tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5788875373841955612.post6943321461319939402..comments2024-03-27T00:26:22.316-05:00Comments on The MacGyver Project: MacGyver Script Analysis: PilotNicholas Sweedohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00437092592253460266noreply@blogger.comBlogger15125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5788875373841955612.post-75983283142121587372016-06-08T04:01:20.277-05:002016-06-08T04:01:20.277-05:00I agree; its better that Steubens didn't meet ...I agree; its better that Steubens didn't meet a violent end and, like Mark I'd seen and failed to understand the Czech outtake which makes so much more sense of the Palomino story. There are a few episodes where MacGyver uses his bonus to treat the other characters (the bike at the end of DOA MAcGYver for one) and its interesting that this was obviously flagged up as one of his traits at the conception of the character. I also agree that Spencer was fine as the possible romantic interest rather than the Dr Webster scenario which would have made the character too macho and Bond-ish but I would have liked to see the conversation about MacGYver's motivation and acceptance of death and danger, which adds depth. Like Nick, I prefer the 'gosh darn it' line. All interesting stuff for MacGyver geeks, thanks Nick!Alnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5788875373841955612.post-66795480791511482502016-06-07T21:42:04.446-05:002016-06-07T21:42:04.446-05:00He'll have at least 1 Q&A panel, maybe 2. ...He'll have at least 1 Q&A panel, maybe 2. And I never have good questions to ask, so yeah - remind me at the end of August (b/c I will ttly forget before then) and I'll take a couple questions with me to ask him. Highlander_IIhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12390532917085374247noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5788875373841955612.post-14534832402466621562016-06-07T14:54:28.266-05:002016-06-07T14:54:28.266-05:00I was just kidding, I don't think there's ...I was just kidding, I don't think there's any chance of my getting a hold of him. If you did see him at Gatecon, there are other questions I'd be much more interested in -- one that comes to mind is what I have called his "shakes" (shaking his hand after throwing a punch). I've always been curious to know the origin of that, like if someone told him to do that or if he came up with it himself (and if so, where did it come from)? If you could ask him that'd be awesome!Nicholas Sweedohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00437092592253460266noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5788875373841955612.post-32367502713838193422016-06-07T13:25:17.249-05:002016-06-07T13:25:17.249-05:00If you don't get hold of him, remind me closer...If you don't get hold of him, remind me closer to September and I'll try to get a chance to ask him at Gatecon. =)Highlander_IIhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12390532917085374247noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5788875373841955612.post-967507958395241592016-06-07T13:13:43.092-05:002016-06-07T13:13:43.092-05:00I mapped it out and he sings 11 notes. The first ...I mapped it out and he sings 11 notes. The first 9 are the same between Laredo and Penny Lane, but it's the last 2 that make it Laredo. But the rhythm he sings it in does sound more like Penny Lane. If I ever get a hold of him I'll ask him if he remembers!Nicholas Sweedohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00437092592253460266noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5788875373841955612.post-70621050011985410232016-06-07T10:26:29.300-05:002016-06-07T10:26:29.300-05:00I mentioned in my later comment on the Pilot post ...I mentioned in my later comment on the Pilot post that I'd read that people have said its 'Streets of Laredo' but I just don't hear it as that. Its not quite 'Penny Lane' either because it dips down a couple of notes at the end.Alnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5788875373841955612.post-77035178779804205532016-06-05T23:47:52.464-05:002016-06-05T23:47:52.464-05:00I listened to that a while back but had forgotten ...I listened to that a while back but had forgotten that detail until you mentioned it. As you said, bummer for the kid but they made the right choice. Nicholas Sweedohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00437092592253460266noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5788875373841955612.post-65037239709078306722016-06-05T23:21:41.906-05:002016-06-05T23:21:41.906-05:00Were you aware of the Shavar Ross interview I ment...Were you aware of the Shavar Ross interview I mentioned on Phoenix Foundation, where he indicated he and Richard Dean Anderson were traveling together promoting the series expecting them to be a pair?Markhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04953380288384883179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5788875373841955612.post-27052180927513080682016-06-05T23:11:08.768-05:002016-06-05T23:11:08.768-05:00The DOA MacGyver script was 54 pages. With today&...The DOA MacGyver script was 54 pages. With today's CGI they could at least make a baseball stadium with 50 thousand people on the cheap (though I still am not a big CGI fan). As for Steubens, despite the fact he was holding a gun it wouldn't have looked good for MacGyver to give him a flying kick considering he was already wounded from the blast, 70 years old, and 4 and a half feet tall.Nicholas Sweedohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00437092592253460266noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5788875373841955612.post-34647925831725998522016-06-05T20:36:44.030-05:002016-06-05T20:36:44.030-05:00I wasn't sure what your elusive "second s...I wasn't sure what your elusive "second script" was but figured it would be one of your top episodes. I didn't really consider that it would be the "Pilot". I like that it was the second draft that came closer to the final product than my recent purchase of the script from "Nightmares" which was as rudimentary and unformed as you can imagine, with less than half the scenes of the episode in the rough cut. <br /><br />The original pilot was 90 minutes so if they had to cut a full third of it out it's no surprise some context was snuffed out along the way, including the "Cendrix ordering a series of tests" bit from the ending. I had seen the European version of the pilot (Czech???) that included MacGyver and Captain Taylor going to the Pentagon but it was in a foreign language with no subtitles so I didn't know what they were saying. Cool that it was a follow-up to the palomino story, because that follow-up was needed to make the opening gambit narration make sense.<br /><br />Definitely interesting to imagine MacGyver living in a baseball stadium. I'm sure they could fake the logistics of it with stock footage of a baseball game in a stadium but the observatory made more sense for MacGyver' "man of science" credentials.<br /><br />Without having seen the performance of "Webster", the gal MacGyver apparently dates, I feel like Barbara Spencer served the role of romantic teaser sufficiently and am glad the Webster character was cut.<br /><br />Dana Elcar was 57 when the pilot was filmed so they must have taken advantage of the opportunity to get Elcar in the guest role rather than adhere strictly to the "late 40s" description in the script.<br /><br />I would have preferred the script's version of "Spencer! I told you not to come in". The "gosh darn it" line in the episode seemed disproportionately folksy given the gravity of the situation. From a coolness standpoint I would have enjoyed seeing Steubens get the "Quayle" treatment, fried in the loose spaghetti wires, but taking out the old man less violently was probably more acceptable for the intended audience of the show.<br /><br />I'm assuming you listened to the "Phoenix Foundation" interview with Shavar Ross who played the "big brother" in the pilot. Early on, ABC planned to have Ross's character going with MacGyver on his adventures, and both RDA and Ross were attending promotional meetings for the show together in 1985 before ABC reconsidered and decided to dump the kid. That had to have been a bummer for Shavar Ross, especially losing the opportunity to work on a show as cool as "MacGyver". From a narrative standpoint though, I'm very glad they went the direction of MacGyver working solo rather than lugging around his own version of "Short Round" from "Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom" week after week.<br /><br />I anticipate Lucas Till's version of "MacGyver" will have some sass and swagger. I'm okay with that to an extent if they maintain the tone of the original as closely as possible, but I'm not holding expectations too high. I suspect the music will be more consistent with other modern action series than the sophisticated science-techy arrangements the composers of the original put forward. To me the music is gravy on a quality product so I won't be quite as distraught as you if the music isn't Edelman-worthy week to week, but I'd obviously be thrilled if it was.<br /><br />Thanks for your comparison. How many pages was the "DOA: MacGyver" script for comparison to this 98-pager?<br /><br />Markhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04953380288384883179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5788875373841955612.post-2438363763310463222016-06-05T12:44:47.590-05:002016-06-05T12:44:47.590-05:00Possibly also deciding it was a little ostentatiou...Possibly also deciding it was a little ostentatious for their brainy hero. <br /><br />Now, had it been a hockey arena... that might have been a different story. =)Highlander_IIhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12390532917085374247noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5788875373841955612.post-90117789735814223852016-06-05T12:22:11.939-05:002016-06-05T12:22:11.939-05:00I can imagine the producers reading about the base...I can imagine the producers reading about the baseball stadium in the script (and the game going on with 50,000 people) and then saying, "How about the Griffith Park Obseravtory?!"Nicholas Sweedohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00437092592253460266noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5788875373841955612.post-63180877830740897312016-06-05T12:19:50.908-05:002016-06-05T12:19:50.908-05:00Great call, you're right -- I just listened to...Great call, you're right -- I just listened to it again and it is Streets of Laredo. I can hear elements of Penny Lane though too -- I wonder if the Beatles were influenced by Streets of Laredo at all...Nicholas Sweedohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00437092592253460266noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5788875373841955612.post-9253798912809963392016-06-05T00:19:13.442-05:002016-06-05T00:19:13.442-05:00The tune MacGyver whistles is called "The Str...The tune MacGyver whistles is called "The Streets Of Laredo".<br /><br />Listen: https://youtu.be/L14UKBjC5Is<br /><br />Source: http://www.macgyveronline.com/pages/pilot<br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5788875373841955612.post-851641960518373082016-06-04T23:34:52.463-05:002016-06-04T23:34:52.463-05:00The apt in the baseball stadium is definitely an i...The apt in the baseball stadium is definitely an interesting idea. I'd wager figuring out the set for that was complex at best, hence the change to the observatory. <br /><br />I don't remember right off where I ranked the pilot episode in my listings, but it's probably in the middle somewhere. (I'm terribly behind on posting my countdown. /o\) <br /><br />As for the new, reboot of MacGyver... I'm standing on the side of cautiously-anxious. I've seen too many reboots go really badly. And the initial 'here's what we're doing with MacGyver' article from a few weeks back wasn't remotely promising. I'll probably watch the new pilot, at least. And I'll reserve official judgment until then.Highlander_IIhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12390532917085374247noreply@blogger.com