SECOND SEASON (1958-59)

09/13/58	The Man Hunter	Forced to kill his quarry, Paladin is accused by entire town of murdering him; then his angry brothers show up		Superb study of "one against the mob"
09/20/58	In an Evil Time	Paladin takes a shine to the leader of a bank heist, an irascible old codger with a broken leg being pursued by his erstwhile partners in crime		Essentially a two-man stage-play, not a TV show
09/27/58	The Man Who Wouldn't Talk	Paladin helps a shy romantic woo his true love, a female ranch owner		Boring, silly change of pace; possibly the worst show of the series
10/04/58	The Hanging of Roy Carter	Paladin tries to convince a bitter prison warden to delay the scheduled execution of a young man, seeks ally in prison chaplain		Has several dramatic moments
10/11/58	Duel at Florence	Pacifist town barber enlists Paladin's aid in fight with two other men for the hand of his unsure, petulant ladylove		Surprise! -- she really wanted the barber the whole time
10/18/58	The Protégé	Paladin teaches a bullied young man how to quick-draw and shoot		Can the student surpass his teacher? A classic episode
10/25/58	The Road to Wickenburg	Paladin wakes up groggy after being robbed, confronts five men who control town		The black dragonslayer takes no prisoners in this one
11/01/58	A Sense of Justice	Paladin volunteers his services to help a small-town sheriff keep a retarded man accused of murder from being lynched		Features decent gunfight and nice twist at end
11/08/58	Young Gun	Bitter ex-gunfighter, now rancher, denies town access to its only source of water, trains son as gunman, forces showdown with Paladin		Great script, much depth
11/15/58	The Lady	British gentlewoman hires Paladin as guide for trip to brother's Arizona ranch, where Comanches happen to be on the warpath		These are the dumbest Indians of all time
11/22/58	A Snare for Murder	Two cantankerous gold miners, partners doing quite well, want each other dead -- or does someone else?		Well-plotted mystery
11/29/58	Pre-empted
12/06/58	The Ballad of Oscar Wilde	Paladin must rescue famous writer and quipster Oscar Wilde from cowboy kidnappers		Nearly a classic
12/13/58	The Solid Gold Patrol	Paladin informs a cavalry corporal on patrol that he's won $600,000 in a lottery, but he may not collect -- due to dozens of very hostile Indians		You'll sit there saying "yep, that's what would have happened to me."
12/20/58	Something to Live For	On his way to help an old man and his daughter in a land dispute, Paladin encounters and brings along a wealthy, spoiled, helpless, alcoholic young man		Love is in the air -- or is it just whiskey breath?
12/27/58	The Moor's Revenge	Paladin tries to preserve order when Shakespearean actors try to perform in an unfriendly, wild-west saloon		Let us keepeth William S. in the schools, where he belongeth
01/03/59	The Wager	Wealthy businessmen dupe Paladin and another gunman into a deadly shoutout solely for their own amusement		The upper class just needs its bread and circuses
01/10/59	The Taffeta Mayor	Paladin persuades wife of murdered, honest candidate for mayor in corrupt town to run in his place		I think I'll abstain
01/17/59	Lady on the Stagecoach	Paladin's key companions while traveling by stage are an Indian chief's Eastern-educated daughter and a crate packed with gold		Nicely-done tale of bigotry, with some tense moments
01/24/59	Treasure Trail	Paladin wins piece of treasure map in poker game, searches for it with three other men who have the rest of the pieces		Nice puzzle, good show
01/31/59	Juliet	An unarmed Paladin helps a girl on the cusp of womanhood avoid a notorious ex-Confederate colonel (and his nasty kin) with murder on his mind		Coming-of-age story succeeds on several levels
02/07/59	Hunt the Man Down	Paladin must intervene in a bitter dispute between two brothers, both of whom are old friends		Whip-crackin' internecine war
02/14/59	The Scorched Feather	A young Frenchman hires Paladin to protect his backwoods father from an insane Indian warrior		Just a tad obscure, but most unusual and engrossing
02/21/59	The Return of the Lady	Title character of The Lady wires Paladin, seeking rescue from impending marriage to wealthy, gruff rancher whom she's been trying to refine		One of Paladin's weaker game-plans
02/28/59	The Monster of Moon Ridge	Strange, unearthly things are happening near Moon Ridge, Colorado -- or do they have a prosaic explanation?		Very silly stuff
03/07/59	The Long Hunt	Paladin and others, including a rancher whose wife was killed by Indians, go into the mountains after a murderous half-Comanche		So slow it seems impossibly long
03/14/59	Death of a Gunfighter	Paladin finds himself a reluctant participant in a deadly New Mexican feud, and must deal with a repentant, lightning-draw Mexican gunman		Muy, muy bueno
03/21/59	Incident at Borasca Bend	Goofy prospectors of wacky "tent town" put Paladin on trial for the murder of one of their comrades		Ho-hum "courtroom episode"
03/28/59	Pre-empted
04/04/59	Maggie O'Bannion	After being bushwacked and stripped of everything, Paladin hires on as handyman at the ranch of the lovely and lonely Maggie		Silly knife-fight almost ruins a fine episode
04/11/59	The Chase	Woman hires Paladin to find and bring in husband, a bank clerk accused of killing deputy sheriff, before vengeful posse does		Decent climax salvages show
04/18/59	Alaska	Old Russian friend and furrier asks for Paladin's help when U.S. buys Alaska, and yahoo squatters try to drive him out		Paladin in a dog-sled race? Yelp!
04/25/59	The Man Who Lost	Paladin captures a killer (who claims he's innocent) who also abused his victim's wife; now Paladin must protect him from the dead man's vengeful brothers		We don't lose -- this one's a classic
05/02/59	The Return of Roy Carter	Paladin and title character from The Hanging of Roy Carter search snow-covered mountains for a chaplain and an escaped convict		Dramatic ending provides salvation
05/09/59	The Sons of Aaron Murdock	Paladin is hired by a rancher to bring in his sadistic son, who's wanted for murder		Standard tale of good son, bad son
05/16/59	Comanche	Paladin goes after cavalry deserter and his girlfriend, finds bullet-ridden horse, history		Nice story of honor, guilt and shame
05/23/59	Homecoming	Innocent and angry convict (who'd been caught by Paladin), now released, poses threat to venal stagecoach magnate		Familiar, okay story
05/30/59	The Fifth Man	Maniacal killer escapes from prison, slays four, then sticks around instead of leaving; Paladin must capture him, find out why		Intriguing premise holds interest
06/06/59	Heritage of Anger	Paladin helps couple who have been targeted by a legendary Mexican outlaw, demanding they hand over their adopted son or die		Satisfying study of a kid torn between two worlds
06/13/59	The Haunted Trees	Woman who inherited lumber mill from husband hires Paladin to stop her stepson's guerilla tactics, which have been sabotaging the operation		Female lead is quite a character
06/20/59	Gold and Brimstone	A delusional old man working an abandoned mine thinks Paladin is the Devil		Interesting primarily because of Paladin's amused tolerance

 

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