I still recall with perfect clarity when this episode aired. You have understand how rare it was in television in those days to kill off characters. It simply wasn't done very often. However, this one was easily the most poignant of the 60s, 70s, and 80s shows that I'd watched. And it was also the most provocative and disturbing.
I remember feeling numb after Magnum watches the video tape for the first time. As the viewer, I could partially grasp what must have been going through Magnum's mind during that first viewing. I simply couldn't believe it; Michelle AND Lily?
When Magnum is running his guts out on the beach in sheer and utter agony, I felt it, even after he collapses on the beach, only to see his expression of despair immediately transform into rage and the desire for revenge. Not justice. Revenge.
The episode asks the viewer to ask the hard questions: would you be able to hold back if you just saw your wife and daughter killed? Honestly, would you? We'd all like to think that we'd have that in us, just as Magnum realized in the very last moment. However, I'm not sure if anyone would have held it against him had he decided to pull the trigger. Of course, in hindsight with what we know will happen in the series finale, NOT pulling the trigger paid dividends, even though Magnum could not have have foreseen this.
We've seen a few episodes where Magnum is forced to face and deal with his "darker" side. Everyone has it. And despite being a man of noble character, everyone has a line drawn somewhere; a line that we resolve never to cross. At least, that is what we tell ourselves until faced with that line in our own lives.
I still remember talking to people the next day. The episode had completely blindsided most Magnum, P. I. fans. Nobody saw it coming, which only made its effect all the more powerful. And, like I said, this occurring in this era of television made it even more effective. There's a reason why (in many ways) this is one of the most memorable episodes, not only in this series, but in television history.
I remember feeling numb after Magnum watches the video tape for the first time. As the viewer, I could partially grasp what must have been going through Magnum's mind during that first viewing. I simply couldn't believe it; Michelle AND Lily?
When Magnum is running his guts out on the beach in sheer and utter agony, I felt it, even after he collapses on the beach, only to see his expression of despair immediately transform into rage and the desire for revenge. Not justice. Revenge.
The episode asks the viewer to ask the hard questions: would you be able to hold back if you just saw your wife and daughter killed? Honestly, would you? We'd all like to think that we'd have that in us, just as Magnum realized in the very last moment. However, I'm not sure if anyone would have held it against him had he decided to pull the trigger. Of course, in hindsight with what we know will happen in the series finale, NOT pulling the trigger paid dividends, even though Magnum could not have have foreseen this.
We've seen a few episodes where Magnum is forced to face and deal with his "darker" side. Everyone has it. And despite being a man of noble character, everyone has a line drawn somewhere; a line that we resolve never to cross. At least, that is what we tell ourselves until faced with that line in our own lives.
I still remember talking to people the next day. The episode had completely blindsided most Magnum, P. I. fans. Nobody saw it coming, which only made its effect all the more powerful. And, like I said, this occurring in this era of television made it even more effective. There's a reason why (in many ways) this is one of the most memorable episodes, not only in this series, but in television history.