"Have Guns-Will Haggle" was one of three rejected Tara King episodes shot prior to "The Forget-Me-Knot," all of which were reworked before eventual broadcast. This one began life under the title "Invitation to a Killing," but the plot doesn't justify the original 90 minute running time, there's very little story for an ordinary one hour show (very much a throwback to the earliest days of the series). Top secret assault rifles are stolen, to later be sold at auction, but Colonel Martin Nsonga (Johnny Sekka) has already made a down payment on the consignment, to be used to stage a military coup in his native African state. Steed poses as another buyer to foil his plans, and must also rescue a captive Tara from a fatal demonstration of rifle power. Timothy Bateson ("The Correct Way to Kill") has a brief but amusing turn as a ballistics expert, but everything else is fairly dull (like "Invasion of the Earthmen," you can tell the old footage from the new by Tara's quickly discarded blonde wig). If this was actually intended to introduce Linda Thorson's Tara King, then it was very poor indeed, for she has almost nothing to do. Real duds were fortunately rare, but it holds together much better than "Homicide and Old Lace," and the climax is genuinely suspenseful.
Review of Have Guns - Will Haggle
