Every now and then, a TV show from long ago resurfaces on our screens. Usually, after the initial excitement, the boredom quickly sets in. Times have changed. Honestly, who still wants to watch The Love Boat or St Elsewhere?
At first, it’s great to relive the memories linked to the show, but soon you come to the realisation that, as viewers, we are a lot more demanding now than we were back then. TV was still a relatively new phenomenon then so, even if we saw The Muppets from morning to sunset, it was fine. But I don’t want to see The Muppets now. Not even for a second.
Perhaps MacGyver will be different. The thing about MacGyver is the technological wizardry that wowed us back then (it’s dated badly, by the way) wasn’t the only drawcard – the show was almost flawless when it came to storytelling. The way Richard Dean Anderson portrayed MacGyver was so believable the character’s name became a synonym for resource-fulness.
He was a man apart. This was the era of The A-Team, Magnum PI, and Miami Vice. Mac, as some called him, was a clean operator. Fans knew he never used guns and wherever he could, he avoided violence.
If that premise was used in the pitch for an action series today, no one would bite. And yet, the show’s writing team made non-violent action scenes appealing in a way that would confuse Rambo.
Apparently, when the auditions for the role were announced, the producers where swamped by actors whom they say “hulked” their way through the test.
When it was Anderson’s turn, he is said to have taken a different and much calmer approach. And that is what separated him from BA Baracus (Mr T, The A-Team) and Michael Knight (The Hoff, Knight Rider).
The “cold open” format (also called a teaser) of the show was made to hook us in from the start. The show would begin with Mac already on a mission and trying to get out of a sticky situation. By the time the opening credits ran, you already kind of knew what to expect. Many action series have since adopted this format to hype up the audience’s anticipation.
Where Mac used a telephone booth, we now use cellphones, yet some of his creations from basic materials are still impressive.
If you were too young, or not yet born when MacGyver first aired, you owe it to yourself to check out one of the most successful TV shows of all time.
• MacGyver will premiere on Wednesday, February 15, at 12.10pm on SABC3.