Top 5 Alias Smith and Jones Episodes
The Fifth Victim
Heyes and Kid join a poker game and soon the players start dying. After Heyes is shot,
Kid is determined to find the shooter.
This episode has a good mystery, interesting side characters, and of course the angst at seeing Heyes shot. It reveals some things about Heyes too. Heyes is not a bad person but he’d really rather not get involved in other people’s problems. He worries about himself and the Kid and that’s about it. He is more than ready to ride out of town once people start dying. If he hadn’t been shot, they would have.
Their bond really shines here. Kid is so determined to find the person who nearly killed his partner, that he puts himself up as bait. But, once it’s clear that Heyes is going to be okay, he’s not interested in putting himself in danger anymore. And when the sheriff is thinking that Kid is the shooter, Heyes covers for him without actually being sure of what happened because he knows Kid and Kid would never hurt him.
Heyes and Kid join a man named Seth and a stranger named Danny Bilson at a gold mine in the middle of the desert. But, once they find their fortune Bilson strands the other three there. Now they must make it back and get their revenge.
This one is odd for reasons beyond the show’s control. It guest stars Roger Davis as the titular smiler with a gun who would go on to take over the role of Hannibal Heyes after the passing of Pete Duel. It’s a little weird seeing them on screen together like this. Roger Davis is very good in this episode by the way. He exudes evil in a way that not very many villains on this show do.
This episode is darker than the usual AS&J story. Between seeing them struggle to make it across the desert with very little water through Seth succumbing to the elements through Kid actually killing Danny Bilson, it’s a somber but well written affair.
Heyes and Curry join a cattle drive. The men start dying one by one and the boss refuses to go to the police until they deliver the cattle to Tenstrike otherwise he’ll lose everything.
Can you tell I prefer the mystery episodes to the con episodes? This is a fun murder mystery with a ticking clock to it. Heyes and Kid need to solve the case before they reach Tenstrike or risk the law finding out who they really are. The guest cast is strong with Pernell Roberts and Steve Forest. There’s a really wonderful bit where Heyes watches Kid get into a fight with one of the other men and then tends to his wounds afterward.
The only knock against this episode I’d give it is I think the ending is a bit underwhelming. But, up until then it’s a very fun tale.
How to Rob a Bank in One Hard Lesson
Heyes and Curry are lured in by two women and an old acquaintance, Harry Wagoner,
who wants Heyes to rob a bank for him. To ensure he goes through with it, the women hold Kid hostage
and let Heyes know that they will kill him if Heyes doesn’t follow through with the robbery. Heyes has to
figure out how to both free Kid and make sure they don’t ruin their chance for amnesty.
This is a great Heyes episode. He shows off why he was the most successful outlaw in the west.
It’s a way better showcase than the Pilot was. This episode shows off his intelligence, his love for Kid,
and his determination to stay on the straight and narrow. He can easily rob that bank. He just doesn’t
want to. This is the first time, maybe the only time, we see him get really violent when he tries to beat
Kid’s location out of Harry. Even going so far as to nearly drown the man. We see him struggle all
episode with how to both save Kid and make sure that money stays where it belongs.
The stuff with Kid, sadly, isn’t as interesting. He tries to escape a few times and fails. The younger
woman who has him is a compulsive liar to the point where by the end of the episode,
we still don’t know what the truth is. This is Heyes’ time to shine all the way through and shine he does.
The McCreedy Bust: Going Going Gone
While trying again to steal back the Cesar bust for Big Mac McCreedy, the boys have to kill time in a
little town with a big bully who insists that no one in town is allowed to carry a gun.
Heyes is happy to comply. Kid is not.
Technically, this episode is part of the ongoing McCreedy saga but it’s really about Kid Curry. We’ve
seen in the past, his reluctance to part with his gun. It’s his safety net. It’s the one thing he’s
completely confident in, aside from Heyes. He says he feels naked without it and he won’t remove it for
no better reason than someone says he has to. Heyes is worried about causing trouble and Kid swears
he’ll be as meek as a mouse but he won’t remove his gun.
There’s a wonderful subplot about a preacher who lost his faith and latches on to Kid because he thinks
Kid is a strong believer in nonviolence. At one point, Heyes pleads for Kid to back down if not for him then
for the preacher.
This is also the first time we see Heyes and Curry really fight with each other. Heyes doesn’t see the big deal with
removing his gun. Kid is stubborn and he knows it. We find out that he told Heyes when they first started
trying for amnesty that they should split up because he believed Heyes would make it but he wouldn’t.
That says so much about how he sees the both of them. Heyes has his quick and clever mind and Kid
has his speed and his gun.
