Bonanza (TV Series) Four Sisters from Boston (1966) User Reviews

A nice episode featuring Vera Miles

[kfo9494 · 7/10 · 10 December 2012]

When I first saw the plot of this episode, I had the idea that this was going to be one of those silly comedies that often play out in the Bonanza series. However I was pleasantly surprised by the results of this show.

Four sisters from Boston ride into Virginia City to stake claim on dead Uncle's farm. The farm is to be auctioned off if the back taxes are not paid and the women do not have enough money to pay the taxes in full. Ben Cartwright gets suspicious about the auction and pays the back taxes for the women. But the lead sister Sarah Lowell (Vera Miles) has reservation about the motive behind Ben's action.

In reality a cattle rancher named Luke Catlin (Morgan Woodward) was trying to get the property for less than its value. So with the first way to obtain the farm over- Catlin now seeks to make the sister's move. They perform acts of vandalism against the sisters hoping that they will leave. However Sarah believes the Cartwrights are behind all the problems. Something will have to happen to make Sarah believe that the Cartwrights are truly nice people.

Not really a great show but one that held the interest of viewers till the end. Two things really stood out in the show, one was Morgan Woodward in an Indian outfit and the other Ben Cartwright bringing a lasso to a gunfight. But with those things aside it was a pleasant watch.

The Cartwights are the good guys

[bkoganbing · 6/10 · 10 December 2012]

This episode of Bonanza shows that even when you try to do the right and charitable thing with some people all you'll get is suspicions. Vera Miles is the oldest of the four Lowell sisters from Boston who come out to settle the estate of their late uncle. He owes a lot in back taxes and the sisters can't pay the lien, hence the property goes up for auction. When Ben plays the back taxes and the sisters have clear title all he gets is suspicions from Miles. The others are all right, but Miles dominates them.

As the saying goes, no good deed goes unpunished. The real villain is Morgan Woodward who's been using the Lowell land for grazing his stolen cattle. He was trying to get it at auction, but Lorne Greene foiled him. Now he has to get the sisters out with other ways.

Vera Miles is great in this part of a woman mad at the world. She had to raise the other four. She reminds me a lot of my grandmother who spent 82 years on earth just mad at everything and she had the same background.

In the end of course they realize the Cartwrights are the good guys.

Hop Sing steals this one

[glitterrose · 2/10 · 23 June 2022]

I wanted to try and finish this episode but couldn't. I'll head into this review saying what I say on other reviews. Overall I don't have beefs with actors or actresses. They get handed a script and they do it. Vera Miles is a wonderful actress but I honestly couldn't stand the character she played. It's the writing for the character I'm having problems with. It's absolutely not Vera's problem.

Can I understand what Sarah's going through? Yeah. Sounds like the sisters parents died early on and Sarah was the 'parent' to her sisters. It's not an easy life having so much responsibility on your shoulders or even being forced to step up to the plate and taking on a parental role when you might still be young enough to still be considered a kid. I can see where you might develop a hardness to your personality, you might be a no non sense type of person and be serious all day long. So I can see that developing into a 'It's me against the world' attitude.

But can I mix all that together and excuse rudeness away? No. I have no problem flipping over to Little House and watching Harriet, Nellie, Nancy and (young) Willie Oleson being rude or domineering to others. They're the comedic roles and you're meant to laugh at their ridiculousness. But Sarah's not meant to be a comedic role played for laughs. She barked her head off at anybody that crossed her path, whether it be the Cartwrights (who are trying to help the sisters), her own sisters, or even the stage coach driver. The stage coach driver didn't break a wheel in purpose to mess up your schedule for the day so there's no need in getting snippy with him. I don't talk like this because I think the slang is silly. I guess you could call Sarah 'Karen'.

My favorite part I watched involved Hop Sing. He had a memorable snippet when he had to prepare some lemonade and he was in a MOOD that he went to all this trouble and nobody drank the lemonade he made. Again, I wish they had more episodes centered on Hop Sing because he is an entertaining character. He might not be a Cartwright but I imagine he's been with the Cartwrights long enough that he's part of the family anyway.