Cotter's Girl

Marriette Hartley delivers a fantastic performance, upstaging every regular cast member in what must rank as the most delightful Gunsmoke episode ever. This is both heart warming and funny. The constant interplay between Hartley and James Arness is mesmerizing, as each cast member is allowed to just have fun on camera, and that jolliness shines through the entire episode.

The plot, such as it is, becomes unimportant as this is a human play of an innocent platonic relationship, and is as close as one will ever get to seeing James Arness play out as a father of a teenage daughter, one who by the way isn't interested in playing the role of daughter, as she is puppy lover!

Hartley was actually 23 years old when this episode was made, and yet she plays the role of innocent teen so well that one forgets how old she really was. It took an outstanding actress to pull this role off, and Hartley delivered!

Sorry, usually I agree with my fellow reviewers about Gunsmoke; and I concur that the scene at Ma Smalley's between Matt & Clarey was charming, after she gets a little more mature (and less goofy) and they sense a real connection, it was very well done.

Additionally, Chester again comes off so sweet in helping teach Clarey manners, curtsies & how to use a knife & fork.

That said, I cud take a 30 min episode of this, as watching this girl for an hour, hugging everyone 100 times, was a bit too much. The cuteness of her naivety wore off fast and I was hoping someone would dunk her in a trough.

Yes, Hartley was good, but to me she didn't expand the character as much as possible. It had more of a female Tarzan aura to it, even in the dialogue, as she spoke poor broken english. LOL. Not a bad episode but a pointless one where so much more was available.

Clarey Cooter had a lot to learn only about how to live around people not how to be open and honest. She was comical only in how nieve she was about things most of us take for granted. When Matt met up with her he definitely got more than he was expecting. So off to Dodge they went. I loved the scene when they stopped in Shallow Water at a dress shop. That was funny. An older lady ran the shop and I don't think she was too long on patience but then neither was Clarey. Can't blame her for not wanting anything to do with a corsset. I don't think anyone these days would either. It was a good story and a nice change of pace from the norm. Make sure you watch the last scenes. Totally priceless!

Clarey totally disarms Matt in this episode and Arness shows his acting skills in playing against Clarey's obvious developing crush on the big man. He is at a total loss on how to handle Clarey.

The scene at the dressmaker's store is really out of character for this 'shoot 'em up' genre and series.lll

Fortunately, the other main characters in Dodge take Clarey under thieir wings, including Chester teaching Clarey to read. The scene with Doc is sensitive and touching, too. Kitty brings the clothes to fix her up, too.

Hartley's performance for such a young actress is stellar and completely in character.

The next to final scene with Clarey on Ma Smalley's porch is touching. Arness plays it so well... sort of an inward reflection as to what it could have been between him and Clarey if he was 20 years younger.

All in all, a great episode and a change up to the usual fare served up by the wild west series.

This is the distaff version of "Old Companion", with the male heir replaced by a female. * It's comparably pointless -- the central conflict, of turning a tomboy into a young "lady", is of no particular consequence to anyone.

What saves this show (which could have been as awful as "Old Companion" -- see my review) is Mariette Hartley's performance. "Charming" doesn't begin to describe it. She's as fresh as a daisy and natural as spring water, unmannered and devoid of self-awareness. It's unlikely any other ingénue of the early '60s could have done remotely as well. One gets the feeling that the script was written with her in mind.

Recommended -- not for the story, but for the pleasure of watching Ms Hartley.

* In watching multiple seasons of various TV series, I'm surprised at how often episodes within a few weeks of each other are thematically similar or even identical. (This even happens /across/ series!) It's probably not an accident -- one writer's idea provokes an "I can do better reaction" in other writers.