MacGyver Wiki
Advertisement
The Widowmaker
Season 3, Episode 52
Wiki
Airdate 16th November 1987
Written by John Whelpley & Harv Zimmel
Directed by Michael Vejar
Episode Guide
Previous
Jack In The Box
Next
Hell Week

The Widowmaker is the 8th episode of Season 3 in the original version of MacGyver.

Summery[]

MacGyver grieves for his long-time friend, Mike Forester, after she dies in a tragic rock climbing accident. Nikki Carpenter comes up to the cabin where he's staying to try and cheer him up, but MacGyver is still in his slump. However, the return of Murdoc forces him back into action.

Synopsis[]

Act One[]

MacGyver is on a climbing trip up the Widowmaker mountain trying to face his claustrophobia. With him is his friend Mike Forrester. He nearly slips off but Mike helps him up. After difficulty, MacGyver uses his chalk bag so he can better climb upward. He stops for lunch with Mike. She has love suggestions on her mind but MacGyver wants to stay close friends with her. Pausing her conversation, Mike and her friend need to make Widow's Ledge and Broomstick Crack before the light is gone. He clips her cord and she climbs up. Mike makes it further up but has a bout of vertigo failing to secure her line and falls. MacGyver barely hangs on to her line and she slams against the mountain face. He tries to call out to her but her line snaps and she falls to her death. Seeing this, MacGyver falls into despair.

For two weeks, MacGyver has not even left Pete's cabin and his blaming himself for letting Mike die. He thinks by running away you take a good portion of yourself with you. Nikki says it took a chopper crew to rescue him since he was too paralyzed to even climb down. Pete reminds how Mike climbed the Widowmaker twice before.

Pete visits his cabin one night and finds MacGyver in a slump, refusing to even leave or talk. Pete says he has been to the funeral for Mike as there was a lot of good feeling and love. Everyone understood why he was absent. The director offers to get MacGyver back to work, but the depressed MacGyver refuses and does not want to be in the company of friends anymore. Punishing himself would never bring Mike back. MacGyver thinks her death was his fault but Pete counters that she fell by accident. Seeing how MacGyver will be away from everything and everything, Pete bids him goodbye.

At the houseboat, someone sinisterly familiar with MacGyver breaks in and hears voice messages from his friends trying to get him out of his slump and gets a lead on where to find him; Near the Widowmaker with the villain wanting to avenge his previous defeat. He then takes a photo of "R.I.P. MacGyver" as a warning, the modus operandi of Murdoc.

Act Two[]

At the Phoenix Foundation, Pete fears his attempts to reach MacGyver have not worked since he won't even smile or even talk to anyone. Desperate, Nikki wants to try since he doesn't know her much. Despite their disagreements, Nikki volunteers to go; She heads to Ellard's general store. there, shopkeeper Ellard remembers Mike fondly since she never had a death wish to climb the mountain. Since MacGyver still hasn't come out of his slump, some of the locals have seen him, hiking, fishing; Ellard remembers when he lost some friends at the Battle of Midway. Nikki says she'll bring the groceries to MacGyver, and when her jeep fails to start, a seemingly friendly local helps to fix her engine. After checking for problems, she gets the jeep started and tells the local she is visiting a friend who is below Widow Canyon. He advises on cleaning the wires then Nikki drives off. She fails to notice it is the assailant who broke into MacGyver's houseboat..

She drives to the cabin and does not see an army jeep parked nearby. When she hears no answer, Nikki goes to the fishing deck to see MacGyver still in his funk over the loss of Mike. Nikki says to MacGyver she is trying to help get over the loss and refuses to even leave until MacGyver gets his act together. Sad and angry, MacGyver wants to run further away blaming himself for letting Mike fall.

But before he can run away into obscurity completely, MacGyver spots photos hanging from the cabin ceiling. He remembers the last time he and Pete defeated Murdoc. He tries to refuse to buy that Murdoc is still at large; But then Murdoc shows up with a flamethrower to once again try and kill MacGyver.

Act Three[]

With the cabin burning, Murdoc shows how his last fight with MacGyver left him with broken bones and burnt flesh; this causes Nikki to realize she led the assassin right to the cabin. Murdoc bursts in as MacGyver grabs a mattress for a makeshift heat shield and he orders her to escape out the door. He blockades the door with the burning mattress and the two race to the jeep while Murdoc burns the cabin. By the time they get to their jeeps, MacGyver sees that Murdoc shorted out his jeep's tires and wants to take Nikki's. But as they get in, timed dynamite is activated and attempting to start the jeep traps them inside with a taunting "Bye bye! Time to fry!" Since the doors will not function, MacGyver kicks the jeep window out and the two escape before the jeep is blown up.

As Murdoc takes a photo of the burning cabin, he seeks to continue his battle to kill his target. Nikki curses the assassin and attempts to escape on foot, but MacGyver warns her that Murdoc has laid land mines on the road going out. MacGyver knows his fued with Murdoc goes way back. They decide on trying to escape through the forest and to the samee mountain where Mike lost her life. They hook the cables to the car battery wiring it to the radio antenna to make an arc welder. Just when Murdoc passes by, MacGyver uses the electrified antenna to set the flamethrower on fire forcing him to abandon it. Not ready to give up, Murdoc hurries back to his own jeep walking safely across his own mines.

In the forest below the mountains and without much help, MacGyver cuts a rope loose from the small bridge he and Nikki are crossing. Seeing an electrical tower, he hopes to send a makeshift phone call to Ellard tying himself to the rope and borrows Nikki's bracelet and belt. At his army jeep, Murdoc gets some rope cables of his own and a sniper rifle.

When MacGyver gets to the top, he cuts an opening into the cable and taps the bracelet into it. At his store, Ellard is making a call when he senses morse code-like tapping as a distress call. Remembering his signal man days, Ellard begins to write down where MacGyver and Nikki are in danger to send for help; But then, Murdoc aims his rifle and fires forcing MacGyver to let go. Murdoc prepares another shot.

Act Four[]

Dodging sniper fire, MacGyver carefully climbs down the tower. and he and Nikki flee up the mountain. Meanwhile at the breached houseboat, Pete spots Murdoc's warning since he is still after them. Desperate, Pete phones the DXS to continue the hunt for Murdoc and has received an SOS from Ellard.

At the top of the Widowmaker, MacGyver again faces his claustrophobia which Nikki tries to snap him out of. If the two can't climb down, they must fight through Murdoc and his rifle. The two would have to climb through Broomstick Crack to reach Widow's Ledge. With Murdoc closing in, the two Phoenix agents free climb carefully down the mountain face while MacGyver spots Mike's broken harness and nearly slips after snagging some climbing cables. At Widow's Ledge, he spots the snapped rope where Mike died from the fall. He throws the rope to Nikki who carefully climbs down to the Ledge. They spot Mike's lost chalk bag. Aware that it came loose, Nikki knows that even if MacGyver relives the moment, it wouldn't matter.

To further elude Murdoc, MacGyver and Nikki apply chalk so they can climb down to the ledge below. He climbs down to the ledge first with some rope. At the top, Murdoc appears to double back. After making it to the ledge, MacGyver wants to make climbing ropes from the harnesses so they can head back up after their assailant is apprehended. But then, Murdoc shows up having used climbing gear of his own and before he can get an up close shot to his main adversary, Nikki kicks the gun away, but he slings back and cuts MacGyver's arm before knocking Nikki over leaving her to hang on for dear life. Murdoc attempts another attack, but MacGyver uses the chalk to disorient the assassin. Before he can pull Nikki up, Murdoc double kicks MacGyver and prepares to deliver a final knife blow, but MacGyver tricks him into cutting his climbing rope. Murdoc cries out to MacGyver as he falls over the same cliff that killed Mike.

Not wanting to lose another friend to the mountain, MacGyver pulls Nikki up as she climbs carefully up while holding his wrists. The two are exhausted but satisfied with their victory.

Epilogue[]

Nikki protests climbing up again and MacGyver handling his claustrophobia better. Even if his SOS got through, it would take hours for the DXS to disarm the mines. Having got his sense of adventure back, he promises to bring a chopper for Nikki. She is grateful that MacGyver has gotten back with the present, he begins his climb upwards as the two await rescue.

Trivia[]

This is the first time that Murdoc screams MACGYVER!". as he falls off a cliff.

Cast[]

Main CastRecurring CastOthers
  • Lisa Bayliss as Mike Forester
  • Anthony Holland as Mr. Ellard
Advertisement