stars", who are there more for charisma and presence than character-acting ability. Hillerman, in my judgment, is the real star of the show.

All things considered Magnum P.I. is not a bad show, but it is not a great show either. Aside from the Higgins/Hillerman character, it is very much entrenched with the style and vogue of the era which still relied on the tried-and-true formula of good versus bad in a singular storyline, unlike the West Wing and other shows whose writers recognized the need for overlapping non-linear stories which may or may not be resolved by the end. Maybe if Magnum had had a little bit less resolution it would stand up better today. Or maybe the bad guys should have won a few times. To the show's credit, Selleck didn't always get the girl. But she still wanted him regardless, and maybe that's why the show is a little bit dated today.

I admit it: I didn't watch this show when it first aired. I was an 80's kid, so I was far more concerned with shows like Ducktails and Tailspin than any dumb show about a P.I.

But, luckily, reruns have managed to re-introduce me to the world of the 80's shows. I've since become rather obsessed with my "three 80's M's" -- Matlock, M*A*S*H and Magnum.

All I can say is, this ain't no Macguyver. Tom Magnum is NOT a PC guy left-wing activist who makes speeches at the end of the episode on the environment, or who can build a nuclear reactor from a piece of gum and a shoestring. Magnum is, as his name suggests, the kind of guy who shoots first and asks questions later. He always manages to get himself in trouble, and sort of mooches off his friends. He doesn't always know who is the bad guy, and he has been known to kill a few people in cold blood. He doesn't always say or do the right thing. He has some serious baggage, from his wife and daughter being killed (or were they??) and Vietnam. Some times-- well, quite often, he screwed up. His closest friends are usually in danger-- or killed-- because of him.

This makes it sound bad, I know, but you know, these are the things I love about Magnum. He's got baggage, he's not all together, he's a bit messed up. Not seriously psychotic, you understand, but not all together. I love Magnum: the play between him and Higgins is just delightful, and his poor mooched off friends just can't say no to him, hard as they try. And, you know he's like that, but you love him anyway. Silly loud Hawaiian shirts and all. You can almost always count on at least one bar fight or car chase, He's sort of a gun-slinger of the 1980's America.

Magnum is first and foremost, Fun. Tom Selleck and cast are utterly delightful, and I think this show is quite underrated, because when you take away the car chases there are still first and foremost good story lines and good writing.

They have serious episodes, and they have silly ones. I tended not to like the sillier episodes: those episodes usually ranked as the best in the series stand up very well. They had good episodes and better episodes, I can only think of one or two eps in the entire series I just didn't like, but they aren't horrible, just not my taste. If you get a chance to see Did You See the SunRise parts 1 and 2, Infinity and Jelly Doughnuts (I don't know if that's the real title) or any of them, really, you watch about 3 of them and you'll be hooked. Especially Infinity and Jelly Doughnuts, I think it's one of the best episodes ever. And the series finale was brilliant, really most of them were just fun but they had some utterly brilliant episodes. You really feel like you know Magnum, and I think it's because he's just a little messed up that makes him feel real to you. That and he talks to you: often he says things like, "I know what you're thinking, and you're right, I shouldn't have..." or "I know what you're thinking, but this time, you're wrong. Higgins is the one who..." I really wish I'd gotten into this series when it was on, and that I appreciated it for what it was, but alas, I did not. I'm just glad I had a second chance to appreciate what a brilliant and fun show this was. I hope someone else out there has the chance to watch this show and enjoy it-- or re-enjoy it, for the great show it was.

Magnum,P.I. was and will remain the best TV series ever. It had it all: action, humour, tragedy and characters you believe in. No TV series will ever reach Magnum,P.I.'s quality. To all who have been involved in the creation of this fabolous icon of the 80s: Thank you!

Magnum P.I. Was one of the best defining series of the 80s, if not the best.

The wonderful and powerful theme, the awesome sceneries, cinematography and ladies, the amazing cast, especially, Tom Selleck and John Hillerman, the awe-inducing, beautiful and most intelligent Dobermans, the nice and entertaining episodes with their various and constantly interesting adventures and happenings, the super-cute and funny narrative by Tom Selleck himself, among much much other things, were the reasons why this series was so successful, so unique and so amazingly entertaining.

His lively mustache, which the ladies died for, his towering height, his twitching of eyebrows and his most charming smile all up to his eyes were unique in this whole world and still are.

Never again, a series like that was created and never again will be.

The charming and charismatic Magnum P.I. Tom Selleck will forever live in our hearts and anchored in our memories and nobody will ever outdo his prowesses of that time.

Hawaii and the red Ferrari were enough to watch this series and enjoy it tremendously. He was the king of Hawaii.

Mr. Selleck my utmost congratulations to you. I, forever, will stay a fan of yours.

One of the best of the 80's, this is a classic show, nothing to dislike here.

Tom Selleck was born to play Magnum, as was John Hillerman to play Higgins.

Excellent character, good stories and a lovely balance of seriousness, action and comedy.

This is a great show, I would recommend giving it a chance. It's easily as much fun as other well known shows from the 80's such as A Team or Knight rider, the list obviously goes on.

If you have watched the reboot I wouldn't bother trying to draw a comparison, as that is a reimagining of this original. From an enjoyability perspective, personally I prefer the original to the reimagined version.

Hard to believe that Thirty-something Tom "Magnum" Selleck will soon be 60 years old. While Magnum was an entertaining series and a great post-Vietnam twist on the disillusioned P.I. of post World War II America, Selleck's best P.I. role, for my money, actually came as the anti-Jim Rockford, Lance White, on The Rockford Files. THAT should have been a series--in fact, I think it was originally intended to be one. Still, a decade long run as Magnum is hard to beat. Magnum was quality TV--far and above the likes of the A-Team, an unfortunate comparison I've seen made by other viewers in this commentary. Needless to say, today's dreck on TV can't touch Magnum.

A man, his mustache, a Ferrarri, loyal friends, beautiful Hawaii .... What more could you want? Thomas Magnum (Tom Selleck) is employed on the Hawaiian estate of a wealthy absentee owner name Robin Masters. The estate is run by Jonathan Higgins (John Hillerman) who mostly tolerates Magnum's presence as head of security on the estate. Helicopter pilot TC (Roger E. Mosley) and club owner Orville 'Rick' Wright (Larry Manetti) are war buddies from Vietnam.

This is classic 80s Television. He is not only cool but very personable. Women love him and guys want to be him. He is eminently recognizable as an iconic TV detective. It does get a bit convoluted in the later years but overall, this is one of the best of the genre.

Magnum, where can I start? well, during a summer of inactivity and unemployment I stumbled across this gem on daytime TV, after just one episode i was hooked, the powerful theme and the twitch of the eyebrows,I rearranged my schedule (job centre appointments, job interviews etc, etc) to fit in around Mr Sellecks greatest moment, it got so bad that I had the theme on my phone and would get my friends to phone me, they never understood but when genius enters your life what can you do? I watched the repeats recently and felt alive again, I think there's a bit of Higgins in us all! I even remember falling off my sofa when Bruce Forsyth turned up on a game show Rick was on, if only modern television met such high standards

It's happened over the years at least a few times. Something becomes so popular that I decide it just can't be anything worthwhile, and then I find myself doing a complete 180. This guy Selleck was too good looking in an old Hollywood way (Clark Gable), his voice seemed an octave too high for a man of his size and looks, so damn many women were positively orgasmic when they talked about him and women are notorious for going after some really shallow males, and the few times I caught a scene or two flipping through channels, he seemed smug, or at least that's how I perceived him. And then one Thursday evening there was nothing on the network channels and nothing on any cable channel and I flipped on CBS just as Magnum P.I. started. It was the first two hour episode that introduced Michelle and had a spectacular gunfight at the end on the streets of Little Saigon. My two favorite movies have always been Rio Bravo and Casablanca, and this episode seemed to be an updated melding of the two. Like Duke in Rio Bravo, Magnum had loyal friends to back his play as he tries to set things right when no one else will help him, and like Bogie in Casablanca, Magnum has an ill-fated love affair he is going to have to give up to a higher duty. And then there was the gunfight at the end. After years and years of so-called do-gooders trying to get violence off the TV, and somewhat succeeding, there was a real hero like Duke or Bogie, who wasn't going to apologize for putting a few well deserved .45 slugs into a few bad guys. Women liked Magnum because he was so charming and good looking and mischievous like a little boy. I liked him because, like Duke and Bogie and Gable, for all of his faults, he was a man!

The show seemed too good to be true, a good looking old Hollywood sort of guy who carried my favorite pistol and wasn't adverse to using it, a show at times filled with humor, sometimes filled with drama, and Magnum, like Selleck, was just the sort of guy you always wanted for a friend in good times and bad. And then the next season or so there was the two hour episode that introduced Magnum's and T.C.'s old Soviet torturer and nemesis from Vietnam, Ivan, who just happened to be on the islands for a long weekend to "look up some old friends" and assassinate a world leader. Magnum and friends have to relive their haunted unresolved past in Vietnam, prevent an assassination, not only in Hawaii but also in other areas of the world, and seek justice and retribution when the powers that be can not put Ivan in jail. In the final 30 seconds of the show, Magnum with his .45 became as powerful an image on screen as Clint and his big .44, even it was only a curved 23" TV set!

I remember reading an article that discussed the types of TV shows popular during certain Presidential administrations. There was the straight forward, safe, family values sort of programs that reflected Eisenhower's quiet dignity in the '50s. In the early '60s during the Kennedy administration, Jack and Bobby's determination to right wrongs over missiles in Cuba or in mob-controlled unions gave us The F.B.I. and Robert Stack as Eliot Ness in The Untouchables. Later, having shamefully abandoned Vietnam for purely political reasons, our Presidents like Nixon and Ford and Carter seemed rather impotent, like the always wimpy Alan Alda (Hawkeye) in M.A.S.H., and the always intimidated and beat up James Garner in The Rockford Files. Reagan got into the White House and suddenly his no nonsense, straight shooting philosophies, his search for right and wrong and black and white, and his jovial sense of humor was reflected in Thomas Sullivan Magnum or Magnum P.I. And just as suddenly TV had, in Selleck and Magnum, as good a character, if not better, as anything Hollywood had come up with for the larger screen in the previous 20 years.

Today I have four seasons of Magnum P.I. on DVD, and whenever I want something to watch and can not decide on something from my library, I pull out the private investigator in Hawaii and go back to a time not all that long ago, when life seemed somewhat more clear and safe, and certainly younger, and a tall man in a Tiger baseball hat and Hawaiian shirt, with a red Ferrari and a Colt .45 auto, went out to do the decent thing and right the wrongs of the day.

George Clooney or Vince Vaughn as Magnum P.I.??? You've got to be kidding!