Salvation or Bust

Ben leaps far back into time in the old wild west of 1879. The people in the town of Salvation are under threat by a hired gun.

They can take money to leave town or end up dead, just like the sheriff the hired gun just shot dead.

Luckily Ben is a veteran Mexican/American gunslinger called in by his granddaughter to drive these outlaws out of Salvation.

Unfortunately Ben is a pacifist who cannot shoot a gun. Addison who has a military background needs to teach Ben to be a sharpshooter. Fortunately Ben has another way, get the citizens of Salvation to rally together.

Back at the Quantum Leap project, a congresswoman is snooping about rather suspiciously. Maybe she plans to shut it down.

Another anodyne story. Nothing leaps off the page here, it is just too bland even for American episodic television. Only at the end there is something different with the reveal of another traveller.

Other than the final 30 seconds, this was a really bad episode. For a show that the producers want to use to bust stereotypes, this episode played up every stupid western stereotype in the most unrealistic way, using painfully unconvincing dialogue and eye-rolling character tropes. This might have been tolerable if the plot and action had been the least bit entertaining. And why does nobody pay attention when Ben would be apparently talking to himself in public? At least there have been more hits than misses so far, and the twist at the end could set up some more good ones down the road.......

It starts with a weak premise-placing so much burden on an old man-then piles on guilt-tripping, bullying, and ultimately forcing his hand.

The episode had great potential, but it was squandered by relying on the tension of his son's death and a daughter "demanding" that her grandfather step into a fight that has nothing to do with him. How are we supposed to feel any sympathy for her?

At least the overall story arc had moments that made it somewhat watchable.

This feels like a low point.

People have already mentioned the stupid western stereotypes, lone heroes saving the town and all that when, I dunno, you could just ambush the gang of three to six people using your home field advantage...? Which, they eventually touch on, but like, you don't need a time travelling scientist to say "work together to overcome the small gang of thugs." It's silly.

Whatever, the production design. Is on point for the leap portion.

The issue I have is more the "sometimes you gotta kill" subplot and the "oversight is bad actually" subplot. The idea that working outside any kind of oversight is to be apauded, that going rogue is good.

I get they're supposed to be heroes in the context of the narrative, but having a thinly veiled AOC character show up and be "the bad guy trying to shut you down" feels a bit, trite.

In fact that feels like the overwhelming weakness of this entire series. The interesting part of Quantum Leap is, you know, the travelling through time part...?

The interdepartmental politics, the "evil leaper stealing Al's ziggy box" are the weaker parts of the narrative. But they seem to exist solely as a cost cutting measure rather than making every episode focus solely on the time travel...

Also, I miss the original theme tune.