Gunsmoke (TV Series) The Badge (1970) User Reviews

All this, and Henry Jones, too...

[grizzledgeezer · 9/10 · 11 August 2013]

Not to mention the Queen of the B's, Beverly Garland.

When Kitty sees Matt get shot for the umpteenth time -- and pretty badly -- she decides to sell the Long Branch and move elsewhere. She just doesn't want to be around the day a bullet with Matt's name on it finds its mark.

She rides off to a town with a tree on its main street (which shows up in any number for series), greeting an old friend (Beverly Garland) who runs a saloon. Not surprisingly, Kitty's jumped out of the emotional frying pan into the criminal fire.

Surprise, surprise, surprise... The town is run by "Papa" Steifer, played by one of the all-time-great character actors, Henry Jones. * Papa prefers to humiliate people into compliance, rather than using force.

Kitty figures she can handle everything herself, and convinces her friend that if the town's businesspeople set up their own trade organization, they can easily force Papa out, without a shot being fired. Then Matt shows up, and wants to do things /his/ way. This provokes a confrontation, because Kitty is tired of being dependent on Matt.

The ending is predictable, but the ending isn't the point of this story. It's the emotional twists and turns that Matt and Kitty go through that makes this a memorable episode. This is one of Kitty's Important Stories (have you forgotten that writing rule, students?), and Ms Blake gets to actually act for a change.

Strongly recommended.

* Henry Jones was a truly gifted actor. Though he seemed to have been typecast in weaselly, ironic/sarcastic roles, he consistently delivered distinctive, appropriate interpretations of such parts. Any performance of his is worth seeing. I particularly commend "The Big Valley" 2.24, "Court Martial".

Beautiful Beverly

[darbski · 9/10 · 5 March 2018]

***SPOILERS*** I always like it when Kitty takes a tough stance on a serious issue. This one is good, and she partners up with the lovely Beverly Garland as saloon owners who decide to challenge the crooked powers in a small cowtown. Normally, I'd be happy to talk about what all was wrong with the way things were as Hollywood describes them, but ... We have two beautiful women who have to face up to things like courage and integrity. Kitty has her stand thrown right back in her face, and makes the best decision. Very well acted, and a lot of fun to watch; I giving it a 9.

A wise man said evil will triumph if good men do nothing.

[headhunter46 · 7/10 · 21 October 2014]

Kitty gets really bent out of shape when Matt is gunned down in the street while stopping a holdup. The bullet hit him in the upper left chest and would have ripped his heart open if not for the badge that deflected it a fraction of an inch. Kitty has seen him wounded before, but this one is too close to fatal. She comes to feel she just does not want to be there when he gets the fatal bullet. So, she puts the long branch up for sale and heads south to the saloon of a former friend. Kitty quickly learns that a local man has developed a strangle hold on the town and all the outlying areas that cattle men depend on for range feed and water when they bring in herds.

Matt is not pursuing Kitty but ends up at that same town when he is asked to investigate claims by the cattle men of fraud and over charging.

Kitty makes a good stand against the local who prefers to be called Papa even while he is shafting the good people of Ballard. Papa doesn't like any one to say no so he schemes to make Kitty bend. Then he sets the Marshall up for an ambush to get rid of him. He actually thinks he can murder a Marshall and get away with it The town sheriff who has been a whipping boy for Papa develops a conscience and interferes with the ambush, then locks Papa in the jail signifying an end to the reign of terror.

I won't tell you how it ends, that might really ruin it for you. I want you to enjoy this as much as I did.

Landmark Episode

[martinxperry-14868 · 8/10 · 15 May 2018]

Of all the episodes I've watched, and at age 71 I've seen them all, this is the one I wish had never been broadcast. Every series has an exit episode for most of the key actors/actresses. This episode where we lose Kitty was one of the saddest. I wish it was never necessary. IMHO, both Matt and Kitty were both too selfish.

In the broad, there was an episode where Kitty's character was raped and later was involved in a "cat fight" with another female actress. As I understand it, Amanda Blake flat refused to see her role as Kitty get dragged down into the mud like that. Amanda retused to take part in that episode and left the series over the raps/cat fight episode. This episode was the beginning of the end for Gunsmoke, IMHO.

One of my favorites.

[pattiejs · 10/10 · 31 October 2019]

Added an interesting twist to Matt & Kitty's relationship for sure. I always wondered why the writers didn't have them get married. Kitty explained it in another episode though. I don't remember the title but in it, Matt was shot in the back and Doc had to operate on him on a train full of outlaws. I still wish they had married! Dating for 25 years is unrealistic. Writers claimed that marriage would adversely affect the storyline. I don't think so; it would have enhanced it.

In a later movie it was revealed that Matt had a son, by Kitty I think. Or am I going crazy?

Kitty Russell Gains Insight into Matt Dillon's Stoicism

[wdavidreynolds · 7/10 · 25 June 2021]

Matt Dillon is shot and seriously wounded during a robbery attempt in Dodge City. Of course, Doc Adams manages to remove the bullet and nurse him back to health.

This situation is the last straw for Kitty Russell. She decides she can no longer tolerate having a man in her life that has been shot eleven times and knowing the next time might prove to be fatal. Miss Kitty closes the Long Branch Saloon, puts it up for sale, and leaves Dodge.

(This is the first appearance of a theme that would recur occasionally throughout the remaining episodes of Gunsmoke. Kitty has grown exasperated with Matt's job and his devotion to it.)

Kitty goes to the town of Ballard, where her friend Claire Hollis runs a saloon called The Nugget. Ballard is a would-be cow town, somewhat like an earlier version of Dodge City. The town is run by a man who insists everyone call him "Papa," not as a term of affection but an acceptance of his domination. Papa Steiffer has a couple of henchmen that work for him, and he controls the town sheriff. Steiffer forces businesses operating in Ballard to give him a cut of any revenue, and he imposes exorbitant fees on drovers in the area for the use of water and grazing land.

Steiffer's strong arm techniques are stifling business in Ballard. Claire explains to Kitty that she does not think the saloon will survive under the current circumstances and is considering leaving the town. When Kitty suggests Claire fight back against Papa, Claire is quick to point out Kitty has chosen to run away from the situation in Dodge City in a similar manner to what Claire is considering in Ballard. Miss Russell sees this situation differently, and welcomes the opportunity to take on Papa Stiefer. Kitty offers to buy a share of The Nugget.

The word of Steiffer's shady business practices has spread. When Matt learns Kitty has landed in Ballard, he decides to investigate. Kitty resents Matt's intrusion. She tells Matt she does not need nor want his help and encourages him to leave her alone. Steiffer assumes Kitty sent for the Marshal. All of this leads to an inevitable showdown between Matt and Kitty as well as between the Marshal and Steiffer.

This episode features a strong cast of guests, most who have participated in Gunsmoke stories previously. Henry Jones is perfect in the Papa Steiffer role. One can see how his calm, confident demeanor might lead others to underestimate just how devious he really is. Jones was a veteran of Broadway, films, and television. This is the second of three Gunsmoke appearances for the actor.

Beverly Garland makes the last of her four Gunsmoke appearances as Claire Hollis. Garland was also playing the role of Barbara Douglas on the comedy series My Three Sons at the same time this episode was filmed.

John Milford is the town sheriff John Dawson in one of his seven Gunsmoke appearances. Jack Lambert and Roy Jenson play Papa's "muscle." Both are familiar faces that frequently played villians. This episode marks Lambert's last Gunsmoke participation. He also played seven different characters over the course of the series, as did Jenson.

The construction of this story is interesting. The Kitty and Matt dynamic is the larger "package" that contains the Papa Steiffer stranglehold-on-Ballard story. The Steiffer plotline is not anything new in dramatic television. Local tyrants are common in many television dramas. There is even a scene that has been used in another Gunsmoke episode where Papa attempts to frame the Marshal for attacking a woman.

The most interesting part of the story is the exploration of the relationship between Kitty and Matt. It is not surprising that Kitty would eventually become exasperated with her relationship with Dillon. He clearly cares deeply for her, but he never allows his care for her to take precedence over his duties as a U. S. Marshal. (I never thought Matt *loved* his job as much as he felt an obligation to it, for whatever reason. He is one of the most stoic characters in television history. He refuses to let personal relationships interfere with what he sees as his duties.)

This isn't one of the outstanding stories in the Gunsmoke oeuvre, but after some of the stinkers that preceded this episode, it is a breath of fresh air.

Kitty's relationship with Matt is more complicated than guessed.

[kfo9494 · 7/10 · 29 August 2013]

The story the writer was shooting for was actually a nice story. They wanted the viewer to experience Kitty's relationship without Marshal Dillon in the picture. So they develop a way to get Kitty to leave town and then realize how important it is to have a lawful Marshal, that will risk his life for people, running a town. Good concept.

But they way they got Kitty to leave town seemed odd. They had Matt get shot by a bandit, which has been played out hundreds of times, and now all of the sudden Kitty just cannot stand to live where Matt could be killed. I am not sure why this was any different scenario than ten episode previous.

Anyway Kitty takes the stage to a town where one of her friends, Claire Hollis, runs a saloon. What she comes into is a town that is run by one man named Papa Steiffer. Papa controls all aspects of the town down to the Sheriff and the law. Everyone says 'yes' to Papa or they experience the havoc that comes by way of Papa's justice.

When Kitty buys half interest in the saloon, she advises they her first words to Papa will be 'NO'! But then Matt comes to town looking for Kitty. And the story goes that Kitty does not want to live in the shadow of Matt anymore and she lets him know that. But is Matt ready to move on?

This was a nice story. Amanda Blake was strong in this episode as she tries her life away from the town of Dodge. It was a nice predicable story worthy of a watch. This is one that really shows the relationship between Kitty and Matt.