Comanches Is Soft

Burt Reynolds and Ken Curtis are great in this comedy that played out excellent. Both men made the show entertaining and fun to watch.

The episode begins as Festus states that he is 'full of beans' meaning he is in a goofin mood. He goes over to Quints and gets into a friendly scuffle which only leads to Festus falling and breaking Quint's bellows that he uses to heat the fire. Now Quint is going to have to go to Wichita in order to get new ones.

Festus wants to make the trip but Quint tells him an incorrect time that he will be leaving. But that makes no difference as Festus hides under the wagon and unknown to Quint is on the trail with him. So Quint and Festus are now on a road trip.

They pull into one town to spend the night when Festus challenges Quint to a drinking contest. The only thing that it really does is cause a full saloon brawl with them mainly as spectators. During their drunken spectacle Quint tells a woman named Liz that because she feels at danger in this town she can ride with them.

Liz comes along for the ride and sweet talks both men. But along the way Festus and Quint have to fight two brothers that want to take the sweet talking Liz with them. Soon a man named Big Hardy comes into camp and looking for Liz. Hardy is a big man that takes care of both Festus and Quint and goes toward Liz. The next thing is they are having a big kiss and Hardy tells Quint and Festus that they were the best she has ran off with yet. Hardy and Liz leave arm in arm.

After getting back to Dodge with the new bellow, Festus wants to show Quint a wrestling move he learned. Needless to say another trip to Wichita may be in the future.

This show is load of fun and entertaining from start to finish. Cannot say more about this show and the way the two actors worked together. A funny program for all watchers.

This episode with Quint (Burt Reynolds) and Festus (Ken Curtis) is one of my favorites, due to the interaction between the two. Light on drama but perfect on comedy. Quint plays the perfect straight-man to Festus's "golly Bill," hillbilly timing. The classic line/title comes at a perfect time.

Not giving away any of the details about the show, I'll say this is a great episode!

It's nice to have a break from the serious episodes every now and then and this one most definitely stomps the romance/soap operaish episodes by a mile! There are some great episodes of gunsmoke that pull away from the regular expectations of a western, such as the episodes "Caleb" and "Abe Blocker" which are dramatic episodes but are the kind of drama a man can enjoy. The occasional comedy here and there is very welcome as far as I'm concerned.

Too bad some folks pulled down the overall rating to an "8". It absolutely deserves better than an eight. I think some sourpuss folks need to lighten up a bit. It would be good for them.

I gave it a 10. Perhaps it deserves more of a nine, but I want ahead and upped it to a ten.

I have always been a big Gunsmoke fan. My least favorite episodes were those that featured children and some of the "comedic" episodes.

I feel this is an exception. The duo of Burt Reynolds and Ken Curtis provide plenty of entertainment in this episode. Burt really shows his comedic abilities.

I hope everyone can enjoy this for what it is -- silly but fun.

Of the last six episodes broadcast in Season 9, four of them have prominently featured Festus Haggen -- the newest regular character on Gunsmoke. This is another Festus story, although this one is a "buddy story" with Quint Asper and Festus.

When the episode opens, Festus is feeling "full of beans," meaning he is in an unusually goofy, rambunctious, mischievous mood. He eventually makes his way to Quint's blacksmith shop where he accidentally breaks Quint's bellows during a playful scuffle with Quint.

This sets up the premise of the story, as Quint has to travel to Wichita to get a new bellows, and Festus tags along, much to Quint's detriment.

Festus and Quint engage in a little drunken revelry in a Wichita saloon where they meet a saloon girl named Liz. Liz wants to get away from Wichita, and Quint and Festus agree to allow her to travel back to Dodge City with them.

Of course, the situation is not as straightforward as it seems on the surface. Liz flirts with both men -- as well as anyone else they encounter on the trail. There is something Quint and Festus don't know about Liz, and the revelation turns out to be a bit painful for the pair.

For better or worse -- depending on one's perspective -- the addition of the Festus Haggen character to Gunsmoke provided more opportunities for episodes that were comedic in nature. Although there were a few episodes that featured lighter fare prior to the introduction of Festus, nothing would approach some of the comedy content that would follow. This is the first of what would be many comedy-oriented stories featuring Festus in the seasons to come.

Kathleen "Kathy" Nolan plays the Liz character in this episode. Prior to her appearance here, she had starred in the comedy series The Real McCoys, although she left that series prior to the final season. Don Megowan appears here as the character Big Hardy. Megowan appeared in many television shows over the years, usually as a tough guy. Harry Dean Stanton and Rex Holman, both veteran actors, appear in this episode briefly.

I think how one feels about this episode is linked directly to how much one appreciates the Festus Haggen character. Fans of Festus generally love this story, while the Festus haters are likely to dislike this one.