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The star of the show was Richard Dean Anderson who has appeared in some high quality TV shows over the years, his current claim to fame being the star of 'Stargate SG' (if you'll excuse the pun). On the surface 'MacGuyver' was a more mainstream action series with his opponents being foreign spies and criminals rather than aliens seeking domination of the earth. What about the gun girls I hear you shout? Well just to get things started here are a few vidcaps where Macguyver learns that he has been tricked into freeing a political prisoner by a foreign secret agent (ex Bond girl Kristina Wayborn).
The episode 'Phoenix Under Siege' had an international hitwoman Victoria James (played by Tricia O'Neil) helping out a group of terrorists in seizing control of a government building so that she can destroy some incriminating evidence against her. Ms. James was a particularly ruthless female character by TV standards as she mercilessly killed those who stood in her way.
This episode introduced the character of MacGuyver's grandfather and when he is taken hostage by Ms. James one wondered if this was likely to be a one episode appearance. But of course MacGuyver does save the day and Ms. James takes a flying leap out of the building after giving the hero a good thumping.
Another episode where MacGuyver encountered treachery saw this lady (Oksana Olijar) on the run with her defector husband. However she is really an agent for her country's intelligence service and has no hesitation is shooting her husband when his defection looks likely to succeed.
One of the better aspects of the show was the character of MacGuyver who relied upon his wits and skills to fulfill his missions rather than weaponry - the series deservedly won an award from the Center to Prevent Handgun Violence and, to its great credit, was named one of the ten most "liberally biased" TV shows by its conservative opponents. MacGuyver relied upon his technical skills to get him out of any tricky situation. He was the kind of guy who could blow open the doors of his prison using a pillow, the ink from a fountain pen and a toilet roll (okay I'm exaggerating slightly). In the following two part episode he is, again, pitched against East European espionage agents (Elyssa Davalos shown here) in a tale involving stolen art works.
The other comment I have about the series is the acting of Richard Dean Anderson. Much like Tom Selleck he has the ability to make the viewer believe he is not acting at all and that he is just being himself. However I've seen Mr. Anderson enough times to recognise that he does this for any role he appears in. In other words he is a damned good actor. Back to the plot. The evil Russians have forced MacGuyver to steal a priceless art treasure from the Chinese after a long lost lover is held hostage. Does he rescue her only for her to betray him? I'll let you guess.
The last piece on MacGuyver is a reference to one of the feature length movies made after the series was cancelled after 7 seasons. 'Trail to Doomsday' was set and filmed in the UK and if you are British you can spot the van loads of familiar faces. The story was pretty standard stuff but like the series itself had a class which raised it above material of a similar nature. And yes it featured a devious woman who was working for a East European intelligence service, or at least trying to restore the old world order. Here are a few vidcaps from the final scene where MacGuyver is being hunted down in a nuclear power plant.
