Alright, I remember him bashing that gun to shoot them over but not him shooting at the men. I might have to watch the episode again, or else the TV station cut the episode to shorten it. Weird.

Start watching from 7:40 onwards

Interesting. I don't recall seeing that part. I remember them running, and then hiding, and then jumping off the cliff. I assume the episode was edited, possibly to make it shorter, but that is definately a part I don't remember seeing, at all.

It could also have been removed for consistency purposes. I'm recall seeing a discussion in here somewhere about that scene being cut by some stations and the suspected was that it was because that scene conflicted with MacGyver's anti-gun stance.

It does work, but for a hole the size of the one MacGyver plugged, you'd probably need about 25 pounds of chocolate, and he does it with a few ounces. So it's not completely un-laughable either.

Pliot is my favorite episode.

I love the pilot! It has some good Macgyverisms and I liked an introduction to MacGyver as a character. Altough it does bother me that he was actually firing a gun (shooting at the bad guys during the rescue of one man). He could've just handed the gun to that man he was with and started with whatever he was planning to do with that flare gun. The only thing that has bothered me so far.

Another scene I remember is when MacGyver was smoking those cigarettes. He looked so hot. Also, a very funny scene when Mac asked Colson (Dana Elcar) for cigarettes... and he took the whole pack! I laughed so much at this.

Mac: Spare a cigarette?
Colson: Yeah, sure.. (searches for the pack and lift it towards Mac)
Mac (takes a pack): Thank you.
Colson: Take the pack, why don't you? Wanna my lighter too?
Mac: No, thanks. I carry my own matches.

Yeah I still really like this episode too. It has to be the most MacGyverism packed episode of the whole show and really is a great introduction to the series.

Somewhere in here there's a thread asking about which episode would be the best one to introduce a new person to the series. Some people mentioned that this episode might be seen as too cheesy, but I personally think that in spite of the little gun scene this episode really captures and explains what the character is all about.

Since I'm still suffering from a cold ala "Blowout" (my poor neighbors, for the last 24 hours I've been sneezing so loud!) I've started re-watching the MacGyver episodes all over again (I did it rather recently, for those of you who haven't seen my introduction post at the reception lounge).

Hopefully, I'll be recovered way before I'm through, but in the meantime, since I'm pretty house bound, I'll throw another MacGyver marathon and add some thoughts (and votes) along the way, starting with the pilot.

I really liked the opening gambit, the gun firing aside. (In fact, I'm rather fond of all of the opening gambits, but I'll discuss them separately).

I don't know whether it was a deliberate move from the filmmakers, but having Mac climbing that nightmare of a cliff is a heck of a way to introduce a guy who's supposed to be so afraid of heights! I can't help wondering if they just forgot about it or wanted to show us that he is the kind of person that will face his fears.

I know the episode writers have been pretty inconsistent when it comes to Mac's fear of heights (more on that later), but I think that it's a very good way of showing that he's not the hard boiled kind of action hero.

Anyway--I really liked the analogy about the horse! But, as some people already have pointed out, I don't like that "Southern accent" at all. It doesn't come natural for RDA. Mac's attitude really changed over the years--so much for the better. You can definitely see the writers getting a better grip on the character with time--and also, RDA is definitely developing as an actor.

I can absolutely see Mac as an observatory baby sitter. I really like the way he interacts with the kid. Maybe the episode writers were overstating the fact that Mac cares about people from all nationalities and society groups by choosing a black kid, whom he refers to as "my brother." Heartwarming touch, though!

As people have already pointed out--great MacGyverisms in this episode! In fact, the MacGyverisms in themselves would have got me hooked. Save one--I don't like the cigarette smoking at all. I know, Mac seemed to dislike it too, but there's just something that irks me a lot when it comes to smoking, (besides the obvious fact that it's very unattractive for a man, in my NOT so humble opinion... )
I'm really glad it didn't happen again throughout the series.

Another thing I don't care about too much is when they're throwing in romantic scenes here and there, which holds little meaning for the story in itself. I know, these were the 1980's, and many women featured on film/TV were damsels in distress... but still, ugh.

I also noticed that after he rips up his flannel shirt, he's wearing this undershirt with a wide open neck, something rarely seen after the first/second season, where he often buttons his shirts all the way up, and you don't often see him shirtless. I know part of the reason is probably weather/temperature related as they switched shooting locations, but it definitely seems like that aspect was toned down along with the decreasing numbers of girlfriends and romantic interests.

In fact--I don't mind that at all. I might be a straight female, but there's so much more to MacGyver than his physical appearance, and as I've already stated, I really like the way the character developed over the years.

To sum it up, I'll vote "Good" for this episode.

He did it for a reason though not because he wanted to. He needed to see the lasers and that's the only source of smoke he had available to him. I'm not sure you can logically dislike something when it's being done to save peoples lives in an emergency situation.

Are you talking about when he's explaining the chocolate thing, or can you pick it in other parts of the episode? The chocolate is really the only bit where I can detect an accent different from what i perceive as an American accent. Being a non-US I can't pick the subtleties of the local accents other than the very distinctive ones such as Maine, general southern and New York.

Yes, I know he did it for a reason, and used what was at hand. Of course it was the right thing to do under the circumstances. It just wasn't one of my personal favorites.

I think it was his speech in general, but I thought about it in the opening gambit already. I'm not a US citizen either, but I've been visiting the States several times and I've got many US friends from all over the country. Though I can't really pinpoint all specific US accents, I can definitely hear the difference between north and south. Regarding Mac's accent though, it definitely had a Southern "feel" to it; a bit more nasal and less articulate compared to his later speech pattern. Yet, when you hear "real" southerners speak, it sounds more natural. Hope it makes sense.

Also--I forgot to mention something. The sound of the fans restarting in the laboratory is VERY similar to the Star Trek Enterprise firing its phasers. Knowing that Star Trek is a Paramount production as well, I can't help wondering if there was a bit of sound recycling going on. Not that I mind at all, it just brought a smile to my face.

Has anyone seen the 'deleated' scenes from the 'pilot' episode? With the addition of Mac attending a meeting in Washington. DC immediatly following his mountain top rescue?!? Very interesting stuff! Its on you tube and looks like it aired overseas!! Sorry, but I'm on my kindle at the moment and don't know how to post it!

yep, that scene was originally posted by this site.

You can also see it in our media center.. and of coarse, our own youtube channel.

I easily found the clips via the YouTube channel, but unfortunately some of the links in the Media section appear to be broken...

I easily found the clips via the YouTube channel, but unfortunately some of the links in the Media section appear to be broken...

Which ones?

I easily found the clips via the YouTube channel, but unfortunately some of the links in the Media section appear to be broken...

Which ones?

"Scenes" and "Misc" under the "Video" section.

Makes me wonder how much stuff is out there we may never see! Hopefully one day the complete series will be rereleased on Dvd with some kind of bonus material! Hey, I can dream!! Lol!!

those pages are fixed now, although I have to fix the alignment on them again, but the videos are working there now. thanks for the heads up.

Thank you, nice work!

Lots of great clips there.

I still think this episode is probably one of the best in the whole series. It probably has more MacGyverisms than any other episode and I think it sets the action adventure tone of the series brilliantly.

5 out of 5 for me.

The Pilot is probably one of my favorite MacGyver episodes of all time. In my opinion the MacGyverisms in this episode are really good. I really liked the opening gambit ( Mac firing the gun aside) It was a very good how MacGyver was introduced. The Macgyverisms themselves are pretty cool. Maybe the most MacGyverisms of any episode. Always enjoy this episode. In my opinion one of my top favorite episodes of the series.

My rating: 9/10

Yep, I have to agree with you there. I think the pilot does an awesome job of setting up the character and show in general.

I just watched the pilot again on Hulu. I've only watched a few MacGyver episodes all in season one so I figure I'd start over.

Just wanted to say, I love the Pilot for the intro of Mac and all the cool Macgyverisms.. May be too much for some but really, the only thing that bothered me was the big brother throw away scenes.. It seemed like they wanted Mac to be so likable in so many different areas. It's just not needed. Like without those scenes, you still like Mac and you would never think he hated kids just by his personality.

Take that part out, and it's almost a perfect episode imo.

I watched this episode the other day and this really is one of the best eps for macguyverisms. The chocolate was good, but the cold capsule was better.
I also saw the thread of the deleted scene on you tube. Gonna go check it out!

yeah ik that part the toss and him saying "I want that back you know." of that episode


Stargate SG-1 my favourite Character is JACK O'NILE he reminds me of MacGyver probably because he has the courage and humour mac does and the rolls played by RDA

Yeah you are right I also like him as Jack O'Neil. You definitely see Mac in that character.

I have been a MacGyver fan since the beginning of the show. Could never miss an episode and I watched all the reruns I could in the 90's.

But after I moved out of my grandma's in 1999, I no longer had cable and couldn't watch the show anymore.

Then a couple of years ago, I got MacGyver on DVD. When I rewatched, I remember thinking a few things:
1 it was great to see Mac again
2 I didn't recall some of the scripts being so cheesy
3 were the special effects and spliced in films that bad
4 plus I could easily see some continuity and editing mistakes
5 despite issues 2-4 I still love MacGyver

But then after thinking about it; when this aired my 1970's tube TV was 1/2 the screen size that I have now and I am currently watching Mac on a HD flat screen. So it seems obvious that things are much more visible that they are now.

In the 80's, I think the effects and use of older spliced in footage was more common. TV shows today are treated much more like movies, with special effects, new techniques, editing and such. The look of shows today is just such a high caliber.

The scripts, and editing did improve and the show gained fans.

I was in high school and was just wowed by Mac. And lets face it, the show is really about him, his humanity and how he uses his brains to get out trouble.

The Pilot episode is probably one of my favorite MacGyver episodes of the series. The Opening Gambit was very entertaining and really good. The part of Mac firing the Ak aside. And having Mac climbing that cliff is a bold of a way to introduce a guy who's supposed to be so afraid of heights! This whole episode was a great way of setting up the character and the show. This episode probably has the most MacGyverisms of any other episode in the series. And they're all great. Several things I always miss from the early episodes of the First Season that where never really carried along later in the series. 1: The Opening Gambits. 2: The side-pack that Mac uses to collect the things he finds along the way 3: The voice overs. And 4 : The Nitty Gritty MacGyver.

Memorable quotes:

Spencer - “Don’t tell me you know how to make a bomb out of a stick of chewing gum.”
Mac - “Why, you got some?”

Mac referring to his SAK - “Hey! I want that knife back, ya know.”

Mac - “The bag’s not for what I take. It’s for what I find along the way.”

A great episode to introduce MacGyver and the series.

9.5/10

This post has been edited by Matrix on 1 July 2013 - 03:43 PM

Welcome to the forum, Matrix!

One of my favorite quotes.

Thanks, I'm very happy to have joined.