Re-posting the following western TV show reviews from the "HTF Western Movies/TV Shows Challenge 2024" thread:
The Restless Gun – 2.14 “The Way Back”
Wandering fast gun Vint Bonner (John Payne) tries to keep a watchful eye on his naïve friend Olaf Burland (Dan Blocker, in his fifth appearance on the series). After working hard for six years, Olaf finally has earned enough money ($3,000 in cold hard cash) to take back to the family farm in his native Minnesota, but Vint fears that the gullible Olaf will be easy prey for unsavory characters back in town. And he has good reason to worry, as weaselly cowboy Tom Quinn (James Coburn) and saloon owner Jubal Carney (Morgan Woodward) set in motion a plan which gets Vint tossed in jail while the crooked pair use saucy saloon girl Dixie Star (Bek Nelson) to finagle Olaf into taking his money out of the hotel safe. The conflicted Dixie is a reluctant partner in the theft, but her desire to also return to her family farm back east wins out…at first. It’s up to Vint to put things right. A good story enlivened by a terrific guest cast. This Revue western, based on the wonderful Jimmy Stewart radio show The Six Shooter, was produced by David Dotort, who of course would go on to create Bonanza and The High Chaparral.
Zane Grey Theatre – 1.8 “A Quiet Sunday in San Ardo”
A trio of outlaws led by Veringo (Gerald Mohr) ambush and murder the marshal of San Ardo, the only person besides the gang who knows that a shipment of gold is due to arrive on the next stage. San Ardo’s mayor (Robert Burton) is convinced that the killers are plotting to rob the bank and - since most of the town’s young, able-bodied men are away on a cattle drive, leaving it vulnerable - pressures Clay Burnett (Wendell Corey) to take the job. The locals know Clay as a good, honest man who also happens to be handy with a gun. But the mayor gets an unexpected surprise when Clay turns the job down flat. The mayor’s daughter (Peggie Castle) happens to be Clay’s fiancée, and is confused about Clay’s motivation for not taking the marshal job in the town’s time of need. But dire circumstances soon force Clay to confront Veringo and his men, and he proves well up to the challenge. Smooth pro Mohr adds another memorable bad guy role to his long list of credits, while familiar heavies Harry Lauter and Morgan Woodward lend solid support.
Tate – 1.10 “The Reckoning”
Badass one-armed bounty hunter Tate (played with world-weary gravitas by former "Marlboro Man" David McLean) accidentally drinks some tainted water from a mountain spring and is found feverish and near death. A man named Abel (Crahan Denton) and his lonely daughter Lulie Jean (Phyllis Love) take the gunfighter in and nurse him back to health, despite the fact that Abel recognizes Tate as the one hired to track him down for the killing of a young man who the stern Old Testament Abel was convinced had taken advantage of his daughter. Turns out the real snake in the grass is Abel’s ranch hand, Corey (Bing Russell), who has been spreading malicious gossip in the hopes of claiming Lulie Jean for his own. A recuperated Tate sets the record straight, winning yet another girl’s heart before he rides away to the next adventure. This summer replacement series (from Perry Como’s RonCom productions) was sadly short-lived, lasting for only 13 episodes; a pity more weren’t made, as every one of them is of a uniformly high standard, boasting gritty, adult stories, plenty of violent action and top-drawer talent both in front of and behind the camera.
The Dakotas – 1.15 “Terror at Heart River”
Marshal Ragan (stern, raspy-voiced Larry Ward) and his deputies arrive in Heart River in the midst of an escalating conflict between the residents of the town and a group of starving Irish laborers mistreated and abandoned without pay by the railroad company. Ragan and a newly-arrived preacher (Royal Dano) strive to broker some sort of peaceful solution, but more blood is destined to be spilled. This is in general a superior (albeit short-lived) Warner Bros. western series, meticulously produced, resolutely tough-minded and frequently grim in its storytelling. That said, this is not the best of the show’s 21 episodes. The acting is good and the bleak, storm-swept atmosphere is vividly realized, but the story is a bit muddled and one-note, and it doesn’t help that the regular cast (including Jack Elam, Chad Everett and Michael Greene – the latter of which doesn’t even get a single line of dialogue here) are mostly sidelined, as guest stars Dano and Sean McClory take center stage. Also with Coleen Gray (mostly wasted), Gene Evans, Charles Horvath and John McLiam.
Maverick - 2.19 "Duel at Sundown"
As much as I enjoy all of the westerns WB produced during the late '50s - early-60s, this is the one that most consistently boasts the sharpest writing. Wily Bret Maverick (James Garner) stops off at the town of Sundown at the behest of old friend Jed Christianson (Edgar Buchanan). Jed has an ulterior motive, which is for Bret to woo his headstrong daughter (Abby Dalton) away from her intended, local gunslinging bully Red Hardigan (played by a young Clint Eastwood, who would go on to co-star on Rawhide a mere ten months later). At first Bret wants no part of the arrangement, but when Jed sweetens the pot with the promise of $1,000, agrees to stick around for a while. (There's also the fact that Carrie's not exactly unattractive). But when things escalate to the point where Red - who has designs on inheriting the family ranch more than any real romantic interest in Carrie, and also happens to be much faster on the draw than Maverick - threatens to gun Bret down at the earliest opportunity, Maverick is forced to come up with a plan to expose Red for the weasel he really is while keeping his own hide intact. Jack Kelly as brother Bart Maverick figures in a clever twist at the climax.
Good stuff, and seeing Clint play against type as a heavy adds to the fun. Miss Dalton is a winning combination of sexy and wholesome, traits used to her advantage on the sitcoms Hennesey and The Joey Bishop Show. Featuring sultry Linda Lawson in one scene as a saloon gal with whom Red is two-timing Carrie, and James Griffith in another as the real John Wesley Hardin. Also with Myrna Fahey, Dan Sheridan and (according to IMDB) an uncredited Richard Farnsworth.
And here's the lovely Abby Dalton, in more seductive mode:
Seems like once a year or so, I get a wild hair and feel like checking out some Star Trek: Enterprise episodes. I bailed sometime back in S1 when the series was originally airing, but now, in light of what has been passing for Star Trek in the recent Paramount+ days, I find the show pleasing and entertaining, and recognizably kin to creator Gene Roddenberry's original vision. I've even found myself growing rather fond of the main cast of characters, despite their relative blandness compared to the iconic crew of the original '60s show. (Don't think I'll ever warm to Voyager, though...)
Star Trek: Enterprise
2.20 "Horizon"
Mayweather (Anthony Montgomery) requests temporary leave from Enterprise to visit the cargo ship Horizon, where he was born and raised...but while his mother is happy to see him, his brother still simmers with resentment. Meanwhile, T'Pol (Jolene Blalock, a.k.a. the sexiest Vulcan ever) reluctantly accepts an invitation from Trip (Connor Trinneer) and Captain Archer (Scott Bakula) to attend a crew movie night (where they are screening the original Frankenstein). A solid slice of Rick Berman-era Trek.
3.8 "Twilight"
Archer awakens 12 years in the future, after the Xindi have reduced Earth and its colonies to a cinder and the remnants of humanity have settled on a distant planet. T'Pol, having resigned her commission to act as his caretaker, informs Archer that an encounter with a mysterious space anomaly on the Enterprise years before left him with permanent long-term memory loss due to his brain being infected with subspace parasites. But now, a visiting Dr. Phlox (John Billingsly) believes he may have perfected a cure...one which also may be the key to undoing the current horrific timeline by altering the past.
This one seems to be highly-regarded among fans, and it's easy to see why. Basically the Enterprise equivalent to The Next Generation's "Yesterday's Enterprise," an apocalyptic "what if?" story that allows the show to briefly have its "kill all the crew in a desperate last-ditch gambit" cake and eat it, too, in tried-and-true "reset button" fashion...but it's suitably tense and impactful, with a lot of incident crammed into its 42-minute runtime.
The Andy Griffith Show
3.1 "Mr. McBeevee"
Opie (adorable young Ronny Howard) starts talking about his new friend Mr. McBeevee, but both Andy and Barney (the irreplaceable Don Knotts) are convinced that Mr. McBeevee isn't real, but is instead an imaginary friend. Neal a.k.a. The 1960's did a phenomenal job recapping this episode in a recent series of posts here, so I'll simply say: this one's terrific, and if you haven't seen it yet, try to watch it ASAP. On the 50th Anniversary DVD set, this episode is capped off by a very amusing closing sponsor spot, in which Opie's imaginary horse, Blackie, makes a surprise appearance.
3.19 "Class Reunion"
This one opens with a wonderfully relaxed, lengthy scene, in which Andy helps Barney move a heavy trunk full of stuff into storage in the Taylor's garage. While doing so, Andy discovers his and Barn's old school yearbook, leading them on to a reverie about the good old days at Mayberry Union High. The pair decide to organize a class reunion in Mayberry, with Andy hopeful that his high school sweetheart, Sharon (Peggy McCay), who moved away to a life in the big city, will attend. Sharon does show up and the spark is still there for both her and Andy...but Andy soon realizes that there was a reason that things never worked out between them in the first place. A nicely bittersweet, true-to-life note to end the episode on, this one and "Mr. McBeevee" showing that TAGS at its best could be both funny and profound.
The Restless Gun – 2.14 “The Way Back”
Wandering fast gun Vint Bonner (John Payne) tries to keep a watchful eye on his naïve friend Olaf Burland (Dan Blocker, in his fifth appearance on the series). After working hard for six years, Olaf finally has earned enough money ($3,000 in cold hard cash) to take back to the family farm in his native Minnesota, but Vint fears that the gullible Olaf will be easy prey for unsavory characters back in town. And he has good reason to worry, as weaselly cowboy Tom Quinn (James Coburn) and saloon owner Jubal Carney (Morgan Woodward) set in motion a plan which gets Vint tossed in jail while the crooked pair use saucy saloon girl Dixie Star (Bek Nelson) to finagle Olaf into taking his money out of the hotel safe. The conflicted Dixie is a reluctant partner in the theft, but her desire to also return to her family farm back east wins out…at first. It’s up to Vint to put things right. A good story enlivened by a terrific guest cast. This Revue western, based on the wonderful Jimmy Stewart radio show The Six Shooter, was produced by David Dotort, who of course would go on to create Bonanza and The High Chaparral.
Zane Grey Theatre – 1.8 “A Quiet Sunday in San Ardo”
A trio of outlaws led by Veringo (Gerald Mohr) ambush and murder the marshal of San Ardo, the only person besides the gang who knows that a shipment of gold is due to arrive on the next stage. San Ardo’s mayor (Robert Burton) is convinced that the killers are plotting to rob the bank and - since most of the town’s young, able-bodied men are away on a cattle drive, leaving it vulnerable - pressures Clay Burnett (Wendell Corey) to take the job. The locals know Clay as a good, honest man who also happens to be handy with a gun. But the mayor gets an unexpected surprise when Clay turns the job down flat. The mayor’s daughter (Peggie Castle) happens to be Clay’s fiancée, and is confused about Clay’s motivation for not taking the marshal job in the town’s time of need. But dire circumstances soon force Clay to confront Veringo and his men, and he proves well up to the challenge. Smooth pro Mohr adds another memorable bad guy role to his long list of credits, while familiar heavies Harry Lauter and Morgan Woodward lend solid support.
Tate – 1.10 “The Reckoning”
Badass one-armed bounty hunter Tate (played with world-weary gravitas by former "Marlboro Man" David McLean) accidentally drinks some tainted water from a mountain spring and is found feverish and near death. A man named Abel (Crahan Denton) and his lonely daughter Lulie Jean (Phyllis Love) take the gunfighter in and nurse him back to health, despite the fact that Abel recognizes Tate as the one hired to track him down for the killing of a young man who the stern Old Testament Abel was convinced had taken advantage of his daughter. Turns out the real snake in the grass is Abel’s ranch hand, Corey (Bing Russell), who has been spreading malicious gossip in the hopes of claiming Lulie Jean for his own. A recuperated Tate sets the record straight, winning yet another girl’s heart before he rides away to the next adventure. This summer replacement series (from Perry Como’s RonCom productions) was sadly short-lived, lasting for only 13 episodes; a pity more weren’t made, as every one of them is of a uniformly high standard, boasting gritty, adult stories, plenty of violent action and top-drawer talent both in front of and behind the camera.
The Dakotas – 1.15 “Terror at Heart River”
Marshal Ragan (stern, raspy-voiced Larry Ward) and his deputies arrive in Heart River in the midst of an escalating conflict between the residents of the town and a group of starving Irish laborers mistreated and abandoned without pay by the railroad company. Ragan and a newly-arrived preacher (Royal Dano) strive to broker some sort of peaceful solution, but more blood is destined to be spilled. This is in general a superior (albeit short-lived) Warner Bros. western series, meticulously produced, resolutely tough-minded and frequently grim in its storytelling. That said, this is not the best of the show’s 21 episodes. The acting is good and the bleak, storm-swept atmosphere is vividly realized, but the story is a bit muddled and one-note, and it doesn’t help that the regular cast (including Jack Elam, Chad Everett and Michael Greene – the latter of which doesn’t even get a single line of dialogue here) are mostly sidelined, as guest stars Dano and Sean McClory take center stage. Also with Coleen Gray (mostly wasted), Gene Evans, Charles Horvath and John McLiam.
Maverick - 2.19 "Duel at Sundown"
As much as I enjoy all of the westerns WB produced during the late '50s - early-60s, this is the one that most consistently boasts the sharpest writing. Wily Bret Maverick (James Garner) stops off at the town of Sundown at the behest of old friend Jed Christianson (Edgar Buchanan). Jed has an ulterior motive, which is for Bret to woo his headstrong daughter (Abby Dalton) away from her intended, local gunslinging bully Red Hardigan (played by a young Clint Eastwood, who would go on to co-star on Rawhide a mere ten months later). At first Bret wants no part of the arrangement, but when Jed sweetens the pot with the promise of $1,000, agrees to stick around for a while. (There's also the fact that Carrie's not exactly unattractive). But when things escalate to the point where Red - who has designs on inheriting the family ranch more than any real romantic interest in Carrie, and also happens to be much faster on the draw than Maverick - threatens to gun Bret down at the earliest opportunity, Maverick is forced to come up with a plan to expose Red for the weasel he really is while keeping his own hide intact. Jack Kelly as brother Bart Maverick figures in a clever twist at the climax.
Good stuff, and seeing Clint play against type as a heavy adds to the fun. Miss Dalton is a winning combination of sexy and wholesome, traits used to her advantage on the sitcoms Hennesey and The Joey Bishop Show. Featuring sultry Linda Lawson in one scene as a saloon gal with whom Red is two-timing Carrie, and James Griffith in another as the real John Wesley Hardin. Also with Myrna Fahey, Dan Sheridan and (according to IMDB) an uncredited Richard Farnsworth.
And here's the lovely Abby Dalton, in more seductive mode:
Seems like once a year or so, I get a wild hair and feel like checking out some Star Trek: Enterprise episodes. I bailed sometime back in S1 when the series was originally airing, but now, in light of what has been passing for Star Trek in the recent Paramount+ days, I find the show pleasing and entertaining, and recognizably kin to creator Gene Roddenberry's original vision. I've even found myself growing rather fond of the main cast of characters, despite their relative blandness compared to the iconic crew of the original '60s show. (Don't think I'll ever warm to Voyager, though...)
Star Trek: Enterprise
2.20 "Horizon"
Mayweather (Anthony Montgomery) requests temporary leave from Enterprise to visit the cargo ship Horizon, where he was born and raised...but while his mother is happy to see him, his brother still simmers with resentment. Meanwhile, T'Pol (Jolene Blalock, a.k.a. the sexiest Vulcan ever) reluctantly accepts an invitation from Trip (Connor Trinneer) and Captain Archer (Scott Bakula) to attend a crew movie night (where they are screening the original Frankenstein). A solid slice of Rick Berman-era Trek.
3.8 "Twilight"
Archer awakens 12 years in the future, after the Xindi have reduced Earth and its colonies to a cinder and the remnants of humanity have settled on a distant planet. T'Pol, having resigned her commission to act as his caretaker, informs Archer that an encounter with a mysterious space anomaly on the Enterprise years before left him with permanent long-term memory loss due to his brain being infected with subspace parasites. But now, a visiting Dr. Phlox (John Billingsly) believes he may have perfected a cure...one which also may be the key to undoing the current horrific timeline by altering the past.
This one seems to be highly-regarded among fans, and it's easy to see why. Basically the Enterprise equivalent to The Next Generation's "Yesterday's Enterprise," an apocalyptic "what if?" story that allows the show to briefly have its "kill all the crew in a desperate last-ditch gambit" cake and eat it, too, in tried-and-true "reset button" fashion...but it's suitably tense and impactful, with a lot of incident crammed into its 42-minute runtime.
The Andy Griffith Show
3.1 "Mr. McBeevee"
Opie (adorable young Ronny Howard) starts talking about his new friend Mr. McBeevee, but both Andy and Barney (the irreplaceable Don Knotts) are convinced that Mr. McBeevee isn't real, but is instead an imaginary friend. Neal a.k.a. The 1960's did a phenomenal job recapping this episode in a recent series of posts here, so I'll simply say: this one's terrific, and if you haven't seen it yet, try to watch it ASAP. On the 50th Anniversary DVD set, this episode is capped off by a very amusing closing sponsor spot, in which Opie's imaginary horse, Blackie, makes a surprise appearance.
3.19 "Class Reunion"
This one opens with a wonderfully relaxed, lengthy scene, in which Andy helps Barney move a heavy trunk full of stuff into storage in the Taylor's garage. While doing so, Andy discovers his and Barn's old school yearbook, leading them on to a reverie about the good old days at Mayberry Union High. The pair decide to organize a class reunion in Mayberry, with Andy hopeful that his high school sweetheart, Sharon (Peggy McCay), who moved away to a life in the big city, will attend. Sharon does show up and the spark is still there for both her and Andy...but Andy soon realizes that there was a reason that things never worked out between them in the first place. A nicely bittersweet, true-to-life note to end the episode on, this one and "Mr. McBeevee" showing that TAGS at its best could be both funny and profound.
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