This is a beautiful episode which restores one's faith in humanity. Little Joe encounters an ornery, cantankerous old widow living in her "piney woods", with only her stubbornness and the memory of her dead husband to keep her going. She at first tries to kidnap him because she needs a man to look after her. When he goes with her willingly enough she drives him to distraction.
Her land is under threat but she refuses to believe him when he tells her that she must stake a claim. He eventually decides to go into town to do it for her and she uses every device she can think of to make him stay. There is wry humour in his mounting exasperation with the impossible old lady. But it is obvious that he cares for her in spite of herself and that the feeling is returned even if she'd rather die than admit it. She compares him to her beloved husband - "You've got a lot of gentleness in you, Joe, just like my Amos."
The chemistry between the two actors is splendid, despite the 30 years that separate them. His love, patience and pure goodness shine through as he cares for the sick old lady. If one ever doubted his character, this episode confirms trust and hope that is in us all. It's good and old-fashioned, so different to the current trend of cynicism and self-obsession of more modern times. It's contrived, possibly, but it's a tear-jerker. Just go with it. You'll be rewarded in the end.
Her land is under threat but she refuses to believe him when he tells her that she must stake a claim. He eventually decides to go into town to do it for her and she uses every device she can think of to make him stay. There is wry humour in his mounting exasperation with the impossible old lady. But it is obvious that he cares for her in spite of herself and that the feeling is returned even if she'd rather die than admit it. She compares him to her beloved husband - "You've got a lot of gentleness in you, Joe, just like my Amos."
The chemistry between the two actors is splendid, despite the 30 years that separate them. His love, patience and pure goodness shine through as he cares for the sick old lady. If one ever doubted his character, this episode confirms trust and hope that is in us all. It's good and old-fashioned, so different to the current trend of cynicism and self-obsession of more modern times. It's contrived, possibly, but it's a tear-jerker. Just go with it. You'll be rewarded in the end.
