Season 3, Episode 5: The Past Tense

 Onto episode #5 of the third season, "The Past Tense", where the convoluted plots roll on for the second week in a row. This is also the TC/Higgins episode where they get to spend a lot of quality time together.

Apparently, a gun runner criminal, Morgen Lydon, who Magnum helped get locked up  three years ago while Magnum was still with Naval Intelligence, decides he wants to exact vengeance on his nemesis. So, does he hire a hitman to kill Magnum using some underground network from prison? No. Does he try to escape, get to a hiding spot and then think of a plan to get revenge? No.

What he does do is use his underground connections to hire two goons from Honolulu to hijack TC's helicopter and land it in the prison yard at the precise hour of the day that he will be in the yard. He also coordinates with the other prisoners to start a dumpster fire at the exact same time for enough of a distraction. He will then fly to a remote island where he will await Magnum to come and save TC(before any law enforcement would actually get there). Then he can gun down Magnum and take a slow boat back to shore...

Of course, things don't go according to plan. When the goons go to hijack the helicopter, Higgins is there too and they let him on the helicopter. When they make their daring landing in the prison yard, the rifleman in the tower can hit anyone with his shot, but can manage to shoot the fuel tank of the chopper, causing a slow leak(not a magnificent explosion).

While on the way to the remote island, the chopper runs out of gas and TC has to crash land it on the wrong side of the island. This leads the kidnappers to use them both as hostages and traverse the rough terrain to the other side of the island. This allows for Higgins to drive the kidnappers(and TC) crazy with old yarns about the war. Things get ugly though, when TC and Higgins try to escape and Morgen shoots TC in the shoulder. 

Shortly thereafter, Morgen executes his two kidnapping cohorts. He then brings TC and Higgins to the other side of the island where there is a machine gun stowed away that he can use to kill Magnum. 

Of course, right on schedule, Rick and Magnum figure out who kipnapped TC and Higgins and take the club's yacht out to the deserted island. 

Magnum walks up the beach and this is when the bad guy machine gun's Magnum to death. No, of course that didn't happen. Morgen wants to get a few words in first explaining his plan of vengeance. This is enough time for Magnum to grab the gun and get into a fistfight with Morgan. Magnum subdues him. Minutes later, a helicopter arrives to take TC and the rest to safety. Phew...

Side Note: In Rick and Magnum's effort to investigate who hijacked TC's chopper, Rick meets with Honolulu crime boss, Icepick(pictured below), in a sauna. Icepick gets the names of the hijackers for 
Rick in exchange for Rick leaning on one of his employees at the club to not press charges on his sister for some crime she committed. What an honorable boss you are, Rick?



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