Gunsmoke (TV Series) The Returning (1967) User Reviews

Hardship can test ones morality

[headhunter46 · 8/10 · 15 September 2014]

Drought brings hard times to the people in the area around Dodge. One family is especially hard hit because they will have to pay $600 to the bank soon or lose the ranch they have worked on for years. That would be a lot of money in the 1870's. Maybe close to $14,000 in todays money. Not too many folks I know could just instantly come up with that.

The rancher decides to take desperate measures. He teams up with some outlaws to rob an office in Dodge. Things turn bad and several people are wounded. The rancher, Luke, played by Michael Ansara, gets away with the money. He hides it where he is certain his wife will find it and he hightails it for the back country. A storm wipes out his trail so Matt is unable to follow him.

The wife finds the money by accident and is determined to ignore it. But one day the bank manager stops by and warns her he only manages the bank and the owners will insist on payment of the $600 or the ranch will be taken from them. Will she give in to temptation and use the stolen money, or will she stand true and refuse to use that money to save the ranch? I leave that to your imagination. Watch and enjoy, I thought it was a great episode.

A deed that has unintended results- Good show

[kfo9494 · 8/10 · 13 March 2013]

The area around Dodge is suffering a severe drought and it has hit the family of Luke Todd exceptionally hard. With things looking bleak, Luke Todd decides to resume his early life and calls his old bandit friends. They decide to rob the freight office in Dodge with a haul of over $20,000.

When things go wrong during the robbery, one of the bandits 'rats out' Luke to the Marshal. Luke hides the money inside his house so that his wife, Amy, and his two small sons can have a better life and then flees the area. But his intention will soon turn sour when his deed cause more trouble than help for his family.

The plight of Amy and the kids was very entertaining. As hard as Amy tries not to touch any of the money, it soon becomes necessary with another unintended result. Lots going on in this show that will having you watching to the very end.

Desperate Times, Desperate Actions, Unintended Consequences

[wdavidreynolds · 7/10 · 8 April 2021]

Luke Todd, his wife, Amy, and his sons, Ethan and Shem, live near Dodge City. A severe drought has negatively impacted the Todd's ability to make ends meet. In desperation, Luke contacts some old friends from his past, and they rob the freight office in Dodge.

Unfortunately, the robbery does not go exactly as planned. Luke is injured, and his identity is revealed, making him a wanted man. Luke leaves the money that was stolen so his wife can find it, and then goes on the run.

Amy is now faced with a situation where she needs money to support her and her children, and Luke is absent. Like Luke before her, she acts out of her own desperation, and sets in motion a series of unintended consequences that must be faced eventually.

Michael Ansara was a fine actor who became a star based on his portrayal of the Chiricahua Apache leader Cochise in the 1950's series Broken Arrow. Although he was born in Syria, he often portrayed American Indian characters, including a stint as U. S. Marshal Sam Burkhart in the short-lived series Law of the Plainsman. Ansara's Burkhart character was introduced in two episodes of The Rifleman. Ansara does a fantastic job here in the Luke Todd role. Lois Nettleton is equally great as the wife conflicted between what she knows is right and what she needs. The rest of the supporting guests help keep the story compelling.

It is interesting to see Matt Dillon's unconventional approach to the plight of the Todd family, and it results in an unexpected outcome to the story.