Played strictly as a romp, this episode has Randall (Steve McQueen) hired by a nervy Clayton Armstrong (Howard Morris) to snatch away his bride-to-be, Jane (Jan Brooks) from a shot-gun toting father, Martin Fairweather (Howard Smith, who I know as the "Push, push, push!" business CEO that barks orders at James Daly in the Twilight Zone episode, "A Stop at Willoughby") who will fight tooth and nail to keep that from happening
because she's a good cook! Then things get even more complicated when Randall successfully gets pops to chase after his prized stallion, but the woman that leaps into his arms isn't the daughter Clayton was waiting for but Martin's other daughter, Patience (Melinda Plowman)! Patience eyes Randall as a potential suitor (she thinks he's too skinny and needs a wife to cook for him and provide a home), and he's all kind of uncomfortable.
The episode's finale has Martin trying to corral his stallion while Randall rides into his ranch to secure Jane for Clayton. Patience's emergence in the plot provides a fun bit of anxiety present on Randall who isn't accustomed to a clinging unmarried woman looking to get hitched. Smith gets so uptight at times, he looks as if he could have a coronary at any moment! Randall's frustration with the fraidy-cat Clayton is most amusing, particularly the ladder attempt which is a disaster. The preacher scene where the would-be newlyweds are trying to rush the reverend actually had me a wee bit nervous as pops is quickly approaching on his stallion, but Randall's fast-thinking cleverly devises a plan that gets them all out of an unpleasant jam. This is aimed to amuse, and the plot doesn't engage you with anything regarding conflict or an examination of the human condition. Plowman (The Outer Limits episode, "Don't Open Till Doomsday" & the notorious Billy the Kid vs. Dracula) is adorable as a flirtatious, man-hunting cutie McQueen is desperate to get away from anytime she draws near, it looks like Randall gulps!
The episode's finale has Martin trying to corral his stallion while Randall rides into his ranch to secure Jane for Clayton. Patience's emergence in the plot provides a fun bit of anxiety present on Randall who isn't accustomed to a clinging unmarried woman looking to get hitched. Smith gets so uptight at times, he looks as if he could have a coronary at any moment! Randall's frustration with the fraidy-cat Clayton is most amusing, particularly the ladder attempt which is a disaster. The preacher scene where the would-be newlyweds are trying to rush the reverend actually had me a wee bit nervous as pops is quickly approaching on his stallion, but Randall's fast-thinking cleverly devises a plan that gets them all out of an unpleasant jam. This is aimed to amuse, and the plot doesn't engage you with anything regarding conflict or an examination of the human condition. Plowman (The Outer Limits episode, "Don't Open Till Doomsday" & the notorious Billy the Kid vs. Dracula) is adorable as a flirtatious, man-hunting cutie McQueen is desperate to get away from anytime she draws near, it looks like Randall gulps!
