MACGYVER: LOST LOVE, PART 1 {THIRD SEASON PREMIERE} (TV)

Summary

One in this action/adventure series about MacGyver, a former Special Forces agent known for his inventive survival skills.

A ship arrives in the United States from China, carrying with it the Ming Dragon, a priceless jade dragon statuette of monumental importance to the Chinese people. It is being put on display in an international cultural exchange and Pete and MacGyver have been brought in to look over the security around the Ming Dragon. Unbeknownst to them, they are watched by a woman who kills a guard before sending a carrier pigeon relaying information about the Ming Dragon’s arrival to a man named Nicolaj, who seems to want revenge on MacGyver.

MacGyver spots several holes in the security around the Ming Dragon display and offers suggestions as to how to improve it. Later he takes Pete to a rehearsal for a magic act; the magician turns out to be his old friend Jack Dalton. MacGyver attends his show later and catches up with Jack. In the lobby he spots a woman he identifies as “Lisa.” He chases her down but she gets away. He reveals that he believed Lisa was dead, and claims to have killed her.

Jack inquires further and MacGyver recounts that he and Lisa were working with an underground resistance group on the Baltic coast. They fell in love with each other and were to have returned to the United States together after one last mission: detonating explosives in a factory. MacGyver allowed Lisa to go in alone, but she came out too late and was shot in the back before his eyes. He blames himself for her death. MacGyver returns to his room and further reminisces about Lisa. He finds a note in his room, supposedly written by her, asking him to meet her.

The next morning, MacGyver finds Lisa on the ferry and is overjoyed. She explains that the shot she suffered injured but didn’t kill her. Instead she was captured and spent two years in a gulag. She survived due to the assistance of a fellow inmate, Nicholaj, an ex-KGB agent. MacGyver knows Nicolaj; he barely escaped being killed by him during a mission in Hungary. Both he and Lisa are attending as part of the Russian delegation of the international cultural exchange. Furthermore, she reveals that she married Nicholaj and that both of them wish to defect to the United States. MacGyver explains the situation to Pete, who reluctantly agrees to help.

They meet the Russian delegation, led by a retired officer named General Racoubian. He is accompanied by Lisa, Nicolaj, and his assistant Tanya, the woman who murdered the guard earlier. Jack appears and invites them all to his magic show. MacGyver manages to confront Nicolaj alone. He begs MacGyver to help them, if nothing else than for Lisa’s sake. He reveals he broke himself and Lisa out of the gulag by forging false identification papers. MacGyver advises him to convince the Russian delegation to attend Jack’s magic show; he has a plan.

During the magic show, MacGyver and Jack work together to make Lisa “disappear” off the stage; MacGyver leads her out of the backstage entrance. Tanya gives chase and General Racoubian calls for his agents on the outside to cut them off. Nicholaj fights them off but is himself captured, ordering MacGyver to lead Lisa to safety. Tanya shoots at them as MacGyver and Lisa speed away on a stolen motorcycle. Tanya gives chase in her van.

MacGyver manages to get on the ferry, evading capture. However, Tanya calls in General Racoubian, who flies ahead to cut them off in his helicopter. Tanya and General Racoubian work in concert to corner MacGyver, who is forced to abandon the motorcycle when it runs out of gas. MacGyver and Lisa hide among docking machinery in an attempt to circle back and steal Tanya’s van, but General Racoubian finally corners them. Lisa claims the General will kill her and Nicolaj. MacGyver tries to resolve the situation peacefully, but General Racoubian has other plans. He demonstrates a special necklace which, upon command, will explode, killing the wearer. He places it on Lisa’s neck and will use it unless MacGyver fulfills his request to steal the Ming Dragon. He gives MacGyver until 2:00 PM the following day. The episode ends as General Racoubian flies off with Lisa, leaving MacGyver alone. There is a preview of the next episode. Includes commercials. Also includes an “ABC Olympic Diary” and an “ABC News Brief.”

Details

• NETWORK: ABC
• DATE: September 21, 1987 8:00 PM
• RUNNING TIME: 0:58:03
• COLOR/B&W: Color
• CATALOG ID: B:11554
• GENRE: Drama, action/adventure
• SUBJECT HEADING: Drama, action/adventure; Asian American Pacific Islanders Collection
• SERIES RUN: ABC - TV series, 1985-1992
• COMMERCIALS:
  • TV – Commercials – Certs breath mints
  • TV – Commercials – Coffee-mate coffee
  • TV – Commercials – Crispix breakfast cereal
  • TV – Commercials – Del Monte fruit juice
  • TV – Commercials – Dentyne chewing gum
  • TV – Commercials – Domino’s pizza
  • TV – Commercials – Ford automobiles
  • TV – Commercials – GE light bulbs
  • TV – Commercials – M&M’s candy
  • TV – Commercials – Nutrific breakfast cereal
  • TV – Commercials – Ponds skin cream
  • TV – Commercials – Prestone antifreeze
  • TV – Commercials – Ragu pasta sauce
  • TV – Promos – “Full House”
  • TV – Promos – “Ghostbusters”
  • TV – Promos – “Growing Pains”
  • TV – Promos – “Head of the Class”
  • TV – Promos – “I Married Dora”
  • TV – Promos – “Moonlighting”
  • TV – Promos – “Perfect Strangers”
  • TV – Promos – “Who’s the Boss?”

CREDITS

• Stephen Downing … Executive Producer
• Henry Winkler … Executive Producer
• John Rich … Executive Producer
• Michael Greenburg … Producer
• Stephen Kandel … Producer
• John Whelpley … Co-Producer
• Stephen Sealey … Associate Producer
• Hudson Hickman … Associate Producer
• Calvin Clements Jr. … Supervising Producer
• Cliff Bole … Director
• Lee David Zlotoff … Created by
• Jerry Ludwig … Writer
• Randy Edelman … Music by
• Richard Dean Anderson … Cast, MacGyver
• Dana Elcar … Cast, Pete Thornton
• Bruce McGill … Cast, Jack Dalton
• James Hong … Cast, Chu
• Anthony de Longis … Cast, Major Nicolaj Kosov
• Walter Marsh … Cast, General Racoubian
• Leslie Bevis … Cast, Tanya Lyashenka
• Elyssa Davalos … Cast, Lisa
• Bill Ferguson … Cast, Josef
• Paul Batten … Cast, Pettigrew
• Tony Morelli … Cast, Security Man
• Keith Martin Gordey … Cast, Commando
• George Joseph … Cast, Karel