The original Magnum, PI ran for 8 seasons, and made Tom Selleck an icon. The series had the task of succeeding the original Hawaii Five-O in representing the state in television lore.
Today, both shows are back. The current Five-0 begins its 9th season soon. The new Magnum PI (no comma) launched tonight, and if you believe the critics, it opens to a fair amount of indifference.
Where to start? Jay Hernandez ("Suicide Squad") is likable as Thomas Sullivan Magnum, and with the story updated, Magnum served in Afghanistan instead of Vietnam. However, there are anal types who do have an issue with Hernandez, a Latino, playing Magnum as much as they do with Higgins having been gender flipped into a woman, but still a former British Intelligence agent. There is the adversarial relationship between Magnum & Higgins, but she is willing to help when asked. I've a feeling there's another, more obvious reason for the gender flipping, a subplot that will play out over the course of the season, if possible.
As has been reported elsewhere, there will be a crossover with Five-0, and some characters will pop up, including in the opener. The series retains at least part of Mike Post & Peter Carpenter's iconic theme, but, expect more of a contemporary soundtrack, including 90's music from AC/DC and the Spice Girls, too.
The trailer includes some scenes from tonight's opener.
Given that co-creator Don Belisario is the man behind CBS' NCIS franchise, I'd not be surprised if there's a crossover in that direction, too.
Rating: A-.
2 comments:
Any moment now, Tom Selleck is going to walk on screen, punch that imposter in the face, and demand he replace that Ferrari!
RIP to John Hillerman, who didn't live to see this bastardization.
Only way we'll see Selleck and Hernandez together is if they do a crossover with Selleck's current series, Blue Bloods. So far, the only x-over scheduled is with Hawaii Five-0.
Post a Comment