Magnum P.I.: The Complete Second Season

Return to the Big Island for more adventure with Tom Selleck’s charmingly roguish detective hero, Thomas Magnum, courtesy of this three-disc set, which compiles the entire second season (1981-1982) of Magnum, P.I.. The 22 episodes included here (among them the two-part "Memories Are Forever") crystallize the key to the series’ success: an appealing blend of action, drama, mystery, and comedy, cemented by Selleck and his likable castmates, especially John Hillerman, who would earn a Golden Globe for his work on Magnum in ’82. Highlights of the season include Magnum’s attempt to stop an international assassin ("The Jororo Kill," with Tyne Daly), the arrival of Hemingway-esque author Mad Buck Gibson (Darren McGavin) in the episode of the same name, and the aforementioned two-parter, which reunites Magnum with a woman he thought to have died after marrying her while serving in Vietnam. The usual array of classy guest stars are also on hand for this season; in addition to the aforementioned actors, there are turns by Mimi Rogers, Vic Morrow, Vera Miles, Jill St. John, and Elisha Cook Jr. (who plays a much different character than his recurring role as "Ice Pick" in future seasons). And Magnum obsessives should note early appearances by Gillian Dobb, who played Agatha Chumley in numerous subsequent episodes, as well as one of Higgins’s colorful, estranged half-brothers in "The Elmo Ziller Story." It’s unfortunate that the set itself doesn’t match the quality of the episodes--extras are limited to second-season episodes from Knight Rider and The A-Team--but Magnum fans should be pleased to have all the episodes in a single set, and best of all, commercial-free. --Paul Gaita

Tom Selleck, John Hillerman. The Naval Intelligence officer turned private eye keeps the streets of Hawaii clean as he catches crooks and troublemakers in this sophomore season. Includes all 22 second-season episodes plus bonus episodes of Knight Rider and The A-Team on 3 DVDs. 1981-82/color/60 min. each/NR/fullscreen.