Shane

I never knew they tried to make a TV series out of "Shane," one of the best westerns ever made. Sure, they probably shouldn't have bothered, but I was surprised how well the episode I just watched worked. "The Day the Wolf Laughed" had a good script (minus the standard "if only character X had spoken up, nothing would have happened" moment), solid acting, especially by guest star J.D. Cannon, and effective music. They obviously didn't shoot the series in Wyoming, or wherever the movie was shot, but used the outdoors they had well. Based on this episode, I'd be willing to give the rest of the show a chance if I come across it again.

Wonderful Movie. Top 5 on any Western Fan's List. Westerns were all over TV in The '60s. Was that what they were thinking? What was I thinking? It was 1969 before I saw The Movie Shane. I was just young enough to be 'Discovering and Exploring' Creativity. Shane opened me up to so much in the way of Production Values and Subtly as I embarked on a Media Career. How did George Stevens get The Dogs to do what they did? And that was just The Beginning! There was so much to explore! I became so obsessed that I drove to Jackson Hole Wyoming, found what was left of The Set and talked to some people who were there during filming. So....of course, I had to find all things Shane, including the TV Series. What a disappointment! It's almost unwatchable. I see that they brought Jack Schaefer in, who wrote the Novel, half way through the Season. I'm going to put it aside for a month or so and check out some of the episodes Schaefer wrote but......

How did this disaster happen? Did someone go back in time and mess with the space-time continuum? It's like you woke up and were living your bad dream, Shane's story but with new characters and a dull plot line...oh my gosh, what happened to Alan Ladd? How did these cheesy sets replace the real Montana mountain range? Who wrote these scripts? HELP me wake up!!

The more I watch this series the more I like it. It was made in the era where TV westerns were flooding the air waves so it may have got lost in the shuffle. As a huge fan of the movie Shane I was a little skeptical of how 5he main characters would be portrayed. Jill Ireland's role is the only one I'm a little disappointed in. On the other hand Bert Freeds role as Ryker is a step up from the big screen. He's just as grizzled and tough as the original but seems a bit wiser and more intelligent. He's probably my favorite character in the entire series. Like I said, too many other westerns, bad time slot , early cancelation. Too bad because the writing and character development was right up there with Gunsmoke. And that's saying something!!

If you ever get the time, watch it from episode 1 to 17. Fantastic show, I can watch it over and over. Very well done and great storylines. Give it a chance, not just one episode.