In my opinion, this is a great episode, intergrating a novel-premise with Russian-history, in an American-setting, i.e., the warmly-familiar Ponderosa. The plot is as stated elsewhere. One reason I like this episode is that it's a little-unusual for a standard-entry of the series. Having a brother & sister of Russian-nobility visiting the Ponderosa on a tour of the U.S. is quite-appealing. Countess Elena, played by an actress unfamiliar to me, Claire Griswold, is very-beautiful. It's a treat for a history-buff like me to hear references to Czarist Russia, St. Petersburg, the Crimean War, Cossack cavalry-charges, and the czar himself, interspersed throughout the story. It's also visually-stunning to see the Russian-visitors, including Vladdy, played persuasively by Lloyd Bochner, all dressed in their finest, most-splendid, formal Russian-attire while at dinner with the Cartwrights. The overall plot is intricate but comprehensible. The acting-prowess of the 3 main "Russian" guest-stars is superb, each convincing & totally-into their respective-roles. The idea that the countess would be travelling with her personal-jewels, worth well-over a quarter-million dollars, could be considered dangerously-unrealistic, never occurred to me but I concede the point. On the other hand, she & her brother, played by Warren Stephens, might've considered this a wise safety-precaution, in case anything happened to them on the long-journey which could result in their suddenly finding themselves in dire, desperate financial-straits. Remember, they had Secret Service protection as well as a cavalry-escort the entire time, including their stay on the Ponderosa. In short, "The Prince" is a solid, colorful episode, combining Russian with American history, featuring high-caliber acting & some truly-suspenseful moments!