Review of Hopalong Cassidy Returns

I have lately been revisiting these black and white B-Westerns, for a variety of reasons. For one thing, the story of William Boyd, and how he made the character of Hopalong Cassidy his own (not to mention how the Hoppy role changed Boyd) is more interesting to me now as an adult than when I first watched these films in the 1950s. Second, I've been reacquainting myself with a broad spectrum of retro/nostalgic film/TV/radio media generally, and these films are excellent examples. Also, Watching the B-Western films of John Wayne (especially the Republic/Lone Star films), the early work of Roy Rogers, and the Hoppy films themselves all have a common element in the sidekick persona of George "Gabby" Hayes, one of the character actors who defined the sidekick role. This particular Hoppy story features some unusual elements, like Hoppy's kid brother Buddy, an apple-chomping villain, a wheelchair-bound good guy, but especially a "woman gone wrong" who falls for Hoppy in a big way, even to the point of letting her feelings endanger the criminal empire she's built for herself. Excellent acting performances also make this film above average for the Hopalong Cassidy body of work. I guess I'd have to say I like them all, but I love this one.