This episode is notable not just for its "anti-youth drinking" message, but also for being a perfect example of just how ridiculous such episodes of television can be. All of the tropes are here: teenage Lisa is a raging alcoholic, even though we barely see her drink anything at all. She gets into legal trouble "due to her drinking" (yeah right, more like stupidity) at which point Mac starts to notice the warning signs and tries talking to her. Naturally, she gets defensive and angry and claims she's not an alcoholic only to screw up again, doing something incredibly stupid that puts her and others' lives in danger. MacGyver saves the day, and Lisa admits she has a drinking problem.
The funniest part about this is that Lisa looks like she's 12 while her other "high school peers" look like they're in their mid-20's. The entire concept of the older kids manipulating a younger kid and bribing her with alcohol seems a bit ridiculous when there's 4 of them awkwardly sitting on a beach around a ghetto blaster sipping on beers while Lisa dances like a child. Like, is this a thing that people actually do? Is this someone's idea of having fun? Forcing a child to drink beer at the beach?
None of it makes any sense. The story only serves to push the anti-drinking message and everything else is an afterthought. It follows the PSA formula to a tee, which makes it unintentionally hilarious. For this reason alone it's worth watching it once, but only if this kind of schlock is what you're looking for.
The funniest part about this is that Lisa looks like she's 12 while her other "high school peers" look like they're in their mid-20's. The entire concept of the older kids manipulating a younger kid and bribing her with alcohol seems a bit ridiculous when there's 4 of them awkwardly sitting on a beach around a ghetto blaster sipping on beers while Lisa dances like a child. Like, is this a thing that people actually do? Is this someone's idea of having fun? Forcing a child to drink beer at the beach?
None of it makes any sense. The story only serves to push the anti-drinking message and everything else is an afterthought. It follows the PSA formula to a tee, which makes it unintentionally hilarious. For this reason alone it's worth watching it once, but only if this kind of schlock is what you're looking for.
