‘MacGyver’ episode 14 review: Matty Webber’s performance reports

Tonight, “MacGyver” returned after a short hiatus with “Fish Scaler,” and it took little time before it was clear precisely how different this stage of the show was going to be.

So what was different? It really just begins and ends by talking about one Matty Webber, the new director of the Phoenix Foundation. She’s got a history when it comes to Jack, and she also MEANS BUSINESS. Through most of the episode, we saw her giving performance reviews to some of the various members of the team. One of the things that she stressed was that she hates spontaneity, which basically means that she’s in the worst possible place for her to continue her career.

Heck, we saw Mac and Jack steal just in this episode alone two cars, with one of them belonging to a government agency. They were on a retrieval mission this week to bring in someone (a member of the Most Wanted List) who turned out to be a corrupt FBI Agent, one who framed a man for murder. The journey that the two of them went on in order to stop this agent led to a series of other things that Matty would not approve of, including improvising in the field to avoid a gunfight. The guys get results! They just get them in a predictable way, and that is what the new boss wouldn’t approve of. It’s one of those things where, if you are employing the two of them, you’d be terrified to do so; then, you throw a party when they get the job done and act like you never doubted them at all. (Maybe for some people — we’re not sure she feels that way. Read on for more on that…)

The end of the case was a success, but by the time that Matty’s performance review came into play, she still made it clear that she did not appreciate Mac’s method of getting the job done. When you listened to her speech at the end of the episode to him, what she actually said was pretty logical — this is a guy who puts himself into danger on a fairly regular basis, and when you play the odds, there is a good chance that he’ll die someday. At least she didn’t fire him for his free-wheeling ways. Instead, she told him to prove her wrong, but if he messes up once, she’ll make sure that he never improvises out in the field ever again.

Is Matty a good character? – We saw a lot more of her in this episode than we probably did for Thornton in multiple episodes, and it’s already clear is that she is a fun presence to the group. The funniest thing about her is that over the course of the episode, there was one person she turned out to like: Bozer. The two already have nicknames for each other! He proved useful in the case, he challenged her, and this respect is pretty ironic given that this is a guy who has zero knowledge of being out in the field. This just goes to show more of how Bozer can get along with just about anyone.

Maybe you can argue that it’s disappointing to not actually know as of yet what the reason for the tension between Matty and Jack really is. Yet, at the same time we like that it’s something floating around out there, and there’s really not that much of a reason to hurry things along in terms of giving us an answer.

Overall – A fun return to the show chock full of humor, great Bozer moments, and a new boss who is dynamic and ready to challenge Mac. Even a guy with his habit of getting himself out of tough situations needs a bit of pressure here and there. Grade: B+.

What was your take on this “MacGyver” episode? Let us know some of your thoughts and reactions now in the comments, and be sure to head over here to get some other news, including a preview for what is coming up next. (Photo: CBS.)