User Reviews

Ben Justin has been convicted of stealing horses from Garth Brantley. Since the jury found Justin guilty, Judger Brooker has no choice but to impose a sentence of life in prison.

This is a case of the proverbial wheels of justice failing, as it sometimes does in this world. Brantley's son sold the horses to pay off a gambling debt. Brantley used the situation as an opportunity to frame Ben, because Brantley wants the farm Ben and his pregnant wife Elizabeth own. Brantley has since sent his son to "study law" in a further effort to avoid having the truth revealed.

Elizabeth eventually has a healthy baby boy with the help of Doc Adams and Kitty Russell. Matt Dillon sends a telegram to Ben in prison to inform him of the birth.

Life in prison has been understandably harsh for Ben, and it is made worse by a sadistic guard named Hargis who enjoys reminding Ben he will never see his baby boy, because Hargis will see that Ben never leaves the prison. Hargis even demands Ben's wedding ring as payment for seeing the telegram Marshal Dillon sent. As Hargis continues to taunt Ben, he shoves the guard into the cell bars. Hargis temporarily loses consciousness. Ben is able to retrieve his ring and escape.

When Hargis regains consciousness, an elderly inmate in the adjoining cell seizes the opportunity to stab the dazed guard. Hargis soon dies from the wound.

The prison officials assume Ben killed Hargis. Now Ben is not only wanted for breaking out of prison, but he has a murder charge hanging over his head.

Ben manages to get back to his home near Dodge City, reunite with Elizabeth, and see his child for the first time. Obviously, this can be no permanent solution, because he cannot hide for long.

Actor Sam Groom plays the role of Ben Justin. Groom appeared in two different Gunsmoke episodes, and both times he played slightly similar characters. His portrayal of Ben does a wonderful job eliciting the audience's empathy.

The part of Elizabeth Justin, Ben's wife, is played by Pamela McMyler. Like Groom, this is her first appearance in a Gunsmoke story. She would appear once more in Season 20's "The Tarnished Badge." McMyler excelled at playing frantic characters.

Actors H. M. Wynant, Steve Brodie, and Henry Jones guest starred in previous episodes of the series and make their final appearances here. Wynant appears as the prosecuting attorney, Morris Cragin. Brodie plays the part of Garth Brantley. Henry Jones plays an obnoxious, opportunistic peddler named J. Luther Gross.

Richard Hale often played American Indians in his earlier appearances in Gunsmoke stories. In this episode, he plays Old Luke Corbin, the deranged prisoner that stabs Hargis, the prison guard.

Speaking of Hargis, nasty bad guy Leo Gordon plays the character. Gordon first starred in Season 1 of Gunsmoke as the character Hack Prine in the episode of the same name. His appearance here marks his first in the series since Season 6. He would return twice more before the series ended. Gordon's story is legendary in Hollywood. He was shot multiple times by law enforcement and served what has been described as a hard five-year prison term early in his life. After his release from prison, he turned his life around and enjoyed a lengthy acting career.

"No Tomorrow" is one of those episodes where the main characters -- in this case, the Justin family -- are victimized at every turn. They can't catch a break.

This story features an unexpected ending. I will not include spoilers, but I will add that the actions of Festus Haggen are not at all surprising, but the actions -- or more accurately, the lack of actions -- taken by Matt are. The ending may be what the viewer wants, but it is out of character.

For the post-Dennis Weaver era, this is one of the better episodes. The guest cast is stellar, although it hurts to see Leo Gordon reduced to such a paltry role. He appeared in Gunsmoke either the first or second season, when he was at his menacing best. Even as late as 1966, when he starred in "Night of the Grizzlies" with Clint Walker, he was still a very dangerous dude. In the five years between that film and this episode, Gordon seems to have aged 25 years, and he still had another 28 years (in real life) to go. It was evidently a sad decline. That said, the guest cast is excellent, and you wonder why Sam Groome wasn't a bigger star. Ken Curtis gets to show what a fine actor he really was, because he is given a serious, pivotal role. For the ten years he was on the show, his talents were wasted, as too much emphasis was put on his being little more than comic relief (which quickly turned into a major annoyance). As she grew older, Amanda Blake became a much better actress, and the better episodes in the last few years featured Miss Kitty, in my opinion. And any time Glenn Strange/Sam was given lines, the episode improved exponentially. The storyline in this episode meets all of my criteria for the regulars, and it creates some plot twists, some surprises, and some character development, too. Highly enjoyable. The very last scene, when they are all in the Long Branch and in the same frame is poignant. Matt, Doc, Festus, Miss Kitty, Sam -- they are all gone now, but what great memories.

Ben Justin is a nice guy around Dodge with his wife anticipating a baby. But a large landowner, Garth Brantley, has been wanting Ben's farm for a period of time and now gets his son to testify that Ben stole horses. Ben is sentenced to life in prison even though most believe that he was set up by Brantley.

In prison, Ben is being harassed by jailers when he knocks one against the wall and escapes. But during the escape the jailer is stabbed by another but everyone believes that it was Ben who killed the jailer. He flees back to his wife that has just delivered his baby girl.

It is not long before word gets back to Dodge that Ben has escaped. When Festus follows a trail on a theft it takes him right to the Justin's farm. Festus finds Ben and says he will have to come with him. But when Ben's wife intervenes, Ben now has the upper hand.

The remaining of the episode is different from most shows. One that the viewer will have to see to get the full picture of the events. Good watch.

The opening part of the episode started with Ben Justin being sentenced for horse stealing. Judge Booker was reluctant to impose the sentence for Ben Justin's crime; nevertheless, he had no redress but to impose life imprisonment for the crime. Deputy Festus Haggen and Marshal Matt Dillion were sure Ben Justin did not commit horse stealing. Garth Brantley and his son set him up to nail Ben Justin on this trumped-up charge -- all in order to pay off his son's gambling debts and keep him quiet to law school. His wife had a baby girl while in the custody of the Kansas State Penitentary for the rest of his natural life. The warden made life so miserable for Ben Justin; moreover, brutality and exploitation had been the better part of Ben Justin's stint in prison.

Later in the episode, an old man had stabbed the guard with the knife. The prison officials claimed Ben Justin killed him. He escaped and headed on to hold Festus at gun point. Him, his wife, and the baby headed to Colorado; they had been targets of a serious miscarriage of justice. The reality: The Justins headed for Colorado because of the nightmare they endured from the almighty Brantley Family -- full of corruptness and revenge. The end grade: An "A!!"