It's trouble, all right--to get through, that is. Cheyenne Bodie happens upon a mystery involving rival mining companies, superstitious mountain men, the disappearance of a geologist, and a creepy stranger with an elephant gun. Something is prowling around them thar hills, and the locals are afraid of it even though they have no idea what it is. The geologist's distraught daughter, accompanied by four men from town, meets Cheyenne on the trail just after he's found a man who had fallen--or was thrown--from the rocks above. Suspicion abounds. Cheyenne is accused of either being the skulking giant (if there is one) himself or being in cahoots with whoever is behind it. Then one by one, men die, disappear, or are wounded. Cheyenne even winds up being tied to a tree as bait. Since eventually he's one of only two men left standing, it's up to Cheyenne to find the big-footed monster, who turns out to be just an overgrown kid who has been protected by his father, a.k.a., Squaw Man, an obviously crazy old codger who ends up dynamiting the mountain with himself and his hulking son inside. The ending was kind of a letdown, since the stories of the series almost always wind up bringing events to a satisfying conclusion, of which this one is not.
I respect writers and know how difficult it can be to come up with fresh material. However, we expect more from professionals, and this story by Ron Bishop with Wells Root (who, ironically, also wrote one of my favorite episodes, "The Mutton Puncher") is like something Stephen King might have written when he was six. Not only that, but the direction is choppy and erratic, there are gaps in the plot, and except for the ever-engaging Clint Walker, the acting is pedestrian. The usually good WB production values are boring in this episode; maybe they used those same rocks one time too many. I have never seen an episode of "Cheyenne" that was a challenge to sit through until now, and if it hadn't been for Clint Walker's always reliable Cheyenne Bodie, I wouldn't have made it; no matter how uninteresting the plot or production, he's always a pleasure to watch whenever he's onscreen, as any of his legion of fans will testify. I know there are better episodes ahead, so I've chalked this one up to a glitch in the matrix.
I respect writers and know how difficult it can be to come up with fresh material. However, we expect more from professionals, and this story by Ron Bishop with Wells Root (who, ironically, also wrote one of my favorite episodes, "The Mutton Puncher") is like something Stephen King might have written when he was six. Not only that, but the direction is choppy and erratic, there are gaps in the plot, and except for the ever-engaging Clint Walker, the acting is pedestrian. The usually good WB production values are boring in this episode; maybe they used those same rocks one time too many. I have never seen an episode of "Cheyenne" that was a challenge to sit through until now, and if it hadn't been for Clint Walker's always reliable Cheyenne Bodie, I wouldn't have made it; no matter how uninteresting the plot or production, he's always a pleasure to watch whenever he's onscreen, as any of his legion of fans will testify. I know there are better episodes ahead, so I've chalked this one up to a glitch in the matrix.
