Now that I have your attention,
let it be known that the annual Fizzics Follies
has been fractioned to the final four finalists.
The great,
just ask him, Geoffrey Kramer.
Geoffrey!
The beautiful, in both brain
and body, Hillary Chapman.
All right, Hillary! You get my vote!
The prodigal son
of the great one himself, David Ryman.
- All right, David! - You can do it. You can do it.
And last, but certainly not least,
uh, this year's cinch winner
with the best barricade since the Great Wall of China... me.
Thank you...
Thank you.
We love you, guy.
All right.
- Good luck, everybody. - See you later.
MacGyver!
Bye.
Hey, MacGyver!
Dad told me you were coming to judge the barricade contest.
Yeah, it's kinda tough to refuse a request from your dad.
- How you doing, David? - Oh, pretty good.
You sure haven't changed much.
That's the same jacket you had ten years ago, isn't it?
Yeah, I'm kind of attached to it.
Listen, congratulations.
I hear you're one of the finalists.
Following Ryman family tradition right down the line.
Now all I got to do is win.
Yeah, but don't worry.
With you here as referee, the fix is in.
Sure it is.
Look, I got to go pick something up before class.
You heading over to check in with the Great One?
Yep.
Okay, I'll catch you there.
The Fizzics Follies had been a tradition
at Western Tech for almost 30 years.
The first winner of the barricade contest was my mentor, Julian Ryman,
who had barricaded the lab in the Physics building during his senior year.
Ryman went on to become a professor
and a Nobel Prize winner.
Not all of us were so brilliant.
Welcome back, MacGyver.
Reflecting on past glories?
It does bring back some memories.
- How you doing, professor? - Oh, fine.
I continue to be a little disappointed
when those who show a shred of promise flee the fold.
There you are, MacGyver, in the Physics Hall of Fame.
But where are you, MacGyver?
Happy doing what I'm doing.
Oh, nonsense. You should have stayed with physics.
I expanded my horizons, went in other directions.
Ohh...
So you're looking forward to seeing
your son's picture up there along with yours?
I saw David outside. How's he doing?
B's. He's getting B's. A few A's.
That's not what I mean.
How is he doing?
Oh!
Fine.
Come and see the next generation in action.
You can be depressed along with me.
23.7 below.
Perfect.
Hi.
When I heard the rumor about
some nerdling breaking into the ROTC storage compound
and making off with their cannon,
I wondered, "Where's David?"
Oh, vicious lies.
I didn't forget. Happy birthday.
Thanks.
It was yesterday.
Oh, I'm sorry.
You seem to say that a lot lately.
Well, I guess I've had a lot on my mind lately.
Like the barricade contest?
You didn't sleep again last night, did you, David?
You look awful.
You're gonna kill yourself.
Well, the thought crossed my mind.
Quit talking like that.
I'm kidding. Just kidding.
I got about 84.
- Here he comes. - You did?
- Yeah. - Oh, good.
Good afternoon, Professor Ryman.
Afternoon.
Uh... class.
I would like to introduce to you Mr. MacGyver,
who will be observing today.
Hi.
Mr. MacGyver is a former student here,
though of course, not in your league.
He was gifted.
Mr. MacGyver is also the alumni referee
for the culmination of the barricade contest,
so I know you're going to treat him with deference and respect.
Ready your experiments and I'll check them over.
You may not be able to tell
from some of the constructions, MacGyver,
but the prodigies are all focusing on low-temperature physics --
superconductors,
because, of course, that's where all the big bucks are today.
Isn't that right, my little geniuses?
- Using argon. - Yes, sir.
How thin is your film?
I got it down to four atomic layers.
That's impressive, Mr. Kramer. Very impressive.
Thank you, sir.
Aw, now, look at this.
These results don't make any sense.
Yeah, maybe you got a leak in the plumbing here somewhere.
Yeah, you're right, but I thought I had it plugged yesterday.
Run the mass spectrometer again.
Well, there it is.
Have you tried silicone, or Apiezon?
Silicone didn't work and the stockroom's out of Apiezon.
Well, what you need is something to stick
in the fracture that'll expand as it freezes.
- Like what? - Think... for a change.
Yeah, well I need the materials, don't I?
Improvise, David.
With what?
MacGyver could fix it, couldn't you, MacGyver?
Spit.
Sir?
Spit, spit, spit.
Nothing worse than a physicist stupefied by the obvious.
Don't let him get to you.
No sweat.
Wasn't that a little rough?
Physics is about truth, not tact.
I was rough on you, too.
Yes, you were. You were a tyrant,
but you humiliated David.
He's your son.
Nobody gonna give him any points for that.
Oh, I should have seen it.
I'd been working hours to plug that leak,
and my father does it in three seconds.
Come on. He's been doing physics his whole life.
Yeah, right, and he's got a Nobel Prize.
But you've got me.
Oh, he'll take notice when I win the barricade contest.
David, that contest is not the whole world.
Oh, I'm gonna win,
and I'm gonna get my picture up on that wall next to his.
You want to see it?
You want to see my barricade?
You're kidding.
You mean you're going to share the best-kept secret on this campus?
I'm honored. I'm flattered, I'm...
Hey, this is a limited-time offer.
Lead on.
I've been waiting months to see your barricade, David.
Bizarre, David. Really bizarre.
Hey, are you hiding another woman back there?
Hey, hey, don't look back there!
David, I've never seen you so jumpy.
Look, if you don't want to show it to me,
I can wait till tomorrow.
No, no, it's just I want you to try and figure it out first, okay?
I'm sorry, I'm sorry.
Just wait till you see this.
A garage-door opener.
Oh, you ain't seen nothing yet.
A miniature!
That's incredible!
No wonder it's been taking you so long.
Aw, the true genius is the way the miniature works.
You mean it actually opens and closes?
Yeah. Just like the real thing.
Okay... step one.
You're here to bust my barricade.
What's the first thing you do?
Look through the peephole.
What do you see?
I see a room and the garage door opener.
Right. But now...
A periscope over the peephole.
The plot thickens.
Now what are you doing?
I'm lining up the model of this room with the periscope,
so, if you're looking through the peephole,
now what do you see?
I see the same thing.
I see what looks like the room,
but I'm really looking at the miniature.
Door locked?
Door locked.
Okay. What does a brilliant barricade buster do next?
I dig up a scanner to locate the frequency
your remote operates on.
Excellent. Excellent.
Now, assuming you find it?
Push the button...
- And the miniature opens. - Right.
And at the same time that's happening, the big motor turns,
and the real one closes. Look.
You mean the door is open
the whole time they're trying to figure it out?
Uh-huh. And when they solve the problem,
the solution creates the barricade.
Well, what do you think?
It's brilliant.
Worthy of the Ryman name?
Oh, more than worthy. You're wonderful.
Oh, I can't wait to see the look
on my father's face when I win tomorrow.
Neither can I.
David...
You promised me you were off this stuff.
Uh, yeah, I-I know.
When I, when I finish this thing.
No, David, you promised!
Why don't you just lay off?
Give them to me.
Why don't you just get out of here, okay?
- Leave me alone. - No!
I'm not gonna let you kill yourself over some stupid contest.
Janet!
Janet! Wait a minute!
All right, you all know the rules.
As each door is opened,
the occupant of that room is eliminated.
But please, use your wits; no heavy machinery.
The builder of the last remaining barricade is the winner.
Oh, and do remember...
Einstein never won a barricade contest.
Good luck, Geoffrey.
Uh, Janet,
I tried calling you last night, but you weren't home.
Yes, I was.
I just didn't know what to say.
But I'm really sorry.
David?
You waiting for an engraved invitation?
Go win your contest, David.
I'll talk to you later.
Yeah.
What's the matter? You seem worried.
You saw him. He's a wreck.
The others started working on their barricade
maybe a week or two ago.
David's devoted his life to it for months.
- Why? - To win.
To show his father he's cut of the Ryman cloth.
What does the professor think about this?
Are you kidding?
He can't see past his own ego.
He has no idea what he's doing to his own son.
I mean, it's no wonder David's taking...
Taking what?
Nothing.
Janet...
is David taking drugs?
It's all the time now.
He's moody, he doesn't eat,
he never sleeps.
And he jokes about killing himself,
and I can't tell if he's serious or not.
Janet, if you care about him, it's something you got to deal with.
It's not just gonna go away.
- I've got to talk to him. - No! No, please.
You can't lay this on him now.
Just wait a couple of hours till after the contest,
and then we'll both talk to him, okay?
All right.
Okay. Geoffrey Kramer starts out with Aaron Turner's door.
Aaron, you want to set up the problem?
I'd love to.
We have, uh, 12 dead bolt locks.
Some of the keys you turn this way
and it locks or unlocks.
Some of the keys you turn this way,
and it locks or unlocks.
All Geoffrey has to do is, uh, get all 12 unlocked at the same time.
Try to be a good loser, Jeffy.
Simply stated, the barricade presents
a possibility of 4,096 different key combinations.
Hmm, well, at least you've got that much figured out, Jeffy.
Difficult, but not impossible.
All right, next.
David, you get Hillary's door.
Okay. Unlike Aaron, my barricade works
from inside the room.
Have a look, David.
What David sees is a balance scale holding two vessels.
One filled with a fine French Chablis,
the other with ordinary tap water.
The object is to tip the scale in either direction,
completing the electrical circuit to unlock the door.
Thank you.
David, your turn.
Well, mine is a mechanical barricade.
Now, empirical observation,
an analytical mind,
and some common sense should get it open.
How long it'll take?
Well, that's another question.
Oh, it looks like a garage door opener.
Interesting.
I'm looking forward to solving this one myself, Hillary.
But do your best anyway.
Mr. Kramer, your turn.
Mr. MacGyver,
Professor Ryman, fellow competitors, observe.
A time lock
ticking down to the grand opening
of this room tomorrow morning at 9:00 a.m.
Hey, the rules say there's got to be a way in,
besides using a sledgehammer.
Oh, there is.
One just has to be bright enough to find it.
All right, you all have the set-up.
Four doors, four finalists.
You have your assignments, so...
So, let the games begin.
Professor, you know David's been knocking himself out
to make his barricade as famous as yours.
Really? Oh, I'm happy to hear that.
It's put a lot of pressure on him.
Pressure, MacGyver, is what turns coal into diamonds.
All I have to do is find the right frequency,
and you have yourself a winner, MacGyver.
Well give it a shot, Hillary. Come on.
- Will you plug that in for me? - Oh, sure.
I'm afraid young Aaron is, uh, on the wrong track.
Well, from the looks of all the equipment they just brought in,
I'd say we have a contest on our hands.
Trying to run all 4,096 different combinations
at an average of ten seconds per try,
would take me more than 12 hours.
So, using these iron filings and a magnet,
I'm going to magnetize each lock,
and provide a visual reference
as to whether the bolt is open or closed.
Ah.
This one's closed, as you can see.
Now it's open.
Very clever.
Everything between the two poles of this magnet is magnetized.
Wherever a lock bolt is closed, the iron filings will stick.
Two more are locked.
Nice work.
Now they're open.
Excellent analysis, Mr. Kramer.
Thank you, sir. I take pride in my creativity.
I think he's got it. I think he's got it.
Give me a hand over here.
Come on, Aaron. You can do it.
Geoffrey's moving along pretty fast.
Check out, David.
Whoa.
Hey, I did it!
All right.
As did I.
Well.
Hillary, looks like we finally have something in common.
All right, everyone, we have our finalists.
And may the better physicist win.
And we know who that is, don't we?
- How's Geoffrey doing? - Not even close.
Oh, good.
Hey, everyone, I built a frequency converter!
Oh, that's great.
He hypes the electric frequency and the clock goes faster.
I do believe he's going to win.
Don't be so sure.
I think I got it.
I found the frequency.
Very clever, David.
The garage door opener has nothing to do with it, does it?
Come on, David.
This is your chance.
Okay, come on! Come on! Come on.
All right, it's working!
All right, David!
I'm gonna win! I'm gonna win!
Come on, 9:00! Come on!
Come on, 9:00!
5:15...
Oh, 6:00.
Come on.
6:15,
6:30,
6:45,
7:00!
Look at that! It's gonna work.
David!
- 7:30. - I got it!
What?
It's all an illusion.
The door isn't locked at all!
Let's congratulate the winner.
Very well done, Mr. Kramer. Well done.
Ten more seconds...
Congratulations, Geoffrey.
Hey, I'm sorry.
David, you came in second.
You did great.
Now, come on. Get some perspective.
You know, I used to get mad at my father
for not believing in me.
But he's right.
I am a loser.
Who's gonna buy me the first drink?
- Not me! - Not me!
I will, Geoffrey. Let's go.
Will I see you later at the party?
Yes.
Come on, Hillary.
All right, Hillary!
Tony!
Excuse me.
Have you seen David, MacGyver?
No sir, I haven't, but I would like to talk to you about him.
I hope he's not staying away because he lost.
That's hardly the Ryman way.
What's that, staying away...
or losing?
Sir,
would you please join me?
Professor, I think there's something going on with David
that you are not aware of.
Oh, what's that?
Pressure.
Possible burnout.
Every student on this campus, Mr. MacGyver,
is pushed to his limits, you know that.
Maybe for David it's too much.
Janet says he doesn't sleep.
He overreacts to things, like this contest.
And, professor,
he's taking speed to stay up for things.
Speed?
My son -- drugs?
Yes, sir.
David needs help.
No, I'm sorry. I'm sorry, MacGyver.
I don't believe that.
Not any of it.
No, sir, you don't, do you?
You don't see any of it.
But there's a difference.
Like Geoffrey here.
He handles pressure in a totally different way.
I heard my name mentioned.
Of course. It's my party.
No, actually, Geoffrey,
I was just starting to talk about how you won the contest.
Right. Well, like I told you, the door was never locked.
Do you want to tell the professor how you knew that?
A little luck, a little ingenuity.
Uh... I don't think so.
I don't have to tell you anything.
I think you do.
Mr. Kramer...
we're talking about physics here, not a game show.
Now I think you will tell me,
specifically, what line of scientific inquiry
led you to your results?
Hey, you all saw it.
The door was open, it was an optical illusion.
He used that periscope.
That's right, he did. That's exactly what he did.
But you had no way of knowing that.
Geoffrey, you opened the door, but you never looked inside.
You never saw a periscope.
At least not this afternoon.
David won the barricade contest, didn't he?
Mr. Kramer?
We'll go and find my son.
Yeah.
I told you all that hard work was going to pay off.
He won.
He certainly couldn't do that on drugs.
Professor, you're not hearing me.
David needs help.
He is a kid who's begging you to listen.
Nonsense, MacGyver.
Pressure turns coal into diamonds, is that it?
Well, that's a physical fact, MacGyver.
It can also crush it to dust.
- In this part... - Oh, thank God!
I was just coming to get you. Hurry.
David's on the phone.
He's barricaded himself in the physics lab.
David, your father and MacGyver are here.
They want to talk to you.
Oh, no, no, no...
What's happening, David?
David.
Hey, Dad.
We're going to make history over this one.
♪ Ryman and son ♪
♪ Ryman and son, yeah! ♪
David...
David, you won the barricade contest.
Oh, barricade contest, hell!
I built the barricade to end all barricades.
David...
The whole physics lab...
I've got it wired.
I even outdid you, Dad.
I built a bomb.
So how about it, Professor Ryman?
Think we'll get famous over this?
Oh, it's the ultimate, huh?
David, what do you say you lighten up a little bit?
How about if I come over there and we talk about it?
Oh, will you bring a six-pack?
Oh, you know me.
Carrot juice is about as heavy as I get.
What do you say?
No go, MacGyver.
This lab is for Rymans only.
Rymans only.
I'll be there in five minutes.
David, please stop the foolishness...
What does he mean, he's wired the physics lab?
It's that whole thing with his father, you know.
The great original barricade.
It won't be easy to get in there.
Do you think this bomb thing is for real?
There's only one way to find out.
Listen, I'm finally going to make a big mark on this campus,
Professor Ryman.
All over the campus.
David... David, not professor.
Please, David, I'm your father.
Since when?
Listen, I'm going over there.
I want you two to keep him talking.
- Keep him busy. - I'm going with you.
So, now he's got your attention?
What?
Are you saying this is my fault?
You're the one that has the Nobel Prize.
You figure it out.
Yeah, you tell 'em, Janet!
All right, that's enough.
We've got to calm him down. I want you to keep him talking.
Well, it's time for the lesser of the Ryman clan to sign off.
Or should I say, sign out?
David, can we talk about this?
Oh, talk, talk, talk.
How come all of a sudden everyone wants to talk?
You know,
if he really has built a bomb,
this whole campus is in danger.
Why? What do you mean?
Plutonium. Nuclear physics is in the lab above mine.
David, it doesn't have to be like this.
It's too late.
No time.
What's he done?
David?
David!
Good evening, Professor Ryman.
- Are you all right? - Oh, yes, I think so.
See what happens when you try and get too close?
You get hurt.
Janet, I got to go.
If you hear a loud bang, it was just me saying goodbye.
David? David, wait.
Talk to me!
David, pick up the phone!
He's wired a motion detector to some high voltage power source.
If we get too close...
We're toast.
Ingenious. Damn it.
We're going to have to blindside that detector somehow.
Keep him busy.
David.
David, we have to talk.
Oh, you want to talk?
That's a joke. Talk about what?
Anything you say.
Okay.
How about the swim meet you never showed up at?
Or what about the Christmas presents
Mom used to buy me and sign your name to?
I was busy.
Oh yeah, right, busy.
When's my birthday?
What do you mean?
I mean, when's my birthday?
Uh... it's in May.
Your birthday's in May.
When in May?
Yours is March 11.
When's my birthday?!
You don't know, do you?
Uh, the 24th of May.
June 6.
You lose.
David, David, if that bomb is detonated,
it's going to injure uh, more than just you and me.
Knock, knock. Who's there? Ryman and son.
Professor Ryman and Professor Son.
David!
There is plutonium in the lab directly above this one.
If you have a bomb, you could contaminate the entire cam...
The whole area!
Plutonium?
You're lying.
No, it's the truth.
David, let us in.
David, what about the other people?
What about Janet?
Janet...
Hold it, hold it! I got a way in.
What?
Acetic acid and ammonia.
Oh, very good.
Mix the gases, make a smoke screen and blind the detector.
Go!
David!
- He's still got a strong pulse. - Well, let's get him out of here.
Oh, wow.
You got an "A" on this lab project, David.
Janet, you still there?
MacGyver, what's happening?
Janet, I want you to call security.
Have them evacuate the entire campus.
If this thing goes,
the nuclear physics lab goes with it.
Do it now, Janet.
Oh, God.
MacGyver!
He's coming around.
Call the bomb squad.
There's no time.
We're the bomb squad.
David... oh, sit up, son.
Sit up.
Oh, God.
I'm sorry, son.
There's got to be a liter of nitroglycerin in here.
MacGyver, just get David out of here.
I'll take care of the bomb.
Trust me, professor, there's no time.
Besides, it's gonna take two of us to do this.
I'm gonna need some tools. Uh...
flat head screwdriver and needle-nose pliers.
I've got that kind of stuff here, in my desk.
Forgive me. I'm a little bit nervous.
I'd be worried if you weren't.
- Wire cutters. - No, no,
he's built a collapsing circuit.
Cut a wire and she blows.
How has he triggered it?
It's a mercury switch.
That glob of mercury touches any of the exposed wires,
the bomb goes off.
Yeah, and the timer
is set to tilt the dish with the mercury.
Four and a half minutes.
Yeah, we've got to get inside and stop that timer.
Wait a minute! Stop!
He's got the screws wired.
No way to disarm this bomb.
Professor, we're going to have to contain the blast.
That's the only way we're gonna save the Nuclear Physics Lab.
Contain?
The elevator.
We can get it to the sub-basement.
Well how do you move it with a mercury switch?
Sir, you once said, "There's no problem without a solution."
Liquid nitrogen.
Freeze the mercury.
- That's worth a try. - I'll get the elevator.
No good.
It won't freeze.
That mercury's too far down in there.
Well, we still got to get this bomb to the elevator.
MacGyver, it's over 20 yards.
David.
David!
How do we disarm the bomb?
Can't.
Got to get out.
Professor, we got to move it.
How?
Very carefully.
Give me a hand here.
There's got to be a better way.
If you come up with it, let me know.
Ready?
All right.
Easy, professor.
A minute fifteen.
All right, watch it here.
No! No.
Oh, God.
55 seconds.
We got to defuse it.
I can't even begin to think under this kind of pressure.
Pressure.
Pressure. That's it!
What?
Gas pressure.
If I can heat that switch... I can bust it wide open.
I'm not sure I understand.
We need to get these wires between the panels.
Pry open the lid.
If I can get these wires hot enough,
it'll cook the mercury.
And heat it to a gaseous state.
Of course. 20 seconds.
Come on.
You're gonna be all right, David.
- You're gonna be fine. - The bomb...
The bomb squad's taken care of it.
Oh, Dad, I'm sorry.
David, please.
Don't talk. Be quiet.
Let's go.
David!
He's gonna be all right.
But it's gonna take time.
Oh, I'll make the time.
Oh, MacGyver.
Thank you.