I love that Meredith Eaton is joining MacGyver reboot. I loved her on NCIS as a recurring character.

But..... at the same time, I can't help but think that they are doing a "Copy cat" of NCIS Los Angeles, which has Linda Hunt, also a small statured person.

So I'm mixed, but still welcoming her to MacGyver!

I'm quite confused by the change to be honest.

It doesn't seem to make any sense. They've replaced the actor and the character name, but all the cold hard-assed traits are still there. In fact I think if anything it's now worse. At least Thornton respected the team for their abilities. This new person turns up an immediately starts talking down to them.

The worst thing of all for me is that they have now broken the "MacGyver Formula "of MacGyver, Pete and the Phoenix foundation. It was on pretty shaky ground at the best of times with how cold and emotionless Patricia Thornton was, but now we've lost her and have someone who not only has the same coldness, but also doesn't appear to have any respect for the team to boot.

I suspect Thornton will come back. I think Lenkov even confirmed it in one of his tweets.

Keep in mind that the new boss is named "Mattie Weber," just like "Matt Webber" from the original series, the guy who briefly replaced Pete Thornton when Pete was suspected of doing something wrong, and then Matt turned out to be a bad guy.

So, here's what I suspect might happen: Mac and Jack will figure out Patricia Thornton was innocent, and they'll get her reinstated at Phoenix, and as a result, she'll become more friendly to them, making her a bit more like Pete was in the original series. Of course, I could be totally wrong, but it's hard not to suspect that when they actually used the name Matt Webber for Patricia's replacement.

On a side note, I wonder if the Von Leer brothers will ever show up in this series. Considering that they brought back such obscure people as Wilt Bozer and Matt Webber, it stands to reason that the Von Leers could appear eventually (totally random thought, I know.)

Well the Coltons have just finished filming their first episode so maybe the Von Leers will be next.

Does anyone else feel like they're just throwing characters into the mix before we've even had a chance to really establish or get use to the existing characters?

It's like they're constantly looking for the next gimmick rather than giving us good character depth and strong story arcs to invest ourselves in. It's all show and no substance.

Yeah, they are throwing characters into this mix WAY too fast.

I agree with Miasma about the story line with Matty Webber and Thornton. If they aren't going down that route, I have no idea what they're doing... and to be honest, I don't think they know what they're doing either.

But meh... at least we have Riley.

I still would like to see Mike Forester and Deborah made an appearance. So much lost potential from the original with those two... I would love to see a fresh take on them.

No, I'm not letting that one go either... XD

Yes.

Remember they referred to Penny in the Pilot Episode? It was a nice easter egg for fans of the original, but it didn't really matter if you noticed it or if they would bring in Penny later or not. Then they decided to bring Penny in although she's never been mentioned again and... major failure!

It seems they don't want to have any character (especially any female character) that's not some strong, independent, badass chick. Fine. I don't mind that they didn't want Penny to be the same flakey, naive girl as in the original. But they didn't really use the character at all and the whole 2-minute-scene seemed pointless to me (instead of having an intervention, they could have had just Bozer confront him). Also, they didn't need Penny for that scene. Could have been just some random girl from Mac's past (like one of the dozens of MacGyver's old friends that suddenly popped up in the original show).

Sure - it could be that some more scenes with Penny landed on the cutting room floor (e.g. she apparently lent Bozer the prop missile but we never got to know how she got it and what happened to it in Bozers movie or if the movie ever got made). Still. It seems like the writer of Episode 4 thought it was a nice idea to put her into the script but because the 5 subsequent scripts were already written, no one had bothered to put her in their own script. And then she was already forgotten anyway.

So I'm happy that at least the Colton's aren't just some guys we meet in a 2-minute-scene.

Don't be so sure.

The show is already stretched to the limit with it's 4 main characters all fighting for screen time... how are they going to fit 4 more characters into a story?

Yes and no.

By today's standards, yes, since many shows today concentrate more on character development.
But compared to the original show, I don't think this one is any worse in that regard. In the original show, Mac was often the only recurring character. Almost everyone else just showed up for an episode, and then disappeared forever, and we never really got to know them too much. In this show, by comparison, we've gotten to know Jack, Riley, and Bozer quite a bit.

Was anyone else really put off when Webber told Mac that he shouldn't improvise? Like, that is the backbone of the character and entire series. It made no sense to me. They have already failed on a few levels of making it like the original and having a boss who doesn't like MacGyver to improvise? Odd.

I agree. I guess they're trying to give him some kind of "personal challenge"? I'm not sure exactly... though I don't think original Mac would allow Matty to talk down to him like that. He was too stubborn.

This weeks Phoenix Foundation Podcast reminded me: Original MacGyver wouldn't have a problem with her calling it luck.

While his MacGyverisms need knowledge about physics, chemistry and stuff, the timing and execution sometimes really demanded a lot of luck for the MacGyverism to succeed. I think OG said so himself that he was lucky most of the time and implied every now and then that he might get himself and others killed if this failed.

But yes, I think it's mostly a plot device for him to have to prove himself. And I'm pretty sure this "conflict" will be resolved in the next episode when they find her niece's murder and/or save Matty's life...

Also, I think it's pretty interesting that while they were very quick to delete Sandrine Holt's name from the title cards, they didn't add Meredith's name. She's just in the credits like the other (recurring) guest stars.

Also, Sandrine Holt is listed for Episode 19 (the Crossover Episode) on IMDb. I hope they don't try to solve that story line also within this episode. It wouldn't surprise me (they LOVE to throw in all the conflicts and storylines into one episode with lots of talking during action scenes), but I think it would be too much. Thornton's so-called "betrayal" (still don't believe it) should have it's own episode. Also, they never talk about it. Your boss (and friend) betrays you for years by being a mole and nothing?

I really hope it turns out she was set up (I feel like it wont, but hope) because I liked her in that role.

Yep I had the same thought but then it occured to me that it kind of played into the idea of Matty being the wolf in sheeps clothing. It would also play along with the dynamic of the new tough boss who starts out tough but then warms to the team and we find she is really a softy with a hard shell.

Two different possabilities, but either could make for and interesting story.

GOTS to do Mike Forester! And which Deborah? Evil one or nice ex girlfriend one? I want the EVIL one!

Evil Deborah, of course! There's a great story arch there that I felt was a wasted opportunity in the original.

I need to get back into writing fanfics... =/

They do really well with the Easter eggs.

This character has no value added to the series and for my liking. I find myself cringing when she appears and because I'm anticipating a sour-ish rant that detracts from my "MacGyver Happy Camper Mindset". She's just such a negative/depressed personality & imo.

To me, it makes sense. Actually, I used to complain that it made no sense that Thornton was fine with Mac doing MacGyverisms instead of carrying a gun. I mean, can you imagine if any agent (or even police officer) in the real world told his/her boss, "I'm not going to take my weapon with me, I'll just hope I can find what I need along the way, and I'll improvise"? No commanding officer in his or right mind would be okay with that. Now, I guess with Thornton you could argue that she knew Mac a long time, so she knew he could do it (though even so, it's unlikely she'd permit it), but Mattie never met him before; she'd be a terribly irresponsible boss if she DIDN'T question his unorthodox methods.

To me, it makes sense. Actually, I used to complain that it made no sense that Thornton was fine with Mac doing MacGyverisms instead of carrying a gun. I mean, can you imagine if any agent (or even police officer) in the real world told his/her boss, "I'm not going to take my weapon with me, I'll just hope I can find what I need along the way, and I'll improvise"? No commanding officer in his or right mind would be okay with that. Now, I guess with Thornton you could argue that she knew Mac a long time, so she knew he could do it (though even so, it's unlikely she'd permit it), but Mattie never met him before; she'd be a terribly irresponsible boss if she DIDN'T question his unorthodox methods.

I think his reputation should be enough. I just don't think that's an element they really needed. I prefer Thornton anyway. Matty's voice just bothers me. Seems like she is here to stay though.

I saw Sandrine Holt got the lead in another TV show. Makes me wonder if they wrote her off because she wanted to pursue that opportunity or if that was the plan all long.

I suspect that was little reference this has to the original show will be more distant with the next season.

You're probably right, unfortunately. The ratings for this show have been quite good, so they'll realize now that it can stand on its own without needing to bother with as many call-backs to the original series.

You know, if they improved the quality of the show, I wouldn't even mind the fact that it doesn't resemble the original so much. Sure, it would have been nice to have a new show that felt like classic MacGyver, but at this point, I've come to accept that this is a different show that just borrows a few elements from the original. And I'd be fine with that if this was a quality action/adventure show in its own way. The problem is that even if we don't compare it to the original, it's still not a very good show. The writing is too formulaic, the characters are thinly drawn, the presentation is a bit too gimmicky, and it just looks and feels kind of cheap. What I hope happens is that that the success of this first season gives them a bigger budget for season 2, and they use that budget to hire better writers and shoot in some better locations.

What makes me nervous is that Lenkov has recently said he wanted Season 1 to really focus on developing the core characters, and he might focus more on bringing in big guest stars for next season. Considering how poorly developed Mac was in this season, it's depressing to think how much of a side-note he'll be in season 2.

I just take the show for what it is and don't try to compare it to the original anymore.

I do oddly enough find myself invested in the characters and think Mac and Jack have great chemistry.

Regardless of the writing and the simplistic episodes, I actually enjoy the show. Which I never thought I would. Hopefully they improve with a season 2.

On another note, did Lenkov throw in all these Easter eggs to try and get fans of the original to watch or was he himself a fan and just thought it would be fun?

Let's be honest. No one knew whether the show would succeed or not. And there is no question that he needed the original fans of the show's support in its success. Hence the Easter eggs.

However he still took the shell of the un-aired pilot and went with it. Dalton is Lincoln. He is not Bruce McGill's character at all. Riley is just a replacement of Mickey who was the original hacker in the unaired pilot. Patricia Thornton is just a replacement of Agent Croix who coincidentally was in H-50 (Surprise surprise). Bozer is just a replacement of Gunner.

So i have to ask, just how much, aside from appearances did they actually change?

Exactly!!

My biggest issue with this show is that it's fallen well short of my expectations. I was hoping for something up in the 'NCIS-LA' league but what we got was a bad imitation of 'Scorpion' with hollow characters, lazy formulaic writing and cheap onscreen gimmicks to try and cover it all up.

After hearing Lenkov talk about how he was a fan and wanted to be part of this show to make sure it got the treatment it deserved I was excited and expecting it to be awesome..... oh well.. so much for that.

The addition of the dwarf character has just killed the spirit of this show for me-

Look... I watch this show for some escapism- I know it's not real, that's the point;

However, having to listen to a negative dictator of a boss hits far too close to home.

For me, the show has become unwatchable, and I find this change not only to be weak-minded (NCIS formula, anyone?), but lacking in execution- Heddy isn't fun because she's a dick- she's fun because we imagine what her character really is;

The dwarf is just a dick. It's not her fault- it's the director and writers faults. A TRUE lack of talent and vision by them here- go copy some other format, this one ain't working.

Sad.

Pulled the show off my DVD recordings- I'll go tape The View if I want to hear bitchy females with attitudes.....

'Dwarf' physical stature aside, I agree. Eaton's a decent actor and I would watch her again and in another character roll. But the rank-pulling, when I say jump, you say how high, beetchy boss thing is indeed as far off from the original shows mood setting ambiance as it can get. Is it suppose to be comedy ... or just plain annoying, filler dialogue? Dunno.

Hi jcaz, There is nothing wrong with venting your frustration of the show here but please refrain from using any language that others may find offensive.