Cascade Library Interview with Cindy Combs (1999)

Interviews by Fans
Title:	Cascade Library Interview with Cindy Combs
Interviewer:	Cascade Library
Interviewee:	Cindy Combs
Date(s):	April 26, 1999
Medium:	online
Fandom(s):	The Sentinel, MacGyver
External Links:	interview is here, Archived version
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In 1999, Cindy Combs was interviewed for Cascade Library.

Also see, Cascade Library Interview with Cindy Combs (2009).

Some Excerpts

An older friend had told me about this program on before Voyager that was really good. I wasn't overly enthusiastic, since the teasers for the show looked really dumb. But since Bruce A. Young was on it and Fran had tried Highlander on my say so, I figured I'd give The Sentinel a shot. The first episode I saw was The Rig and I was instantly hooked.

I've always liked to write stories since I was a kid, but with first grad school and then work, I had gotten away from it. It wasn't until I was playing around with the internet for the first time that I discovered not only the Highlander newsgroup, but that people actually wrote something called 'fan fiction'. It was very similiar to what I'd do in my head when watching TV, but never thought to write down. After a while, I started one Highlander fanfic just for fun, but never finished it. Then in early 1997, I started reading the TS fanfiction. At the time I was also struggling to write a journal article for work. Trust me, if you want something to put you to sleep, the dry, passive voice, scientific writing style with paragraph-length sentences will do it. Simply to keep my sanity, I decided to try writing a TS fanfiction story. That was The Maze.

I see Mac as a mentor to Blair. While Jim has Simon to discuss sentinel business on a cop level, Blair really has no one on the academic side to discuss things and bounce ideas off of. As a scientist myself, I know how important that feedback can be. MacGyver, with his vast experience of putting theory into practice, fills this need for Blair. With the new father/son relationship, there is again that emotional support that can only help make Blair stronger. For similiarities between Blair and Mac, well, how much time do you have? They are both intelligent, into health food, capable of thinking up things on the fly, don't like guns, scared of heights, and carry a Swiss army knife. They both love to travel, exploring different cultures and ideas. They have a very deep compassion for their fellow man and are willing to risk their lives for others. Friends are of the utmost importance to them. They both care about the environment. The list just goes on. In many ways, I see Blair as how Mac might have been before Viet Nam and all his world trotting experiences. On the other hand, there are differences. Blair is a talkative ball of enthusiasic energy. MacGyver is more quiet and very laid back. Blair leaps into situations with both feet, while Mac is very cautious and will put on the brakes if he doesn't like a situation. Blair also doesn't have the ingrained fear of guns that Mac has. While Blair doesn't neccessarily like them, he will use or at least bluff with one if the situation calls for it.