Although the initial gimmick in MacGyver was the title character's utilization of ordinary, everyday objects as weapons or tools, by the third season the series depended largely on the popularity and charisma of its star, Richard Dean Anderson, a genuinely appealing leading man. Consequently, more episodes were built around his personality, and a semi-regular female character was introduced for romantic interest. In most of her appearances in this 20-epsisode 1987-88 set, Elyssa Davalos plays Nikki Carpenter, but she first turns up in the opening two-parter “Lost Love,” playing one of Angus MacGyver's old flames, Soviet dissident Lisa Kohler (MacGyver runs into Lisa, who's captured by Russian agents, after being hired to guard a valuable Chinese artifact). “GX-1” finds MacGyver once again pitted against the Soviets, this time racing against the clock to locate a downed high-tech spy plane before the Russians can reach it, and in “The Odd Triple,” Mac's old pal Jack Dalton (Bruce McGill) flies Mac and an heiress to France with jewels that turn out to be stolen. Our pick for the year's best episode is “The Widowmaker,” featuring Michael Des Barres as recurring villain Murdoc, a coldhearted assassin who attempts to draw Mac out after he's concealed himself in a cabin owned by Mac's boss, Pete Thornton (Dana Elcar)—when Nikki goes to visit, Murdoc decides to strike at both of them. Although MacGyver still retains a generally lighthearted tone, this season's episodes on the whole are more suspenseful than previous ones. Recommended. (E. Hulse)
MacGyver: The Complete Third Season
Paramount, 5 discs, 942 min., not rated, DVD: $38.99 Volume 20, Issue 6
MacGyver: The Complete Third Season
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