Money talks is the motto of Mr. Elliott Reed, just arriving in Walnut Grove where he expected the royal treatment, and whenever he flashed some cash, he got it. Being the owner of the New York Global Telegram, there's no question why he's loaded...and not just with money. He's here to see his daughter, Sarah Reed-Carter. So after getting a luxury suite at Nellie's hotel, Elliott ventured to the Carter's little house on the prairie and was reacquainted with his daughter and son in-law, in a rather awkward scene. He brought Jeb and Jason fishing poles with instructions to go out and put the fear of God into fish. So after the boys are shooed from the room, John and Sarah have a sit down with her Pa. He came baring bad news of Sarah's mother's untimely death a month earlier. He didn't think writing a letter at the time being was appropriate. Yeah, this guy's all heart. So after an awkward night, Elliott went to visit his daughter at her news paper "empire", with a proposition to come back to NY and work with him on his. She liked writing for Walnut Grove, but he didn't buy that. He slammed her work and tried to show her how a "real" writer makes the news. He next went to the livery and tried to hire on John, claiming he wanted a better life for Sarah and the boys and that John was holding them back. But the worst thing Elliott Reed did by far was publish Harriet's recent ill-gotten gossip! Now that's going too far!
When poor Widow McAndrews read the article about her, she went all to pieces and banished Jeb from working for her. Infuriated with his grandfather, Jeb gave back his fishing pole. Elliott, of course, felt no remorse for his actions, as he felt he was just reporting the truth. Sarah wanted to apologize, but Elliott said it was out of the question, because it was the truth they printed. He also went on to mention that he was not on good terms with Grover Cleveland. Two non-consecutive good terms. Well, Linda McAndrews started drinking again and then she snapped, committing acts of vandalism and then leaving town, which Laura came to report to Sarah. Feeling sorry for the Carter matriarch and feeling her relationship with her Pa was very similar to Laura's with Charles, so she decided to intervene and offer her support. Laura remembered what a hard-ass Charles had been over her marrying Almanzo, and even after, when he warmed up to it, deep down he still wasn't ready to let his little Half Pint go. Charles was controlling, as is Elliott, only he's worse. Much, much worse. Get this: he went behind the Carters' back and enrolled Jason in a Westhampton boys' school and Jeb into a military academy, plus out of the goodness of his heart, he'll let John and Sarah come live with him until they find a new place in New York. And the icing on the cake: Sarah's mother wanted to visit, though she was in no shape to do so, but Elliott didn't say anything because he didn't feel it was important, plush he'd been lying about her condition. This guy's a monster! I'm sure he also burned down an orphanage or two! Well, sir, that did it. Sarah finally found the courage to voice her disgust over her father's actions and John bravely stepped in, told him what's what and then told him to leave. Elliott left in a huff and sulked about his "luxury suite" all night, before finally coming to his senses. First he told Harriett to take her gossip column and shove it and then reflected on what a bastard he'd been to his family, who rode up to catch him before he made the afternoon stage. They all made amends and Elliott Reed's icy heart melted. He felt loved for the first time ever, and Sarah's relationship with her father was no longer strained. They bid Elliott farewell as he rode back home as a new man.
Well, here's the rundown: John McLiam was fantastic at portraying the icy Elliott Reed. At the very beginning until the end he's unlikeable and just nasty, but he experiences a change of heart and becomes very endearing. Sorta like Ebenezer Sprague, as well as Scrooge. While Stan Ivar and Pamela Roylance are great performers, I feel the Carters are weak in terms of character, especially in relation to Charles and Caroline, whose shoes they were filling. Charles and Caroline were very strong characters and you believed Michael Landon and Karen Grassle in their portrayals. To me, John and Sarah Carter seem more like city people trying to act as country folk. Instead of demanding respect, they seem to beg for it. So again, they are not strong, but the Carters are okay characters who probably should have been given more development, had the show run longer. Good directing from Victor French, who does not appear in the episode unfortunately, and the only episode of the series written by Ernie Wallengren who did a fairly good job rounding out Elliott's character. So if you like the Carter-based episodes, check this one out. If not, skip it. Season 9 was a good season, in my opinion and I'm happy to have seen and critiqued each episode, except for "Rage", which is extremely unnecessary and very frustrating to watch. But the rest are great!
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