"Gunsmoke" did only a few tales where "bachelor marriages" -- male/male households founded on close friendship and economic need (and sometimes sex) -- were significant story elements.
The "Men on..." episode in which Blaine Edwards is hit on the head with a stage light and becomes a rude, rough-talking heterosexual, is almost perfectly anticipated by "Ash".
Ben Galt and Ash Farior fight over Tillie, one of the Long Branch's girls. After "taking it outside" and kicking each other around, they decide they like other ("You never know a man 'til you've fought with him."), and forget about Tillie, starting a freight business to support themselves.
All goes well until Ben gets hit on the head with a barrel, and almost dies. Worse, his personality reverts to his prior-to-meeting-Ash character. He's mean and incorrigible, eventually reaching a point where he threatens to kill Tillie's fiancé. Ash confronts him in the street, and when Ben won't back down, Ash shoots him.
"Naturally", the gunshot brings Ben to his senses, and on his deathbed he lies, telling Matt that he fired first, absolving Ash of murder. The grief-stricken Ash returns to their shop, meditating on what a good friendship they had.
I'd /like/ to give this episode an 8. There are good things in it, especially John Dehner's restrained performance as Ben. But there is much that seems forced or contrived, especially the way Ben & Ash "meet cute", and Tillie blaming herself for the situation. The death scene is implausible, as Ash would have sat next to Ben with his arm around him, holding his hand -- perhaps even kissing him. That's what men did back then. *
I suspect John Meston was trying to write a story about how rough-and-tumble Western men placed friendship above females, but it doesn't quite work. He might even have been trying to sneak in an implicitly homoerotic story, but who can tell?
Not in any way a "bad" episode, but still a "coulda been better" one.
* And still do. Around Christmas of 2012, I sat with a dying friend, his family, and other friends. I held his hand on several occasions and he didn't pull away. I even kissed him a few times. Nor did anyone -- including his wife -- comment on it.
The "Men on..." episode in which Blaine Edwards is hit on the head with a stage light and becomes a rude, rough-talking heterosexual, is almost perfectly anticipated by "Ash".
Ben Galt and Ash Farior fight over Tillie, one of the Long Branch's girls. After "taking it outside" and kicking each other around, they decide they like other ("You never know a man 'til you've fought with him."), and forget about Tillie, starting a freight business to support themselves.
All goes well until Ben gets hit on the head with a barrel, and almost dies. Worse, his personality reverts to his prior-to-meeting-Ash character. He's mean and incorrigible, eventually reaching a point where he threatens to kill Tillie's fiancé. Ash confronts him in the street, and when Ben won't back down, Ash shoots him.
"Naturally", the gunshot brings Ben to his senses, and on his deathbed he lies, telling Matt that he fired first, absolving Ash of murder. The grief-stricken Ash returns to their shop, meditating on what a good friendship they had.
I'd /like/ to give this episode an 8. There are good things in it, especially John Dehner's restrained performance as Ben. But there is much that seems forced or contrived, especially the way Ben & Ash "meet cute", and Tillie blaming herself for the situation. The death scene is implausible, as Ash would have sat next to Ben with his arm around him, holding his hand -- perhaps even kissing him. That's what men did back then. *
I suspect John Meston was trying to write a story about how rough-and-tumble Western men placed friendship above females, but it doesn't quite work. He might even have been trying to sneak in an implicitly homoerotic story, but who can tell?
Not in any way a "bad" episode, but still a "coulda been better" one.
* And still do. Around Christmas of 2012, I sat with a dying friend, his family, and other friends. I held his hand on several occasions and he didn't pull away. I even kissed him a few times. Nor did anyone -- including his wife -- comment on it.