User Reviews

For the beginning of season six, we get a very interesting tale that deals with the pros and cons of friendship. The situation will place Matt right in the middle of the conflict and the outcome will be another reason that the series will run for years to come.

The story begins when Matt receives a letter saying that his friend, Ab Butler, has been shot in the back and is laying on the ground near Cotton Well. Matt finds Ab and takes him back to Dodge to be seen by Doc Adams. With the bullet wound in the back, Ab refuses to tell Matt who shot him. Ab claims that it was personal business but wants Matt to hide him since the man that shot him will return when he finds out that he is not dead.

Later a sinister looking dude, Joe Leeds, rides into Dodge looking for Ab. When he finds out that Ab is located in the Doctor's office he decides to pay him a visit. But before he can carry out his intentions, Matt has to put a few bullets in him. Before dying Joe tells Matt the reason that he is looking for Ab. The reason will stretch the friendship that Matt and Ab have had for many years.

Another great story that begins a new season. When the episode began it did not appear to be that interesting of a subject matter, however the program ended strong causing the viewers to be treated to another wonderful watch. A very entertaining episode.

As occasionally happened on Gunsmoke, somebody came to town to take advantage of Matt, Doc Adams, or Kitty. Later on, Festus and Newly would also become victims of bad friends.

In this episode, a kid runs to give Matt a note from an injured friend, Ab (played by Mike Road who was a guest on Gunsmoke twice). The obvious question was, how did Ab give the note to the kid, since he was miles away on the side of the road? Where were the kid's parents? Why would any kid run miles to town to give a note to the Marshal?

Chester initially talks to the kid, and being Chester, he gets upset at the kid because Chester is busy trying to hammer together a chair without putting it against a table or floor or anything else. So as Chester hammers on one side, it is all coming apart on the other side. Typical Chester Ingenuity.

Matt Dillon gets the note, rides out to find Ab, and then brings him into town so Doc Adams can take out a bullet and nurse him back to health. Doc Adams had a lot of screen time in this episode thanks to Ab being in his office until the very end. It is always nice when Doc Adams gets dialogue, as he was often given the best lines on any given week, and he had a very unique acting style. It is a pleasure to watch Doc.

Mike Road has an enemy looking to kill him, but he won't tell Matt the details. As any good friend, Matt trusts Mike. The moral here is that Matt can only do the right thing for a friend. It is not his fault if his friend changed, and became a lowdown bank robber.

Mike's would-be killer is Joe Leeds, who is played by Tom Reese, who appeared on Gunsmoke fourteen times. Reese stood out due to his fat fleshy tomato shaped nose. Reese usually played a thug, a bully, a hired killer, drunken bum, or random gunslinger. Because Reese normally played a heel, he was occasionally used to throw suspicion off another character. In this episode, Reese gives his standard bad attitude to the Marshal, along with threats and glare. When the time comes, Marshal Dillon dispatches Reese like a bag of rotten tomatoes at the garbage dump.

Thankfully, the final showdown is not left to the imagination. The finale delivers a three-man gunfight, and one of the men in the gunfight is no less than Doc Adams!! Words cannot do this episode Justice. It really delivers at all levels.