in the mid 1970 until the mid 1980 and television offer a vast assortment of action adventure mystery thriller and such a charlie angel and simon and simon and and the rockford file . and in the middle of the pack be magnum p. i. funny how in some way it doesn not seem that long ago but magnum p. i. be from another age . all those show have a certain stylized look that be very identifiable and different from today . and at the time and ronald reagan be in the white house and the world wide web be just a germ of an idea in switzerland and ibm new pc have only two floppy drive ( no hardisk ) and and only rich people have answer machine . most television be color but the sound be only mono . can you believe it be almost 30 year ago at this write that magnum p. i. first air which seem so fresh and original at the time . if you be a young american in the early 1980 ( i be in junior high at the time ) and you be probably familiar with the electric guitar riff that accompany the slick red ferrari streak through the back street of oahu in hawii at 8 represent00pm on thursday night . magnum be the cool of the cool . in addition to the ferrari and he have the best job in the world represent he provide security at the estate of a wealthy and faceless mystery romance writer name robin master who be never see throughout the run of the show and a bit like charlie of charlie angel . although and we never hear him either . his wish be relay through his most loyal british right hand man and jonathan higgins and play to the hilt by the incomparable tony hillerman . higgins seem a cross between general montgomery ( of wwii fame ) and prime minister gordon brown . so magnum have free lodging which allow him to be a private investigator . his only hindrance be higgins . and of course magnum voice over add a bit of the noir investigator flair of the 1940 . except for a few episode deal with vietnam ( which be some of the best ) and magnum rarely rise above the straight forward pure entertainment tv action sequence . aside from a couple of excellent actor like tony hillerman a higgins and jeff mckay a mac reynolds and it entertainment that rarely transcend itself . in the wake of more recent drama series like law and order and the west wing and magnum plot seem rather linear and predictable . he be always hire by gorgeous woman who probably just finish their stint with vogue magazine . and then magnum draft his two best friend and rick and tc and to help him with the case . unfortunately and both the acting and the writing of magnum friend be marginal at best and down right poor at bad . sometime during the episode and the woman who hire magnum might be a potential love interest . of course and you always know who the bad guy be from begin until the end . they be always in sport coat and polyester shirt without a tie . you know the look and with the shirt collar pull over the plaid lapel . i guess they never wear tie in hawii . and there be usually five or six of them work for the head guy and often a drug ring or some kind of political corruption . and of course the bad guy get it in the end and usually be run over by garbage can in some god forsake hideout in the last few minute of the show . if you look closely at the show today and in some way the real talent be tony hillerman . hillerman and a bona fide texan and play higgins with just the right amount of upper lip ( but not too much ) to convince you that he be a brit formerly of the english aristocracy . he have two doberman pinscher and zeus and apollo and whom hillerman be always sic at magnum and again some of the best moment of the show . the writing for hillerman along with his acting be some of the most memorable of magnum and rather than the throw away character rick and tc who seem more like caricature than people . strangely and a weird chemistry evolve between hillerman and selleck which save the show from be a total cliché . somehow the fact they be nearly opposite in every way make for an interesting dynamism which keep the show together . which hold to my theory that some of the best actor be in fact of the support variety rather than the star and who be there more for charisma and presence than character act ability . hillerman and in my judgment and be the real star of the show . all thing consider magnum p. i. be not a bad show and but it be not a great show either . aside from the higgins or hillerman character and it be very much entrench with the style and vogue of the era which still rely on the tried and true formula of good versus bad in a singular storyline and unlike the west wing and other show whose writer recognize the need for overlap non linear story which may or may not be resolve by the end . maybe if magnum have have a little bit less resolution it would stand up good today . or maybe the bad guy should have win a few time . to the show credit and selleck do not always get the girl . but she still want him regardless and and maybe that why the show be a little bit dated today .