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MacGyver Online Forums > Episodes > 006 - Trumbo's World


Posted by: MacGyverOnline 2 November 2006 - 01:16 PM
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006 - Turmbo's World

Airdate: 10 November 1985
Writer: Stephen Kandel
Director: Donald Petrie
Opening Gambit Writer: Stephen Kandel
Opening Gambit Director: Lee H. Katzin

Guest Cast: David Ackroyd as Trumbo, Peter Jurasik as Dr. Charles Alden.

Opening Gambit: White Water
MacGyver must rescue a captured scientist from her Basque captors.

Main episode:
Deep in the Amazon jungle, MacGyver teams up with a local plantation owner to battle an invading horde of killer ants. (Includes clips from "The Naked Jungle," a 1954 George Pal movie).




Posted by: Macs Lab Rat 7 November 2006 - 11:12 PM
Vote totals from 8 Oct 2006
Poor [ 0 ] [0.00%]
Average [ 4 ] [20.00%]
OK [ 5 ] [25.00%]
Good [ 6 ] [30.00%]
Excellent [ 5 ] [25.00%]
Total Votes: 20


Archived comments

QUOTE (MacGyver Gal Sep 27 2004 @ 12:31 PM)
Didn't like it...the ants freaked me out



QUOTE (sonyab Sep 27 2004 @ 02:03 PM)
I really liked this episode the only creepy thing was the ants! Ants were all over charley! I can't believe Charley wanted to get very close to the ants to take pictures of them. stupid move! When Mac burned the ants you can tell the fire was fake.. come on.. smile.gif The ants were strong buggers. They didn't die by fire and they floated on leaves to go across the water.. smile.gif ants have high IQ rofl. The ants were all over MacGyver ack! The ants finally died by drowning..  MUAHAHHAA DIE ANTS DIE! Trumbo tells mac that he will regrow everything and he can come back in a year and see what trumbo has done but MacGyver never went to visit trumbo in a year..  That's to bad. It would have been nice to see all that Trumbo grown.. smile.gif

QUOTE (rockatteer Sep 27 2004 @ 02:10 PM)

QUOTE
QUOTE 
I can't believe Charley wanted to get very close to the ants to take pictures of them




I can't figure that out either? His camera had a zoom on it. why did he need to get closer to them?


QUOTE (Macsrose Sep 29 2004 @ 09:12 PM)
ewww! too many ants! This was one of my least fav's...


QUOTE (MacGyverGod Sep 30 2004 @ 01:08 AM)
Come to think of it, it indeed seemed like an old film.


QUOTE (shippmp Sep 30 2004 @ 02:56 AM)
No question in my mind, this was the worst episode of the series


QUOTE (phoenix Sep 30 2004 @ 10:14 AM)
they used scenes from c. heston's "naked jungle" from 1954. this is one of paramount's worst cost saving edits ever put on television.


QUOTE (Macsrose Sep 30 2004 @ 08:01 PM)
I was wondering about that Phoenix, I had saw that movie and thought those were some of the same scenes...Thanks!


QUOTE (MacGirl May 31 2005 @ 06:07 PM)
Yeah, this wasn't one of my faves. The story line was pretty good, but technically it was badly done.


QUOTE (Amy Jun 1 2005 @ 06:09 AM)
Yeah--one of my least favorites. Every time I watch it when Mac's in the suit he made, I think, What? the ants can't climb under the coats hem or under the neck guard on his helmet? LOL--wondered about the movie thing!


QUOTE (smcstrav Jun 1 2005 @ 01:56 PM)
I just rewatched it on my new season1 dvd set. Yuck - I remember that I was creeped out by the ants the first time I saw it too. I also think it was one of my least favourites.


QUOTE (sonyab Jun 1 2005 @ 03:24 PM)
I voted excellent


QUOTE (lemmy357 Jun 2 2005 @ 07:38 AM)

I voted excellent too. I agree technically this one is poorly done. But it has been a favorite of mine since I first saw it. 


QUOTE (Dave Jan 8 2006 @ 07:38 AM)
I agree it was not one of the best episodes, I think having two of the central characters of the episode die along with not expanding enough on the backstory of Trombo made it especially bad. Also I don't find the drowning thing plausible because only a few had to survive(back at the village for example) to regrow the colony. However it gets points from me for being 'different' and fairly interesting.


QUOTE (penny Jan 9 2006 @ 07:38 AM)
YUCKO! Had a really hard time getting past the ants. (And Mac's trucker hat.)

QUOTE (Lothithil Jan 11 2006 @ 07:55 AM)

That's Mac's dirty ol' Calgary Flames hat! It always makes me smile when I see him wearing it during this ep...

Ice Hockey in the Amazon! *chuckles* Skate fast!


QUOTE (MACGYVERISMYDAD Jan 11 2006 @ 08:26 AM)
ok ep. i never understood either why he got so close to the ants. i guess he wanted to get up close and personal with them. hehe. i think a good idea for an ep would be to have mac come back and visit trumbo and see what he did or didnt do. or maybe the ants came back again and ate trumbo?? i think it would be a funny ep if thats what happened. mac comes back and see a skeleton laying outside of trumbo and he hears the whining of the ants and he just gets in his boat and leaves. that would atleast be a good opener for another ep!!


QUOTE (Sjaop Jan 11 2006 @ 10:47 PM)
I have to agree with rockatteer.
The plotline is okay, but the shots are too lousy.

Indeed you can recognize the blue screen shots way too easily and the shots of the ants are fake too. Probably edited in from a show of the Geographic channel (if it existed already back then, but you catch my drift I guess....)

I voted okay, because I simply love MacGyver even though this one was shot terribly.


QUOTE (MacNymph Jan 12 2006 @ 07:29 AM)
QUOTE
QUOTE (Sjaop --at-- Jan 11 2006, 10:47 PM)
the shots of the ants are fake too. Probably edited in from a show of the Geographic channel (if it existed already back then)



Oh, that probably would have been a vast improvement. They took those shots from a 1954 movie called "The Naked Jungle".

I don't have a problem with ants. Until they show the close ups of their pinchers.

QUOTE (Lee Nole-Isil Jan 28 2006 @ 02:10 AM)

i didn't like this one very much, my family and I were sitting there laughing half the time at the ants 'screaming' and stuff. They sounded like martians.


QUOTE (MacsChick Jan 28 2006 @ 05:28 PM)
I didn't think this episode was that bad. Sure, the editing isn't that great, and they had to use phony-looking shots of ants, but this is a TV budget we're talking about, after all, and the first season--they probably couldn't invest a lot in the effects at that point. The ants crawling on MacGyver looked real, and I liked how he blew the dam and almost got washed away--he's so brave!  I liked his hat! What's wrong with it?  Also, you have to love him anytime he's on a horse!  The stunt people said he's excellent on horseback! Did anyone else notice that Trumbo was the same dude that played the exec/bad guy in The Negotiator?

Posted by: Amy 17 November 2006 - 11:47 AM
Just voted average. Never was one of my favorites. I already wrote that i wasn't convinced that the suit Mac made was ant proof and also...I agree with Rock...I wasn't convinced by drowning the ants, either. The scene where the dam blows and Mac gets washed away was pretty good...but I don't think the water would've drowned the ants so much as washed them away to start over somewhere else. Don't army ants do this thing where they cluster into ball for safety or whatever? The water came fast, but there were enough of them that many of them could have done that pretty quickly before they would have drowned, maybe. hmm.bmp laugh.gif I'll shut up now...I'm no emtymologist!

Posted by: Macs Lab Rat 18 November 2006 - 09:59 AM
I don’t know why but this episode was a bit boring for me. I didn’t think much of Macs friend and for someone so interested in wildlife it is really odd he went and stood next to a swarm of dangerous ants. I wasn’t really interested by the Trumbo character either. I didn’t really buy that blowing that little dam would have caused a flood that would have caused an impact of such a huge number of ants. I vote average. This is one of season one that I don’t watch as much as the others.

Posted by: Lee Nole-Isil 2 February 2007 - 12:40 PM
Sorry, but to be perfectly honest I was too busy laughing at the 'ant sounds' to pay attention to much else...

Posted by: SAK 3 February 2007 - 05:31 PM
Until I saw this episode, I never knew ants made sounds (other than the crunching sounds one can hear in a huge ant farm).

sak.gif

Posted by: MacGyverOnline 3 February 2007 - 05:59 PM
on their own you can't hear them.. but when theres thousands of them all making the same sounds it becomes amplified enough to hear quite clearly.

Same applies to the sounds they make as they cut, break, etc the trees and stuff in their path.


Posted by: Old Fan 4 February 2007 - 01:24 PM
Interesting story, but because of budget constraints, they used scenes from that movie with Charlton Heston in the jungle with the ants (again, the title escapes me, but it made in the 1950's).Actually... I think it was called "Empire of the Ants" (just thought of it!) Whenever they do that, I just cheapens the whole look of the show - the film was about 20-some years older and you could see where it was spliced in. They did it in GX-1 - using US fighter planes pretending to be Russian MIG's - segments from some other film. Anyway... I did like the story idea here - Mac has - or had - some interesting friends - many of whom he met while on assignment all over the world, and there were some genuinely good Mac-isms. Fixing the pump, making the ant-proof suite, the flamethrower. It was also nice to see David Ackroyd although he comes back in season 3 as a baddie.

It's a credit to the writers that the show got better as it went on, as season 1 was kinda shaky. The very tired southern California sets got so over-used. But, the first season of any new show is really exploring until the characters find their "voices", so for Mac, season 1 was very different than the others. I'm glad I kept watching...

I voted good. dry.gif jeep.gif

Posted by: MacGyverOnline 4 February 2007 - 02:45 PM
the movie was called "the naked jungle" a 1954 George Pal movie

Posted by: Lee Nole-Isil 4 February 2007 - 03:41 PM
*Psst* Don't argue with Admins, tis dangerous! clown.gif

Posted by: MacGyverOnline 4 February 2007 - 04:23 PM
who's arguing? huh.gif


Posted by: Old Fan 4 February 2007 - 05:35 PM
Sounds good to me... rolleyes.gif jeep.gif

Posted by: Tygr 13 April 2007 - 02:22 PM
It's based on a story I've read in one of my older Literature textbooks.

Posted by: Frida 11 August 2007 - 04:36 AM
I voted "good". I agree that the story is not that very believable, and yes, those scenes with Mac and his friend on that boat in the river looks VERY fake. But I do enjoy the episode anyway smile.gif I think it is exiting and a little scary too...

Posted by: Janet Marie 11 August 2007 - 05:23 AM
I did enjoy the episode on the ninvasion of the ants. I like to wait for how MacGyver finds a way out of a problem. That's what makes his series so fascinating. Janet Marie

Posted by: MacGyver_92 11 August 2007 - 08:17 AM
i dont like that episode at all, its my least favorite because those ants are freaky. i agree with amy, and i voted poor.

Posted by: Lothithil 11 August 2007 - 08:33 AM
Things I loved about this episode:

Mac's fondness for eccentric Charlie and his sadness when he died.

Seeing Mac bravely set himself in the path of this devestating natural diaster in hopes that he can somehow help avert it.

Watching him take apart the waterpump and fix it, and the fact that he did it for no other reason than because he could and nobody else would and it was a Good Thing To Do.

Catching the few seconds here and there of extra footage that was edited from my original DVDs (Whoot!!)

Mac on horseback... something that did not occur often enough during the various seasons of this show! wub.gif

Thinks I didn't like:

Poor Louis. sad.gif They really didn't have to kill him (the directors) They could have given him a few nasty ant-bites and sent him running back to the house. We knew the ants could kill humans because of what happened to Charlie, so that was just mean.

Also, they never show MacGyver taking the scary-looking signpost which we see in his Venice Beach apartment living room later (The Prodigal). Perhaps Trumbo didn't give it to him until his return visit, or maybe he grabbed it as they were leaving as a souvenir

Posted by: MacGyver 11 August 2007 - 10:56 AM
Hmmm- I can't believe that I somehow missed commenting on this one. Well, I'll go ahead now and say that "Trumbo's World" gets an excellent rating from me! This is a classic MacGyver episode. This is the one that my brothers and I always remember- mainly for the guy that got eaten alive by ants!!! biggrin.gif
Yeah, it's pretty freaky, but for a young boy- it definitely leaves an impact of being a bit freaky and cool at the same time. I mean, I'm disgusted to see the guy get eaten alive, of course- but I think there's a primal instinct for males at least that is fascinated by this kind of thing- not necessarily in a morbid way. But that's just me.

Anyway- the opening gambit is also classic- you can't forget that. MacGyver helps the botanist escape and they do the rappelling down the mountainside scene that's used in the opening credits. And there's some incredible music throughout the episode.
And it was really cool to see MacGyver drown the ants and beat them in the end. It's very much a man vs. nature episode (like "Hellfire") and it makes for an exciting episode. I like it a lot! smile.gif

Posted by: MacGyverOnline 11 August 2007 - 01:53 PM
I thought this was a particularly bad episode. More for technical reasons, than story line.

It starts with a really bad blue screen shot of Mac and Charlie going up the river in the boat. Everything from then on seems so fake and artificial. Lighting setups are wrong; picture quality is bad (this may be to make the cut between new scenes and the movie scenes not so noticeable?) Scene backgrounds look very artificial.

All in all it looks like the episode was shot in a badly setup sound stage on a very old 45mm movie camera.

And the drowning the ant's thing didn't convince me either!

Posted by: Mac 16 August 2007 - 04:06 AM
QUOTE (Rockatteer @ 11 August 2007 - 06:28 PM)
I thought this was a particularly bad episode. More for technical reasons, than story line.

MacGyver didn't have the best technical quality in general. I quickly accepted that when I started to rewatch the show and I don't let bad visuals distract me from a wonderful story.

For 'Trumbo's World' is a wonderful story. Trumbo is a complex man who chose to fulfill his dream to the bitter end. I might not agree with his motivations or practises, but I admire someone who has the courage of their convictions.

On a sillier note, Mac is adorable in his 'suit of armour.'

This ep definitely makes my top fifteen and probably my top ten.

Mac

Posted by: j12752 16 August 2007 - 05:13 AM
Guess I'm one of the few who just didn't like this episode, it would be in my bottom 5

Posted by: Kate Mackay 16 August 2007 - 05:41 AM
I voted excellent. Except for the fact the ants ( or any kind of insect ) creeps me out, BIG TIME . I get this creepy, crawly , scratchy feeling on my skin. I just HATE that. EEEeeeehh ! But aside from that, I liked the episode.

I like that his friend drew a very nice picture of him.

And he goes out proving his heroism, time and time again. As he did in this episode, daring himself to go and detonate the bomb that would set the dam open and kill ALL the ants at the same time, really fast. Since they over-came the first time they released the water to the ants. The ants just adapted to that and crossed over using the leaves as boats. But when MacGyver and Trumbo ( actually it was just MacGyver , right ? ) opened the dam fast and allowed the water to flow. And I got scared at that point, as it looked like the water over-came MacGyver. I was actually scared for his life . I thought he had drowned in that sudden rush of the MUDDY water. But thankfully, he made it. He did NOT drown. . And the ants were destroyed . boxing.gif

Sincerely,
Kate Mackay


Posted by: Mac 16 August 2007 - 06:26 AM
QUOTE (Kate Mackay @ 16 August 2007 - 10:16 AM)
And he goes out proving his heroism, time and time again.

Yes! Just like in my favourite ep, Bitter Harvest, Mac risks his life to save a stranger. Yes, by the time he had to blow the damn he was also saving his own life, but he could have left way before that.

What's with his hero complex?!

Mac

Posted by: MacGyver_92 16 August 2007 - 07:05 AM
QUOTE (Rockatteer @ 11 August 2007 - 05:28 PM)
I thought this was a particularly bad episode. More for technical reasons, than story line.

It starts with a really bad blue screen shot of Mac and Charlie going up the river in the boat. Everything from then on seems so fake and artificial. Lighting setups are wrong; picture quality is bad (this may be to make the cut between new scenes and the movie scenes not so noticeable?) Scene backgrounds look very artificial.

All in all it looks like the episode was shot in a badly setup sound stage on a very old 45mm movie camera.

And the drowning the ant's thing didn't convince me either!

i must agree

Posted by: MacGyversCrush 16 August 2007 - 07:43 AM
I voted Poor..

I just didn't like this episode. It creeps me out.. I like ants, while they are crawling along the sidewalk..

But when you have millions of them marching along.. Creepout city.

And tech. hard to watch as Rocketeer mentioned.

I know they are still the feel for the character and what all he could do.


I just have a hard time watching this one..

Posted by: Lothithil 16 August 2007 - 09:13 AM
laugh.gif It makes me laugh to read how many people voted down because they didn't like the ants... would it have been better if Mac had blown up a dam to drown an invading force of cute and fuzzy bunnies?

happy.gif Strange paradigm.

Posted by: Mac 16 August 2007 - 09:27 AM
QUOTE (Lothithil @ 16 August 2007 - 01:48 PM)
laugh.gif It makes me laugh to read how many people voted down because they didn't like the ants... would it have been better if Mac had blown up a dam to drown an invading force of cute and fuzzy bunnies?

happy.gif Strange paradigm.

Trumbo's World, bunnified! (see http://www.angryalien.com/ to get an example of what I just imagined).

roller.gif

Mac

Posted by: Old Fan 16 August 2007 - 10:00 AM
Insects... Most folks don't like 'um - they're creepy and crawly - they don't have a good rep... so it's OK to vilify them. Think how many SciFi shows/movies have insects as the "Alien Menace". (almost as many as reptiles.) Ants have a very highly ordered social structure. Each one knows exactly what it's job is - and they really try to do their thing in a sort of robotic fashion - so they seem very scary - ready to take over the world - especially "en masse".

Like Mac said: "... I don't know how good ants are at swimmin', but I'd be willing to bet that a good fire'd get their attention..."

And there are so many insects to choose from... You can make the same movie over and over... just change to a different one... Useful critters to have around in that respect...

blink.gif jeep.gif

Posted by: trtlsoup 17 August 2007 - 09:59 AM
QUOTE (Rockatteer @ 11 August 2007 - 06:28 PM)
And the drowning the ant's thing didn't convince me either!

I voted (I think) average, but just for scene quality and the usage of stock footage. The actors entirely carried the show, IMO...

After a few episodes I realized the film quality wasn't going to be up to par, the budget probably a bit tight, not having proven themselves yet.

And Loth was right; it was totally unneccesary to kill off Luiz.

I wish I could have seen the cut footage, though.

My problem with the ants was not the ants themselves, but the fact that water really doesn't kill them. (25+ years living in the land of the red biting fire ants... Ouch!) Fire, on the other hand...

I need to watch it again (now that I'm unpacked) with a critical eye. I didn't notice half of what you'all see.

Posted by: Nutsy 30 September 2007 - 09:07 AM
Hey,

Having read that most dislike ants and the poor quality of some of the scenes, and so on and so forth, here is a line I picked from this marabunta episode (excuse me if it is not word-by-word accurate):

"You got one (ant), Trumbo. Trouble is a couple of billion of its relatives are coming to the funeral."

wink.gif

Posted by: MacGirl 4 December 2007 - 06:25 PM
I did like that line!

I also agree that flooding them out wouldn't have worked. If you get a few ants crawling on you and biting (as happened to me when I was in Florida in winter of '94), a stream of water from a hose seems to discourage them pretty well. But with that many... I don't know, it just doesn't seem believable.

Posted by: The True MacGyver 18 March 2008 - 04:43 PM
An average episode. The whole storyline was hokey. The MacGyverisms were clever, but probably wouldn't work. The fact that they spliced in clips of a film from the 50's shows the quality.

Posted by: Liz1976 2 June 2008 - 07:40 AM
My 8 year old loves this episode, for some crazy reason. She is fascinated by the bugs. I voted ok. I like the character of Trumbo, but I wonder why was he down there--had he always lived there?
I agree that Charlie needing to get closer to the ants in order to photograph them, makes me question the guy's sanity.
And despite my being a happily married woman, I confess that a thirtysoemthing RDA without a shirt on in the opening is a reason to watch.

Posted by: androgyny 4 June 2008 - 07:25 AM
i voted excellent. i like the story. i don't like any kind of insects but the ants being freaky is what made the episode interesting for me. also, there's no sappy romance or kissing scenes.

charlie is an idiot. technically speaking, its weak but i forgive them since this was done more than 2 decades ago.

Posted by: jknnej 9 June 2008 - 05:05 PM
Whomever alluded to it earlier in the post, they're right. The story is called
"Leiningen versus the Ants" and it's by Carl Stephenson 1893-1954.

(sorry, literature teacher here!)
Here's the link if you want to read the story:
http://www.classicshorts.com/stories/lvta.html

Posted by: Murdoc12 25 March 2009 - 12:44 PM
This isn't quite in my bottom five, but neither is it one of my faves.

Posted by: SMeeceymouse 11 April 2009 - 10:46 AM
In two words I hate ants. But have to say them thar ants were right smart to cut off leaves to float across the water. Was surprised to see Dan Aykaroyd on a MacGyver episode. I just don't like bugs period. But you know it is based on reality. It would have been nice to see Mac go back a year later to see what Trumbo had done with the plantation. I like how Trumbo looked out for the safety of his workers. duct.gif

Posted by: Beachbead 22 April 2009 - 12:33 PM
Didn't like this one too much, all they could of done was used water to get the ates away.

Posted by: lucsch 28 May 2009 - 02:17 PM
"And despite my being a happily married woman, I confess that a thirtysoemthing RDA without a shirt on in the opening is a reason to watch."

Couldn't agree more.


I like this one because it is memorable--who could forget that many ants? I'm going to watch this one again. I just got my season 1 DVD's. I watched this online a few weeks ago but didn't notice the bad editing, given my slow network and small viewing screen. I appreciate the information on the background of the story. Very interesting to know where the writers got (or stole) their ideas.

Posted by: MacGyverOnline 11 June 2009 - 01:08 AM
QUOTE (Beachbead @ 23 April 2009 - 08:33 AM)
Didn't like this one too much, all they could of done was used water to get the ates away.

I think within the storyline, using the water had to be a last resort because it meant flooding his land and washing all the crops away.

It also involved blowing up the dam which held the water back, so there was a significant amount o work required in order for that damage to be fixed.




Posted by: Mac Jackson 2 October 2009 - 08:17 AM
The actor who played Trumbo is now on this season of Heroes. He looks more like Murdoc in it but I knew I knew him from somewhere and my first thought is to go to MacGyver and sure enough I got to say my famous line: "He was on MacGyver". biggrin.gif

Posted by: MacGyverOnline 2 October 2009 - 02:07 PM
laugh.gif You actually get to say it twice, because he's a http://www.macgyveronline.com/pages/reoccuring.html.. well... he appeared twice anyway.

His second appearance was as Knapp in The Negotiator.

Posted by: Mac Jackson 5 October 2009 - 08:22 PM
Oh Yeah, That's true. Funny how I never think of it being the same actor since he plays such different parts. Shows how good he is as an actor:)

Posted by: MacGyverOnline 5 October 2009 - 09:08 PM
Yep, the sign of a good actor. smile.gif




Posted by: deepfathom393 1 June 2010 - 09:26 AM
Ew ew ew ew ew ew. Nasty, icky ants. blink.gif

Posted by: cirubit 1 June 2010 - 12:44 PM
I voted excellent!
One of my favorites episodes of the first season!
It is the kind of Mac's story that I loved ( and I love until today)!!! w00t.gif

Posted by: Makedde 20 October 2011 - 09:59 PM
I missed it the first two times it was on, but now we are repeating the entire series for the third time and I got to see it, but they skipped the opening gambit!!! I'll have to get my DVD's out. Last time I saw the opening gambit for this episode was when I about ten years old!!

Anyway, not a good episode. Mac and Charley in the boat, OMG what a nice fake backdrop that is. Mac with the flamethrower? Gee, could you have made the fire look any more fake?

And what the heck was with that ridiculous head thing he was wearing? He could have been mistaken for a member of the KKK. Plus, the ants could have easily crawled up his legs because he only had pants on and what was stopping them crawling under the hood?

I did laugh at the sound of the ants 'screaming' when they were being washed away.

I can't believe I missed Mac with no shirt on, but even that couldn't have saved this episode.

Posted by: tobey 21 April 2012 - 07:17 PM
I love Lucius Trumbo, he wears jodhpurs soo tight (does this look a little gay..., isn't?), but he is handome, mature and varonile.
Why does a plantation owner wear tight jodhpurs in the brazilian jungle?

Posted by: MiracleMac 22 April 2012 - 12:51 AM
Some scenes are taken from The Naked Jungle (1954)

Check this link, watch from 1:16:06 to forward and you see some scenes are copied and acted in MacGyver a bit different way. And the scenes where that water drown the fields, so these are the original tapes from that The Naked Jungle.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NeOC8-oRDoQ

Posted by: NightTinkerer 31 July 2012 - 10:10 AM
I agree with the previous posts regarding the technical stuff... the boat ride down the river looks totally fake, and you can definitely see where they've re-used the Naked Jungle Footage. Way before computers were used for color correction... tongue.gif

That said--with my 80's glasses on, I still enjoyed this episode very much. The opening gambit was neat; I couldn't help but giggle at Mac's attitude through it all, it was almost like "just another day in the office..." laugh.gif

I thought I recognized "Charlie" from somewhere, and then a friend of mine reminded me that he's most known as the ambassador from Babylon 5. That's kind of fun. smile.gif I *love* the drawing "he" made of Mac... too bad it wasn't shown from a good angle so you could make a screencap.

I, too, have my doubts that the protective suit would have worked, even though I got the impression that he sealed most of the openings with duct tape. That aside, it must have been rather uncomfortable for the actors with all the ants crawling around on them, even though they were probably of the none aggressive kind! Way before they could add such things digitally. I actually wonder just how they did it--and how many ants that were used, (stock footage aside).

A "Good" rating from me.

Posted by: KiwiTek 31 July 2012 - 12:06 PM
QUOTE (NightTinkerer @ 1 August 2012 - 06:13 AM)
I thought I recognized "Charlie" from somewhere, and then a friend of mine reminded me that he's most known as the ambassador from Babylon 5. That's kind of fun. smile.gif

Is that the guy with the funny hair that sticks up kinda like a crown on the back of his head?

Posted by: NightTinkerer 31 July 2012 - 12:53 PM
QUOTE (KiwiTek @ 31 July 2012 - 10:09 PM)
QUOTE (NightTinkerer @ 1 August 2012 - 06:13 AM)
I thought I recognized "Charlie" from somewhere, and then a friend of mine reminded me that he's most known as the ambassador from Babylon 5. That's kind of fun. smile.gif

Is that the guy with the funny hair that sticks up kinda like a crown on the back of his head?

Oh yes, that's the guy. smile.gif

Posted by: Daisy8577 17 February 2013 - 07:00 AM
I just watched this ep. I would give it a good rating. The boat scene definitely fake. It is quite obvious they used footage from the naked jungle. The macguyverisms were great and creative.

Posted by: MDBfan 5 March 2013 - 11:00 AM
I just watched this episode again and found out why I'm scared of ants! w00t.gif I don't mind spiders, mice or hights, but ants... Seeing MacGyver's friend Charlie covered with ants creeped me out as a kid, and I didn't like the sight of it now either. I think the episode is good, although I agree that using clips from that movie made it look kind of unreal.

Posted by: Scwilson 4 August 2013 - 09:22 PM
sak.gif liked the fact that Mac was out in the middle of nowhere. The ants were creepy.

Posted by: BrakeFluid 5 August 2013 - 06:58 AM
Never was a favorite episode of mine, but I have always loved the line about the value of the half-dollar these days. wink.gif

Posted by: KiwiTek 5 August 2013 - 03:54 PM
For me this is the worst episode of season 1.

Nothing seems to work properly. It feels very rushed and amateurish.




Posted by: MiracleMac 8 March 2014 - 06:16 AM
The "ants" what we see on the Mac's cover suit aren't real ants, you can see closely that those are just some black dots or some dirt what were sprinkled on the suit. Just wondered why the ants didn't moved at all.

Posted by: KiwiTek 8 March 2014 - 01:18 PM
And in this Behind the Scenes shot you can see how they had to make the dots a lot bigger than real ants so they could be easily seen on camera. Tricks of the trade me boy-o; tricks of the trade. wink.gif

See more behind the scenes photos in our http://www.macgyveronline.com/pages/behind.html#.UxuIn4VsuUk gallery.

user posted image

Posted by: Grazer 8 March 2014 - 02:10 PM
Looks like my kitchen counter top in the mornings. dry.gif


Posted by: denizen 9 March 2014 - 12:40 PM
Being an offbeat episode, I rather enjoyed Trumbo's World. It was not your run of the mill episode.

Looking at it now, yes. It looks outdated & amateaurish. But for its time, the episode offered just the right dose of something new to keep MacGyver spontaneous & interesting.

Posted by: kristiina86halonen 17 March 2014 - 06:04 AM
Computer says I already voted this one, but I really don't remember how I voted unsure.gif Anyway, I don't like this episode very much, but I hope I didn't vote this as Poor, 'cause I am big fan, you know biggrin.gif I think the story is pretty good, it just realized badly.

Posted by: YopeGyver 17 March 2014 - 03:23 PM
QUOTE (Grazer @ 8 March 2014 - 05:10 PM)
Looks like my kitchen counter top in the mornings. dry.gif

roller.gif

Posted by: Wheeljack 17 March 2014 - 10:41 PM
QUOTE (KiwiTek @ 6 August 2013 - 11:54 AM)
For me this is the worst episode of season 1.

Nothing seems to work properly. It feels very rushed and amateurish.

What? WHAT??? You beast! You monster! I love this episode! I remember it seemed really exciting when I watched it as a kid. Sure, it uses stock footage, features fake ants, silly "ant" noises and some bad acting, but all of that helps make it great. It has Mac building/fixing stuff and using a flamethrower. A FLAMETHROWER, people! That alone sets it ahead of some other episodes. lol

You guys are just meanies and haters, and next time you find ants in your house I want you to think about this -- While you reach for a can of bug spray, Mac used a Bomb, a Flamethrower and a Flood -- meaning he's way cooler than you. lol

Posted by: kristiina86halonen 18 March 2014 - 01:05 AM
The truth is, that special effects in MacGyver series were very expensive and developed at the time. You couldn't see this kind of special effects at the end of 80's in the tv-serials, but only in the movies. But, back then, there wasn't such kind of technology like nowadays.
Special effects in this episode were not so good, and I don't know, if there was any real ant in this episode filmed originally, at all. All scenes with real ants were cut from other movies.
Our house is next the pine forest, so we have bad ants invasion every year when they swarm and go crazy. So, I have lots of experiences with ants.

Posted by: KiwiTek 18 March 2014 - 12:34 PM
QUOTE (kristiina86halonen @ 18 March 2014 - 10:05 PM)
Our house is next the pine forest, so we have bad ants invasion every year when they swarm and go crazy. So, I have lots of experiences with ants.

So this episode is more like a documentary for you on how to deal with your ant problem. laugh.gif

If we come visiting your house are we going to find burn marks from flame throwers and water traps from your ant invasions?

laugh.gif



I just had a thought. This episode is the one time when MacGyver could have actually used Murdoc's help (with his flame thrower). laugh.gif



Posted by: YopeGyver 18 March 2014 - 06:10 PM
QUOTE (KiwiTek @ 18 March 2014 - 03:34 PM)


I just had a thought. This episode is the one time when MacGyver could have actually used Murdoc's help (with his flame thrower). laugh.gif

Ooo, I smell a fanfic! hmm.bmp

Posted by: denizen 18 March 2014 - 09:30 PM
laugh.gif Murdoc's World

Posted by: kristiina86halonen 20 March 2014 - 12:49 AM
QUOTE (KiwiTek @ 19 March 2014 - 08:34 AM)
QUOTE (kristiina86halonen @ 18 March 2014 - 10:05 PM)
Our house is next the pine forest, so we have bad ants invasion every year when they swarm and go crazy. So, I have lots of experiences with ants.

So this episode is more like a documentary for you on how to deal with your ant problem. laugh.gif

If we come visiting your house are we going to find burn marks from flame throwers and water traps from your ant invasions?

laugh.gif

No, we use the supermarket's pesticides or we just kill them pressing between fingers. But there's thousands of them!!! And drones and ant queens, that are really big!!! It's disgusting!!! And it happens every year in July-August. Maybe we should use MacGyver's methods to solve this annual ant problem once and for all laugh.gif

Posted by: YopeGyver 20 March 2014 - 04:28 PM
QUOTE (denizen @ 19 March 2014 - 12:30 AM)
laugh.gif Murdoc's World

That's perfect! laugh.gif Man, I wish I had time to write! This could be fun!

Posted by: Joe SAKic 20 March 2014 - 05:52 PM
The plot had good intentions but .... they failed in the attempt to dramatize the 'terror' of those man-munching insects. It came off as a bit too lame and kinda lost it's <ermm> bite in the end.

Posted by: cmbj67 27 July 2014 - 02:08 AM
I voted below average because there are so many other episodes better than this and I really don't like all those images of ants, I don't watch it often, I prefer other episodes. huh.gif

Posted by: Harry1982 9 August 2014 - 01:56 AM
I also voted below average, not poor though, because there's some good classic scenes. Overall to my taste, Trumbo's World is one of the weakest episodes of season 1 and even though there's lots of potential, the execution just fails. I don't feel the menace of the ants and the sound they're making is just... well, preposterous.

Posted by: RadiantRose 3 November 2016 - 01:11 PM
Ah, the episode where MacG.gif tried fighting fire ants with fire ...

Posted by: RadiantRose 3 November 2016 - 01:16 PM
QUOTE (Makedde @ 20 October 2011 - 09:59 PM)


And what the heck was with that ridiculous head thing he was wearing? He could have been mistaken for a member of the KKK.

Fashion design never was MacG.gif 's forte.

Or anything remotely connected to style or fashion.

Posted by: Joe SAKic 4 November 2016 - 06:08 PM
So what 'was' fashionable back in the '80s, for the sort of undercover agent, casual, sporting types? unsure.gif

Posted by: KiwiTek 4 November 2016 - 06:22 PM
QUOTE (RadiantRose @ 4 November 2016 - 09:11 AM)
Ah, the episode where MacG.gif tried fighting fire ants with fire ...

laugh.gif

Except they were army ants... different species. wink.gif




Posted by: RadiantRose 7 November 2016 - 12:37 PM
QUOTE (KiwiTek @ 4 November 2016 - 06:22 PM)
QUOTE (RadiantRose @ 4 November 2016 - 09:11 AM)
Ah, the episode where MacG.gif tried fighting fire ants with fire ...

laugh.gif

Except they were army ants... different species. wink.gif

I obviously got them confused with the fire fighting episode. Sorry ...

Posted by: RadiantRose 7 November 2016 - 12:42 PM
QUOTE (Joe SAKic @ 4 November 2016 - 06:08 PM)
So what 'was' fashionable back in the '80s, for the sort of undercover agent, casual, sporting types? unsure.gif

That is an excellent question. MacG.gif has terrible, terrible fashion sense. No idea how to put an outfit together. I think maybe he does it on purpose, hoping that women will take pity on him and tell him to strip to his underwear so that they can put together a more harmonious collection of clothing.

After all, he has to have some flaws ...

Posted by: Joe SAKic 7 November 2016 - 02:23 PM
QUOTE (RadiantRose @ 7 November 2016 - 04:42 PM)
QUOTE (Joe SAKic @ 4 November 2016 - 06:08 PM)
So what 'was' fashionable back in the '80s, for the sort of undercover agent, casual, sporting types?  unsure.gif

That is an excellent question. MacG.gif has terrible, terrible fashion sense. No idea how to put an outfit together. I think maybe he does it on purpose, hoping that women will take pity on him and tell him to strip to his underwear so that they can put together a more harmonious collection of clothing.

After all, he has to have some flaws ...

An outfit? I didn't know the undercover folks wore outfits? biggrin.gif Seriously, I think you've just insulted scores of MacGyver fans who scower Ebay so as to find clothes and dress just like him ..... or so I've read on this board. ohmy.gif Would have to agree that his wardrobe lacked a bit of 'co-ordination' at times, but then again his outdoor interests & extracurricular activities were quite varied and we are talking California; not London, Paris or NY! wink.gif

Posted by: RadiantRose 7 November 2016 - 02:53 PM
QUOTE (Joe SAKic @ 7 November 2016 - 02:23 PM)
QUOTE (RadiantRose @ 7 November 2016 - 04:42 PM)
QUOTE (Joe SAKic @ 4 November 2016 - 06:08 PM)
So what 'was' fashionable back in the '80s, for the sort of undercover agent, casual, sporting types?   unsure.gif

That is an excellent question. MacG.gif has terrible, terrible fashion sense. No idea how to put an outfit together. I think maybe he does it on purpose, hoping that women will take pity on him and tell him to strip to his underwear so that they can put together a more harmonious collection of clothing.

After all, he has to have some flaws ...

An outfit? I didn't know the undercover folks wore outfits? biggrin.gif Seriously, I think you've just insulted scores of MacGyver fans who scower Ebay so as to find clothes and dress just like him ..... or so I've read on this board. ohmy.gif Would have to agree that his wardrobe lacked a bit of 'co-ordination' at times, but then again his outdoor interests & extracurricular activities were quite varied and we are talking California; not London, Paris or NY! wink.gif

To be honest, I rather like the way he dresses. His lack of style is endearing. I think it's in "The Negotiator" that Pete says he's pleased Mac managed to wear a suit and tie for a business meeting and suggests MacG.gif should have maybe got a haircut. I was like, "No!!! Not your hair, not your business, Pete."

Edit: I don't think it's out of line for someone's boss to tell someone to dress more smartly, and to fasten their hair out of the way and to cover up facial piercings or tattoos. I don't think they should be allowed to tell anyone to cut their hair or not get tattoos or piercings; or to wear high heels as part of a dress code (because of comfort and health and safety).

Of course, most of these rules go out of the window for actors/actresses, 'cos their appearance has to fit in with the particular role they took, but I'm talking about other careers.

Posted by: Joe SAKic 7 November 2016 - 03:13 PM
His fashion was more than appropriate for his lifestyle, profession, climate, locale & era. I suppose he could have dressed like Bond, but 'they' would have seen him coming through a big picture window, a mile away, and he wouldn't have made it past the first season. surprise.gif

Posted by: RadiantRose 8 November 2016 - 11:12 PM
QUOTE (Joe SAKic @ 7 November 2016 - 03:13 PM)
His fashion was more than appropriate for his lifestyle, profession, climate, locale & era. I suppose he could have dressed like Bond, but 'they' would have seen him coming through a big picture window, a mile away, and he wouldn't have made it past the first season. surprise.gif

OMG, I didn't mean that I wanted him to dress like Bond!

Posted by: Joe SAKic 9 November 2016 - 05:16 AM
Hmmm, I'm still at a bit of a loss as to the perfect 'fashion' Mac could have/should have worn for his extremely eclectic, daily itinerary? Do you have a link to an example of better taste and for the era, RadiantRose? He couldn't look too preppy, or too official, and often needed to blend in with the locals and so he could eavesdrop or slip through a barrier. He also was a rink rat and hockey players are not trying to impress each other with their fashion sense when they all converge at the arena .... quite the opposite - too much co-ordination and/or preppy dress would precipitate a lot of chop busting. laugh.gif

Posted by: RadiantRose 9 November 2016 - 02:39 PM
QUOTE (Joe SAKic @ 9 November 2016 - 05:16 AM)
Hmmm, I'm still at a bit of a loss as to the perfect 'fashion' Mac could have/should have worn for his extremely eclectic, daily itinerary? Do you have a link to an example of better taste and for the era, RadiantRose? He couldn't look too preppy, or too official, and often needed to blend in with the locals and so he could eavesdrop or slip through a barrier. He also was a rink rat and hockey players are not trying to impress each other with their fashion sense when they all converge at the arena .... quite the opposite - too much co-ordination and/or preppy dress would precipitate a lot of chop busting. laugh.gif

Okay. I'm not suggesting he should look or act like Bond. Or wear an outfit made entirely out of duct-tape, although I believe that such things exist. That would just be too weird. It's just small things. Like the way he loves wearing white trainers and/or white socks with dark trousers. What's that about?

But okay, let's allow him that idiosyncrasy. Let us also concede that a mullet was MacG.gif more practical than straight-forward long-ish hair 'cos not everyone has a pony tail band on hand all the time. (Although when Mac had to pose as a drug dealer, or was it an arms dealer? There were 2 episodes close together and one had drugs and the other had weapons), he did seem to have a rubber band or ponytail band on hand.

It's more about his choice of colours. He seems to wear light brown/beige a lot. And it just doesn't do anything for him. Colours that I think work better for him include black, blue or military green. I liked his red flannel shirt in "Target: MacGyver". And I liked that time he wore a pink shirt or T-shirt, forget which it was, it worked well.

Posted by: Joe SAKic 9 November 2016 - 03:11 PM
... well said. Yeah, he wears a pink shirt over a blue t with suspenders in Faith, Hope, and Charity .... something that I would also wear when out hunting (as he was) and not anticipating seeing anyone on that day. That's what boys do and especially on laundry days.wink.gif

I think (as a rule) guys would look at the practicality of the attire, rather than the color co-ordination. I know my sister was really into that for a while where she would critique everybody's cloth selection with her own assessment as to whether one was a winter, summer skin tone etc. .... to the point of being a bit rabid & overbearing about it all. biggrin.gif I was like 'but it fits well and I like it!' smile.gif

The mullet was definitely influenced by the 80s hockey hair styles. Probably, tailored after Gretzky's since he was mentioned several times in the series.
https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/564x/95/d1/09/95d1098ee2b116f15f99c268c75b9a5f.jpg


Maybe any lack of clothes taste was intentional and all apart of the (subliminal) magic of the character/series and especially for the lady viewers?

Posted by: RadiantRose 9 November 2016 - 04:08 PM
QUOTE (Joe SAKic @ 9 November 2016 - 03:11 PM)
... well said. Yeah, he wears a pink shirt over a blue t with suspenders in Faith, Hope, and Charity .... something that I would also wear when out hunting (as he was) and not anticipating seeing anyone on that day. That's what boys do and especially on laundry days.wink.gif



Was he actually hunting in that episode? He doesn't like guns or traps. I thought he was looking for wolves, but clearly not to hunt them.

Posted by: RadiantRose 9 November 2016 - 04:10 PM
QUOTE (Joe SAKic @ 9 November 2016 - 03:11 PM)
Maybe any lack of clothes taste was intentional and all apart of the (subliminal) magic of the character/series and especially for the lady viewers?

surprise.gif You've hit the nail on the head! It was all a subtle ploy so that the lady viewers would think, "Oh no, he has not put that outfit together properly, I should undress him and put together a more suitable outfit."

Posted by: Joe SAKic 9 November 2016 - 05:34 PM
QUOTE (RadiantRose @ 9 November 2016 - 08:08 PM)
QUOTE (Joe SAKic @ 9 November 2016 - 03:11 PM)
... well said.  Yeah, he wears a pink shirt over a blue t with suspenders in Faith, Hope, and Charity .... something that I would also wear when out hunting (as he was) and not anticipating seeing anyone on that day.  That's what boys do and especially on laundry days.wink.gif



Was he actually hunting in that episode? He doesn't like guns or traps. I thought he was looking for wolves, but clearly not to hunt them.

...... 'hunting' as in pursing and capturing but not killing. smile.gif I sub it in for photography, as well ... no difference in the preparation of hunting a deer and photographing a deer, really, with both pursuits you 'shoot' the deer, it's just that one is with bullets and the other with a shutter. biggrin.gif

That opening scene with Mac loping after the wolf was quite humorous actually. I just watched a documentary the other night on coyote/wolf hybrids in Canada and they had one collared and with several wildlife biologists in hot pursuit .... and it took them a whole week just to get a glimpse of it. Mac was literally 'running with wolves'. laugh.gif I've only seen two wolves in several decades spent in the wilderness, and only a brief glimpse, they are just so woods savvy.

Posted by: RadiantRose 10 November 2016 - 01:25 AM
QUOTE (Joe SAKic @ 9 November 2016 - 05:34 PM)
[QUOTE=RadiantRose,9 November 2016 - 08:08 PM] [QUOTE=Joe SAKic,9 November 2016 - 03:11 PM] ... well said.  Yeah, he wears a pink shirt over a blue t with suspenders in Faith, Hope, and Charity .... That's what boys do and especially on laundry days.wink.gif


That opening scene with Mac loping after the wolf was quite humorous actually. I just watched a documentary the other night on coyote/wolf hybrids in Canada and they had one collared and with several wildlife biologists in hot pursuit .... and it took them a whole week just to get a glimpse of it. Mac was literally 'running with wolves'. laugh.gif I've only seen two wolves in several decades spent in the wilderness, and only a brief glimpse, they are just so woods savvy.

My final thoughts on Mac's fashion sense:

1 It would have been quite nice if we'd seen him in sleeveless T-shirts more often. Nothing wrong with nice, muscular arms.

2 MacG.gif 's pink outfit could well have been the result of a laundry incident involving a red item and a white item. Red dye is like that. But I like to think that he remembered what he'd heard about how pink used to be the colour associated with boys and thought, "Nothing wrong with pink" rather than "Oh dear, nothing else to wear, hope nobody sees me."

But even if it was the only clean thing to wear, yay on him for wearing something clean rather than wearing something dirty and hoping to get away with it.

3 I know that Americans use "suspenders" when we in the UK say "braces" (for trousers).

I know that Americans say "garter belt" when we in the UK would say "suspenders".

But it still amused me that you wrote "a blue t with suspenders" even though I knew perfectly well what you meant and that you were using the term correctly.roller.gif

Now I am thinking about Monty Python's lumberjack sketch.

Re pursuing the wolf: maybe MacG.gif has a mystical connection with wolves?

Also with gekkos ... my computer says I mean geckos. I am spelling it wrong???? surprise.gif Should someone tell - oh, false alarm. Wikipedia assures me: "Gekko is a genus of colorful and diverse Southeast Asian geckos commonly known as true geckos".

Perhaps MacG.gif has a mystical bond with various wild animals?

Posted by: Joe SAKic 10 November 2016 - 05:46 AM
Pink is fine, pink with blue is a no go in clothes and in cars. biggrin.gif Garters and suspenders? Google "hockey garters" and "hockey suspenders" images and you'll 'see' the vernacular that the majority of the (sporting) world prefers.

I don't believe fashion protocol crosses oceans or borders that well. I was told by some Brits in India that shorts were only for 'school boys' and boy scouts. I said "even in 100 degree temps?" blink.gif "Yes", they replied, a gentleman must always wear long trousers, even when visiting hell". laugh.gif

For the record, I'm headed out to the wilderness today, temps around freezing and still in a pair of shorts! macsak.gif thumbsup.gif

Posted by: Jediferret 10 November 2016 - 06:35 AM
Did someone say Mac and Flannel in the same sentence?

drool.gif

*slaps self* Some of Mac's clothing choices were a bit cringe inducing, but I've seen MUCH worse. Besides, season 3 & 4 he was pretty well dressed. He was like a walking L.L. Bean catalog. XD

Posted by: RadiantRose 11 November 2016 - 04:10 PM
"pink with blue is a no go in clothes and in cars" ...

I love pink and blue together. *slowly thinks* What if there are people out there who think I have terrible taste?

Posted by: DashboardOnFire 2 June 2023 - 02:07 PM
via https://twitter.com/PatColligan/status/1664723214939848704

Posted by: Agent MacGyver! 28 June 2023 - 09:44 AM
Does anyone recall the interview with Lucas Till where he says that Trumbo's world is his favorite episode? It was a panel interview from just before the reboot started. I think that Lucas only watched the first six episodes of Macgyver based on how he fielded questions.

Posted by: DashboardOnFire 28 June 2023 - 11:23 AM
I can't exactly tell you which interview it was, but I remember him mentioning the episode several times.

And also Tristin Mays and James Wan stated that this is one of their favorites.

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