Bob Johnson is a trick shot and he uses his skill without any ethics or morality to kill anyone in the way of his vengeance. I think he represents 1960s youth as Machiavellian and remorseless.
Angel (Kim Darby of the original 1969 True Grit) plays a highly manipulative girl who takes advantage of Festus' trust a couple of times and lies to cover for Stacy. She has no compassion for any of the people that treat her with respect and who give her credit as being an honest woman. She is a Machiavellian character, like her boyfriend, Stacy. Eventually she gets what she deserves, just like Stacy.
Beginning with the mean Parker (John Ireland) and his ruthless clan, to the anti-hero Bob Johnson, played by James Stacy, the characters have no sense of boundaries, they are Machiavellian jerks. The Lukens brothers (Royal Dano & Victor French) are greedy evil Machiavellian people who torture Angel. For all the characters, the ends justify the means.
The only two characters in this two part story that are not Machiavellian are Sandy McPeek and Morgan Woodward. Sandy McPeak (Catwoman's lackey The Giggler on the 1960s Batman TV series) gets killed at the beginning of Part 1 by Parker and his men when he falls and hits his head on a rock. Also at that time, Morgan Woodward is severely injured by the Parker clan, and Bob Johnson (Stacy) takes him into Dodge to get treatment by Doc.
Woodward dies soon afterwards, and starts Stacy on his mission of vengeance. Woodward was Stacy's (adopted) Father. It was ironic to see Woodward in the role of a victim, since he was usually playing tough guys and villains in his several appearances on Gunsmoke. This time, he is just a good guy, a Father figure, who tells Stacy to forget about vengeance, and to move on. Stacy ignores that advice, and all hell breaks loose.
This two part episode is very good. The second part is the most action-packed, since that is where almost everyone gets killed off, as Gunsmoke tradition required.
The only good thing about Stacy's character was that he killed off Buck Taylor, the creepy little entitled son of Parker, in the first part. Overall there was a pretty good body count.
Angel (Kim Darby of the original 1969 True Grit) plays a highly manipulative girl who takes advantage of Festus' trust a couple of times and lies to cover for Stacy. She has no compassion for any of the people that treat her with respect and who give her credit as being an honest woman. She is a Machiavellian character, like her boyfriend, Stacy. Eventually she gets what she deserves, just like Stacy.
Beginning with the mean Parker (John Ireland) and his ruthless clan, to the anti-hero Bob Johnson, played by James Stacy, the characters have no sense of boundaries, they are Machiavellian jerks. The Lukens brothers (Royal Dano & Victor French) are greedy evil Machiavellian people who torture Angel. For all the characters, the ends justify the means.
The only two characters in this two part story that are not Machiavellian are Sandy McPeek and Morgan Woodward. Sandy McPeak (Catwoman's lackey The Giggler on the 1960s Batman TV series) gets killed at the beginning of Part 1 by Parker and his men when he falls and hits his head on a rock. Also at that time, Morgan Woodward is severely injured by the Parker clan, and Bob Johnson (Stacy) takes him into Dodge to get treatment by Doc.
Woodward dies soon afterwards, and starts Stacy on his mission of vengeance. Woodward was Stacy's (adopted) Father. It was ironic to see Woodward in the role of a victim, since he was usually playing tough guys and villains in his several appearances on Gunsmoke. This time, he is just a good guy, a Father figure, who tells Stacy to forget about vengeance, and to move on. Stacy ignores that advice, and all hell breaks loose.
This two part episode is very good. The second part is the most action-packed, since that is where almost everyone gets killed off, as Gunsmoke tradition required.
The only good thing about Stacy's character was that he killed off Buck Taylor, the creepy little entitled son of Parker, in the first part. Overall there was a pretty good body count.