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| MacGyver Online Forums > Episode Discussions > 1-19 Compass |
| Posted by: MacGyverOnline 24 March 2017 - 06:58 PM |
 1-19 Compass Airdate: March 31, 2017 Writer: Lee D. Zlotoff Director: Christine Moore Guest Cast: Aly Michalka (Frankie) , Francois Chau (Richard Sang) , Bill Posley (Smitty) MacGyver and Jack help Mac’s close friend from M.I.T. after she fakes her own death to prevent someone from killing her in order to suppress her scientific research. |
| Posted by: DXS 31 March 2017 - 09:20 PM |
| I saw this coming. It's a high tech version of the Flames End episode. But who is Frankie? Never had a Frankie in tbe original. And I forgot the name of tbe girl in Flames End. I'm loving Meredith Eaton bei,g part of the show. |
| Posted by: Joe SAKic 1 April 2017 - 07:47 AM |
I missed it last night but I can honestly say that if Meredith Eaton was the only act worth mentioning ... then I didn't miss much!  Seriously, don't mind the women wearing the pants in a roll, but slightly undermines in this series scenario.  |
| Posted by: MacGirl0629 1 April 2017 - 11:06 AM |
| I thought this was a great episode. I loved the Star Wars reference in the beginning and getting more of Mac's backstory. The bromance was on point and I was happy with the Riley/Bozer outcome. Although I think something is coming with these two.. |
| Posted by: DashboardOnFire 1 April 2017 - 12:13 PM |
| I liked this episode and the references to the original episode "Flame's End". I really think the acting was a lot better than in earlier episodes and the show profits from Mac, Jack and Frankie being the main storyline with the most of the screentime. I'm not totally happy how the Riley/Bozer storyline was resolved - I feel there was something missing in an earlier episode (e.g. Bozer asking Riley out and/or her saying no to his advances). It felt a bit out of the blue for me in the crossover episode that Bozer still wants to date Riley after there was no insinuation of his intentions for months. Also, why was Bozer on a mission again in Episodes 18 and 19 after stating in Episode 17 he didn't want to be in the field?  |
| Posted by: DashboardOnFire 1 April 2017 - 01:03 PM |
François Chau just posted this on Twitter  via https://twitter.com/FrancoisChau/status/848276428504219648 |
| Posted by: MacGirl0629 1 April 2017 - 03:35 PM | ||
You made some great points that I didn't consider until I rewatched the episode. I wasn't sure why Bozer was in the field again either. LOL!! It did seem like a scene was missing or maybe cut to make the time constraint for the episode when I watched it again. I still don't get why Bozer called Jack and not Mac. They are best friends regardless. I guess I was so happy that Bozer/Riley may be on the back burner that I missed some things. Although with the picture of Bozer potentially being hurt in the season finale, I have a feeling it will be front and center once again. Although this wouldn't be believable to me either if they go in the direction of him potentially saving Riley and her admitting feelings for him. He was in harms way in Corkscrew and nothing and in Ruler when she could have served as comfort for him, there was nothing.. As for Mac, I am glad we heard about his backstory but he can't seem to find love..LOL!! |
| Posted by: DashboardOnFire 2 April 2017 - 05:48 AM |
I forgot to ask, but... where was that compass?  |
| Posted by: Joe SAKic 2 April 2017 - 06:28 AM |
I didn't even know that there was a rhyme or reason to these episode titles. Just thought they were sort of just a brainless, random homage to a SAK and implemented in so that MacGyveronliners would not have as easy a recall when discussing them 50 years from now.  |
| Posted by: Jediferret 2 April 2017 - 11:33 AM |
| Riley is a Resident Evil fan? She gets cool points for that... Riley is officially the coolest person on the show, hands down. Other than that, the episode is "okay". I'm not sure if I even finished the last one. The problem is, these episodes aren't very... memorable. For instance, I watched this episode this morning, and I remember very little about it. Is it just me? O_o |
| Posted by: Connelly 2 April 2017 - 12:19 PM | ||
No, it's not just you. I'm in the UK - the show is now being shown here but on Sky 1 which is a subscription channel, which I don't have. But I have managed to watch four episodes at a friend's house - episodes 1, 2, 6 and 7 - and I can't remember much about any of them. It occurred to me the other day that I only saw a few episodes of the original MacGyver way back in about 1992 but one episode in particular, Out in the Cold, stuck in my mind - and 25 years later, I could still picture Mac's apartment in my mind, and I remembered the rescue scene very clearly. But I very much doubt I'll remember anything about the rebooted show in 25 years time! |
| Posted by: Joe SAKic 2 April 2017 - 12:58 PM | ||||
The old Mac's apartments were so cool because they looked like they were decorated by a guy and had oodles of eye candy curios from his travels, hobbies, & interests. This new Mac's pad looks like he just hired a LALA interior decorator and has nothing at all out of the quirky unusual to catch your eye, make you pause and say WTF! Small potatoes really but all those little, well choreographed, thought out, subtleties - really added up and to give a great feel to it all (the original series). |
| Posted by: DashboardOnFire 2 April 2017 - 01:25 PM | ||
For me, it was always difficult to remember the episode titles - even for the original show, because of course I've always watched it in German and sometimes the titles are totally different. It wasn't until I started my first rewatch in English and reading episode discussions online when I started learning the original titles. For the Reboot, it's even more difficult. I feel in the earlier episodes, there was at least one use of the tool in the title. Now, sometimes I don't even get where the title is coming from. And yes, even when the tool is being used the title is not really memorable (e.g. in the crossover episode, that flashlight is used for like 1 second only). I thought the concept of naming the episodes after SAK tools was pretty cool, but naming 21 episodes is a lot more difficult than the initially ordered 13 and I guess they didn't really thinkt it through. It feels like they named all tje episodes first and let the writers scramble to write a scene for each episode that fit the title. Which is not an easy task, of course. And doesn't consider the editing process in case an episode runs too long. Maybe there was a compass and the scene got cut out? It just doesn't really make sense. |
| Posted by: DashboardOnFire 2 April 2017 - 01:30 PM | ||
Every time I look at BtS pics of the apartement, I realize there are quite a few interesting bits lying around. Some of them are even described in the pilot episode script - we just never get to see them. There's just not enough time for these "little things" when every second needs to be filled so every cast member gets enough screentime between all that action... |
| Posted by: Miasma 5 April 2017 - 05:00 AM |
| I finally got around to watching this episode. It was... fine. It didn't really make much of an impression one way or another. I did appreciate the slightly slower pacing, allowing time for more character development. But I have to agree with JediFerret that all of these episodes are largely forgettable. I think a number of factors contribute to that: 1. The episode names are so generic, they do absolutely nothing to make the episodes stand out. 2. Almost every episode follows the exact same formula. 3. The sets are pretty generic and don't stand out in any way. In the original series, he was running around on ships, in mountains, through inner-cities, tombs, deserts, forests, etc, etc. So the episodes were often visually distinct. In the reboot, it's almost always either some indistinct wooded area, a nondescript city, or inside a building. 4. There are too many main cast members, meaning the show rarely has time to develop memorable side characters for each episode. And even when the show does devote time to a side character (such as Frankie in this latest episode), something about it just feels generic. I can't quite put my finger on why that is. 5. The tone is the same in every episode, whereas in the original series, the tone fluctuated quite a bit from episode to episode. A consistent tone isn't a bad thing (most shows have one), but the tone of this show is always kind of a light-hearted, ambivalent tone. No matter what the situation is, it always feels like it's really no big deal. So of course, it's easily forgettable. |
| Posted by: Joe SAKic 5 April 2017 - 08:00 AM |
| I blame a lot of this on the video game industry and with the redundant, repetitious video clips that are extremely popular and successful the worldwide. I may well like/accept the cinematography in the MacGyver reboot if I had grown up in a predominately full graphic video world. But I didn't, and as a result can spot the lame, broken record footage and flat lighting a mile a way. They didn't think they had to put a lot of effort into clever angles, locations, and terrain to get a second season out of it. Turns out they were right. |
| Posted by: Jediferret 5 April 2017 - 11:01 AM |
| Everyone blames video games... lol Actually, video games and TV are very different. Video games keeps people's attention by giving them control of how the game is played out. YOU decide what, when and how things are done. The more open the world is, the more control you have. Explore heavy games like Fallout, Skyrim and Mass Effect can easily keep someone's attention for several hours because there's so much to see and do. TV/Movies don't allow you to do that... you just sit back and watch. What made MacGyver different is that it had personality in it's atmosphere, characters and props. I mean, it's pretty unique to have a character that lives in a houseboat, drives a Jeep Wrangler, wears a brown bomber jacket and uses junk to fix everything... all the while trying to help people with their problems. To boot, the show is a feel good show with a friendly, appealing lead character with a sense of humor and honor. Kinda hard to not love the show, to be honest. If given the chance, who of us would LOVE to explore MacGyver's houseboat, or Phoenix Foundation, or the Challenger's Club instead of just watching? I know I would! |
| Posted by: Joe SAKic 5 April 2017 - 12:53 PM | ||
I think they use to be very different. The Original MacGyver had zero Computer Graphics. The Reboot has plenty. I'm sure there are some very creative games out there today, but the ads on TV all look like they're drawn from the same CGI engines de jour. The only thing that changes are the themes .... the texture, hues, and depth of field is all fairly consistence to my eyes. My point being is 'if' I grew up playing these games 'then' the new MacGyver video would probably look more than normal/sufficient to my eyes .... but if I was weaned on very creative, old school cinematography with hand-crafted sets, strategic locales and the best natural lighting then it might be a step or two downwards. It's all fairly relative to what you know and your life experiences up to the time of experiencing. As an example, there must be at least a dozen scenes - points of view that are memorable from the original series, but I can't think of one from the new one off the top of my head. It's all the same flat lighting, similar corridors and rooms that must be very convenient for their filming/equipment. I have budget data from some original episodes and the pain they went through to create 'eye-candy' for us is quite notable. For example in Log Jam, the chalet next to Amy's chalet had to be painted a different color before the shoot & in order to create a certain mood. I can't remember even seeing the neighboring chalet and I think Mac arrives at night - so perhaps that scene gets edited out in the end (will have to watch it again). Now having said that, there may well be the same kind of meticulous location prep work in this one .... but I'd be really surprised if they've gone 'overboard' at all having seen what I've seen. |
| Posted by: Miasma 5 April 2017 - 05:44 PM |
| What's odd is that many shows today look quite a lot better than the original Mac in terms of cinematography, but somehow this show manages to look worse/cheaper. |
| Posted by: Joe SAKic 5 April 2017 - 06:12 PM |
| Yes, H-50 is right up there and very easy on the eyes. But then again Hawaiian vistas trump Georgian car parks on most days of the week. Location! Location! Location! |
| Posted by: Miasma 6 April 2017 - 05:05 AM | ||
Location is definitely part of it, but it's not just that. Modern shows tend to look more cinematic than they did in the 80s, and there's often a bit more artistry to the cinematography than there was in the past. Take a show like Breaking Bad, for instance. It didn't always have fantastically scenic vistas, but there was often something artistic about the shots they used. Or, for another example, look at The Walking Dead, shot in the same place MacGyver is shot (Georgia), yet they often manage to make it look so much better than MacGyver looks. Another show I watch these days is "American Crime." Again, it's not shot in particularly beautiful places, but it has quality cinematography. So when I heard about the reboot, I was excited because I thought we'd get a new MacGyver that was up to today's visual standards, and instead, we got one that actually looks worse than the 80s Mac did. |
| Posted by: Joe SAKic 6 April 2017 - 06:48 AM |
| The Walking Dead's lighting is a much easier task. The low, flat, cloudy light sets the mood/theme which is fairly consistent throughout and it works extremely well. Imo, MacGyver's lighting is Walking Dead - like, when it should be much more creative and for to evoke emotion more commensurate with the show's message/legacy. I don't know if I can articulate it much better than that and not being in the business - but that's sort of my gut feel. Don't know if the set work is comparable between these two series'. The Walking Dead is simple but yet extremely complex and detailed at the same time. MacGyver is generic and busy in contrast. Would have to think about it some more ... but I think the original series was more simplified backgrounds and thus accentuated the characters a little better. Certainly less urban/office sets. I've never watched a full episode of Breaking Bad (my bad/loss) but would have to agree and with the brief clips/ads that I saw - it looked extremely well though out and filmed. |
| Posted by: denizen 6 April 2017 - 07:52 PM |
| Joe: Two words. Vince Gilligan. Breaking Bad. Better Call Saul.  Top notch entertainment. |
| Posted by: Miasma 7 April 2017 - 04:39 AM | ||
Vince Gilligan has said that he's a fan of MacGyver, and some parts of Breaking Bad were inspired partially by MacGyver. It would have been awesome to see what would have happened with the MacGyver reboot if he had been brought on as the showrunner, rather than Lenkov! |
| Posted by: denizen 7 April 2017 - 04:48 AM |
| If Gilligan was involved i would have probably fainted. He is a genius! Even his work on the X-Files was incredible. |
| Posted by: Widowmaker 14 April 2017 - 08:47 PM |
| Would be interesting to have a big dramatic serialized version of MacGyver like you'd see if it were on AMC or FX. |
| Posted by: DashboardOnFire 8 June 2017 - 01:53 PM |
| There will be a rerun of this episode on Friday, June 30: http://www.broadwayworld.com/bwwtv/article/Scoop-MACGYVER-on-CBS-Friday-June-30-2017-20170608 |
| Posted by: DashboardOnFire 25 June 2017 - 02:19 PM |
| I've seen this video before; but just stumbled over it again today and had to think of this episode. |
| Posted by: MacGyverOnline 9 April 2018 - 06:46 AM | ||
| So I finally got to watch this episode tonight. It's definitely a remake of the Flame's End episode. They changed the girl friends name and where she worked, but it was basically the same story. Not that I have a problem with that. I actually really enjoyed the episode and picking all the nods to the original. Anyone else pick the nod to the Jack of Spies episode with the Garbage Truck scene at the start?
It's cool to see things from MacGyver turn out to be real. I coughed when I heard Mac say how fast it spins, but this video has confirmed he was right... and to see that they actually use it for the same thing he did in the episode is pretty cool. It's always cool seeing MacGyverisms that work in real life.  |
| Posted by: DashboardOnFire 9 April 2018 - 12:54 PM | ||
Definitely! Also nice when someone posts a video on Twitter or Facebook and people comment on it along of "Hey! I've seen that in a recent episode of MacGyver!". Especially the "running-up-a-wall-with-a-pole" video of Episode 2x01 got a lot of comments like these. |
| Posted by: DashboardOnFire 3 July 2018 - 11:23 AM |
| Final ratings via Showbuzz: |
| Posted by: MacGyverGod 15 October 2018 - 02:32 AM |
| This was the most 'MacGyver' episode, I've seen so far and written by Lee David Zlotoff himself. I was just thinking, if he only wrote episodes for the original. Yes, it's quite obvious where the inspiration came from though I didn't feel much for the garbage truck opening but I liked Jack's moaning when he broke his arm. Yes, the episode did feel like they remade Flame's End and it was better. I never really liked Flame's End to begin with. This could've or should've been one of those lone wolf episodes. It just felt like it when Mac arrives in Boston and then we find Jack there waiting, who got there before him and I felt like... I don't know if this was necessary. Not to mention his broken arm and he was still driving. I don't mind Jack acting as a bodyguard but Mac doesn't need a chauffeur. He can drive, you know? What Riley/Bozer is concerned, I'm glad Zlotoff finished that off. I know that I said earlier that I was shocked about the responses here after he admitted that he seemed to like Riley more than just as friends and that the episode that followed totally ignored that but I was willing to give it time. 5 or 6 episodes nothing happened and suddenly in Hawaii he becomes jealouse because she found someone she is attracted to. It's like they clearly don't know what to do with it, so I would simply say, drop it. Keep toying with that idea is going to get annoying and let's be real here: Riley is out his league and I think that goes for everyone who works there, I'm afraid. I do agree though that Riley is cool. Also nice to see François Chau again. Cool tweet of him too. |
| Posted by: DashboardOnFire 12 March 2019 - 02:12 PM |
| Here's the blog post about the MacHacks by Technical Consultant Rhett Allain: https://rhettallain.com/2019/03/12/macgyver-season-1-episode-19-science-notes-19-compass/ |