DVD Talk review of 'MacGyver: The TV Movies'
07-13-10, 08:14 AM
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DVD Talk review of 'MacGyver: The TV Movies'
I read Nick Hartel's DVD review of MacGyver: The TV Movies at http://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/read.php?ID=42572 and...
I generally agreed with your reviews of the movies. "The Lost Treasure of Atlantis" was an above-average MacGyver adventure, but which peaked in the first half hour and had a few sloppy moments that kept it from being a classic. "Trail to Doomsday" was a sloppy, ridiculous mess that left something of a sour legacy to the entire franchise.
But we really differ on the series. My question to you is this? If you really believe that MacGyver doesn't hold up well because of its stand-alone episodes and formula, then can you point me towards a show that's more than 15 years old that does hold up well and is less formulaic, at least in terms of action-adventure/crime series? Do "The Fall Guy", "The A-Team", or "Simon and Simon", for a few examples, really hold up better than MacGyver? With a more diverse and less formulaic approach to storytelling? Seriously?
Or even today? Are you suggesting that any show from the CSI or Criminal Minds procedural genre is less formulaic than MacGyver? Effectively every genre television series from decades past has operated within a formula, so I scratch my head and even bristle some when I hear people say that "MacGyver", the least formulaic of its generation and with far and away the most diverse story selection over seven seasons of any non-anthology TV series in history, is held up as a prime offender. It was that varied selection of stories that kept the show's audience interested for seven seasons, so for anyone to suggest that MacGyver suffered from storytelling repetition compared to any other series in TV history is just bizarre.
The bottom line is this: MacGyver operated within the confines of the formulas of its era but vastly exceeded the standard with only a few exceptions. If you're going to criticize the series for "not holding up well" and being "formulaic", you need to provide some context for its era and you definitely need to compare it to other series from its genre that hold up better. Everybody has their own opinion, but I think you'd have a tough sell in suggesting that "T.J. Hooker" or "Airwolf" were less formulaic and better emissaries of their genre than "MacGyver" that "hold up" better.
I generally agreed with your reviews of the movies. "The Lost Treasure of Atlantis" was an above-average MacGyver adventure, but which peaked in the first half hour and had a few sloppy moments that kept it from being a classic. "Trail to Doomsday" was a sloppy, ridiculous mess that left something of a sour legacy to the entire franchise.
But we really differ on the series. My question to you is this? If you really believe that MacGyver doesn't hold up well because of its stand-alone episodes and formula, then can you point me towards a show that's more than 15 years old that does hold up well and is less formulaic, at least in terms of action-adventure/crime series? Do "The Fall Guy", "The A-Team", or "Simon and Simon", for a few examples, really hold up better than MacGyver? With a more diverse and less formulaic approach to storytelling? Seriously?
Or even today? Are you suggesting that any show from the CSI or Criminal Minds procedural genre is less formulaic than MacGyver? Effectively every genre television series from decades past has operated within a formula, so I scratch my head and even bristle some when I hear people say that "MacGyver", the least formulaic of its generation and with far and away the most diverse story selection over seven seasons of any non-anthology TV series in history, is held up as a prime offender. It was that varied selection of stories that kept the show's audience interested for seven seasons, so for anyone to suggest that MacGyver suffered from storytelling repetition compared to any other series in TV history is just bizarre.
The bottom line is this: MacGyver operated within the confines of the formulas of its era but vastly exceeded the standard with only a few exceptions. If you're going to criticize the series for "not holding up well" and being "formulaic", you need to provide some context for its era and you definitely need to compare it to other series from its genre that hold up better. Everybody has their own opinion, but I think you'd have a tough sell in suggesting that "T.J. Hooker" or "Airwolf" were less formulaic and better emissaries of their genre than "MacGyver" that "hold up" better.
07-14-10, 12:02 AM
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Re: DVD Talk review of 'MacGyver: The TV Movies'
"MacGyver" doesn't "hold up" in my book because the hype and fond memories surrounding it far exceed the actual quality of the program. What's a formulaic show from the 80s that I do think holds up? Definitely "The Equalizer," but then again, while it's fondly remembered, it had nowhere near the cultural impact of "MacGyver" or "The A-Team." Those two collapse under obscenely high expectations based on hazy memories.
I think 20 years from now people will feel the same way about the CSI franchise. I have never been able to find the appeal of the show and find the only standout series that follow such patterns are stuff like "House," "Monk," and to a lesser extent some of the "Law and Orders." However, those successes are due to standout cast members. Without a doubt Richard Dean Anderson was the reason "MacGyver" lasted seven seasons. Had anyone else less memorable filled those shoes and the show lasted even three seasons, it would be a footnote in TV history.
I think 20 years from now people will feel the same way about the CSI franchise. I have never been able to find the appeal of the show and find the only standout series that follow such patterns are stuff like "House," "Monk," and to a lesser extent some of the "Law and Orders." However, those successes are due to standout cast members. Without a doubt Richard Dean Anderson was the reason "MacGyver" lasted seven seasons. Had anyone else less memorable filled those shoes and the show lasted even three seasons, it would be a footnote in TV history.
07-14-10, 06:49 AM
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Re: DVD Talk review of 'MacGyver: The TV Movies'
I'll give you credit for an interesting selection with "The Equalizer" as an action genre show that holds up better than "MacGyver". I remember the show fondly and purchased its first season DVD set. While there were a number of standout episodes, I found it to be incredibly hit or miss. At least a handful of the episodes on the Season 1 set I own are as big of stinkers as MacGyver's "Trail to Doomsday" film. And from what I remember of the series' subsequent seasons, every really strong episodes was matched with an episode as ho-hum as an episode of "Murder, She Wrote".
I grew up in the era of 80s action TV and always have had a soft spot for it. That's why I purchased DVD sets for just about every series of the genre...and I've found "MacGyver" to hold up the best by a country mile. The other shows' formulas were infinitely more rigid and predictable and the scope of the plots far less ambitious and repetitive. That's why I also think your point of Richard Dean Anderson single-handedly carrying the "MacGyver" franchise for seven seasons sells the series and its audience short. The widely varying stories was what did it for everybody I knew. Our hero would be rescuing orphans from Cambodia one week, finding lost treasure in an ice cave in the Arctic Circle the next, taking on the godfather of the African poaching trade the next, and exposing the criminal use of illegal pesticide usage and its impact on a town full of migrant workers the next.
Whatever level of "formula" was at work was, for me and most people I know who were fans of the show, offset by the anthological approach to story mining that took the character and audience to far more unique places and in the company of far more unique supporting characters than anything ever seen on other action shows of its era, including "The Equalizer".
I grew up in the era of 80s action TV and always have had a soft spot for it. That's why I purchased DVD sets for just about every series of the genre...and I've found "MacGyver" to hold up the best by a country mile. The other shows' formulas were infinitely more rigid and predictable and the scope of the plots far less ambitious and repetitive. That's why I also think your point of Richard Dean Anderson single-handedly carrying the "MacGyver" franchise for seven seasons sells the series and its audience short. The widely varying stories was what did it for everybody I knew. Our hero would be rescuing orphans from Cambodia one week, finding lost treasure in an ice cave in the Arctic Circle the next, taking on the godfather of the African poaching trade the next, and exposing the criminal use of illegal pesticide usage and its impact on a town full of migrant workers the next.
Whatever level of "formula" was at work was, for me and most people I know who were fans of the show, offset by the anthological approach to story mining that took the character and audience to far more unique places and in the company of far more unique supporting characters than anything ever seen on other action shows of its era, including "The Equalizer".
