The plot is pretty basic, and I'm getting the idea that the series creators are doing homages to Old Westerns rather than trying to recreate the genre in 1998. Tim Thomerson plays rancher Guy Royal, who is driving out small ranchers so he can get their land... which is on a railroad line coming through town. Nobody has heard of the railroad coming through, which seems like a kind of big thing for the crapsack that is Four Corners. But oh well.
Guy hires Bob Spikes, a one-eyed "marshal" who has a grudge against Chris from when they were teenagers even though Chris barely remembers him. And veteran actress Anne Haney plays Nettie Wells, the old-as-the hills woman who refuses to leave. Her niece Casey is a tom boy who Buck tries to "pretty up" for J.D. And Josiah is reunited with a woman from his past, that he left two years earlier to pursue spiritual enlightenment. She's a singer and doesn't remember Josiah. And Ron Perlman as Josiah, as the love-infatuated gunfighter-turned-preacher-turned-gunfighter, is the best part of the episode. Josiah buys a too-small suit and tries to impress Emma, who has no idea who he is and is going out with Guy.
And that's pretty much all there is to the story. Vin has an attachment to Nettie, who reminds him of his mother, Biehn plays a mildly bemused Chris, who barely remembers Spikes from a rail-splitting contest when they were teenagers. And that's the theme of the episode: memories. Emma doesn't remember Josiah, Chris barely remembers Spikes, Nettie reminds Vin of someone from his past. It makes more sense than the title "The Collector", which refers to Guy and his habit of collecting "gifts" from the ranchers he burns out.
There's a few cute bits. I like Chris joining in with Buck to make "lovesick cow" noises to mock J.D. It's interesting that the main cast is so comfortable with each other after just seven episodes. Nathan still doesn't have much to do: his time will come in the second season. Right now he makes a decent sounding board to Josiah.
Same with Chris' smirk when J.D. asks how he knows that he can take Spikes. Biehn was born to play a Western gunfighter, and he strides through the series like it's a personal playground set up just for him. Well, him and Perlman: the latter more because he seems to be having a grand old time hamming it up. While Biehn plays into the tropes, Perlman seems to enjoy himself playing against them.
Like I noted, the whole thing is almost a parody. In the end, Chris and Spikes have a fistfight. Josiah gets drunk and goes to "rescue" Emma from Guy. Except she's prostituting herself for money, and doesn't want Josiah to "help" her. The whole thing gets summed up when Vin runs in, sees Josiah and Guy fighting, thinks better of getting involved, turns around, and walks back out.
Of the guest stars, Haney and Barron are good. Thomerson doesn't have much to do, except play the bad guy and seem surprised that he isn't in a "real" Western. Mike Moroff as Chris' nemesis that Chris doesn't remember is surprisingly good even though he isn't given much to do. In a few lines, Moroff manages to capture Spike's frustration with the eye-losing contest that has preyed on him for decades, and Chris barely remembers.
Overall, "The Collector" is a decent episode. It both sets up the stereotypes of the Western, and undermines them with a drunken Josiah and a fistfighting Chris.
But that's just my opinion, I could be wrong. What do you think?
Guy hires Bob Spikes, a one-eyed "marshal" who has a grudge against Chris from when they were teenagers even though Chris barely remembers him. And veteran actress Anne Haney plays Nettie Wells, the old-as-the hills woman who refuses to leave. Her niece Casey is a tom boy who Buck tries to "pretty up" for J.D. And Josiah is reunited with a woman from his past, that he left two years earlier to pursue spiritual enlightenment. She's a singer and doesn't remember Josiah. And Ron Perlman as Josiah, as the love-infatuated gunfighter-turned-preacher-turned-gunfighter, is the best part of the episode. Josiah buys a too-small suit and tries to impress Emma, who has no idea who he is and is going out with Guy.
And that's pretty much all there is to the story. Vin has an attachment to Nettie, who reminds him of his mother, Biehn plays a mildly bemused Chris, who barely remembers Spikes from a rail-splitting contest when they were teenagers. And that's the theme of the episode: memories. Emma doesn't remember Josiah, Chris barely remembers Spikes, Nettie reminds Vin of someone from his past. It makes more sense than the title "The Collector", which refers to Guy and his habit of collecting "gifts" from the ranchers he burns out.
There's a few cute bits. I like Chris joining in with Buck to make "lovesick cow" noises to mock J.D. It's interesting that the main cast is so comfortable with each other after just seven episodes. Nathan still doesn't have much to do: his time will come in the second season. Right now he makes a decent sounding board to Josiah.
Same with Chris' smirk when J.D. asks how he knows that he can take Spikes. Biehn was born to play a Western gunfighter, and he strides through the series like it's a personal playground set up just for him. Well, him and Perlman: the latter more because he seems to be having a grand old time hamming it up. While Biehn plays into the tropes, Perlman seems to enjoy himself playing against them.
Like I noted, the whole thing is almost a parody. In the end, Chris and Spikes have a fistfight. Josiah gets drunk and goes to "rescue" Emma from Guy. Except she's prostituting herself for money, and doesn't want Josiah to "help" her. The whole thing gets summed up when Vin runs in, sees Josiah and Guy fighting, thinks better of getting involved, turns around, and walks back out.
Of the guest stars, Haney and Barron are good. Thomerson doesn't have much to do, except play the bad guy and seem surprised that he isn't in a "real" Western. Mike Moroff as Chris' nemesis that Chris doesn't remember is surprisingly good even though he isn't given much to do. In a few lines, Moroff manages to capture Spike's frustration with the eye-losing contest that has preyed on him for decades, and Chris barely remembers.
Overall, "The Collector" is a decent episode. It both sets up the stereotypes of the Western, and undermines them with a drunken Josiah and a fistfighting Chris.
But that's just my opinion, I could be wrong. What do you think?
