When Wells Fargo gets a tip that their office in Rondo is going to be robbed, Jim Hardie is sent in to prevent it. When two men attempt to rob the office, Hardie is forced to shoot a third man during the holdup. After one of the robbers say there was no third man, some question whether the man was involved and the shooting was justified.
I'm torn with this episode. On one hand, writers Steve Fisher and Dwight Newton's script contained a good deal of intrigue, with a decent amount of action. Under Earl Bellamy's direction, Hardie encountered extreme hatred from an entire town, except for one woman who happens to be the daughter-in-law of the man Hardie killed. For anyone wondering why, there is an explanation. Hardie dealt with a lot of sneering townspeople spewing extremely nasty bile in this one, and some intended to do more than talk.
On the other hand, there was no case against him. The 3rd man came running toward the tied horses and he shot at Hardie clearly, then was trying desperately to mount up and escape. But for some reason neither of these facts were mentioned when people were questioning whether Hardie killed an innocent man. Seems as if all Hardie had to do was keep saying "But he shot at me, why would an innocent man shoot at me?" I kept waiting the hear him say it but he didn't, nor did the Wells Fargo station manager when documenting the details of the case. No one reiterated it, despite the fact that firing at a Wells Fargo agent during a holdup attempt is grounds for deadly force.
And this got worse when Hardie took the dead man back to Rio Nada, where he had a ranch. Every person in that town was practically spitting in Hardie's face, and he never mentioned to any of them that the dead guy shot at him and attempted to escape during the robbery. He finally mentioned it briefly to the man's wife in passing, but that was it. It was not said at any other time. I found this to be extremely confusing. Oh well, we've seen how some episodes are a bit weaker than others.
The cast was unknown for the most part, other than a few members. Jeanette Nolan appeared as Mrs. Borkman. She was very well known, not only for being married to John McIntyre, but also for appearing in all kinds of different character roles over many decades. John Mitchem appeared as a deputy, and was the brother of Robert. Chris Alcaide appeared as the outlaw Holley, and Robert B. Williams appeared as a Wells Fargo agent, and I am familiar with these two from their appearances on Cheyenne and Gunsmoke. But I have little to no knowledge of any other cast member.
As I said, I'm torn with this one. But EWIBIG, yknow...
I'm torn with this episode. On one hand, writers Steve Fisher and Dwight Newton's script contained a good deal of intrigue, with a decent amount of action. Under Earl Bellamy's direction, Hardie encountered extreme hatred from an entire town, except for one woman who happens to be the daughter-in-law of the man Hardie killed. For anyone wondering why, there is an explanation. Hardie dealt with a lot of sneering townspeople spewing extremely nasty bile in this one, and some intended to do more than talk.
On the other hand, there was no case against him. The 3rd man came running toward the tied horses and he shot at Hardie clearly, then was trying desperately to mount up and escape. But for some reason neither of these facts were mentioned when people were questioning whether Hardie killed an innocent man. Seems as if all Hardie had to do was keep saying "But he shot at me, why would an innocent man shoot at me?" I kept waiting the hear him say it but he didn't, nor did the Wells Fargo station manager when documenting the details of the case. No one reiterated it, despite the fact that firing at a Wells Fargo agent during a holdup attempt is grounds for deadly force.
And this got worse when Hardie took the dead man back to Rio Nada, where he had a ranch. Every person in that town was practically spitting in Hardie's face, and he never mentioned to any of them that the dead guy shot at him and attempted to escape during the robbery. He finally mentioned it briefly to the man's wife in passing, but that was it. It was not said at any other time. I found this to be extremely confusing. Oh well, we've seen how some episodes are a bit weaker than others.
The cast was unknown for the most part, other than a few members. Jeanette Nolan appeared as Mrs. Borkman. She was very well known, not only for being married to John McIntyre, but also for appearing in all kinds of different character roles over many decades. John Mitchem appeared as a deputy, and was the brother of Robert. Chris Alcaide appeared as the outlaw Holley, and Robert B. Williams appeared as a Wells Fargo agent, and I am familiar with these two from their appearances on Cheyenne and Gunsmoke. But I have little to no knowledge of any other cast member.
As I said, I'm torn with this one. But EWIBIG, yknow...
