After the trailer for the Reboot of MacGyver popped up in my Facebook feed, I couldn’t help but get psyched for the premiere. I’ve never watched the original series, so I went in to watching the premiere with no preconceived ideas about what the show should be like. All I knew is that it looked similar to James Bond with a younger target audience, more homemade gadgets, and a little more comedy woven in among the action; and for all intents and purposes, that is what it’s like.
The premise is as follows: Angus MacGyver bands together a team of ex-agents to form a covert organization within the U.S. gov. called the Department of External Services. Basically, their mission is to save the world from highly lethal threats.
The immediacy of the action instantly drew me into MacGyver’s story, and the continuation of that action, with a few respites here and there, is what kept me captivated. If you’re looking for boat chases, and people jumping onto moving vehicles and hanging from airplanes, then you’ve found your new TV obsession. I’m no expert on special effects and all that jazz that amps up the action-value, but as your average viewer, it looked completely authentic.
Plus, MacGyver’s remarkable resourcefulness in tough, “DIY or die” situations has got to be a highlight of the show. MacGyver himself narrates his DIY’s while labels such as “paper clip” and “soot” are typed across the screen, explaining to awestruck viewers how simple the materials are and how they are put to use. For example, MacGyver cleverly uses the canvas of a truck as a parachute. Cool, right!?
MacGyver using a paperclip to unlock handcuffs
But of course, wild stunts and impressive DIY feats alone do not make a show of substance, the characters take on that vital role. By falling in love with the characters, I subsequently fall in love with the show, which keeps me eagerly coming back each week for more. The main man of MacGyver is MacGyver (Lucas Till--the perfect man for the job), no shocker there. Mac, as he is nicknamed, is charming, slick, and a bit smug at times. (And he has fabulously flowing hair--which apparently was an important staple of the original MacGyver.) Mac is made likable by his big heart; he is a nice, caring guy, as far as I can tell. And he is relatable because of his apparent internal struggle, mostly stemming from a shocking betrayal revealed towards the premiere's end. Those two factors allow the viewers to see Mac as more than a special agent characterized by hubris. If his confidence and smile never faltered, he'd seem forced and fake--a robot taking on the world, which isn't nearly as interesting as a compassionate human doing so.
Jack Dalton (George Eads) works with Mac and is always ready and waiting to jump to Mac’s defense, guns blazing. He’s also quite the comedian, mitigating some of the drama. (Alongside Bozer (Justin Hires), Mac’s funny, unwitting best friend.) You can tell that Jack has a major soft spot for Mac, though since it's early on in the show, I'm not sure if it's a brotherly instinct or a fatherly one. Either way, he is fantastic, saying things like "my man, saving the world in style." What's not to love?
Jack and Mac defeating the premiere's villain
The two leading ladies are Thornton (Sandrine Holt) and Riley (Tristin Mays). Thornton runs the whole operation as an austere, no-nonsense leader who used to be a field agent. Riley is busted out of prison by Mac and his team to help them as a savvy computer hacker with a belligerent side. Based on the premiere, I think I'll end up being quite fond of both of them, and the banter among every character.
Left to right: Thornton, Jack, Riley, Mac
One detail I appreciated was the song choice for a death-defying action scene near the end of the premiere. In my opinion, "Fortunate Son" was the perfect song for that scene.The soundtrack of a show can make or break it, in this case, it made it.
I will admit, the ending was a tad cheesy, but I love cheesy, so I'm not complaining. It was nice seeing all of the major characters toasting to new beginnings. A phoenix rising from the ashes. I'm certainly a fan, and I can't wait for next Friday for more of Mac and his formidable gang. If you are debating whether or not to give it a try, I say go for it! It gets two explosive thumbs up from me!
