cranvillesquare

Most of the other reviews make me cringe - not because they're so out there, but because they show how much individuality and gumption today's Americans have given up for a malevolent government safety net. Years ago, Associate Justice Clarence Thomas told a college graduating class (I forget whether it was at Ole Miss, or his alma mater University of the Holy Cross in Worcester Mass.) the one thing that has stuck in MY head, ever since..."the awful truth is, when you're in America, you're on your own." In the 1800s and even into the early 1900s, orphaned kids weren't given special dispensation for being orphans and such kids grew up damned quickly. The fact that so many succeeded in so many economic directions only spoke to the innate spirit of a man (or woman) when there was nothing to fall back on.

Most every review here does nothing but attempt to impose 21st-century social standards upon a world well over 100 years removed. I daresay someone from 1890 or 1900 would be nonplussed by the criticism of the world they considered normal by people today who've been coddled into complete infantilism. All one needs to do is to search the internet for a typical 8th-grade final junior high school graduation exam to see how much lowered today's standards have become...a 25-year-old today can't pass an exam a 13-year-old was expected to master 140 years ago. Biarn showed guts, spunk and quick wits to overcome the two deuces life dealt him. Thank the good Lord he wasn't the only one. Yes, it can be sappy at times but all in all this was a good watch.

Another reviewer noted that Clu Gulager was rather mis-cast in this episode as Clarence Mullins, calling the role "crazy" and (to my inference) way out of his normal sphere of comfort. I can think of one actor who'd have been perfect in the role - Donald Sutherland. Mr. Sutherland had the ability either to play a sane man in a crazy situation, or a complete nutcase making the best of a Hobson's Choice and coming out smelling like a rose. (Kelly's Heroes was a perfect example.) The best part about those roles was, one always wondered - was Sutherland crazy, or crazy like a fox? I don't know if (at that time) a budding big-screen star ever would have deigned to take a role in a TV presentation, no matter how well-received Wagon Train was...but it's sure interesting to think about.

There haven't been many series about men (or women, for that matter) who find themselves out of their time, beyond their control. (Another series I enjoyed, even if -apparently - most viewers didn't care for it, was The Second Hundred Years starring Monte Markham. He suffered from Tim Conway Syndrome; nothing he starred in lasted one full season.) Anyhow, Gil Gerard played his character as well as he could. Given the limits of the scripts written for him and the rest of the cast.

As an aside - Erin Gray (Col. Deering) was a blonde in the first season. Mildly cute. She prevailed in letting her hair grow out to her natural jet-black color as the series progressed, and was smoking hot as a brunette. Hotter than a branding iron, actually. I used to watch this show just for the vicarious pleasure of seeing her. Pamela Hensley (Princess Ardala) didn't hold a candle to Ms. Gray.

The acting overall was meh, but what can one expect from a show produced on a tight budget? - despite that, most of the episodes were entertaining and kept one's attention. I can think of many other series with larger budgets and marquee names in the cast which weren't as good.