Anglo-Indian Amos McAleer (John Russell) visits the Shawnee (cue the villain theme!) as an Onodaga emissary urging war on the Crown's behalf against the Boonesborough settlers; then in long-hunter persona he urges the Boonesborough townsfolk to concede the frontier and decamp to the east. In another dubious mission, Dan agrees to visit the tribes in his company.
Back to action-adventure after the previous bottle episode, and its a pleasure to have deep-voiced Westerns stalwart Russell along on the trail. He went the distance from 1950's B Westerns to Clint Eastwood's vehicles of the 1970's and 80's. Adding additional Boonesborough layers to the story are 1960's TV journeyman Kevin Hagen (three guest appearances on DB and later Dr. Baker on "Little House on the Prairie") as McAleer's half brother and Patricia Huston as his brotherly-contested spouse. Yadkin gets to take on some leadership role in Daniel's absence. Onboard for a comic coda as a tribesman is John Ford stock company player Hank Worden ("The Searchers").
Some historical background this hour which requires deconstruction:
* McAleer is clearly operating from the start as a British agent, no spoiler there. He is alluded to, authentically, as being in the pay of Lt. Col. Henry Hamilton, Governor of Detroit and primary British commander in the Ohio country during the war from 1775-on.
* No real explanation here for why the Shawnee are listening to the Onodaga, who are based far to the east with the Iroquois Six Nations along Lake Ontario, and had more than enough local problems to keep them occupied during the Revolution.
* Dating of the episode is kept vague; no active reference to the Revolutionary War in the east, but "General Washington" is alluded to. Again, the real Boonesborough started concurrent with the war's outbreak in the spring of 1775, so no run-up to the Revolution there.
* Revolutionary and War of 1812 storylines are comingled when reference is made to a "Shawnee Prophet." There was one - he was Tenskwatawa, brother of Shawnee chief Tecumseh, a religious leader who provided the spiritual component to Tecumseh's efforts to build an American -resistant Midwest-Mid-South Indian Confederacy. He somewhat lost face after his settlement, Prophetstown, was attacked and destroyed by US General William Henry Harrison during the 1811 Battle of Tippecanoe.
Though elements ate borrowed liberally from earlier episodes "The Sound of Wings" and "The Hostages," we get a fairly full helping of frontier history, politics, and action this hour. Another early win for DB, Season 1.