A powerful rancher named Bear Sanderson -- who is one of Matt Dillon's old friends -- and his wife Lavinia live near Dodge City. Bear is the epitome of the rugged individualist. He established his ranch by unapologetically driving out the indigenous people who lived there previously. Lavinia has grown tired of his stubborn independent nature and his hard drinking, womanizing ways.
Comanche renegades have been attacking homesteads throughout Kansas. After an intense argument that resulted in Bear leaving the ranch, a group of renegades attack the Sanderson house, kill Lavinia, and burn the house.
Sometime later, Newly O'Brien and a group of soldiers from Fort Dodge find a Comanche encampment. They discover Bear's gold watch and some of Lavinia's jewelry. The Comanches are arrested and taken back to Dodge to stand trial.
Bear demands custody of the Comanches so he can exact revenge for his wife's death. Matt tries to convince his old friend to allow justice to run its course, but Bear wants to act as judge, jury, and executioner. In a captivating, tense scene where Bear and the Marshal argue, Bear refuses to budge from his position, and Matt warns Bear he will be forced to kill him if he continues to try to take justice into his own hands.
Meanwhile, an attorney named Cicero Wolfe is traveling to a job in San Francisco. He finds himself stuck in Dodge for a time, because the Calvary has closed all roads into and out of Dodge while they try to quell the renegade uprising.
Marshal Dillon cannot find anyone to take the case of the men who were arrested, because of Sanderson's widespread influence. The Marshal approaches Wolfe about taking the case. At first, Wolfe refuses "for personal reasons," but after an appearance from Cora Sanderson - Bear and Lavinia's daughter - and some self-reflection, the attorney agrees to take the case.
One must believe when this story was being cast the Gunsmoke producers had to think Morgan Woodward was the obvious choice to play Bear Sanderson. The character is exactly the type of hard-nosed, stubborn man Woodward had played previously. Woodward appeared in eighteen different episodes of Gunsmoke, and he has never been tougher.
Paul Stevens returns for the final time in a Gunsmoke role with this two-part episode. He plays Cicero Wolfe in this story with same level of intensity and integrity he usually brought to the roles he played. Stevens suffered a stroke during the filming of the courtroom scenes in the second part of this episode. The stroke temporarily affected Stevens's ability to speak, and filming was delayed until he recovered enough to continue.
Donna Mills appears in her only Gunsmoke role as Cora Sanderson. This episode as produced early in the acting career of Mills.
Whitney Blake portrays Lavinia Sanderson, although the character only appears in one early scene. Blake was an acting veteran by this time. One of her more prominent roles was as the character Dorothy Baxter on the 1960s sitcom Hazel. She would later co-create the series One Day at a Time about a single mother raising two daughters. Blake said the premise was based on her own experiences as a single mother when she was younger. Actress Meredith Baxter is her daughter, and singer Whitney Houston was named after her.
Actor X Brands makes one of his seven Gunsmoke appearances. He plays one of the Comanche arrested for Mrs. Sanderson's murder.
As with most two-part episodes, Part One lays the foundation for the events in Part Two. It is tempting to speculate as to the direction of the story, but the second part is full of surprises.
Comanche renegades have been attacking homesteads throughout Kansas. After an intense argument that resulted in Bear leaving the ranch, a group of renegades attack the Sanderson house, kill Lavinia, and burn the house.
Sometime later, Newly O'Brien and a group of soldiers from Fort Dodge find a Comanche encampment. They discover Bear's gold watch and some of Lavinia's jewelry. The Comanches are arrested and taken back to Dodge to stand trial.
Bear demands custody of the Comanches so he can exact revenge for his wife's death. Matt tries to convince his old friend to allow justice to run its course, but Bear wants to act as judge, jury, and executioner. In a captivating, tense scene where Bear and the Marshal argue, Bear refuses to budge from his position, and Matt warns Bear he will be forced to kill him if he continues to try to take justice into his own hands.
Meanwhile, an attorney named Cicero Wolfe is traveling to a job in San Francisco. He finds himself stuck in Dodge for a time, because the Calvary has closed all roads into and out of Dodge while they try to quell the renegade uprising.
Marshal Dillon cannot find anyone to take the case of the men who were arrested, because of Sanderson's widespread influence. The Marshal approaches Wolfe about taking the case. At first, Wolfe refuses "for personal reasons," but after an appearance from Cora Sanderson - Bear and Lavinia's daughter - and some self-reflection, the attorney agrees to take the case.
One must believe when this story was being cast the Gunsmoke producers had to think Morgan Woodward was the obvious choice to play Bear Sanderson. The character is exactly the type of hard-nosed, stubborn man Woodward had played previously. Woodward appeared in eighteen different episodes of Gunsmoke, and he has never been tougher.
Paul Stevens returns for the final time in a Gunsmoke role with this two-part episode. He plays Cicero Wolfe in this story with same level of intensity and integrity he usually brought to the roles he played. Stevens suffered a stroke during the filming of the courtroom scenes in the second part of this episode. The stroke temporarily affected Stevens's ability to speak, and filming was delayed until he recovered enough to continue.
Donna Mills appears in her only Gunsmoke role as Cora Sanderson. This episode as produced early in the acting career of Mills.
Whitney Blake portrays Lavinia Sanderson, although the character only appears in one early scene. Blake was an acting veteran by this time. One of her more prominent roles was as the character Dorothy Baxter on the 1960s sitcom Hazel. She would later co-create the series One Day at a Time about a single mother raising two daughters. Blake said the premise was based on her own experiences as a single mother when she was younger. Actress Meredith Baxter is her daughter, and singer Whitney Houston was named after her.
Actor X Brands makes one of his seven Gunsmoke appearances. He plays one of the Comanche arrested for Mrs. Sanderson's murder.
As with most two-part episodes, Part One lays the foundation for the events in Part Two. It is tempting to speculate as to the direction of the story, but the second part is full of surprises.
