User Reviews

Bradford Dillman is such a natural actor that he makes this rather average - but with a twist - episode worth a look.

Whilst camping on Barkley property - Audra discovers his campfire - Dillman plays Eric, a romantic drifter/philosopher who reads poetry.

Audra is most taken by this unusual man who charms her in subtle but deep ways: the acting makes you believe.

Eric saves Audra's life when she - foolishly - goes down on a very dangerous ledge which overlooks the huge gorge below.

Linda Evans looks particularly gorgeous in this one, if anyone cares to know...

Oh, I would like to say that the average episode of this show rates an *8*, but *7.5* is more realistic: and I am an enormous fan!

I thought this episode was as close to perfect you could make a western love story. Bradford Dillman is an award winning actor who plays the part of a Civil War veteran Eric Mercer with a mysterious past. spoiler***The question is what one man would do to save many rather than die suredly. The consequences of those actions define this episode. Justice is taken that is clearly outside the law, but at the same time some may feel deservedly. It matters what side of the fence your on.

The most interesting parts of this movie are Mercer's poetic interchanges.... with I can't say less than what I call the heaven on earth looking Audra. She is so striking to see on screen that it leaves one with pause. Linda Evans does one of her best performances as a love struck youth fighting with her inner conflicts. The writing in this movie was spot on. Few times do movies interlace meaningful prose with the indelible feelings of it's main character Eric Mercer. It reveals what one woman falls for is the mystery, and the perfection of guise. Even though the perpetrator of this prose was at no time parting with any lies. In fact it seems like his is revealing what would seem to define his very existence. If there is a better story of love with a western backdrop, I have yet to see it.

In this story, Audra Barkley (Linda Evans) meets a man with a troubled past. He's played by Bradford Dillman, and we learn he's been on the run for a long time. In fact, he's traveled a distance of 2500 miles. When he stops to rest on the Barkley ranch, he is discovered by Audra who takes an instant liking to him.

He has in his possession a book of poems, which comes in handy when courting Audra. During the war, he was responsible for the death of 63 fellow soldiers. An ex-army lieutenant and his men are on his trail. Soon, they've tracked him to Stockton, and to the Barkley property. The stage is set for a confrontation.

This episode works largely because of the innocence that Audra projects in these kinds of romantic stories. She never falls for a man without huge problems. During the course of this episode, we want to believe she might have found a true and lasting happiness. But it's clear that although their relationship might be special, he is still a doomed man. Near the end, he tells her not to love a dead man, which gives us some idea how it will turn out.

Generally this is a good episode. BUT.... The plot is that a man, Eric Mercer (Bradford Dillman), is about to be hanged by a posse of the US Cavalry, who blame him for the deaths of 63 men who had been under his command. He escapes and flees, with the posse in pursuit. He camps out on Barkley land, where he is discovered by Audra. He intrigues her because he is intelligent, gentle, and quotes poetry. Over a few short days they become very fond of each other, and in a dramatic scene he saves her from falling to her death. The Barkley men are looking for someone who has been poaching their cattle, and initially think it is him. But they discover that it was the cook for the posse. When they go to settle the matter, they are informed by the head of the posse, Alexander Morrison (Douglas Kennedy), that the posse is after Mercer, and why. The Barkleys don't give anything away, but they do demand an explanation from Mercer when they get home. He tells them the story from his point of view. He realizes he should leave, but stays because of Audra. The Barkleys try to protect him, but the inevitable tragic end comes to pass. Here are the problems: 1) Mercer's escape from the posse should not have been possible. People being executed by hanging usually have their hands tied behind their backs. 2) The Barkley ranch was supposedly about 1,000 acres, which is a bit less than the size of 1,000 football fields. So Mercer should have been able to hide more successfully from the posse, if not from the Barkleys. 3) Jarrod Barkley is a lawyer. Why didn't he take steps to see that Mercer got a proper hearing, or at least present Mercer's point of view to the posse? 4) {comment on the series in general} Audra seems to fall in love quickly and easily with all sorts of ill-fated men - an overused plot device, especially since she is always so pure and innocent and never seems to learn. 5) {comment on the series in general} All the members of the Barkley family seem to bounce right back, in the last 4-5 minutes of the show, after undergoing loss, physical abuse and/or torture, or other trauma. At least in this episode Audra is allowed to mourn the loss of Eric. Bizarrely, though, in the last scene Jarrod turns up with a gold bracelet, saying that three days of mourning are enough, and that the bracelet should snap Audra out of her emotional slump. I'm glad the writers had Victoria set Jarrod straight here. But that scene makes you think that Jarrod considers Audra a shallow bubblehead. Other than the questionable bits, this is generally a decent and watchable episode.

In this episode we learn how truly dopey Audra is when she foolishly tumbles off a cliff. The sequence makes for good entertainment as a man-on-the run from his past, played by Bradford Dillman, pulls her to safety and into a fleeting romance. The poetry loving man-on-the run is being chased by a group of men lead by a one-armed man. Fans of The Fugitive will appreciate this irony. Linda Evans shines as Audra in this episode. I like her twisted smile in an early scene with Barbara Stanwyck as she reveals her encounter with Dillman.