Magnum P.I.

[Dr.]

There have been some articles suggesting that “Cabot Cove” from Murder, She Wrote is the murder capital of the United States. Though, “Sunnydale” from Buffy must be up there too.

But maybe it’s actually Hawaii. We’ve had Hawaii Five-0, Magnum P.I. and (soon) NCIS: Hawai'i. The place seems to be lousy with criminals, murderers and terrorists.

Still, the beaches look very nice.

 

[Dr.]

Typically, this show’s plots are simplistic and contrived — and often quite silly. But last night's season premier seemed above average (grading on a curve ). Also, the action and fight scenes were noticeably better. I wonder if this upgrade is a fluke; or might it continue…?

 

[Dr.]

But still no word about being renewed for a fifth season...

 

[Webfoot Hero]

Still surprised a renewal hasn't been announced yet for the show. It's a solid performer on Fridays and pulls in decent money from overseas licensing. The biggest stumbling block seems to be its co-production with Universal but hopefully with the FBI shows getting their renewal notices today, Magnum won't be far behind.

 

[Dr.]

‘Magnum P.I.’ Canceled By CBS After 4 Seasons – Deadline

 

[Hunter Rider]

That's a shame, it was a fun show with likable characters.

 

[Teelie]

Kind of saw it coming. Still disappointing though. I have been trying to catch up with the series too.

 

[Dark Raven]

Nooo.

I enjoyed the show and looked forward to it. Jay Hernandez said before he was confident that they'd get a 5th season. But then he did say that Thomas and Juliet wouldn't get together until the series finale, so maybe the kiss was indicative of what was going to happen?

 

[InCali]

When I told my mom it was canceled, she had 3 words. “Oh EF them”.

 

[Wyrminarrd]

Really disappointed that they cancelled this series

 

[Dark Raven]

I preferred it much more to Hawaii Five-0 which somehow managed to get 10 seasons.

 

[Webfoot Hero]

Still shocked at this decision, especially since Hernandez and the cast were so confident they'd have a S5. CBS got rid of a solid performer (especially compared to a lot of other dramas on network TV) and one of their more fun, heartfelt dramas. I wonder just how apart CBS and Universal were on bringing it back. I know a lot fans are pissed off at those two right now, even more so than when MacGyver got canned last season. The show had really found a nice rhythm after last season's up-and-down, strike-shortened season and had a lot of ground left they could have explored.

 

[Dark Raven]

It feels like we've been robbed of a show in its prime.

 

[Webfoot Hero]

It feels like we've been robbed of a show in its prime.

Really sounds like Magnum was the victim of a purely financial move since supposedly CBS/Viacom/Paramount is in massive debt after last year's merger and they are looking at cutting costs anywhere they can. Magnum was an expensive show (mainly because of its Universal license) and CBS wasn't seeing much benefit from it. That's why they went towards cheaper CBS studio/co-production dramas and reality shows. Here's what a Viacom/Disney investor and frequent poster on SpoilerTV said about the situation.

I mentioned to you (that at the Paramount meeting last week) they made a big fuss about "The Top 30 shows at paramount+," and how CBS primetime is half of them. I suspect the dramas do great (they mentioned that), but (other than Ghosts, which is now the Thursday night winner) the comedies fail. And so they dropped 2 comedies, and replaced them with a drama. Nearly all shows owned by Paramount. (The Magnum problem had been brewing awhile. They were smart to cancel it. They weren't making enough profit from it.) Paramount is carrying very large debt, and they have only reduced it a tiny bit. Add to that the Archegos problem (with the company's head just arraigned on RICO charges). Last but not least, the stock continues to drop. Its investors are bailing-out or are scared. They are (unwittingly) setting themselves up for a takeover. If they wanted to be taken over, they would do it on their own terms. Not this way.

 

[InCali]

Really sounds like Magnum was the victim of a purely financial move since supposedly CBS/Viacom/Paramount is in massive debt after last year's merger and they are looking at cutting costs anywhere they can. Magnum was an expensive show (mainly because of its Universal license) and CBS wasn't seeing much benefit from it. That's why they went towards cheaper CBS studio/co-production dramas and reality shows. Here's what a Viacom/Disney investor and frequent poster on SpoilerTV said about the situation.

That's what I heard too. I wish it would get picked up. Some really charming characters......

 

[Teelie]

The streaming wars are starting to take more causalties. Anything not profitable enough or immediately is going to get canceled, especially if it is not owned in house. And despite being network, it is still tied to streaming which is why a lot of CW shows got the axe too.

 

[Webfoot Hero]

The streaming wars are starting to take more causalties. Anything not profitable enough or immediately is going to get canceled, especially if it is not owned in house. And despite being network, it is still tied to streaming which is why a lot of CW shows got the axe too.

I found an article recently that basically says the networks/media companies are chasing a relatively small market thinking it'll hit big but are ignoring a still large source of money from cable and traditional markets. They're spending billions on content for these streamers but most people only use 2-3 streamers so the money isn't stable . That same guy who I quoted earlier said that Paramount/Viacom is like $36B in the hole while Warner is at $168B and yet they're still throwing wads of money at streaming even regular network/cable is still more profitable. Investors are starting to see and with inflation and a potential recession coming, the money may dry up and these companies may be hurting, likely necessitating mergers/sales.

One Clear Casualty of the Streaming Wars: Profit

 

[Webfoot Hero]

That's what I heard too. I wish it would get picked up. Some really charming characters......

It took a bit (about 1/2 way through S1) but the cast really found a nice chemistry/rapport with one another and the writers played on that really well, even if the storylines were sometimes a little clunky. Also helped that the scenery was nice, which makes for a fun, easy watch, which can't be said for a lot of CBS' other procedural shows.

 

[Dr. Evil]

Surprised it only lasted 4 seasons as CBS shows tend to go at least 9 or 10 seasons and sometimes 2 or 3 seasons too long (Blue Bloods)

 

[Webfoot Hero]

Surprised it only lasted 4 seasons as CBS shows tend to go at least 9 or 10 seasons and sometimes 2 or 3 seasons too long (Blue Bloods)

That's only if the show is fully-owned by them or a co-produced show is pulling high enough ratings and/or still profitable for both sides. Other than that, co-produced shows have limited shelf lives, especially with shrinking live ratings, ad rates, and syndication deals meaning networks will prioritize their fully-owned shows.

 

[Dark Raven]

Why was it co-produced? Do Universal own the rights to Magnum?

Juliet was a lovely character.

 

[Webfoot Hero]

Why was it co-produced? Do Universal own the rights to Magnum?

Juliet was a lovely character.

They do. In previous years, the show was making more than enough under the deal to make both sides happy. But this year it seems instead of trying to make things work, Universal played hardball with the license and wasn't amenable to lowering the fee or chipping in more to account for lower ad revenue and increased production/inflationary costs. CBS was also trying cut some budget because of their own debt issues. There has also been a long-simmering issue between CBS and Universal over getting the original Selleck show on CBS All-Access/Paramount+ while the new Magnum was on air. Looks like the show and fans now have to suffer because of these issues.

 

[InCali]

They do. In previous years, the show was making more than enough under the deal to make both sides happy. But this year it seems instead of trying to make things work, Universal played hardball with the license and wasn't amenable to lowering the fee or chipping in more to account for lower ad revenue and increased production/inflationary costs. CBS was also trying cut some budget because of their own debt issues. There has also been a long-simmering issue between CBS and Universal over getting the original Selleck show on CBS All-Access/Paramount+ while the new Magnum was on air. Looks like the show and fans now have to suffer because of these issues.

I guess there's no way it can go forward on another channel....that sucks. I liked their take on the original show. Oh well.....

 

[Webfoot Hero]

Looks like it was indeed the bruising nature of CBS' fight with Universal over The FBIs and The Equalizer that cost Magnum PI a renewal.

CBS ‘Magnum P.I.’, ‘B Positive’ & ‘United States Of Al’ Cancellations – Deadline

 

[Webfoot Hero]

Sounds like the show isn't completely dead as Universal is still shopping the show around.

Magnum PI: Is studio Universal TV looking for a season 5 home?