I know this is a highly rated and well-respected episode from the final season of Wagon Train. And I really wanted to like it as much as everyone else apparently did, but some things just seemed a bit unrealistic to me.
First, they keep telling us in the beginning of the story that it's summertime and they are traveling through the desert. We see the covered wagons moving near cacti in the stock footage, so that is believable. Yet what is not believable is how none of the actors are perspiring, and it seems as if they are working on an air conditioned soundstage for the closer shots. Surely the director could have had someone spray them with a bit of mist to indicate they were sweating under the hot desert sun.
Other things don't make much sense either. Like why is the little girl only appearing to Charlie and Barnaby? Is it because they are cooks and she wants food? Wouldn't she be appearing to other people who can help her deal with the cold and help her deal with the deaths of her loved ones?
Furthermore, there is dialogue in the episode where Chris Hale tells Charlie he's been over the Donner Pass before. They've traveled this way with other groups. So why didn't little Robin's ghost make contact with Charlie before? Wouldn't her broken heart and tears have been an issue before, when Charlie and the others previously came through this part of the country?
I know I am probably over analyzing it, but there are definitely some plot holes. I think people really like the episode's story because it upholds Christian beliefs, even though it uses supernatural elements or paranormal happenings to accomplish this. The big scene near the end where Charlie takes the girl to her grave and she walks off into the light is probably the part where Christian viewers feel strongly connected to the story. Atheists may find it corny, but then atheists probably don't watch this program!
I do agree that Frank McGrath does a nice job here, giving us sides of Charlie Wooster we don't normally glimpse on the show. He is sincere, attuned to helping a little spirit reach her heavenly reward, and he admits he's an old man that others might see as having a cracked-up head. But his beliefs and his convictions are what keep him going until he achieves his mission. Now if he could just improve his cooking!
First, they keep telling us in the beginning of the story that it's summertime and they are traveling through the desert. We see the covered wagons moving near cacti in the stock footage, so that is believable. Yet what is not believable is how none of the actors are perspiring, and it seems as if they are working on an air conditioned soundstage for the closer shots. Surely the director could have had someone spray them with a bit of mist to indicate they were sweating under the hot desert sun.
Other things don't make much sense either. Like why is the little girl only appearing to Charlie and Barnaby? Is it because they are cooks and she wants food? Wouldn't she be appearing to other people who can help her deal with the cold and help her deal with the deaths of her loved ones?
Furthermore, there is dialogue in the episode where Chris Hale tells Charlie he's been over the Donner Pass before. They've traveled this way with other groups. So why didn't little Robin's ghost make contact with Charlie before? Wouldn't her broken heart and tears have been an issue before, when Charlie and the others previously came through this part of the country?
I know I am probably over analyzing it, but there are definitely some plot holes. I think people really like the episode's story because it upholds Christian beliefs, even though it uses supernatural elements or paranormal happenings to accomplish this. The big scene near the end where Charlie takes the girl to her grave and she walks off into the light is probably the part where Christian viewers feel strongly connected to the story. Atheists may find it corny, but then atheists probably don't watch this program!
I do agree that Frank McGrath does a nice job here, giving us sides of Charlie Wooster we don't normally glimpse on the show. He is sincere, attuned to helping a little spirit reach her heavenly reward, and he admits he's an old man that others might see as having a cracked-up head. But his beliefs and his convictions are what keep him going until he achieves his mission. Now if he could just improve his cooking!