Magnum returns from a case out of Honolulu, to find that the Masters Estate is being used by a film team to shoot a new movie, based on one of Robin's books. What's more, he is employed to be the stunt double for one of the film's stars, Jack Martin - something which Thomas is highly unenthusiastic about, until he learns that Martin's wife Olivia Ross, of whom Thomas has always greatly admired, is also starring in the film, and relishes the opportunity to get close to her. But things take a dramatic turn when, during filming of a key scene, Olivia shoots Jack with a prop gun, but the bullets turn out to be real instead of blanks, leaving Jack in critical condition. With his idol Olivia the prime suspect in trying to kill her husband, Magnum investigates the ""accidental"" shooting to find just how the bullets came to be changed, and by whom...

William Troubshaw, an old adversary of Higgins who had made his life misery at school, married the girl he once loved, and eternally the bane of Higgins' life, has recently moved to the islands with his family, and they two old rivals are scheduled to compete against each other in an upcoming fencing tournament. But during the duel, Troubshaw is suddenly killed in seemingly a freak accident, when Higgins' foil sets off his hit indicator, causing him to be electrocuted. Higgins becomes suspect for murder when his fingerprints are found on the rewired scoring box. Magnum is certain that Higgins couldn't have been responsible for the killing, and sets about finding the real culprit behind the death, but the evidence and motives are stacked up against Higgins, and for some reason, he is refusing to call upon Robin Master's top lawyers and is just going along with the allegations...