The Executioner

In this one, the supernatural twist is less convincing than usual, but the main narrative is more so.

It is 1862, and we are in a Union army depot, far out in the wilds of Missouri, where corruption thrives with nobody watching. The colonel (Crahan Denton) has got into bad habits, drinking too much and failing to catch Confederate spies, as ordered. They may even be getting a visit from the General, to find out why...

Meanwhile a young Confederate recruit, lost and starving, desperately grabs a rabbit being cooked over the bonfire, but is caught and hauled up in front of the colonel, who sees a chance to raise a false charge of espionage, to improve his record. After jotting down the details of some items expected in tomorrow's delivery, he scrunches up the paper, and orders the soldier to put it in his pocket. Then he summons the sergeant, and orders him to search the soldier. Out comes the 'incriminating' document, and he sends for the captain to prepare for an execution at dawn.

The captain is suspicious of the document, thinking it unlikely that a recruit would carry a pen and paper with him in the field, and confides this to the sergeant, who apparently believes that execution might cause less suffering than the man could expect in combat or in a prison-camp. So the execution is ordered to go ahead.

Through the night, the colonel has been kept awake by the non-stop howling of the prisoner's faithful dog, and goes out and shoots it. But what goes round comes round, in a way that we can't reveal here...

The colonel is played with great confidence as the corrupt, cynical officer, whose ethical standards have long since withered away. The young soldier looks a little too comfortable to carry conviction as the desperate, hungry, barefoot Confederate of Lost Cause legend. And when the captain angrily tells the colonel that he's putting in for a transfer, he would be having to make his application to the colonel himself, who might retaliate by sending him on any number of miserable postings.

Still, not many of the supernatural sub-plots in this series really convince the sceptical, so the largely credible main plot makes quite a satisfying use of your 25 minutes.

It is rather unusual in ONE STEP BEYOND tv show to involve pets; here a dog. More precisely a ghost dog which seeks vengeance. It takes place during the Civil War, a period rarely - if not never - seen in ONE STEP BEYOND series. It is a bit hard to watch for youngest audiences, sensitive persons, especially those who love pets and dogs in particular. It is even a gritty tale, more than usual in this series. I got much pleasure watching it, more than usual at least. Good eerie atmosphere that lets you puzzled, a very good feeling that I personally search in this tv show. One of my favorites, among the 97 episodes. Could have been chosen for a TWILIGHT ZONE episode.

In 1862, hungry Confederate soldier Buzz Martin (as Jess Bradley) and his hound dog "Tom" are captured trying to steal food from a Union soldier. Although he poses no threat, Union Colonel Crahan Denton (as Martin) plants evidence to suggest Mr. Martin is a spy, and orders him executed. Suspecting his superior officer framed Martin, Captain Jeremy Slate (as Adams) challenges Mr. Denton. Denton responds by ordering Mr. Slate to lead the firing squad...

Later, disturbed by Martin's howling dog, Denton shoots the animal dead. Somehow, "Tom" has the last bark… It's silly and predictable, but nicely performed.

***** The Executioner (1/3/61) John Newland ~ Buzz Martin, Crahan Denton, Jeremy Slate, Tom Middleton

I couldn't finish this episode. That's how bad it is. There's a dog that howls THE WHOLE TIME for the entire episode. It's like trying to watch a movie while the neighbor's dog won't shut up. The constant never-ending howling is so annoying and grating on the viewer's nerves an destroying of the eardrums that the viewer physically cannot stand to watch the entire episode. If you try to watch it, I recommend finding a website that provides accurate closed captioning so you can MUTE it, because the howling will have even the most patient of human beings screaming "OH MY GOD WOULD YOU STOP IT ALREADY!" at the screen.

Set in 1862 during the American Civil War, this episode concerns a young, lost, and desperate Confederate Soldier named Jess Bradley(played by Buzz Martin) who also has with him his faithful dog. The boy is captured at a Union supply depot stealing food, but is later framed for espionage by a malicious Colonel Martin(played by Crahan Denton) who orders his execution. He also shoots the boy's dog for howling too much, but at the point of execution by firing squad, Martin sees the dog by the boy, but no one else does, and the ghostly dog seeks its own justice, protecting its master one last time... Stylish and authentic-looking tale will resonate most with animal lovers and Civil War buffs.