Marcado

Even though this series is rarely shown in some areas,Chuck Connors follows up on his "Rifleman" series with a western that only ran two seasons on NBC-TV from January 24,1965-April 23,1966 producing 48 episodes and afterwards was never heard from again..until now. "Branded" was the type of show that gave Chuck Connors astounding ability to pass as both hero and villain,but in this one he is regarded as a coward for deserting his troops during an Indian attack,and that is just half on if,but we viewers know differently. I had a chance to check out one of the episodes watching a late night flick on TV,and in this episode Connors is captured by hostile Indians,gagged and bound while being forced to duel to the death,and in another one Connors fights off a gang of outlaws who want to turn him in for money which they want to hang him,but he manages to escape from great danger(this episode was in black and white). All of the scenes have Connors barechested and this a far cry from his days as Lucas McCain on "The Rifleman". However some of the episodes were in color(and they're on videocassette),and it was that macho crap that underlay some westerns and this was one of those shows that didn't last very long.

NOTE: During the show's first season,the episodes were shot in black and white(1965-66)while the second season episodes were in color(1966). The show was produced by NO other than game show veterans Mark Goodson and Bill Todman(the guys behind "The Price Is Right")and this was their first try at a weekly series(and the last time they will ever do so).

I was but a wee lad of 3 when this show captured some of my brain cells for ever. I remember the title song, and the ripping of his insignia rank, and his sabre being broken. VERY strong images, not unlike the rat patrol and for that matter ANY tv show of the mid-late 60's. The story lines are only sketchy. The fact that the character was given short shrift legally and thereby justice wise haunt me to this day. As a young child my belief in our american justice system stems from these images... Life has sailed down other waters.... for as I have gone through our educational system these idealized morality shows hold the same power, but the promise of a just ending is always infinitely more difficult to achieve. Most of the hard edged shows like this one are not oft replicated... They attempt to acomplish the same storylines today with modern settings, but most late night crime dramas play like soap operas as opposed to the tone and vector of "perry mason" I would like to see this and other series released in their "Entirity" and not edited and slap dashed to be politically and religiously correct, for to alter their impact in that way is to denigrate who and what we are as a nation and a people. Besides what impact other than simple historical and entertainment can these beloved series wield today? Except to offer heroes who truly can not be "bought" to skew the viewing public into another course of attitude, except fond rememberance, and a ready made source of topical discussion.

In the moral and cultural wasteland of the 60's, this show was like pure poetry: a distillation of the best of the west. "Branded" is the story of a wandering loner/knight errant who must right wrongs everywhere he goes while on a quest after a seemingly unobtainable goal. Economical, hardboiled, the product of years of testing the action and adventure formula, "Branded" is a summing up of everything that ever worked for motion picture audiences dating back to the first silent film western. Unusually taut performances from the mature Chuck Connors in a role that was tailor made for him. Each episode introduces a new set of characters. No ensemble cast baloney and no hack writing. What I wouldn't give for a show this good today!

I won't say it was the cream of the crop of TV westerns, as far as production goes, but it's premise was...

I disagree most strongly with the first comment, McCord did try to clear his name many times, just not at the cost of others, and McCord, a wronged man, a pariah, would indeed, have to drift from town to town.

If he stayed too long he would likely be strung from a tree...

I too watched this on late night TV, in fact it's still on the New York City ABC affiliate, as a late night time filler.

That's an undeserved legacy.

In the current climate of turning past TV series into big-budget films, this is a no-brainer.

I'd be interested to know if the property's being sought after.

They'd be morons not to include theme song somewhere, it is really stunning.

I used to watch this show on the usual circuit of bad late night television. I will not glorify it; it only lasted two seasons because it was not a great show. It was respectable, however, and had a theme song that made it memorable.

"All but one man died..."