I missed the first few minutes of this episode (the action/setup), so I felt almost like part of the Board reviewing Joe's actions. I enjoyed Dragnet when it was on tv in the 60's and still enjoy episodes I see on tv... generally great values (well, except for Joe's smoking!), doesn't sugarcoat bad behavior, tries to focus on details to establish facts vs hype/opinion/lack of truthfulness. Joe was on the hot seat in this one, and there was a lot of emphasis on how many hours he was working (sounded like 2 days in a row of over 16-18 hrs), a factor which could have potentially impaired his focus/judgement. The final resolution in Joe's favor was almost 'miraculous', but, as Jack Webb/Dragnet always stated, the episodes were based on real stories/facts. The good: Joe telling his side of the story, no hype; investigators being straightforward in their work; the Board showing no bias. The 'not so good': nothing has changed in society since the beginning of time until now, 2021... people (in this case, the guy who was shot and his girlfriend/witness) lying, stealing, doing bad things, using bad judgement, and I don't see that changing anytime soon. In some ways, this seems to be getting worse...or maybe we're just able to hear about it now, with advances in technology/communication. This includes behavior of authorities... something which had been addressed in movies and tv in years past, but is really being made a focus now with those advances and the ability to share instantaneous information and form opinions quickly.
Review of The Shooting Board
