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The Adventures of Brisco County jr - Riverboat
episode 6
USA 1993
produced by Paul Marks, Jeffrey Boam (executive), Carlton Cuse (executive) for Boam/Cuse Productions, Warner Brothers/Fox Network
directed by Fred Gerber
starring Bruce Campbell, Julius Carry, Christian Clemenson, Kelly Rutherford, Xander Berkeley, Montae Russell, Don Stroud, Cal Bartlett, John Shumski, Brandon Bluhm, Charles Hyman, Robert Prentiss, Charles Hutchins, Glenn Taranto
screenplay by John Warren, created by Jeffrey Boam, Carlton Cuse, music by Velton Ray Bunch
TV series The Adventures of Brisco County jr
review by Mike Haberfelner
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Brisco's (Bruce Campbell) employer Socrates Poole (Christian Clemenson)
has decided to try his hands at poker - something that has landed him
directly in jail, and now he has telegraphed Brisco to get him out.
Brisco's happy to comply, and dressing up as a gentleman gambler he is
quick to win enough money for Socrates' bail in a game of poker (if partly
by cheating) from the very man who has got him in jail, Brett Bones
(Xander Berkeley), one of the man responsible for the death of Brisco's
father. And thus, Brisco would love to have justice served to him, so he
makes up an elaborate scheme: Since Bones is also a boxing promoter,
Brisco brings in his friend and colleague Lord Bowler (Julius Carry) to
challenge Bones' championship boxer Dynamite Sullivan (John Shumski). Now
sure, despite his imposing figure, Bowler's not much of a boxer, but
Brisco pays Sullivan to take a dive - and Bowler wins pretty much
unscathed. So far so good, but enter Dixie Cousins (Kelly Rutherford), bar
singer and acquaintance of Brisco, who wants to make a deal with Bones,
and to stay on his good side she spills the beans about Brisco to him. So
before you know it, Bowler has a rematch against Sullivan on his hands,
and this time Sullivan is not to be bribed, and it's not on neutral
territory but on Bones' riverboat. So the cards seem to be stacked against
Brisco and company - only Dixie isn't one to let her old friend/love
interest Brisco down, and ultimately she steers Bones' riverboats right
into the arms of the law, as there's quite a few crimes Bones has
committed along the way ... Basically, this one's good fun.
Sure, the scheme Brisco has made up (and there's more to it that I've
written about) comes across as over-complicated, far-fetched, convoluted,
and basically asks for quite a bit suspension of disbelief, but it's fun
to see it unfold all the same. And even if the twist that Dixie is
actually on Brisco's side after all doesn't come as much of a surprise,
it's at least set up well. And a very solid ensemble cast in on the joke
but never giving in to flat-out parody see to it that this is - well,
maybe not a milestone in western television, but good genre entertainment
all the same.
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