Doc Adams stops to introduce himself to a husband and wife named Tibbs that recently settled on the prairie outside Dodge City. Flory Tibbs is unfriendly and tells Doc to leave. A man calls out from within the house. When Doc investigates, he finds a man with a badly infected cut on his leg. The man tells Doc he cut himself while chopping wood a couple of days earlier. The mystery deepens when Doc notices the man is holding a gun under the blanket.
Back in Dodge, Doc tells Matt Dillon about the mysterious situation at the farm. Matt and Chester Goode ride out to the Tibbs farm to investigate. Matt poses as a neighbor and hides his status as U. S. Marshal.
Chester and Matt find a tense situation where the man is basically helpless and fears Flory. He asks Matt to take him to Dodge to see Doc. Flory protests, and the man decides to stay where he is. Later, Matt decides he needs to take the man to Dodge for care. The man agrees, but when Matt reveals his true identity, the man backs out again. Mrs. Tibbs suddenly appears with a shotgun and forces Matt and Chester to leave the farm.
The situation becomes increasingly curious. It is clear there is something going on between the couple, but neither is willing to tell the Marshal what is going on.
This story includes a limited number of characters, as much of the activity occurs on the isolated Tibbs farm. The scenes in Dodge even include few actors.
Cloris Leachman turns in a tour-de-force performance as Flory Tibbs. She appeared in two episodes of Gunsmoke, both of which were in the thirty-minute format. The legendary actress was involved in television for over seventy years. She could play both serious and comedy roles with equal excellence. Her portrayal of Flory Tibbs stands out as one of the most memorable in the history of Gunsmoke.
Phillip Bourneuf also guested in two Gunsmoke episodes, and, like Leachman, both were during the earlier episodes designed to fit in thirty-minute time slots. Bourneuf plays the bedridden man.
This is another of the twelve episodes where Sam Peckinpah wrote the screenplay based on a John Meston story. It is easy to attribute too much credit to Peckinpah for these episodes. Some obviously bear the renowned writer and director's touch -- "The Guitar," for example. Others feature fewer Peckinpah touches. "The Round Up" and this episode are examples of the latter. Peckinpah wrote the screenplays; he didn't direct these episodes. Meston's story was so strong, it is rare that any additions were required. This screenplay follows Meston's story closely. The only thing Peckinpah adds are the funny scenes with Chester and his smelly wedge of cheese.
(I wonder if Peckinpah was given a choice of John Meston stories to convert into screenplays. It was not unusual for a few episodes in a season -- especially the earlier thirty-minute stories -- to rely on routine "good guys versus bad guys" themes and to use familiar tropes. Each of the Peckinpah entries were based on unique Meston stories.)
Along with Leachman's outstanding portrayal of Flory Tibbs, this fascinatingly dark story features an extremely clever plot twist courtesy of Meston. Highly recommended.
Note of minor interest: Late in this episode Matt receives a wanted poster for George Bassett which plays a key role in the story. That wanted poster appears numerous times in future episodes. Sometimes it is on the wall inside Marshal Dillon's office. At other times it can be seen posted on the wall outside the office next to the door. Given what we learn about the name on the poster in this episode, it is noteworthy that the poster continues to be seen in future installments of the series.
Back in Dodge, Doc tells Matt Dillon about the mysterious situation at the farm. Matt and Chester Goode ride out to the Tibbs farm to investigate. Matt poses as a neighbor and hides his status as U. S. Marshal.
Chester and Matt find a tense situation where the man is basically helpless and fears Flory. He asks Matt to take him to Dodge to see Doc. Flory protests, and the man decides to stay where he is. Later, Matt decides he needs to take the man to Dodge for care. The man agrees, but when Matt reveals his true identity, the man backs out again. Mrs. Tibbs suddenly appears with a shotgun and forces Matt and Chester to leave the farm.
The situation becomes increasingly curious. It is clear there is something going on between the couple, but neither is willing to tell the Marshal what is going on.
This story includes a limited number of characters, as much of the activity occurs on the isolated Tibbs farm. The scenes in Dodge even include few actors.
Cloris Leachman turns in a tour-de-force performance as Flory Tibbs. She appeared in two episodes of Gunsmoke, both of which were in the thirty-minute format. The legendary actress was involved in television for over seventy years. She could play both serious and comedy roles with equal excellence. Her portrayal of Flory Tibbs stands out as one of the most memorable in the history of Gunsmoke.
Phillip Bourneuf also guested in two Gunsmoke episodes, and, like Leachman, both were during the earlier episodes designed to fit in thirty-minute time slots. Bourneuf plays the bedridden man.
This is another of the twelve episodes where Sam Peckinpah wrote the screenplay based on a John Meston story. It is easy to attribute too much credit to Peckinpah for these episodes. Some obviously bear the renowned writer and director's touch -- "The Guitar," for example. Others feature fewer Peckinpah touches. "The Round Up" and this episode are examples of the latter. Peckinpah wrote the screenplays; he didn't direct these episodes. Meston's story was so strong, it is rare that any additions were required. This screenplay follows Meston's story closely. The only thing Peckinpah adds are the funny scenes with Chester and his smelly wedge of cheese.
(I wonder if Peckinpah was given a choice of John Meston stories to convert into screenplays. It was not unusual for a few episodes in a season -- especially the earlier thirty-minute stories -- to rely on routine "good guys versus bad guys" themes and to use familiar tropes. Each of the Peckinpah entries were based on unique Meston stories.)
Along with Leachman's outstanding portrayal of Flory Tibbs, this fascinatingly dark story features an extremely clever plot twist courtesy of Meston. Highly recommended.
Note of minor interest: Late in this episode Matt receives a wanted poster for George Bassett which plays a key role in the story. That wanted poster appears numerous times in future episodes. Sometimes it is on the wall inside Marshal Dillon's office. At other times it can be seen posted on the wall outside the office next to the door. Given what we learn about the name on the poster in this episode, it is noteworthy that the poster continues to be seen in future installments of the series.
