Private investigation acquired a modern twist on Magnum P.I. Season 5 Episode 15.
Thomas and Juliet agreed to take on a missing person’s case remotely from three clients scattered across North America.
The missing person was a gamer who played Battlecraft with them online.
A complicating wrinkle was that none knew the gamer’s real name. But Higgins made short work of that problem, hacking his food-delivery account to establish his name and address.
They soon discovered that not only had Kilo, the gamer, been abducted, but that he had been taken for an insidious reason.
Kilo had worked at a fertility clinic, and his I.D. was used to gain entrance so the thief could steal frozen embryos to be held for ransom.
Kidnapping and theft soon escalated to murder with his discovery of Kilo’s body. A couple of twists later, Katsumoto had the scheme’s mastermind (using that term loosely) and her rogue accomplice in custody.
Amish hunter
Fortunately, Magnum and Higgins appear to have a more heartwarming case on Magnum P.I. Season 5 Episode 16.
The logline supplied by NBC explains: “Magnum and Higgins agree to help a teenage Amish boy who has traveled to Hawaii in search of his runaway sister.”
The first obvious question is how did Jacob travel to Oahu.
Horse and buggy was definitely out. Boating is a preferred method of travel. However, air travel is frowned upon as airplanes are considered a modern convenience.
Still, this is an urgent matter, so urgent that Jacob likely has run away from home. Air travel is the fastest transportation method, so Jacob probably took a plane.
And, with phone books a thing of the past, how did Jacob choose Thomas and Juliet as his private eyes?
Fortunately, the couple is a soft touch for a sad story, so Jacob’s case is perfect for them.
The NBC promotional photos don’t reveal much about the investigation itself.
Juliet makes inquiries with a missing flier featuring Jacob’s sister’s photo. She interviews a female inmate while he questions a business person.
Also, Kumu gets involved as a couple of photos show her talking with Jacob.
Still, it’s hard to say where all these breadcrumbs lead. But considering that one photo shows Jacob hugging an unnamed girl, his odds of success would seem pretty good.
Also, should anything be read into the pair taking on another young client? Is that another hint pointing toward parenthood? There are not many episodes remaining in which to question that question.
T.C. needs a date?
T.C. has had a difficult couple of months since getting shot by a hit squad on Magnum P.I. Season 5 Episode 10.
After a few weeks of rehab, he got released from the V.A. hospital just in time for Mahina to break up with him after he bungled their relationship.
T.C. caught somewhat of a mental break on Magnum P.I. Season 5 Episode 15 when he got sucked into Jin’s latest scheme, a treasure hunt seeking the cut of Jin’s old cellmate Bo.
That kind of strenuous workout was exactly what someone rehabbing from a severe trauma didn’t need to be doing. But it appeared T.C. came out the other way of that escapade just fine.
As the logline explains, T.C. will be facing a challenge to his mental health: “Rick sets out to find T.C. a date to the Marine Corps Ball.”
Rick, who had been struggling with his love life until Suzy came around, is suddenly going to take over T.C.’s? That’s rich.
As the above photo of T.C. reveals, he appears not to be sold on RIck’s plan, although that presumes Rick even told him about it.
T.C. really needs some alone time rather than having a social occasion forced upon him—especially a formal social event.
Maybe Rick thinks that T.C. needs the distraction. But the other way to approach that is T.C. could throw himself back into Island Hoppers and his philanthropic activities without the stress of a romantic relationship.
There were three promotional photos of Hawaiian professional surfer Malia Manual. So does that mean Rick was considering her as a candidate to be T.C.’s date? He should be so lucky.
So, is Mahina totally out of the picture? With Emily Alabi (Mahina) appearing in four more episodes, including this one, that seems unlikely. These things have a way of working themselves out if that’s what viewers want.
But can T.C. dance yet? He had trouble walking with a crutch a couple of episodes ago.
But T.V. time is so difficult to judge. It could be weeks later by now.
More Magnum?
Now that the Hollywood strikes are over, is there hope that Magnum P.I. might still have a future despite the previously announced cancellation at the end of this season?
The pattern seems to be that networks are canceling untested series rather than the tried and true. Magnum would undoubtedly fall in the latter category.
Also, its ratings rebounded after NBC had the common sense to move the series to Wednesdays from Sundays after its return for the final ten episodes.
Or maybe it could migrate to Freevee for another season, such as Almost Paradise, Neighbours, and continuations of Bosch and Leverage have done.
Otherwise, there are many storylines to tie up over these final four episodes.
Watch the trailer above, then return to T.V. Fanatic Wednesday for a review of this episode.
What’s going to happen with the Amish boy’s case?
Should Rick be shopping for T.C.’s date?
Hasn’t T.C. been through enough?
Comment below.
Dale McGarrigle is a staff writer for TV Fanatic. Follow him on X.