episode #14 - Night of the Long Knives

episode #14 / Air Date: 12.16.66
written by William Welch; Directed by Paul Stanley

In a very hot desert locale, Doug & Tony quickly realize that they need shelter immediately or they will die. However, it's taken out of their hands as several natives on horseback arrive and shoot Tony in the head; Doug is knocked out (note that Doug had supposedly just sustained a serious head injury a few hours ago in the previous episode). Tony, who was only grazed by the bullet, is found by the famous writer and then-journalist Rudyard Kipling (David Watson); he informs him that he's in 1886 India. Doug, in the meantime, had been taken across the border to Afghanistan, prisoner to a powerful chieftain (Malachi Throne). This all involves the conflict between the local Indians and the British over the Khyber Pass.

This benefits from some nice desert location photography - it doesn't really match the stock footage from an earlier film, but still looks good. Also, actor Throne gives an entertaining guest performance, as he usually did in exotic roles, as the flamboyant rebel chief who is the defacto main villain. In this sixties version of such history, the British are the civilized decent side, while the natives are uncontrollable savages. Later filmed depictions usually portrayed the Brits as a hostile, invasive force. BoG's Score: 5.5 out of 10


Epilogue: Doug & Tony land in German-occupied France at nighttime just as the French Resistance tries some sabotage; the two travelers are swiftly captured by German guards...
Star Trek TOS Actor Alert: Malachi Throne played Commodore Mendez in the famous 2-parter The Menagerie