3.15 - K9 + Smugglers + New Recruit

Airdate: Feb 15, 2019
Writer: Rob Pearlstein
Director: Gabriel Beristain

Guest Cast: Reign Edwards (Leanne) , Levy Tran (Desi)

Guest Cast: Presilah Nunez (ATF Mario Satio) , Ryan Czerwonko (Lead Smuggler) , Tahj Vaughans (Smuggler # 1)
Michel Curiel (Smuggler # 2) , Ashlee Heath (Mom) , David Vaughn (Dad) , Kinsley Isla Dillon (Little Girl)
Bid Syed (Afghan Father) , Juju Syed (Afghan Mother) , Bilal Syed (Afghan Son) , Riya Bhatia (Afghan Daughter)


After a surprising introduction to Phoenix’s newest recruit, Desi (Levy Tran), MacGyver and team are assigned to escort
and protect an ATF (alcohol, tobacco, firearms) gun-sniffing dog who has a bounty on his head, only to discover they’re not the only ones crashing the weapon drop.

After Lenkov posting a certain editing photo of this episode back in January, I guess we already know how that "surprising introduction to Phoenix’s newest recruit" will go for Mac

As per the usual, I'll post my thoughts first, before anyone else gets around to it (I kid)



I'm not too crazy about Desi. I am willing to give her a chance, it was her first episode. Like Mac said in the end, it'll be interesting to see how it all plays out.



Two times I did love her: "I always make an exception if anyone tries to hurt an animal" Yes, you go girl!

When they asked if Cody's handler was okay, and they got screams in response.
Desi: *rolls eyes* Nope.
This is me whenever stuff like this happens on this show



A few non-Desi thoughts:

1. "If Riley is correct... This should be where they're keeping Cody. Riley is never wrong" LOL, I love it

2. How did no one get smoke inhalation from that?!

3. Matty at the end




I have to add my overall feelings towards Desi: I don't mind so much that she's cold. I do mind that she seems so crabby. I figure, "Eh, she's new. Give her time to adjust. Besides, with what she said about losing friends in the past, I can understand why she'd be afraid to open up too much." But whenever she makes it abundantly clear that she doesn't want to be here, I think, "They didn't ask you to be here either. And neither did we."

But hey, at least her over-serious attitude is a change from Jack's stupidity

Also, about how she won't tell anything about her past with Jack... Here we go again...

Overall I liked the episode. Dogs! what's not to love

Desi was obnoxious in the beginning: a real know-it-all and so dismissive. She got better as we learned more about her.

Loved how Matty got her in the end

I think her not staying at Mac's was really right for her character. She's not one for socializing

I think she'll need time to become 'one of the family' if she chooses. Even Jack needed time to adjust to Mac
Remember she said my friends call me Des. Call me Desi From the start, we're not friends.

I am curious how they will develop her character.

I agree and I am not sure how I feel about her either and need to give it more time to see how they write her with the team.

Riley is awesome!!!

I was glad Riley didn't take a backseat like she did when Cage was introduced and hope this continues to feature her more as she and Mac work great together. I loved the line "I'm Riley, have we met."

I don't like the potential of being a love interest for Mac as it seems forced like with Cage. I am wondering if this was the main reason to bring in another female character to create the tension. I hope I am wrong.

Hopefully the writers learned from the Cage debacle and go in the completely opposite direction of how they wrote Cage.

Fingers crossed...

While I'm not crazy about Desi at the moment, I do appreciate the fact that they didn't just make her "Jack 2.0." She has an entirely different personality (one which, I suspect, will become more likeable over time), and her fighting skills do add something new to the team.

Overall, the episode was a middle-of-the-road one for me. Perfectly fine and entertaining, but not a highlight of the season.

I had to laugh at how conveniently placed all the ingredients were for making the firefighting foam. I mean, seriously, EVERYTHING he needed just happened to be at that one table?

All the close-ups of Mac's hands while he was working on the forklift MacGyverism made me think of the opening credits on the original series.

Appreciate it

Eh, this show's never been one for logic

It was enjoyable episode for me.

I liked Desi, I think she's adding something new to the team ... You have to give time to someone new to the team, I'm sure everyone will agree with that.

Love the ending!

Preliminary Ratings are in: http://www.showbuzzdaily.com/articles/the-...-2-15-2019.html

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Reaction to the preview: Do not like Desi. The whole idea that Mac needs a "protector" is crazy to me (basically because that's a ridiculous concept when you think of the original). I know Jack always had Macs back, but to make it so obvious that her only job is to literally look out for and protect Mac is odd. Like, its MacGyver!

Reaction to the first few scenes: Still don't like Desi. She is upstaging Mac. Jumping up the shipping crates. Come on lol. Does this show really need a JCVD type character who uses karate to take down multiple enemy's? I did like how she got shot so they didn't make her invincible for very long.

Desi doesn't' like guns. That's a plus.

Desi is a lot like Matty at first, questioning MacGyver. Now she just figured out what Mac was doing before he explained it. Nobody is supposed to be able to do that lol.

More karate lol. Is it just me or is this just another character to take some focus off of Mac?

I like the end. Make Desi look good by going after the dog, but Mac the hero by saving them both. Well done.

Not giving up on the character by any means, but not a fan yet.

I have to keep reminding myself this isn't the original and as much as I want at least some elements from the original, its not going to happen for the most part. Just the whole Mac needing a protector is not the way I would have ever gone and I'm not sure why that's how they brought Desi on.

End rant lol.

Unfortunately in 2019 I think it is necessary. Didn't watch the original so don't know who the adversaries were but now Mac is up against terrorists, mercenaries, drug smugglers, cartels, etc. These people are armed, dangerous, with no qualms about killing, children included. So sad that in 30 plus years we've gotten to such a place. ( read an article recently that bathers in Acapulco had to walk around a few bodies to get to the water. This so saddens me.)

I'm not sure how I feel about Desi but I'll give her a chance to grow as a character.

Purposely avoided watching any previews or sneak peeks to avoid forming any early opinions on our new team member.

I think the development of the character and how she'll fit in with the rest is gonna make for some good TV viewing...as long as we don't get any "MacGyver's Women" scenarios! I also enjoy a character that isn't wholly reliant on firepower to get things done. Fits the MacGyver spirit better. I re-watched 3x14 right before this one and the Jack line about "how 'bout we switch to guns?" was cringe...and this is from a sportsman who doesn't have issue with firearms.

The episode was fun, nothing too special, but what I've enjoyed about the third season is even the middling episodes are a decent watch. The show is definitely established and in a bit of a groove at the moment.

Leanna though...what is the point of this character? Even her initial meeting with Desi was barely given any real description. Have a feeling she's going to be written down, if not eventually out, of the series.

Can Cody join the Phoenix Foundation?

It irked me that Bozer was so ready to use the machine guns in 3x14, even if it ws just to scare the wedding guests.

It made sense for Jack, but it made no sense for Bozer since he's 1) not carrying a gun at all and never had any training for one (and as far as I know never asked Thornton or Matty if he could get one for missions) and 2) because of the background story with his brother.

I really wish they would have the characters take a bigger stand pro or contra weapons. They had no problem doing it on Hawaii Five-0; I don't get why they're avoiding the topic all the time here.

I still feel it's not enough for rebooted Mac to say he doesn't use them or doesn't like them. That's just wischi-waschi (sorry, Swiss term ) blabla to me.

Unfortunately in 2019 I think it is necessary. Didn't watch the original so don't know who the adversaries were but now Mac is up against terrorists, mercenaries, drug smugglers, cartels, etc. These people are armed, dangerous, with no qualms about killing, children included.

You should watch some of the original series.

He faces the same people now as he did then except back then he didn't need people protecting him because the whole point of the show was that he was able to out-think the bad guys instead of being the field geek that needs looking after.

We were already there 30 years ago. Nothing has changed in 30 years... which is the real issue... 30 years on and we're still doing the same stuff to each other and causing the same problems.

They did the exact same thing with Matty and with Cage. Don't know why they always use the same trope.

Though I am curious if they will set up Desi with Mac. From what I've gathered from people on Twitter and Tumblr, most already say they don't want that. They prefer Mac having a love interest outside of Phoenix. Also, he's only on a break with Nasha so she might still be waiting for him

Of course, the MacRiley shippers are worried that Mac ends up with Desi instead of with Riley but then, many worried about Cage being a love interest for Mac and it never happened.

Yeah, I never liked how over-protective Jack was. It was something I was looking forward to having gone when Jack left... Then Desi came along

I personally don't mind that someone watches Mac's back. It's been shown that he tends to focus on whatever's going on in front of him (like disarming a bomb), and it takes Jack to watch out for whoever may be approaching from behind, but that's different then having a "body guard". Like, he's a trained operative, not a toddler

Unfortunately in 2019 I think it is necessary. Didn't watch the original so don't know who the adversaries were but now Mac is up against terrorists, mercenaries, drug smugglers, cartels, etc. These people are armed, dangerous, with no qualms about killing, children included.

You should watch some of the original series.

He faces the same people now as he did then except back then he didn't need people protecting him because the whole point of the show was that he was able to out-think the bad guys instead of being the field geek that needs looking after.

We were already there 30 years ago. Nothing has changed in 30 years... which is the real issue... 30 years on and we're still doing the same stuff to each other and causing the same problems.

To be fair though, the original was cheesier (just saying), slower-paced, and just a different tone then the reboot. For what the reboot is (and most real-life situations), going in completely unarmed wouldn't bode well (unless you can actually MacGyver a way out somehow). Just my two cents

It irked me that Bozer was so ready to use the machine guns in 3x14, even if it ws just to scare the wedding guests.

It made sense for Jack, but it made no sense for Bozer since he's 1) not carrying a gun at all and never had any training for one (and as far as I know never asked Thornton or Matty if he could get one for missions) and 2) because of the background story with his brother.

I really wish they would have the characters take a bigger stand pro or contra weapons. They had no problem doing it on Hawaii Five-0; I don't get why they're avoiding the topic all the time here.

I still feel it's not enough for rebooted Mac to say he doesn't use them or doesn't like them. That's just wischi-waschi (sorry, Swiss term ) blabla to me.

Ha! America has that saying too (wishy-washy). We just like our y's I guess.

One thing that threw me:

When the family was explaining how the had Cody because they thought he was a lost dog, the dad mentions "He had no collar". I'm pretty sure it was just the leash, not the collar, that broke when the chaos started. Also, he had a collar when the handler and Phoenix crew showed up to get him - did the random family just put one on him?

They did the exact same thing with Matty and with Cage. Don't know why they always use the same trope.

Though I am curious if they will set up Desi with Mac. From what I've gathered from people on Twitter and Tumblr, most already say they don't want that. They prefer Mac having a love interest outside of Phoenix. Also, he's only on a break with Nasha so she might still be waiting for him

Of course, the MacRiley shippers are worried that Mac ends up with Desi instead of with Riley but then, many worried about Cage being a love interest for Mac and it never happened.

I was wondering the same thing about Mac and Desi. I also read many are happy with the choice of Desi but not the love interest angle.

With Cage, I think they either toned down the interest because fans didn't want it or they knew the character wasn't going to last long so they went in another direction.

I like Desi and I think she could stand on her own and doesn't need to be a love interest.

The thing I find surprising is how obvious it was with a potential romance. Normally, Peter and the writers are not as transparent as they are in this case. All the other romantic characters was a subtle introduction but not this one.

I wonder if this is just a misdirection from the writers and it may turn out Desi is already taken or simply won't go in this direction?

I did notice that the March 8th episode was written by Nancy Kiu and Lindsey Allen who have been the main writers when it comes to the episodes that feature romance or implied romantic scenes such as Riley & Airplane & Father, Bride & Betrayal so I tend to think this may give us a glimpse of Desi and Mac and I must say I am not looking forward to it as most episodes..

UGH!!

Here's the blog post about the MacHacks by Tech Consultant Rhett Allain: https://rhettallain.com/2019/02/18/macgyver...rs-new-recruit/

Final Ratings: http://www.showbuzzdaily.com/articles/show...-2-15-2019.html

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By the time we got to the opening credits my left eye started to twitch. I was like: "Mmm mmm. No, this is not happening."

One does not simply introduce a new character like that being that disrespectful and making fun of the lead's security system. I didn't even know (or remember) he had one. Ours didn't. Not to mention the lack of respect she showed by simply entering his house when Mac walks around in a towel. I wonder how our Mac would've reacted if he found someone in his house while he was just wearing a towel. Somewhere I hope he would kick her out or at least explode and then kick her out. She had no business there and I'm sure he wouldn't put up with her attitude at all.

In the debriefing scene in the way she introduced herself all I could think was: "what a coldhearted b*tch". We were so not doing this but when the episode started going it was far from bad. The episode in general I mean. It was fun and exciting. We were in the woods again, even if it was for just about ten minutes or so.

Despite her coldhearted introduction, I do got to say I was very impressed with her fighting skills. She packs a punch, she's good, she's strong and more then capable of taking Jack's place as Mac's bodyguard, even if he actually wouldn't need one.

And what a spectacular ending was that. Love how the force of the explosion blew Mac away outside and how they took more time to show what he was doing to put out the fire and save Desi and Cody.

I loved Cody by the way and hope to see little guy again in another or more episodes. I also love a good action sequence with a dog. The blood got pumping when he chased the baddie during the fire. Sic 'em, boy.

I do wonder: did the kids get another dog now?

In all, I think I can like Desi (seriously, if I were part of the team I would just call her Des like her friends, just to get the blood from under her nails and I really wouldn't care if she shoots me) if she drops the attitude a little bit. And maybe that will happen in the end. Where I thought Matty to be condenscending towards the time, Desi was just downright rude to everyone, in a way nobody should stand for. Our Mac wouldn't: Nikki, Cindy Finnegan, R.T. Hines were all people Mac stood up to against at one point.

You want terrorists: Blow Out. You want mercenaries: Murdoc. You want drug smuggles: The Survivors. You want cartels: Deep Cover.

This Mac and our Mac faced the same kind of peoples.

Funny thing is that in Trail To Doomsday, Mac said the world became a safer place. Then again, that was then. Now 9/11 and ever since that day it has gotten so much worse. And once more the funny thing is that in The Spoilers Mac said mankind has the habit of destroying itself.

Once more it's shown how ahead MacGyver was for it's time.

I don't think Desi would become a love interest. Riley is better for that job. I'm a Mac/Riley shipper or whatever, I think. Drop Leanna, drop Bozer and the show will improve greatly. Riley can still be the hacker and the agent at the same time, she knows guns, she can fight. I think it would be better if it were just those two and they can watch each other's back. It'll feel less crowded and much more breathing room but the show has been a lot better then in the beginning. The pace has gone down a notch and it still is intense and exciting. The scenes in the fire has proven that. I love the way they're going.