Matt Dillon has been called away from Dodge City yet again. This time he is escorting a gold shipment with a U. S. Calvary Regiment. The gold shipment is scheduled to arrive in Dodge on its way to Fort Dodge around daylight.
Cole Morgan and his gang of outlaws has learned about the gold shipment. The outlaws have developed a notorious reputation for robbing trains and businesses. Morgan devises a plan to ambush Marshal Dillon and the soldiers as they arrive in Dodge. To aid in their efforts, they have managed to acquire a Gatling gun. Morgan wants the gun modified to use Sharps ammunition. Since Newly O'Brien is a gunsmith, his services are required.
It is never made completely clear why the gun modifications are necessary. The Sharps rifle was known for its accuracy, but that was a result of the gun design, not the ammunition. Some Sharps rifles used some of the most powerful black powder cartridges ever made. That may have been the reason for the modification, but it is not stated in the episode. Newly does tell Morgan he has no ammunition to fit the Gatling gun, and Morgan tells him to modify the gun to use the Sharps cartridges. Perhaps that is the reason the modification is necessary, but it is not clear. The gun modification is likely a plot device added for dramatic effect and time consumption.
Once again, the town of Dodge City is taken hostage by a gang of ruthless outlaws. How many times can an entire town be taken hostage?
The similarities of Steve Forrest's Cole Morgan character to his Will Mannon character from Season 14's "Mannon" are unmistakable. The difference being that Mannon operated alone, while Morgan has several supporting characters to help. Mannon's stated motivations were about building a reputation as someone to be feared, which Morgan's interests are for financial gain. Mannon was such a memorable character, one wonders if the Gunsmoke folks decided to bring Forrest back to try to capture that dynamic again. Since episodes are often shown today on a daily basis, or even multiple times per day, the similarities between the characters stands out more than it would have when the episodes were broadcast with several months between them.
Morgan is as much of an arrogant narcissist as the Mannon character was. He is even more vain. When Morgan breaks into the Long Branch Saloon upon arrival in the town, Kitty Russell shoots him in the shoulder and fires a shot that creates a nasty wound on his face. Kitty had no idea who Morgan was at the time. She only knew someone had broken into the saloon. When Morgan's men see what has happened, they warn Kitty that she is in big trouble.
The services of Doc Adams are needed to treat Morgan's wounds. Although Doc is his usual cantankerous self, Morgan threatens to have one of his men abuse Miss Kitty if Doc refuses to provide the necessary treatment.
This episode also harkens back to Season 11's "Seven Hours to Dawn," where a gang led by John Drew Barrymore's Mace Gore character takes over the town for the purpose of looting it. Gore's gang was arguably even more bold, because they took control of the town while Marshal Dillon was present.
The story moves toward its conclusion with several events happening simultaneously. Newly and Festus Haggen work on the gun modifications. Morgan monitors their progress while he also verbally spares with Kitty. Morgan's ego was damaged as much as his physical body when Kitty shot him early in the episode. He consequently spends a good deal of the episode telling Kitty what kind of awful fate awaits the Marshal when he arrives. The Marshal and the soldiers make their way toward Dodge for the inevitable showdown.
Another part of the story focuses on Morgan's right-hand man named Clint and a woman he loves named Jenny. Clint is surprised to learn Jenny is now living in Dodge and working at the Long Branch. Clint wants to resume their romance, but Jenny wants a more stable life than is possible as the wife of an outlaw. As appears to be the case with the gun modifications, this is another story element introduced to add drama and fill time.
Hank Brandt had a long career in both television and films, including multiple Gunsmoke appearances. He plays the Clint character in this story.
Charlotte Stewart, who was best known for her recurring role on Little House on the Prairie, plays Jenny, Clint's love interest. Fans of David Lynch's work may also recognize her for her recurring role in Lynch's Twin Peaks series and the role of the character Mary X in Lynch's first full-length film, Eraserhead.
Morgan's gang contains several faces recognizable to regular Gunsmoke viewers, including Jonathan Lippe/Goldsmith and Mills Watson. Read Morgan, who appeared in a total of ten different Gunsmoke installments, plays the Calvary Lieutenant working with Matt. Watch closely for an appearance by Jack Garner, the older brother of James Garner, as a telegraph operator. I. Stanford Jolley and Charles Seel also play telegraph operators, the latter in his familiar role as Barney Danches.
Amanda Blake's Kitty Russell character is a central part of the story, much as it was in the "Mannon" episode. Blake is certainly up to the task, but we have seen her in this same predicament a few too many times before.
There are some additional implausible story elements in this episode, too. For example, Morgan orders Doc to give him just enough Laudanum to allow him to sleep for thirty minutes. It would have been impossible to predict the effects of crude anesthesia that accurately, and the impact of Laudanum would be especially difficult to gauge. Morgan tells one of his men to kill Doc if Morgan is not awake in thirty minutes. It could take Laudanum close to that long or longer to induce the kind of sleep that would allow someone to remove a bullet without waking the patient.
I also doubt the ability of someone using manual tools to be able to bore all those long barrels of a Gatling gun in an hour and a half, and to do the work so well the gun fires perfectly when tested. (The clock shows approximately 1:30 when Morgan tells Newly the work must be complete by 3:00 a.m.)
Morgan's bark was worse than his bite. He talked a strong game. He and his gang had supposedly pulled off many daring robberies in the past, but his plans and actions in this story are poorly conceived.
There are problems with the ending, too, but getting into those is not possible without including spoilers.
Despite the flaws, this is still an engaging story. There is a lot going on, and the cast is excellent, as usual. I grew up watching Gunsmoke with my family, and this is one of those episodes I can remember watching even as a kid.
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