Michael Thornton Pete’s only child, Michael grew up resenting that Pete was never around for him. His resentment was somewhat resolved after he rescued both his mother and father from one of Pete’s old DXS colleges hell-bent on revenge. After that incident Pete employed Michael to work at the Phoenix Foundation so they could be closer and get to know each other better. Unfortunately, Michael's scarred past of growing up without Pete, led him to betray Pete’s trust and steal top secret information from the Foundation. He was subsequently caught red handed and forced to testify against his crime partners in return for a reduced jail sentence.

Again, I prefer the first actor they used for Michael over the second--I believe his angst over his father's absence in his life more. The second Michael seems vapid in comparison.

Hmm- Michael Thornton, portrayed by two different actors in "Family Matter" and "Fraternity of Thieves". But I enjoyed his character well enough. I think it was nice seeing some of Pete's family life in "Family Matter". And "Fraternity of Thieves" served to show how compounded Pete's relationship was with his son.
But I do like to see that relationships improved and perhaps Michael got a better understanding of why his father had been away so much- and Pete was there for him when he got into trouble with the law. I guess there isn't much more to say about the character- but I'm glad they included him.

I think the first Micheal was far more believable than the second.

The second seemed kinda 2 dimensional to me, or maybe he seemed more like a completely different character to the first? *shrugs*

I have to agree with everyone else, that for some reason the first Michael was more capturing than the second. I almost wished that they never made the episode with the second michael because that took away from his character in my opionion. In the first one he seemed more innocent and angry with his father but was willing to give it a second try. The second michael just seemed so out of context from the first and didn't seem to fit into the plot as much.

While I agree that the first Michael is more innocent than the second, maybe that's the whole point. Pete is not exactly the perfect dad. The episode Fraternity of Thieves is to me about the consequences that can occur if you put your job a head of everything else. For Pete, he was basically married to his job and it destroyed his marriage and severly harmed his relationship with Michael. Dana Elcar is perfect is this episode. Michael--well I like both---in Family Matters my favorite scene with Michael is the very end when Pete and Michael are talking about going to a basketball game together. In Fraternity of Thieves, the scene where Michael has been caught by Pete and Mac is so powerful--Michael is upset obviously, Pete is hurt and angry, Mac is trying to keep them calm.

Michael Thornton lets see the first one I liked pretty well, the second one just didn't feel right for some odd reason.

I think they should have introduced us to Connie and Michael, the way they did Harry. We really don't know a lot about Pete's background. I wonder if Pete was kind of an father/husband who was at home occasionally, and that was why he and Mac developed the bond that they had. Just my thoughts

Yeah, I believe Pete was an absent, workaholic father, and he tries to recreate that father/son experience through his relationship with Mac since he knows he was a failure the first time with his real family.

I wouldn't call Pete a failure as a father. We was just over worked. I just don't think he was there as much as he should have been for his son and wife. Connie seemed to understand what Pete's job was about. But for a young child especially a boy that would be difficult.

A father who is a failure is someone who doesn't care about his children in any way shape or form. Michael at least loves his father, and knows that his Dad was doing important work for the government.

Fell asleep while trying to watch the second episode with Michael Thornton in it. Only thing I caught was him walking out on crutches. Will try again to watch it.

They did not keep him around long enough to understand who he was.