"Gunsmoke" The Cast (TV Episode 1958) Poster

(TV Series)

(1958)

User Reviews

Review this title
7 Reviews
Sort by:
Filter by Rating:
8/10
Even with the quick ending, the show was still entertaining.
kfo949425 July 2013
The episode centers around a man that is a fixture on the prairie named Shell Tucker. Seems Shell is a person with head-strong ways that tends on keeping to the ways his father taught him. While he is out tending to cattle, Shell's wife becomes very ill after she swallows a nail and now is running high fever. Shell was taught not to trust doctor's but as a last resort the wife tells her son to fetch Doc Adams. Doc tries to remove the nail but it is too late. Ms Tucker dies.

When Shell returns he learns that Doc cut into his wife and claims that Doc killed and butchered his wife. He claims an-eye-for-an-eye with revenge toward the good doctor.

The episode, even though nicely done, seemed to end in a rather strange manner. It was like all of the sudden things changed without much middle area. Like a switch was turned on and the bulb went from dark to light in a flash. We can only assume that time was running out and a quick ending was necessary. Otherwise this show was a entertaining watch.
9 out of 13 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
9/10
Horse knowledge LOL Warning: Spoilers
I was wondering why the doc could save the horses leg that is because it was above the hock(ankle). FYI below the hock ankle where there are hardly any blood vessels.
0 out of 3 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
7/10
Would have been better...
streetlight228 November 2020
Warning: Spoilers
This episode would have been better If the horse had died and Doc saved the wife.
0 out of 5 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
No Medicare on the Prairie
dougdoepke8 May 2012
Homesteader Shell Tucker (Simon) doesn't like doctors (they're always cuttin'). So when his wife swallows a nail, Shell's son (Carruthers) gets desperate and summons Doc. But Doc's too late and the wife dies. Now Shell's really angry, at the same time, someone takes a shot at Doc. Now Matt's got a problem since Shell is not really a bad sort.

So good at being mean, Simon was a series favorite, appearing in a number of episodes. Note how scruffy looking Shell and his son appear, just what you'd expect from life on the prairie. It's the sort of realistic touch not seen on other series of the time, and helped set Gunsmoke apart. Also, Milburn Stone shows again what a one-of-a-kind character Doc is. Catch some of those scowling, wrinkled close-ups that suggest a rare kind of authenticity. All in all, the entry's a good story, more pleasing than suspenseful, but nothing special for Gunsmoke.
20 out of 23 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
3/10
1st Grade
jamdifo18 August 2013
Warning: Spoilers
This episode didn't work for me. Robert F. Simon (who had a memorable role in "Potato Road", one of Gunsmoke's best) plays Shell Tucker who just doesn't like doctors. He also was suppose to be longtime friends with Dillon, which you just didn't believe. At one point, Tucker threatens to kill Doc right to Dillon. Dillon says he better not and Tucker says but were friends. Dillon states he's also friends with Doc. If they are such good friends, how does he not know that Doc and Dillon are really the best of friends? The ending I just didn't buy. Put a cast on a horse and now Tucker likes Doc. He just conveniently over thinking Doc killed his wife. OK, whatever.

Best part of the episode is the dinner between Kitty and Dillon. She basically tells Dillon the rate at which he's learning about women, when she's dead he will only be at the 1st grade level. So true as Dillon is sllllloooooow with women. I also liked Chester hogging all the drinking water. Ben Carruthers (his only time on Gunsmoke) even tells Chester to leave some for the others. But Chester can't help but drink away.
2 out of 8 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
No need to let the facts get in the way
zafrom27 June 2016
Warning: Spoilers
A typically entertaining, if thin, story, with the personalities of Doc, Chester, and Kitty amusingly whiling away a few minutes. However, the episode could have over in 15 minutes if only Matt had been more forthcoming. Seems like grizzled rancher Shell Tucker don't have no truck with doctors, who Shell has considered to be butchers ever since one of them tried to treat Shell's ma, who died "because of a doctor cutting on her". Why did we hear about this from Shell?

Previously, after Shell's wife somehow accidentally swallowed one of the nails that she was holding in her mouth while fixing the chicken house (we never heard if she finished with the nailing), she didn't seek medical treatment for a couple of days until the growing pain and infection became unbearable. Conveniently, her husband was away, so couldn't prevent her from getting help from Doc. In desperation, she finally asked her son to fetch him. Doc tried his best to save her but had arrived too late.

Were the wife and son still justified in sending for Doc? You can watch and decide for yourself. However, Matt tells Shell only part of the preceding summary. Why only part? Hearing only part of what happened, Shell swore vengeance on Doc, which led to the last 15 minutes of the episode, with its "cast" and all. The last 15 minutes did include the amusing dinner scene with Kitty and Matt that jamdifo mentioned -- When you're dining in Dodge, it may be best not to order the steak.
5 out of 9 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
5/10
The Distrust Of Doctors
StrictlyConfidential20 April 2021
(*Marshal Dillon quote*) - "Shell, you're as stubborn as a Missouri mule."

Shell Tucker doesn't trust doctors.

Doc Adams comes to the Tucker farm to give medical attention to Mrs. Tucker who's bleeding from internal injuries.

When Mrs. Tucker dies under Doc's care, Shell blames him for her death and tries to kill Doc.
1 out of 3 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

See also

Awards | FAQ | User Ratings | External Reviews | Metacritic Reviews


Recently Viewed