In the opening scene of this episode there is a strong reminder of the flamboyant gunfighter Emmett Ryker (Clu Gulager) was before becoming Medicine Bow's efficient Deputy Sheriff - his purchase of a pair of snazzy boots. By putting them on he literally steps back into his old life, setting aside his badge to journey to Cripple Creek to hunt down the man who murdered two of his friends.
Ryker is a perceptive man with sound ethics, so the lethal anger he shows towards a wounded bank robber who has information he needs is quite shocking. He's out for revenge and has no intention of letting anyone get in his way. His goal is compromised by an unwanted travelling companion who may be the daughter of the man he intends to kill. Those new boots of his start to pinch, a metaphor for the conflict between the old Ryker and the new.
Ryker is so self-contained he doesn't get himself into too many romantic scrapes. A propensity for telling both men and women what they need to know rather than what they want to hear might have something to do with it! That's exactly what happens here with Lucille Carver (Sheilah Wells). There's nothing ungentlemanly about him. It's just that he has an overriding instinct to protect, which is why it was a nice touch to learn that Sheriff Brannan (Harlan Wade) reaches out from Medicine Bow to try to protect him, if only from himself. In this he uses the good offices of Sheriff Goodbody (John Doucette) of Silver City. I really enjoyed the interactions between the three lawmen.
Ryker is a perceptive man with sound ethics, so the lethal anger he shows towards a wounded bank robber who has information he needs is quite shocking. He's out for revenge and has no intention of letting anyone get in his way. His goal is compromised by an unwanted travelling companion who may be the daughter of the man he intends to kill. Those new boots of his start to pinch, a metaphor for the conflict between the old Ryker and the new.
Ryker is so self-contained he doesn't get himself into too many romantic scrapes. A propensity for telling both men and women what they need to know rather than what they want to hear might have something to do with it! That's exactly what happens here with Lucille Carver (Sheilah Wells). There's nothing ungentlemanly about him. It's just that he has an overriding instinct to protect, which is why it was a nice touch to learn that Sheriff Brannan (Harlan Wade) reaches out from Medicine Bow to try to protect him, if only from himself. In this he uses the good offices of Sheriff Goodbody (John Doucette) of Silver City. I really enjoyed the interactions between the three lawmen.
