MacGyver’s second season begins by following the same blueprint as the first (although the opening gambit is gone). Richard Dean Anderson is back as the eponymous secret agent. So is Pete Thornton (Dana Elcar), operations director of the Phoenix Foundation. In addition, Mac’s ditzy pal, Penny (Teri Hatcher), and beloved grandfather, Harry (John Anderson), return for a few episodes.
In the season premiere ("The Human Factor"), a skeptical military man says to Thornton, "So this is your main guy. He doesn’t even have any gear." Responds Thornton, "That’s what makes him so special." As before, Mac doesn’t drink, smoke, or carry a firearm. He puts it plainly in the fourth episode ("The Wish Child"): "I hate guns." Mac would rather use non-violent means, i.e. "MacGyverisms," to fight crime. Midway through the 22-episode year, however, creator Lee David Zlotoff (Remington Steele) decided to shake up the formula by introducing two new characters.






