Magnum P.I.: The Complete Fourth Season

In several of the 21 episodes of the 1983-84 fourth season, it's possible to detect the initial stirrings of a creative ennui that will eventually cripple this popular private-eye show, but for the most part these entries maintain Magnum P.I.'s early high standards. Attorney Carol Baldwin (Kathleen Lloyd) joins the roster of recurring characters, but otherwise the cast remains pretty much the same. “Home from the Sea” gets the season off to an unusual start: while celebrating the Fourth of July alone, Magnum (Tom Selleck) is swept off his surf ski and into the powerful Molokai Channel. As the day progresses, hopes for rescue dim and it becomes increasingly difficult for him to tread water while also fending off an approaching shark. Another offbeat episode is “Operation: Silent Night,” which finds Magnum, Jonathan Higgins (John Hillerman), T.C. (Roger E. Mosley), and Rick (Larry Manetti) stranded on a remote island on Christmas Eve after their helicopter makes a forced landing. Unfortunately, the island is used for target practice and a zealous Navy captain has plans for a little holiday shelling. Perhaps the year's best episode is “Holmes Is Where the Heart Is,” featuring The Avengers star Patrick Macnee as an old classmate of Jonathan's who believes that he's Sherlock Holmes and Higgins is Doctor Watson—an amusing conceit that turns deadly serious when murder rears its ugly head and Jonathan suspects that his old friend may be a homicidal maniac. DVD extras includes the half-hour documentary “The Great ‘80s Flashback” (on popular ‘80s TV series—all Universal shows), and a bonus episode from season five. Recommended. (E. Hulse)