This episode has the feel of other episodic television of the era, in that the series regulars are given significant face-time and you feel the comraderie built upon many seasons. But as a stand alone-story it is also satisfying to sit in on; all the way through. This is due in large part to the acting of guest James Gregory (aka 1962's The Manchurian Candidate's Angela Lansbury's husband Senator John Iselin) and the tragically under-recognized Milburn Stone who plays Doc. It has an injured-Matt Dillon riding his horse within 24 hours of being shot in the upper thigh -- a nigh impossible feat -- and something I was willing to go along with as I was interested in how the story would unfold. While the outcome is never in doubt, the dialogue and acting of those two veterans, at least, certainly holds up today. In this episode you can easily understand how the show's production levels at the time shone above their competitors.
7 Reviews
A More Serious Side of Festus
wdavidreynolds9 February 2021
Warning: Spoilers
The story begins on a windy night in Dodge City. Matt Dillon is out of town, and Thad Greenwood rousts the sleeping Festus Haggen at the jail, because of a problem with some cowboys at the Long Branch Saloon. By the time the pair arrive at the saloon, the troublemakers are gone, everything is peaceful, and Kitty Russell and Sam Noonan are preparing to close for the night. Kitty tells Festus and Thad that she threw the cowboys out of the saloon.
Kitty goes to her room, but there is a man waiting for her there. (This causes me to question how a stranger in town knows which room is Kitty's? How did he even know she lives upstairs at the Long Branch?) He brutally attacks her, and a window is broken in the struggle. Festus and Thad hear the window break, realize the window is in Kitty's room, and rush to her aid. Festus kicks the door in, and the intruder shoots Festus in the arm. Festus returns fire and kills the man.
Some time passes before three men ride into Dodge City. One of the men is Judge Calvin Strom. The other two men are his sons, Cal Jr. And Mark. Judge Strom's son, Richard is the man Festus killed in Kitty's room, and Cal Jr. Was the other cowboy Kitty threw out of the saloon.
Judge Strom is from the Texas Panhandle area, and he dispenses what Marshal Dillon later calls, "Panhandle Justice." Judge Strom has constructed his own "facts" regarding the incident where his son was killed. He is convinced Miss Kitty and Festus conspired to lure Richard to her room where they successfully robbed and killed the Strom son. The Judge tries to order Marshal Dillon to arrest Festus for murder and Kitty as an accessory to the murder. Matt refuses, of course, and then tells the Stroms to leave Dodge and never return.
The Judge is determined to try Festus and Kitty, despite the fact he has no jurisdiction in Kansas and no one with any legal authority to act is willing to do what the Judge wants.
The remainder of the story involves the battle between the attempt by the Stroms to execute their own brand of "justice" and everyone else involved to stop them.
For the most part, this Donn Mullaly script -- his only one for Gunsmoke -- is quite intriguing. James Gregory's Judge Strom conveys the perfect level of sinister authority. The Judge is obviously a man who is quite accustomed to having his way and has no qualms about using his position and the law to suit his own needs. The "rogue judge" story is not all that unique in the western genre, but this script handles it well.
My primary problem with this episode is the last five minutes or so. I don't want to give anything away, but it seems as though the story is carefully constructed and then the conclusion is rushed and formulaic.
John Saxon makes another Gunsmoke appearance here as the angry, dour Calvin Strom, Jr. Cal, Jr. Was kicked out of the Long Branch along with his brother, and he helps his father identify Kitty and Festus. Saxon spends the entire episode glaring at others and acting extremely serious.
Les Brown, Jr. Fills the role as the other Strom son, Mark. Brown appeared rather sporadically on television shows mostly throughout the 1960s. He was a regular on the somewhat obscure CBS comedy series The Baileys of Balboa, which also featured Paul Ford and John Dehner. The series ran during the 1964-1965 season and was abruptly canceled at the end of the season. It was the brainchild of CBS president James T. Aubrey. It seems Aubrey was unhappy with the premise of Gilligan's Island, which also debuted in 1964, and he commissioned the development of The Baileys of Balboa about a family that operates a boat chartering business at a marina as a result. It is kind of funny that Les Brown, Jr. Would appear as Bingo -- one of the members of the rock band The Mosquitos -- on Gilligan's Island the year following the cancellation of The Baileys of Balboa.
The performance by Ken Curtis in this episode is notable. He is definitely still Festus Haggen, but we see a more serious, principled side of Festus than we have typically seen up to this point in the series.
Kitty goes to her room, but there is a man waiting for her there. (This causes me to question how a stranger in town knows which room is Kitty's? How did he even know she lives upstairs at the Long Branch?) He brutally attacks her, and a window is broken in the struggle. Festus and Thad hear the window break, realize the window is in Kitty's room, and rush to her aid. Festus kicks the door in, and the intruder shoots Festus in the arm. Festus returns fire and kills the man.
Some time passes before three men ride into Dodge City. One of the men is Judge Calvin Strom. The other two men are his sons, Cal Jr. And Mark. Judge Strom's son, Richard is the man Festus killed in Kitty's room, and Cal Jr. Was the other cowboy Kitty threw out of the saloon.
Judge Strom is from the Texas Panhandle area, and he dispenses what Marshal Dillon later calls, "Panhandle Justice." Judge Strom has constructed his own "facts" regarding the incident where his son was killed. He is convinced Miss Kitty and Festus conspired to lure Richard to her room where they successfully robbed and killed the Strom son. The Judge tries to order Marshal Dillon to arrest Festus for murder and Kitty as an accessory to the murder. Matt refuses, of course, and then tells the Stroms to leave Dodge and never return.
The Judge is determined to try Festus and Kitty, despite the fact he has no jurisdiction in Kansas and no one with any legal authority to act is willing to do what the Judge wants.
The remainder of the story involves the battle between the attempt by the Stroms to execute their own brand of "justice" and everyone else involved to stop them.
For the most part, this Donn Mullaly script -- his only one for Gunsmoke -- is quite intriguing. James Gregory's Judge Strom conveys the perfect level of sinister authority. The Judge is obviously a man who is quite accustomed to having his way and has no qualms about using his position and the law to suit his own needs. The "rogue judge" story is not all that unique in the western genre, but this script handles it well.
My primary problem with this episode is the last five minutes or so. I don't want to give anything away, but it seems as though the story is carefully constructed and then the conclusion is rushed and formulaic.
John Saxon makes another Gunsmoke appearance here as the angry, dour Calvin Strom, Jr. Cal, Jr. Was kicked out of the Long Branch along with his brother, and he helps his father identify Kitty and Festus. Saxon spends the entire episode glaring at others and acting extremely serious.
Les Brown, Jr. Fills the role as the other Strom son, Mark. Brown appeared rather sporadically on television shows mostly throughout the 1960s. He was a regular on the somewhat obscure CBS comedy series The Baileys of Balboa, which also featured Paul Ford and John Dehner. The series ran during the 1964-1965 season and was abruptly canceled at the end of the season. It was the brainchild of CBS president James T. Aubrey. It seems Aubrey was unhappy with the premise of Gilligan's Island, which also debuted in 1964, and he commissioned the development of The Baileys of Balboa about a family that operates a boat chartering business at a marina as a result. It is kind of funny that Les Brown, Jr. Would appear as Bingo -- one of the members of the rock band The Mosquitos -- on Gilligan's Island the year following the cancellation of The Baileys of Balboa.
The performance by Ken Curtis in this episode is notable. He is definitely still Festus Haggen, but we see a more serious, principled side of Festus than we have typically seen up to this point in the series.
A Nail-Biter!
DeepFriedJello1 October 2022
Warning: Spoilers
Matt is gone and Festus is moseying down the street late one night when he notices ruckus and screams coming from Kitty's room in the Longbranch Saloon. He rushes up the stairs and breaks into her room and subsequently is shot by Kitty's assailant. The wounded Festus fires back, killing the perpetrator. Soon after, the perps father who is an Oklahoma judge and his two sons enter the picture looking for revenge on Festus and Kitty for "killing" their son and brother, evidently in a planned murder. By this time Matt has returned and orders the judge and his boys to get out of Dodge. But instead Matt takes another bullet in his leg, and Kitty and Festus are abducted. Will Matt recover from his wound, or get gaseous gangrene? Will Kitty and Festus get their necks stretched? Will the the Judge discover the errors of his crimes? These questions and more will be answered as you are drawn into this critically acclaimed episode.
A show full of action and suspense
kfo949430 March 2013
Warning: Spoilers
Every now and then you watch an episode after reading the plot line and you expect very little of the program. This happened to be one that I had little expectation of enjoyment but then found out that the show kept me on the edge of my seat the entire time. The episode was full of action and was a delight to watch.
It started off simple enough when Kitty had two cowboys, Cal and Richard Strom, at the Long Branch causing a bit of trouble. Thad goes gets Festus but before they make it to the saloon peace is restored and Sam and Kitty are getting ready to close. As Kitty enters her room, she is attacked by a man. The violent attack causes one of her window panes to break alerting Festus, Thad and Sam. When they get to her room they have to break open the door. Festus is shot in the arm but is able to return fire and kills the man. The man happens to be Richard Strom, the one that was causing trouble earlier in the evening.
A few weeks later three riders come into Dodge, Judge Calvin Strom and two of his sons from Oklahoma. Judge Strom is in town to file charges of murder on Festus and Kitty for the killing of his son. He accused the two of luring his son to Kitty's room and then killing him in cold blood.
Marshal Dillon throws the three out of town. But that will not deter Judge Strom. After having one of his sons injure Matt by shooting him in the leg, they then go are kidnap Kitty and Festus. They also kidnap Doc Adams and make him serve as attorney for the two on the charge of murder.
So outside Dodge, Judge Strom is holding court in a root-cellar that everyone knows in a mockery to the justice system. With a bad injury, Matt will do everything he can to find the Stroms before their kind of justice can be served.
James Gregory, that plays the Judge, is perfectly cast as the single minded father that wants revenge instead of the facts. Plus Amanda Blake and Ken Curtis are outstanding playing their roles when the Strom's first arrive in Dodge which heightens the suspense of the show. A true surprise that was a pleasure to watch.
It started off simple enough when Kitty had two cowboys, Cal and Richard Strom, at the Long Branch causing a bit of trouble. Thad goes gets Festus but before they make it to the saloon peace is restored and Sam and Kitty are getting ready to close. As Kitty enters her room, she is attacked by a man. The violent attack causes one of her window panes to break alerting Festus, Thad and Sam. When they get to her room they have to break open the door. Festus is shot in the arm but is able to return fire and kills the man. The man happens to be Richard Strom, the one that was causing trouble earlier in the evening.
A few weeks later three riders come into Dodge, Judge Calvin Strom and two of his sons from Oklahoma. Judge Strom is in town to file charges of murder on Festus and Kitty for the killing of his son. He accused the two of luring his son to Kitty's room and then killing him in cold blood.
Marshal Dillon throws the three out of town. But that will not deter Judge Strom. After having one of his sons injure Matt by shooting him in the leg, they then go are kidnap Kitty and Festus. They also kidnap Doc Adams and make him serve as attorney for the two on the charge of murder.
So outside Dodge, Judge Strom is holding court in a root-cellar that everyone knows in a mockery to the justice system. With a bad injury, Matt will do everything he can to find the Stroms before their kind of justice can be served.
James Gregory, that plays the Judge, is perfectly cast as the single minded father that wants revenge instead of the facts. Plus Amanda Blake and Ken Curtis are outstanding playing their roles when the Strom's first arrive in Dodge which heightens the suspense of the show. A true surprise that was a pleasure to watch.
Classic Gunsmoke
gary-6465918 August 2019
This was an arrestingly eye-catching episode from start to finish, with Ken Curtis as Festus Haggen giving the best account of himself yet, convincing as the deputy (and role model for gangly young sidekick Chad) who steps up with Marshal Dillon seriously wounded and Kitty and Doc abducted and about to be hanged by a renegade family led by James Gregory in one of his diagnostic malevolent roles. From the scenes of a blindingly frigid wind blowing through Dodge (that lent scenes more than the required bleakly stark atmosphere), to Festus's stirringly defiant speech to the evil Judge (Gregory) in the Long Branch, this was a drama close to being unmatched even in the unparalleled long run of "Gunsmoke".
Matt has a giant posse in this one.
willyrusso9 February 2021
Solidly good but not great handling of rigged trial theme
bnelso-2379325 April 2021
Warning: Spoilers
Problems: It takes a little too long for them to get to the trial too bad it wasn't a two-parter. Doc Adams is overused in this ep and it was really supposed to be about Kitty and Festus. It would have been better if Thad had stuck with very injured Marshall Dillon during the posse scenes, more believable it would have been.
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