Tom Lynott and his wife Pene are riding across the prairie when they hear gunshots. Lynott, who is a former rough-and-tumble, old-school lawman is compelled to investigate despite Pene's protestations. He finds Matt Dillon wounded trying to shoot it out with three men.
Lynott manages to squash the danger and take the Marshal back to Dodge City. Dr. Chapman examines Matt and finds the wounds will require at least a month to heal, but the Marshal should be okay. Matt knows a Wells Fargo gold shipment is due in town, and he asks his old friend to handle the Marshal duties until he is able to resume his job.
(As other reviewers have noted, it is strange that Matt does not trust his Deputies Festus Haggen and Newly O'Brien to handle things while he recuperates. The Marshal often left town for extended periods of time and left his Deputies in charge.)
Tom Lynott's ideas of the law enforcement duties in Dodge are quite different than how Matt Dillon views the responsibilities. Tom drinks heavily and is extremely lax compared to Marshal Dillon when it comes to law enforcement. When Lynott lets several offenses go unpunished around the town, many of the townspeople -- including Kitty Russell, Dr. Chapman, Festus, and Newly -- begin to question the interim Marshal's methods.
A gang of incorrigible characters led by a man named Will Talley hear about Lynott acting as Marshal in Dodge City and ride there. Tom considers the men old friends, but their intentions include more than getting drunk. Lynott slowly realizes he has his hands full in dealing with their presence.
The Tony Award winning actor Richard Kiley fills the part of Tom Lynott. Kiley was an accomplished singer, but his singing talents were rarely used in his numerous television roles. This performance is the second of his four guest starring Gunsmoke appearances.
Peggy McCay appears for the third and final time in a Gunsmoke episode. She plays the part of Pene Lynott.
The list of actors that play different characters in Talley's gang reads like a who's who of Gunsmoke alumnus. Tally is played by Anthony Caruso (14 episodes), Wallace is portrayed by Jonathan Goldsmith (14 episodes) (he was using the last name Lippe when this episode was produced), Gregg Palmer plays the character Nicols (21 episodes), the character Rolling is played by veteran actor Ken Lynch.
(There is a great scene where the disgusting, filthy gang members are all lounging around in some town other than Dodge eating rotten meat and drinking from a big bucket with a dead mouse inside. It is a nice, clever piece of Tarantino-esque writing that is rare in television of the time.)
This is a tense, entertaining story, but the execution is sloppy. It could have easily been fixed with a few key changes. A better explanation of why Matt thinks he needs to appoint Lynott as a temporary Marshal is needed. Although Dillon says he thinks it is necessary because there is a gold shipment due, said shipment is never mentioned again. It also makes little sense that everyone avoids telling Matt what is going in Dodge with Lynott acting as Marshal. One would think Dillon and Lynott would have been talking regularly, but everyone involved acts as if it is important to keep Matt in the dark.
There is a confusing development where Marshal Dillon sends Sam Noonan to Lynott to tell him Talley and his gang are tearing up the Bulls Head Saloon. Lynott tells Sam to ask Festus to take care of the situation, but Sam tells Lynott Festus and Newly have gone to Mead on Lynott's orders. Lynott says he did not send them anywhere. When Matt hears the shots at the Bulls Head, he asks Dr. Chapman, and the doctor tells Matt that Lynott sent them to Mead. Obviously, SOMEONE sent Festus and Newly to Mead, but there is no scene where any such orders are given, at least not in the versions of the show that are currently broadcast in syndication.
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