User Reviews

The story itself is a little reminiscent of De Maupassant's "Boule de Suif" - a bunch of swells in a coach who look down on a woman (here because she's Chinese), but find themselves dependent on her. And some of the plot points are glaringly predictable. But some of the themes here are breathtakingly advanced for the time - racial prejudice, economic oppression of indigenous peoples. Plus the main kidnapper has real power and nobility. A lot of the rest is boiler plate, including a comic set piece with a corrupt Mexican officer. But what's surprising here is not what's predictable, it's what isn't. As it happens, I watched this during the premier of "Crisis", also about the kidnapping of a group. This was far more compelling, even across the formulaic context.

Yuma, Arizona! A motley group ride together in a stagecoach: a pompous businessman, a missionary, a British noblewoman and an Asian lady. Bart boards the coach outside of town. Mexican bandits kidnap the passengers and hold them for ransom. The lead bandit and the Asian lady warm up to each other. Maria is a hot one and jealous. Finally, Bart teaches the bandits how to play poker and plays the leader for the group's freedom. This is a tight, character-based episode. Jack Kelly starred in the more traditional westerns while James Garner drew the lighter, more humorous scripts. I love those old stagecoaches. They take me back to my youth and the early days of television

Another episode involving a motley group of people on a stage that have to spend more time together when they are kidnapped.

However, this group of passengers are more villainous than the Mexican bandit who did the kidnapping. As the stage coach passengers are snobbish and racist bigots who have no time for the lovely Chinese girl with them. Only Bart of course treats her well, as does the kidnapper who is also taken with her and knows the others are rich in money but not in soul.

Sure Bolanes the bandit isn't a saint but he's not as violent as his second in charge. And above all he knows how to honour a bet. (I was watching this with captioned writing and whoever did it was terrible calling Bolanes with V and wrong letter, and Luis as Lewis) as for the story I'm taking off a point due to the episode's combo of a good but a bit far fetched ending.