"The Governor's Special" from early 1916, is one of the original 119 episodes and 7 surviving episodes of "The Hazards of Helen". Its also one of only two surviving episodes of "Hazards" that features Ms. Rose Wegner Gibson, aka Helen Gibson in the title roll.
Let me just say for starters that I am a huge fan of the "Hazards" serial. Especially when compared with contemporary serials of the time like "The Perils of Pauline", "Hazards" definitely represents a step up in a lot of respects, from the camera work to plot. Being a railroad nut definitely adds to my love of "Hazards". Before I really get into the actual episode, I just wanted to let you know that I do somewhat have a bias; while both Helens look very much so alike, I really like Helen Holmes in the roll of Helen. She just has more of a natural air around her dramatic acting. I'll get into more details about this in a bit.
Not to give too much away, but the episode features the Governor riding his own private train. Helen's brother is condemned to die. After saving the governor's train from a head on collision with a runaway locomotive, Helen asks the governor to pardon her brother. It has been noted before that "Hazards" relies a lot on the audience one, paying a lot of attention to whats going on onscreen and two, having some knowledge on the workings of a railroad. This is somewhat of a flaw for modern audiences; back in 1915, many people had some knowledge of steam locomotives and railroads in general. This particular episode doesn't really need either. The railroad language is kept to a minimum, and the plot is pretty easy to grasp. However, those can also be considered drawbacks; the plot of this particular episode seems somewhat haphazard and random. Oh here's Helen's brother! Who's a convict! And she tries to shoot his handcuffs, but at the last second the officers of the law walk through the door conveniently finding Helen in what appears to be her holding off the escaped fugitive at gunpoint single handedly! It just so happens that scarce two seconds go by before Helen receives a telegraph from down the line that a runaway locomotive is heading towards the governor's special and that only she can stop it!
I realize that this is one of the first serials, but this episode, especially compared to the others in the series, pales a little bit. The plots of the other episodes are more believable; there's more texture, more realism. This one had too many convenient moments in the plot for my liking. Another drawback for me was Helen Gibson's acting. When Helen receives the telegram that a runaway locomotive is heading her way, she looks up at the camera. The bags under her eyes are noticeable; there is utter horror upon her face. This is not the cool-headed Helen that we have gotten to know in the past; in other episodes, Helen barely reacts before heading out and saving the day.
To be fair, these are somewhat subjective opinions. Helen Gibson's stunt of jumping off a handcart and onto the raging locomotive is impressive and noteworthy in and of itself. All in all, I'm giving this one a 7. Watchable, good stuff, and not bad at all. But there are slightly better episodes in the series that one should maybe consider before this one.
Let me just say for starters that I am a huge fan of the "Hazards" serial. Especially when compared with contemporary serials of the time like "The Perils of Pauline", "Hazards" definitely represents a step up in a lot of respects, from the camera work to plot. Being a railroad nut definitely adds to my love of "Hazards". Before I really get into the actual episode, I just wanted to let you know that I do somewhat have a bias; while both Helens look very much so alike, I really like Helen Holmes in the roll of Helen. She just has more of a natural air around her dramatic acting. I'll get into more details about this in a bit.
Not to give too much away, but the episode features the Governor riding his own private train. Helen's brother is condemned to die. After saving the governor's train from a head on collision with a runaway locomotive, Helen asks the governor to pardon her brother. It has been noted before that "Hazards" relies a lot on the audience one, paying a lot of attention to whats going on onscreen and two, having some knowledge on the workings of a railroad. This is somewhat of a flaw for modern audiences; back in 1915, many people had some knowledge of steam locomotives and railroads in general. This particular episode doesn't really need either. The railroad language is kept to a minimum, and the plot is pretty easy to grasp. However, those can also be considered drawbacks; the plot of this particular episode seems somewhat haphazard and random. Oh here's Helen's brother! Who's a convict! And she tries to shoot his handcuffs, but at the last second the officers of the law walk through the door conveniently finding Helen in what appears to be her holding off the escaped fugitive at gunpoint single handedly! It just so happens that scarce two seconds go by before Helen receives a telegraph from down the line that a runaway locomotive is heading towards the governor's special and that only she can stop it!
I realize that this is one of the first serials, but this episode, especially compared to the others in the series, pales a little bit. The plots of the other episodes are more believable; there's more texture, more realism. This one had too many convenient moments in the plot for my liking. Another drawback for me was Helen Gibson's acting. When Helen receives the telegram that a runaway locomotive is heading her way, she looks up at the camera. The bags under her eyes are noticeable; there is utter horror upon her face. This is not the cool-headed Helen that we have gotten to know in the past; in other episodes, Helen barely reacts before heading out and saving the day.
To be fair, these are somewhat subjective opinions. Helen Gibson's stunt of jumping off a handcart and onto the raging locomotive is impressive and noteworthy in and of itself. All in all, I'm giving this one a 7. Watchable, good stuff, and not bad at all. But there are slightly better episodes in the series that one should maybe consider before this one.
