An unusual Gunsmoke ep. It worked for me, despite the need for more suspension of disbelief than usual.
My biggest criticism of Marshal Dillon is that he was more devoted to "the law" than to anything else throughout his reign. He was gonna carry out his "duty" regardless extenuating circumstances. This usually meant arresting folks for trial whom he knew did not deserve it in a moral sense of justice. In this ep, he let's certain things go in a manner I don't recall ever seeing in any other ep. Giving the viewer an opportunity to contemplate the "rightness" of his decisions is the essence/genius of Manley's show.
The other striking anomaly for me was the camera work and blocking (actor's movements). This was especially jarring in a fight /brawl scene. Great Directing, imo. All Matt and his buddy could see was directly in front of them, all the while taking blows from all directions. The mob who were trying to beat them experienced largely the same. All they knew was to get into the middle of it and hit. Most of their swings missed.
The biggest problem I had was that the entire town knew of the wickedness that had occurred a dozen years before. Yet, never did the secret get out. Given how unwise most all of them showed themselves to be throughout the ep, they ALL somehow managed to keep their yaps shut. Riiiiiight.
Despite this problem, I found this to be among the greatest eps of Gunsmoke. Dillon was as rounded, not rigid, as he ever was. He still adhered to a very difficult code at great peril to himself. Exceptional.
My biggest criticism of Marshal Dillon is that he was more devoted to "the law" than to anything else throughout his reign. He was gonna carry out his "duty" regardless extenuating circumstances. This usually meant arresting folks for trial whom he knew did not deserve it in a moral sense of justice. In this ep, he let's certain things go in a manner I don't recall ever seeing in any other ep. Giving the viewer an opportunity to contemplate the "rightness" of his decisions is the essence/genius of Manley's show.
The other striking anomaly for me was the camera work and blocking (actor's movements). This was especially jarring in a fight /brawl scene. Great Directing, imo. All Matt and his buddy could see was directly in front of them, all the while taking blows from all directions. The mob who were trying to beat them experienced largely the same. All they knew was to get into the middle of it and hit. Most of their swings missed.
The biggest problem I had was that the entire town knew of the wickedness that had occurred a dozen years before. Yet, never did the secret get out. Given how unwise most all of them showed themselves to be throughout the ep, they ALL somehow managed to keep their yaps shut. Riiiiiight.
Despite this problem, I found this to be among the greatest eps of Gunsmoke. Dillon was as rounded, not rigid, as he ever was. He still adhered to a very difficult code at great peril to himself. Exceptional.