Daniel and Cully (James Wainwright) are assigned by the Continental Army's Col. Grayson (Ed Long) to accompany a defecting British officer's wife (Jill Ireland) on purportedly an innocent passage to British-held Fort Detroit. While there, they are to retrieve plans to the post from her husband (Ed Flanders) to open the way for an American attack.
DB, Season 6 continues a hot streak with a full-blown Revolutionary War adventure, and Fess Parker delivers with a full-hour performance. The standout is English-born Jill Ireland, who enjoyed a rapid rise on American TV in the 60's and then full movie stardom alongside Charles Bronson in the 70's and 80's before a traguc fatal illness in 1990. She is convincingly minx-like as a woman of dubious loyalties. The male leads turn in dutiful stock portrayals of Rev. War figures, but liberal helpings of chase and espionage keep the hour well-paced.
An interesting confluence of true-life and fictional historical currents this week; sorting them out:
* The hour begins with British governor of Detroit Henry Hamilton in captivity - he was taken by U. S. Col. George Rogers Clark at the surrender of Vincennes, Indiana in Feb. 1779.
* Clark wanted to take Detroit, but neither he or any other Continental commander ever received sufficient reinforcement to make the attempt.
* Virginia patriot statesman Col. William Grayson served in the Continental Army, but never in the trans-Appalachian theatre.
* Sir Guy Carleton (Robert Cornthwaite) British Governor of Quebec and the last Crown commander of North America during the war, shows up long enough to be captured briefly by Daniel.
Continental soldier count: about 12, in Massachusetts Continental buff and blue.
Redcoat report: a home run this week, and a real historical consultant must have infiltrated the set this week. About 20, uniformed in the white and red of the 47th Regiment - mostly captured at Saratoga in 1777, but elements garrisoned Canada for the rest of the war.
DB hits all its marks here, so because the series is in its end run, lets give it a perfect score for a great hour of Rebels and Redcoats adventure.
DB, Season 6 continues a hot streak with a full-blown Revolutionary War adventure, and Fess Parker delivers with a full-hour performance. The standout is English-born Jill Ireland, who enjoyed a rapid rise on American TV in the 60's and then full movie stardom alongside Charles Bronson in the 70's and 80's before a traguc fatal illness in 1990. She is convincingly minx-like as a woman of dubious loyalties. The male leads turn in dutiful stock portrayals of Rev. War figures, but liberal helpings of chase and espionage keep the hour well-paced.
An interesting confluence of true-life and fictional historical currents this week; sorting them out:
* The hour begins with British governor of Detroit Henry Hamilton in captivity - he was taken by U. S. Col. George Rogers Clark at the surrender of Vincennes, Indiana in Feb. 1779.
* Clark wanted to take Detroit, but neither he or any other Continental commander ever received sufficient reinforcement to make the attempt.
* Virginia patriot statesman Col. William Grayson served in the Continental Army, but never in the trans-Appalachian theatre.
* Sir Guy Carleton (Robert Cornthwaite) British Governor of Quebec and the last Crown commander of North America during the war, shows up long enough to be captured briefly by Daniel.
Continental soldier count: about 12, in Massachusetts Continental buff and blue.
Redcoat report: a home run this week, and a real historical consultant must have infiltrated the set this week. About 20, uniformed in the white and red of the 47th Regiment - mostly captured at Saratoga in 1777, but elements garrisoned Canada for the rest of the war.
DB hits all its marks here, so because the series is in its end run, lets give it a perfect score for a great hour of Rebels and Redcoats adventure.
