Every week I will be posting a new topic titled "Episode Discussion". In this we will discuss an episode, what we liked about it, what we didn't like, etc.


Episode 121 - Blind Faith

MacGyver and Pete help an old friend of Pete’s expose the mass murder of innocent citizens in her Latin American country.

Another cool episode. MacGyver is very busy on this one since everything happens within a day. Getting the videotape out of the train, bringing it on time on the JBN, getting caught, gets blown up and finally escapes.
MacGyver and Pete are together nearly the whole time. The scene where in Pete admits to MacGyver that he is going blind is one of the most emotional scenes in the series. I felt so sorry for him he didn't dare to tell him, the first time he called for Mac's help. But MacGyver notices things, you know. First the coffee cup, then the phone. Running into things. I also liked Pete's and Samantha's conversations. Also the scene when they're caught is great. Stams holding his little speech about what he thinks about Samantha's government. MacGyver didn't say anything during that whole scene, he just looks around. Looking isn't even the correct word it's observing. And then of course the whole escape scene.
Wanna go bowling?

The scenes between Mac and Pete... actually RDA and Dana were really touching. This was real life, not just emotional scenes, and the two actors handled it professionally, yet beautifully - two friends having a conversation, not so much scripted lines. Actors are suposed to "suspend their disbelief to buy into a situation and to the story and how the character will react." (an actual RDA quote). This time, there was nothing to suspend. Bravo!

Beautiful eppy. Mac knew something was going on, and the scene where he confronts Pete is one of the hardest scenes to watch in the series. Samantha was great, too: I really liked her interactions with Pete. And of course the escape from the warehouse. I still wince when Mac burns his hands... OUCH! I love his words to Pete: "I'll be your eyes. You be my hands." A great moment, with the two of them working together to get out of trouble. You also see in this scene just how stubborn Pete can be. It's really kind of cute.

Totally excellent!!! (As Bill & Ted would say )
"Blind Faith" definitely rates as an excellent episode! I loved this one watching it the first time as a kid. It's still a very powerful episode. When I watch it now and think that it was doubly hard because Dana Elcar was really going through this bout with glaucoma- wow, you can see that RDA and Dana didn't have to do much acting in the scene where Pete tells Mac he's got glaucoma.
But this is also a great episode packed with MacGyverisms! MacGyver makes a steam pressure hose gun of sorts because "it just sort of made sense". He used the grinder to cut his ropes, jammed the door with a crowbar, used a shelf as a barrier against bullets and set up the door to stun the bad guys. Pretty cool!
And it was neat hearing about Pete's relationship with his one time girlfriend.
But the best thing about this episode for me was seeing Pete's frustration at not being able to protect Samantha and then later on to see MacGyver reaffirm his usefulness.
When MacGyver got his hands burned in the explosion- that was a great setup. Because though things looked pretty hopeless- again we have MacGyver's optimism shining through. MacGyver never leaves the wounded behind- and he never gives up. And he always look to what he has available- not what he doesn't. And so MacGyver and Pete cooperate- "Pete, you be my hands. I'll be your eyes."- Awesome!
And of course, MacGyver gets everyone out safely- and defeats the bad guys. This is one of the qualities of MacGyver that I love- so often he uses the weak and vain things of the world to confound the "wise".
Totally contrary to the world's system of thinking- but totally attuned to God's world of love that says that everyone's important and valuable.
I know MacGyver would agree with Mr. Rogers- you're special just for being you.

I just watched this again... did anyone else notice - at the beginning scene where the courier is shot and Pete is standing around, there is a police officer questioning a woman... he is played by Ron Halder - aka: Cronus on Stargate SG-1 ("Fairgame" - season 3 and other eps).

Hehehe

Oh, yeah... another thing I liked about this one...

The reappearance of Michael MacRae! He was soo good at playing those slimy characters with a thin veneer of respectability. It's pretty clear in this eppy that the DXS has gone over to the dark side (so to speak!) and I wonder if they modeled the DXS on the CIA... the CIA has long been notorious for nasty political hijinks, and this was especially true from the late '60's through the early '90's.

This whole episode seemed to have a theme of sadness running through it.

Not only from watching Pete try to deal with his glaucoma, but there where other things which I can't put my finger on. The dynamic between Pete and Samantha seemed to be one of sadness, and remembering happier times. It kept reminding me of people in my own life who are far away at the moment and greatly missed.

In spite of the depressing feel to this episode, it's still gets a "good" vote from me. but maybe not an episode to watch if your already feeling a bit low. It's certainly not a feel-good pick-me-up episode.

Though this epside is one that generates feelings of sadness, it does have one big thing that works. It truly shows how MacGyver and Pete can come together and work through problems. It shows the deep admiration Mac has for Pete, his friend too. I liked the episode because of the "human touches "

I think that this is possibly my favorite Pete (Dana Elcar) episode.

I have been reading your comments and pondering them, and thinking how to sum up how I feel about this episode.

I guess the episode helps (for me) to sum up the deep friendship between Mac and Pete.
1. The way Mac notices not just the things that Pete says, but reads his nonverbal (like the scenes in the office and then in the car: Mac knows something seems wrong, then finally asks in the kitchen)

2. The kitchen scene is so powerful, Mac and Pete's dialogue, and the look on Mac's face when Pete is pouring the apple juice: anguish and sadness: finally a problem in the life of someone close to him and he can't fix it. Possibly also wondering why Pete waited so long to get treatment, and also to tell him.

3. Stamms: Michael MacRae: another great performance: I want to watch Eagles, the Challenge and Blind Faith. I think it is important that the chose actors from the Challenge and Invisible Killer (both directed by Dana Elcar) for this episode. I don't think that this was unintentional. I liked the character of Nelson, a man, a journalist, willing to sacrifice his life in order that the truth be told, and he dies in for that purpose, and saves Mac's life in doing so.

4. The relationship between Pete and Samantha: I agree with Rock that there was a sadness (another road not taken)

5. The burning hands (Yikes that looks painful!- and not long after the foot in the bear trap too! Let talk about Mac's list of inuries again!)

6. Pete being Mac's hand, and Mac being Pete's eyes: amazing scene.

I voted excellent.

The eppy was a bit heavy with Pete's illness and Mac's injury, but at the same time it demonstrated the mutual trust, confident and understanding between them. It's not easy to tell someone to act as you told and equally hard to follow exactly someone told you to do when you don't have a clue of what's happening, but Pete and Mac handled it perfectly.

Poor Mac! How long would it take to have his hands healed?

Great episode but very emotional and sad because the glaucoma in Dana Elcar (besides Pete).
The scene in the kitchen is amazing, so real, so intense. The Macīs face after Pete leaves the kitchen...

Very sad one hearing that Dana Elcar has glaucoma.

I think the general healing time of the human body about 6 weeks? but I really think the time would depend on how deep the burns where. because that would determine how much actual healing was required.

I felt so sorry for Mac when he was blow back and he was rolling on the ground screaming from the pain in his hands and face, his hair is up, from the blow back and his face, neck and hands are red and black. it is a sad moment when Pete can't see his hurt friend because of the flash, hes not blind at this point but he just can't see for the moment.

That bit is very sad, the episode has quite a few heart renching moments. I like how Mac and Pete keep hold of their friendship by the struggle where Mac was Pete's eyes and Pete Mac's hands. They showed teamwork and gave both characters confidence/faith to overcome their injuries.

Rocky, I know what you mean about the sadness in this episode. There is definitely the sense of missed opportunities there. We learn that Pete was really in love with Lora, and there was wonderful tenderness between them. It's very much an eppy about learning to let go of what could have been, but now will never be possible. There's also some good stuff here about dealing with fear: Lora is afraid of being murdered if she goes home, but her sense of duty to her people is much stronger. Pete is terrified of losing his sight, but realizes by the end that he really doesn't have much to lose. Mac, I think, is afraid of what Pete's condition will mean for their working relationship and their friendship, but decides to stand by him no matter what comes. I think there's also a powerful reminder here that fear is easier to handle when you know someone you love is walking with you.

That's so true. There's nothing worse than facing fear alone. That's quite a nice positive to take from an otherwise negative/down episode.

A fear shared is a fear halved.

I thought this episode was excellent!! It was a sad one especially knowing that Dana Elcar truly was losing his sight. MacGyver's reaction while Pete was telling him was great, but his waiting until Pete left the room to really show his emotions was amazing and very true to real life.

I also was touched to see the trust between friends when Mac was Pete's eyes and Pete was Mac's hands!!

Quite an emotionally charge episode. A very good combination of action/adventure and quiet emotional moments.

Good episode.

About to watch this one right now. I was careful when reading the posts here, as to not spoil anything for myself, heh.

Its one of the many that I had missed over the years, for one reason or another.
(I recently bought what I thought was Season 2 from a local pawn shop, but straight-away noticed that the discs were actually from season 6 - LOL - ehhh, either way; at $5 per DVD season, its allllllll good. )


Cheers -

Very good episode, which must have been difficult to film due to so much of the story being for real.

I take my hat off to Dana Elcar for facing up to his illness in such a public way; he must have been something of an inspiration to fellow glaucoma sufferers at the time - Pete doesn't give up. I wonder whether this episode prompted other people to seek treatment in the same way as other episodes prompted (for example) runaway kids to come forward.

Mac's reaction to Pete's news was harrowing to watch. I think we're seeing RDA's raw reaction here, which shows how good an actor he is as he can hold it in and only show what he's feeling when the script calls for it.
Also, his reaction to being burnt had my toes curling in my sneakers - he acts pain so very convincingly...

Bravo, guys. Bravo