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ALIAS SMITH AND JONES EPISODE NOTES



EPISODE NOTES SYMBOL KEY

** a favorite episode

® worth rewinding and checking out again

§ worth stopping and staring awhile

[: source








3/31/09

21 DAYS TO TENSTRIKE

  • Here come our boys, riding into a new episode looking all trail worn and weary. I must say, for me, it is one of the most appealing looks on them. There’s something about a cowboy, dirty and tired. Makes a girl think of all kinds of ways to dust him off and help him relax.

  • I like that the Kid talks to his horse. It is an infrequent occurrence, but one I really appreciate. It always sort of bothers me how easily the two men can sell their horses and buy new ones any time they need to, giving me the feeling they think of them solely as transportation and not something to be cared for and treated well. So when the Kid calls his horse ‘old fella’ or Heyes scratches his mount’s nose it pleases me that they show at least some emotional connection to their steeds.
  • You know, for all these months, I have found something about Ben’s portrayal of the Kid slightly unsettling and if I am being honest, even irritating. It is his tendency to get all little boy stupid over simple things. But just this moment, while he did it again as he pulled the quarter he had been saving for an emergency from his vest pocket, I had a revelation that Ben has played this character named the KID with great precision. He has made it a part of his character’s nature to be childlike and inane at times. The Kid is a strong and able man, and yet he exhibits his juvenile, innocent side with the person he trusts most in the world, Heyes. And Heyes playfully teases his partner over other things but he never chides him for that element of his personality. I think it was probably Hannibal Heyes who first gave the Kid his nickname…I can just picture little Jed tagging along behind the slightly older, and probably already self-possessed Hannibal when they were kids; undoubtedly a bit of an annoyance to the big brother Heyes…”All right, kid, I guess you can come with me…”

  • Peter looks more and more haggard as the final episodes wear on, but I find him extraordinarily alluring here in this scene as the boys consider a job with Mr. Tynan and Jake Halloran. I’ve grown tolerant of the huge sideburns, realizing they aren’t enough to extinguish the intrinsic beauty of this man, and his hair this long has always been very appealing to me. I’ve made no secret of the fact I like him a bit dirty and unkempt, and this image just encapsulates everything I love about Peter Duel’s looks for me. It never ceases to amaze me, though, that no matter how many times I see him, in how many personas, he takes my breath away. I just don’t believe there has ever been anyone better. *sigh*

*sigh*

  • Well, money always caps the deal! It tickles me how completely inconsistent the series has been in regard to money, though. In some episodes, fifty dollars is made to seem like a huge amount of money (more in keeping with the times, I would think) while in others, fifty or sixty thousand is made to seem somewhat commonplace. I don’t mind it, I just notice it.
  • Oooohhh, a cattle drive! Let’s see how sexy our boys look high in the saddle and cutting through the dust…
  • I wonder if the Tynan’s are actually homeless. What else could possibly possess this young wife to ride along? It sure as hell wasn’t for any comfort. If jealousy was the reason, this woman would have to be almost psychotically afflicted to go along on a dirty, exhausting, smelly cattle drive just to keep an eye on her marginally attractive husband. Does she think maybe there is a wagon full of prostitutes, genially providing comfort for the poor drovers? C’mon. It makes no sense for this woman to be along for the ride.
  • It seems pretty foolhardy to me for the camp cook to shatter the evening’s calm by hammering away at a metal pan. Isn’t there an easily startled herd of cattle nearby just hankering for a stampede?

  • What’s the deal with the weird hat orientation on Jake Halloran? It looks like he is wearing a normal hat with the side facing forward. I wonder why he doesn’t ride side saddle to go along with it. *chuckle*
  • In my mind, I simply cannot picture a better actor for the part of camp cookie than Walter Brennan. What a gem this guy is. Just seeing him traveling along, in command of that big old chuck wagon—which at his advanced age I am certain is an illusion—makes me smile.

  • Oh, man. Right in the middle of the action of Kid taking on Ralph in a fist fight, there is Walter Brennan without his teeth! I just love that image on so many levels! It totally steals the scene for me, though, and I have to quit smiling and focus on the fight at hand…

  • Throughout the series, I have never quite understood the enjoyment Heyes takes in watching Kid get his ass kicked. It makes for interesting viewing, but I can’t quite reconcile this characteristic with the deeply caring and supportive relationship I know these two men to have. If the Kid were really being badly hurt, would Heyes just sit there and watch? I have to believe he wouldn’t—that he would step in and back up his friend in need—but the story almost dictates he would do nothing, and would actually enjoy it. It must be meant to be cute, and in some unexplainable way it is—but it is also disturbing when held up in contrast with the rest of our boys’ relationship.

  • I don’t know if all these guest actors are particularly tall but Ben looks small to me in comparison with the others. And does he not look decidedly more boyish and young just as Peter seems to age before our eyes?
  • The Kid’s admonishment of Heyes for not supporting him in the fight, even by encouraging words, brings about a funny line from Heyes that he shouldn’t be expected to back a loser. But what really works here is the Kid’s reaction—he falls right into Heyes’ trap and begins a boastful tirade of how he would have won if the fight had been allowed to continue, all to Heyes’ amusement and palpable skepticism.

  • In what I consider the second most amazing couple’s moment of the series—bettered only by the exquisite touching of hands when they fell, depleted, to the ground expecting to die in Smiler—Heyes dips a bandanna in the pond and tenderly dabs at the Kid’s bruised and battered face, while speaking in a nurturing, yet masculine tone. It is simply beautiful to see this interaction; the absolute lack of embarrassment on Heyes’ part as he gently tends to his friend; the Kid’s complete acceptance –even expectation—of his partner’s affection and care. I am so enamored with this moment I am resentful of the intrusion by Mrs. Tynan. Personally, as a woman, I think if I saw these two men engaging in such a private exchange, I would stand back for a time in wonderment and would certainly not want to step in and disturb the obvious intimacy of the moment.

  • But Mrs. Tynan does intrude and once I am over my irritation toward her, I find I really enjoy Heyes’ teasing of the Kid after she leaves—“Well, here we are, only two days out. You got yourself beat up, made yourself an enemy, and the boss’s wife has got her big brown eyes pointed right at ya. And only nineteen more days to go!”

  • There is one tasty glimpse of Heyes’ pride over the Kid’s pugilistic competence when Mrs. Tynan tells him he is the only man who has ever been able to hold his own in a “dispute” with Ralph. Maybe what Heyes is displaying when the Kid gets into scuffles isn’t enjoyment, but tough love—letting him fight his own battles to allow him to better his skills. Ok, that works for me! It isn’t that Heyes is just a cad! *giggle*

  • I’ve said it before…I just applaud any actor willing to show himself on TV without his teeth! And somehow, Mr. Brennan without his manages to remain quite cute and charming.
  • I absolutely love the stand alone carrot morsel that Gant puts on the Kid’s plate when he laments his meager ration with “Is that all I get?” Old Gant staring down the Kid’s puppy-dog-eyes plea with his own look of amused innocence is just priceless. What a great scene!

  • Heyes chews that piece of meat so long I begin to wonder if it is still alive. I don’t imagine the food was particularly well prepared on cattle drives—although I suspect Gantry would challenge that assumption—but it does seem like it should at least be edible on a television production.
  • Oh, man. The way Bud speaks as he says, “A man carries a stiletto, he don’t show it arouuund…” really annoys me. It seems so overly dramatic, it’s like the actor is announcing, “I’ve got this one line—I’m gonna make it stand out…”
  • Surely a chuck wagon would have its wares tied down better than that, wouldn’t it? I mean really, wouldn’t it?
  • I thoroughly enjoy the whole scene in the chuck wagon as Heyes comes to visit the captive Kid. From start (“Hi”) to finish (“See ya!”) the dialog is amusing and on point. I wonder what Heyes keeps looking over his shoulder for, though. Seems like a mighty loud environment to foster any kind of eavesdropping to me.
  • I wonder when the Kid gets a chance to pee. It is funny to me that such a thing is never addressed. A few scenes back he looked headed off into the neighboring brush, when he was commandeered by Jake. Now what he has swallowed hasn’t even reached his stomach when he is told his ropes are going right back on. I wonder, and worry, about such things!
  • I ain’t talkin’ about Jones. Said so perfectly by Walter Brennan I just can’t help but laugh. I love his voice and his toothless speech and everything about him. What a great old actor. And how wonderful that he graced us with his presence here, in one of the very last performances he ever made.
  • What beautiful acting all around as Gant accuses Mr. Tynan of killing the two cowhands. Linda Marsh, who I haven’t found much favor with until now, doesn’t utter a sound but shows clearly on her face the devastation her character feels at being the subject of bunkhouse rumors. Walter Brennan adds a wonderful slant to the accusatory Gant and shows his dramatic expertise quite well and Pernell Roberts is exceptional in his portrayal of the affronted Mr. Tynan, intent on recusing himself. Really, really well done.

  • I’m not sure I understand the animosity between our boys in this episode. There has been no reason shown to us, from the beginning of the episode, why they are getting on each other’s nerves. Maybe it is simply because they are working a job they hate and the atmosphere is making them grouchy. It makes for some cute lines but it falls flat for me. I guess I just don’t accept concepts without premise.

  • I do like when the Kid turns the tables on Heyes and says basically what Heyes said to him…that he isn’t sure his partner is innocent. The fact that Heyes falls for his teasing and has to finally sheepishly acknowledge it is wonderful. Heyes can see and accept his own foibles…it is a splendid trait. And although he falls victim to this kind of teasing fairly frequently from Heyes, the Kid doesn’t manage to pull it off very often. Turnabout is fair play, Mr. Smith.

  • That sound Heyes makes as he is awakened absolutely cracks me up!! It makes it clear to me that he was mid-dream, and pulled mercilessly from the fantasy. What an exceptionally communicative way of letting us know how deeply Heyes was asleep, when it is the Kid who will begin talking about dreaming. Bravo, Peter!

  • It amazes and amuses me that Heyes would ask who won when Kid describes his dream where they have to “shoot it out”. He must really have a vivid fantasy life!! *chuckle*

  • I wonder if the word “wow” really existed in the 1880s.
  • I seriously want to smack that misshapen, set askew hat off of Jake Halloran’s head. I have never seen a cowboy hat look so ridiculous in all my life. And it seems to almost emasculate both the character and the actor in the process of just looking stupid.

  • Of course there are rumors running rampant about Mrs. Tynan and almost every cowpoke on the drive. They are a small nomadic community of men with one woman among them—an unattainable woman at that. Men jockeying for position in the alpha roles are always going to claim bragging rights to possessing the female. The simple solution to the whole damn mess would have been for Mrs. Tynan not to have come on the trail drive. Of course, then we would have had no story. I just wish the writers had realized the importance of having a reason for her to be there, to give us a solid tale.
  • I like the whole conversation between our boys and Gantry as he joins them to apologize to Thaddeus. Gant is ashamed and they are accepting and amiable and trusting enough in him to allow him into their confidence. There is also a twinkle of what I saw in Heyes in Smiler With a Gun toward Seth—a kindness and reverence toward an old man. It is a charming scene all around.
  • How could Gantry possibly use the stiletto against Jake in any way except as evidence? He doesn’t have it, and he doesn’t know where it is. Sometimes it seems like the writers were asleep on the job!
  • Is it the bandana around Ben’s neck that makes him look 17 in this episode? I haven’t been able to pinpoint any change in him physically and I have already wondered here if it is just the more noticeable contrast between Peter and him as Peter’s appearance deteriorates. I just can’t seem to figure it out and the only thing at all different is that he is wearing a bandana and no hat. It almost looks like first season Ben to me but that can’t be because Peter looks much older and more tired than he did in the first season. It’s perplexing.
  • I love the way Peter delivers the key line in the scene—his response to Gant’s inquiry of why the boys robbed banks— “That’s where the money was kept.” His eyes betray no silliness, he seems to be speaking the truth with a bit of bewilderment at why anyone would need to ask because the reason for robbing banks is so obvious. There are so many ways Peter could have played this moment and the way he chose shines brilliantly.

  • That’s some pretty good shooting on ol’ Gantry’s part! I guess already having the gun cocked with your finger on the trigger and not even having to reach into a holster for it saves a bit of time!

  • The speed at which Pernell Roberts delivers the lines "I want you to take the responsibility of seeing that he gets to Tenstrike and I want you to turn him over to the sheriff when you get there. Will you accept the job?" and the odd way he drops the tone of the last word, job, makes it seem like he is overacting in a badly made sci-fi adventure movie. He is a good actor, making it hard for me to understand his strange choice of intonation.
  • You know, sometimes I think I am just way too picky. But seriously, given the reins himself, if old Gant decided to attempt an escape in the heavy, ungainly chuck wagon, how far do you think he would really get? Is it really necessary to use an able bodied drover to drive Gant to the remainder of the way? I think the Kid could easily make sure his charge gets to Tenstrike by just riding by the wagon occasionally and asking for a hardtack or piece of johnnycake or something. *giggle*

  • I wonder why Ben is wearing his Season One hat. Boy, I am getting more and more confused about why he seems to be in Season One while Peter seems to be at the end of the road… *sigh*
  • Dick Cavett’s acting is amusing. All he had was a bit more than three lines and yet he managed to make even that seem stilted! I like Dick Cavett very much, but he was a much better talk show host than an actor.
  • One of the most special things I have ever found in my non-stop-around-the-clock quest for information on Peter is the video from the Dick Cavett Show of the blocking of the scenes of the boys visiting Gant in jail. I greedily cling to any cherished peek into the reality of Peter the person, and this wonderful behind the scenes look tugs at me even more deeply than most. Maybe it’s that Peter is smoking, which makes it impossible to dispute that it is not his character in this small moment. It may be the way he chews his lip, exhibiting nervousness, or shyness or just humanness as he looks at Dick Cavett, who is talking. Maybe it’s the tiniest glimpse I catch of him breaking into a smile in the next moment over something Cavett has said, and I see that fleeting instance of the smile reaching his eyes. It may be that I notice the courtesy he shows as the gate slips from his grasp and closes prematurely on Ben, and how in the actual scene he has corrected that and his fingers linger, making sure the gate stays ajar long enough. I just feel so moved by this glorious gift of seeing Peter alive at this time in his life, so close to his impending death. It lifts me up at the same time it breaks my heart; which, when I think of what I just said, is exactly what Peter has always done.

Link to the Cavett clip:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TdZ1ScwJZDQ

3/16/09

MIRACLE AT SANTA MARTA

  • I enjoy the opening of this episode: our favorite outlaws, unnoticed, just strolling around among the festivities at a horse race. The boys sure look nice leaning against the rail, watching the handlers deal with their horses and snacking on popcorn and peanuts. In all the episodes, I have always enjoyed the men portraying the most mundane of activities as much as the adventurous and dangerous ones.

  • I wonder if this horse owner, Bleeker, brought the horse all the way from New Orleans. He sure has a Cajun, southern Louisiana drawl. I think he may have been sucking the brains out of crawfish and listening to jazz before the race. *wink*

  • Boy, Rolf Hanley sure stands out as a southern gentleman among all the more rough and ready cowboys wandering around. He carries himself with such an air of confidence, but he somehow manages not to attach a sense of arrogance to it. I like that.

  • I love that our boys are able to just look on a horse and determine instantly that she is a thoroughbred and the one they want to bet on. They exchange knowing glances once they have seen her and leave Mr. Bleeker, practically mid-sentence, to follow Mr. Hanley over to the beautiful filly, Hyperia. Heyes and Kid ask pertinent and important questions of the owner that surprise me, especially those coming from the Kid, and Mr. Hanley can tell they know horses.

  • Just an aside as I burst a delusion bubble. The horse in this episode is NOT a thoroughbred. I consulted with my favorite expert [:Laura because I didn’t think she looked how I imagine a thoroughbred to look and my suspicion was confirmed. This is a beautiful horse, no doubt, but she is simply not a thoroughbred.

  • I love the fact that this female horse has shamed all these macho cow ponies and their owners! I look for moments of female equality in all facets of life and this rates well—even to the degree of female superiority... awesome.
  • I’m not quite sure what happens between Peter and Ben at the moment they are going to shake hands over winning the race. There seems to be a split second of miscommunication as they clumsily alternate between looking at their winning tickets and shaking hands. It tickles me, just like all human errors in this series have tickled me.

  • I can’t believe the boys just walk away from the bookie without getting their payoffs, leaving their winning tickets with him. It seems totally out of character to me. These men have shown us time and again just how much they worship the almighty dollar. It seems doubtful they would be so careless with these winnings. They would most certainly have grabbed their tickets back before heading over to gallantly save Mr. Hanley from the irate and unreasonable Mr. Bleeker.

  • There is something that always makes me smile in the line from Mr. Hanley “…not being given to pulling con games.” I haven’t a clue why, but I like it.
  • It seems to me in a race such as this, attended and participated in by cowboys and chauvinistic handlers, the odds against a filly winning would be better than 7.5 to 1. Not much of a payday for those betting on such a supposed underdog.
  • Close-ups on Peter in the scene where Bleeker is threatening Mr. Hanley are the first in which I begin to notice the physical change taking place in him. His eyes seem different; his expression flat. It saddens me greatly, since I know the changes will begin coming more quickly and much more obviously in the final four episodes. I ready myself for the worst, but there is no real preparedness to ease the pain of what I know will take place. *sorrowful sigh*

  • It always impresses me that the Kid will try everything he can to avoid a gunfight. Other than the obvious need to remain incognito, it seems to me he has an honest distaste for having to use his gun. I think that is an admirable quality for a fast draw expert—reputedly one of the fastest in the west—to have. My guess is most men with the skill and prowess the Kid has with his gun would want to show it off and try it out any chance they might get.

  • And in the blink of an eye and the draw of a gun, the situation is neutralized by Kid Curry. Poor Bleeker looks downright shriveled in his defeat.
  • I love Heyes’ facial expressions as he plays poker with the incompetents in the saloon. He knows darn well he has them all over a barrel and he has not even one iota of misgivings over taking money from less capable players. Sweet.

  • I delight in the entire couple’s moment exchange between Heyes and the Kid at the bar. Really, no one does asexual man-flirting better than these two men. I giggle a bit as Heyes declines the offer of a beer but then the Kid orders it anyway—what an entirely couple thing to do—and Heyes thanks him and drinks it without protest. And I can’t help but smile as Heyes delivers the silliest line of the episode—I think I’m beginning to like ya—because even silly, it speaks volumes on the nature of their relationship. And I think it goes without saying at this point—I simply love their union, every moment of it.

  • That Kid! He can sleep through anything, from the roughest ride to Mr. Hanley yelling to the stagecoach driver. I wonder if he has ever fallen asleep riding a horse! Ben did a really good job—intentional or otherwise—of weaving that thread of the Kid’s character throughout the series. We could maybe give credit to the writers, but Ben carries it off so well, I prefer to send the kudos his way.

  • That stage coach driver has always creeped me out. I have seen the actor many times and always instantly think of a bird of prey—but one of the less attractive ones like a vulture or hawk. I think it is based on his beak--er, nose, eyes and eyebrows. There are quite a few celebrities in which I have always seen a resemblance to some animal…several as birds. The old guy checking Mr. Harlingen’s gems in Never Trust an Honest Man comes instantly to mind as one of the bird variety, *chuckle* but he seems more a tired old robin than a carnivorous predator.

  • You know, this says much more about me than the man I am prefacing. I am very sensitive to sound and irritating movement. It may be a sign of mental illness—I don’t know! *wink* But I get extremely annoyed by needless sound or movement. An example: my mother has a kitchen timer with a shrill beep. It never fails that when I am there visiting, she cooks and sets the timer. But she doesn’t turn it off when it begins to beep…she lets it beep and beep until I want to scream and throw it out the window, or stomp it to smithereens. She gets a real kick out of the fact it annoys me. Well, this man sitting there at the table in the restaurante, tapping his fingers maniacally to the music makes me want to run right over there and shove his cigar up his nose. His finger dancing is so frantic I can’t even catch it in a vid cap. Cripes.
  • Ah, Nico Minardos. I enjoy him in his roles on Alias Smith and Jones. I don’t think I ever had any previous knowledge of the guy before rediscovering all this glorious entertainment about a year and a half ago, but he has left an impression on me now. I love that he is a Greek man playing a Mexican so well. (I won’t bore you with my reminiscence of a summer love affair in Athens in 1974—just suffice it to say, I have a lasting attraction to the dark sultriness of Mediterranean men, although in this case the tightly curled hair leaves me a bit cold…) I also absolutely love the scenes with Peter, the jail guard and Mr. Minardos in Cannon for Cordoba.

  • hmmmmmm….interesting that he is named Cordoba in this episode. I better check and see if Roy Huggins had something to do with the production of that movie! I doubt it, but that man could recycle character names and stories like nobody’s business.
  • Señor Jones, pronounced hone-us. Too cool.
  • I love the exchange between the Kid and Señor Cordoba over the Kid’s gun. “This pistol’s been cleaned recently.” says the Alcalde, quite arrogantly. “My pistol’s always been cleaned recently” retorts the affronted Kid, equally as arrogantly. This could be a grand battle of the wills shaping up here.
  • And I have to admit to enjoying the way the Kid says "the United States of America". We Americans, man, we are just pretty full of ourselves. It is a very American quality to have what I guess could best be described as pride—to assume we are special simply by virtue of where we happened to be born. When Kid says it in the way he does, he lets us know he thinks nothing more need be said, for we, from the United States of America are to be revered and treated accordingly. Very well done, Ben. Too bad the Alcalde undoubtedly has the same reverence for his own country!

  • Oh, my. Give me strength…here is an example of one fine man walking…Heyes heading for the stagecoach and strongly throwing his baggage up to the driver is a sight to behold. Now, you know I am not one to focus on such things, but it seems to me he is filling out those buff jeans quite nicely lately. I catch my breath a little because truly, is there anything more appealing than the way the gun belt rides low on that right hip? Or the confident posture Peter carries? For the countless time, I am in Hannibal Heyes Heaven. Peter Paradise. A Have Mercy Moment. Call it what you will, it is exquisite. ®®®§

  • It is a really fun moment when Heyes, hearing Miss Parker correct him with “It’s Mrs.” can’t—or maybe made no attempt to—conceal his disappointment. I think it gives her a bit of a thrill to see that this attractive man is overtly interested in her.

  • Sometimes I really question the choice of the women hired for guest spots. This actress, while quite attractive and talented, seems too old and too damn cultured for our boy. I sense that Heyes likes a bit of bawdiness in his women, and this woman would have none of that.

  • It perplexes me that Peter’s looks change so much from one scene to the next. Early in this episode he looked disconnected, for lack of a better word, and now, standing there asking the desk clerk how to find his friend, he looks like the old Peter—handsome, animated, engaged. I do wonder what caused that. Maybe exhaustion at some moments can account for some of the variation. I guess I will never know. But I wish whatever made him appear as his old, charismatic self had been around more in these final weeks.
  • Cute line: “How do I find my friend? He’s staying at the local jail.” But even cuter, the waw-waw musical commentary and overdone reaction of the desk clerk. Classic Alias Smith and Jones.

  • Can’t you almost see a dialog bubble saying “Why would you have said that?” above Heyes’ head as he reacts with a quizzical look at the Kid when the Alcalde says he looks quite young to have retired from both the railroad and banking? Perfect.

  • By the way, my crack investigative reporter/Chihuahua extraordinaire, Justin, has informed me by a complete lack of interest that the barking we hear throughout this episode is NOT that of Shoshone. It could be Carroll, though, because Justin has never shown her the time of day.
  • Very few men, in my opinion, can carry off wearing a charro suit with any dignity. The ornate design feels effeminate to me and a man needs to be supremely confident in his masculinity to make it work. Nico Minardos is almost there, but not quite.

  • I clearly remember the actress, Ina Balin, as someone I found to be wildly exotic as a kid. I am surprised to find that she was actually born in Brooklyn of Jewish descent—not at all what I would have expected her ethnicity to be. While I find her acting somewhat stilted in this episode, I have discovered information about her that has surprised and delighted me, including the fact that along with Red Cross volunteer Betty Tisdale, Ms. Balin rescued 219 orphans right before the fall of Saigon. She adopted three of these children. A movie was even made about this event called The Children of An Lac, in which she starred as herself. I think I will see if the movie is rentable anywhere. What an interesting story.
  • Here I am with my spatial/noise issues (all related to claustrophobia in different degrees) again. I would just not be able to enjoy my dinner if I had a band standing over me like that, playing music and staring at me. It sure doesn’t seem to bother Heyes though, as he barely acknowledges their presence between bites.

  • I do enjoy that Heyes has table manners. His napkin in his lap, wiping his mouth after bites…very pleasing.
  • I am not a big fan of the girly-man silk bow around Heyes’ neck at dinner. I like him in his Sunday best, but this is just wrong on so many levels! Ugh.
  • I don’t enjoy Meg Parker’s blatant flirting. It feels heavy handed, like she is smacking Heyes on the head with her desires and it also feels a bit cheap, which doesn’t seem to fit the cultured woman sitting there as she says the inanely stupid line, “It made me wish I were a man, so that I could go fishing too.” After Heyes’ response that he likes her as she is, she ultra-demurely replies, “maybe I was fishing…and successfully.” Geez, lady, give the man credit for enough intuition to not need you to scream your interest. Take a deep breath and let him court you.

  • The Kid looks quite dapper, dressed up in his best suit and pretending to be a refined guest at the Alcalde’s dinner party. His delivery of the comment meant to trap Margaret Carruthers is excellent. “He came from Kentucky.” Eyes lowered, with a pause, then a direct look at Ms. Carruthers, “Lexington.” Very nice.

  • What an absurd statement from "Margaret Carruthers" in response to the Kid’s suggestion she must have known Rolf Hanley if she, too, came from Lexington. “There were 16,050 people in Lexington at the last count. Many of them were my friends…” Even if she personally knew, say, 500 people (which I would say would suggest great popularity)—that is not many in relation to 16,000.
  • I love the hat being shot off the Kid’s head after they run for cover behind the log. Little slapstick moments like that really amuse me, much more so than the farcical joke that follows: “Heyes? Is this good or bad?” Pause for effect. “Well, if you don’t get killed, I think it’s good.” That is just trying too hard to be funny for my taste, and it falls flat. I suspect I may have a much different reaction to that kind of humor than many fans.

  • I love, love, love the moment when the Alcalde, following suit after the Kid uses the word gringo, begins to use the word also and catches himself. Very well played by Minardos. He doesn’t, in the grand scheme of things, seem particularly comedic to me, but in this instance, his timing is impeccable.
  • Wow. That is one unfortunately misfitted blouse on Mrs. Hanley. Small breasts are fine, of course, but much better served in a top made with breasts of that size in mind. It looked much better on the more heavily endowed Rachel Carlson in The Fifth Victim!

  • I can almost see Ina Balin reading from the script as she speaks in the scene when the Kid and Mrs. Hanley visit her. I have to say, I am not all that enamored with her acting.
  • How cute does Heyes look peeking around the door to Meg Parker’s room? Oh, to be the one he was anxious to see…

  • Why the response of “Joshua, you idiot, come on in…”? I just don’t understand that kind of endearment, and I have to assume as an endearment is how it is meant here. She obviously doesn’t consider him an idiot. I wonder, am I the only one who has never called anyone an idiot when what I really meant was my friend, or sweetheart, or you beautiful, intoxicating man?
  • Ben looks like he keeps looking in a rearview mirror as he takes Mrs. Hanley back to the hotel in the buggy!

  • I comprende, Heyes. I comprende that I like you all aggressive and bothered…*sigh*

  • Peter does the best guttural groans around. Just an observation. *giggle*

  • Are those tears in Heyes’ eyes as he looks up at the Kid behind bars, who is imploring him to do something to save him from the inevitable firing squad? Wow, that’s deep. And it shows me that no matter how tired Peter was of doing the show; no matter how silly he felt playing the role or how personally unhappy he was, he never, ever let us down by not giving his all to the part. Bless him, he was one hell of an actor.

  • Ok, I am not fixated on this actress’s chest. But my god, now the angle of her breasts seems to pull her whole body down and make her appear to have horrible posture. Someone make that woman an outfit more flattering to her figure type, please! I wonder if guest stars just picked out an outfit from the wardrobe department or if they had dressers. Either way, whoever chose this outfit for Joanna Barnes most decidedly failed.

  • The Kid’s daydream about being executed is quite striking. The bullet holes in the wall behind him add an element of aching reality. At first I thought there should be more holes. But it’s always been my understanding that to protect the psyches of the executioners, with no one knowing whose bullet actually kills the condemned, only one gun of the firing squad is ever loaded with a real bullet, and all shooters aim directly at the head or heart. These would be fairly expert marksmen. There would not be many times they would miss. And depending on the distance and the caliber of the weapon, I suppose not many of the bullets that hit their target would necessarily make it into the wall. Ugh. Sometimes I really wish I didn’t have such an analytical mind.

  • This could just possibly be the worst fake Mexican accent coming from an apparently authentic Hispanic human being ever to grace the screen as the little horse groomer tells Heyes where Mrs. Hanley has taken Hyperia.
  • I always look forward to and thoroughly enjoy seeing Peter on horseback. His posture is as strong and straight as it is when he walks and his skill on a horse is always quite evident, even to a non-equestrian like me.
  • I wonder if the outlaw the imposter Margaret Carruthers ran off from Lexington with is the same Charles Morgan Heyes ran into during The Great Shell Game and apparently ran with during his early days with Jim Plummer’s gang.
  • Ok, I’m sorry. I have a feeling the scene where Heyes tells the Kid he has brought off the miracle and Kid’s reaction to the news is probably a favorite among fans. It makes me cringe. No one would be so stupid as to shout out a visiting fugitive’s name in a Mexican jail. It just gives me a moment of wanting to fast forward through the silly quavering mouth and huge, awestruck eyes of the Kid as he yells out “Heyes!” and slaps his hand over his own mouth to stop himself. I very much prefer the scene as scripted… Curry: (almost afraid to ask) You did what? Heyes: Brought off the miracle! On Curry’s face, a combination of relief, astonishment and sheer joy, we freeze frame and FADE OUT.
  • *sigh*

  • Domestic bliss. How could we not find the scene of the Kid bathing, with cigar in mouth, as Heyes mends his hat and explains Elizabeth Carter’s involvement in the whole sordid affair not absolutely adorable?
  • A perfect, favorite moment in the episode as Heyes proudly shows the Kid his handiwork! I laugh every time. The look on the Kid’s face is priceless. Good job, Ben!
  • Oh, my god. There’s the ugly bag. I thought I’d never see it again!
  • Knowing Peter watched this episode only hours before his death and was apparently displeased with it has always made it a hard episode for me to fully enjoy. I think it was a fine show, however, and I struggle to understand what Peter found inadequate in either his own performance or the program in general. If only he could have seen the joy this silly, irreverent, wonderful series gave so many, and the breathtaking warmth and caring so many have found in him. We saw it. Why couldn’t he…?