Our 5 Favorite Western TV Shows

In honor of the last day of this amazing blog party we decided to do a short post on our favorite western TV shows. Our '5' favorite, to be exact.
(This is in no particular order)

1) Maverick

This show's got humor. This show's got heart. This show is amazing! (And it's also one of the only shows our mother sits and watches with us 😁)
Bart (below) and Bret (above) Maverick are two brothers who gamble instead of work for a living. This of course leads to them getting into a heck of a lot of trouble because nobody likes gamblers...For good reason...
But for real, how could you not like these boys? We have two words for you: 'Charm-Ing'! (No, we didn't go to school)
Besides Bart and Bret, the show has two other main characters, Beau and Brent (their cousins), who come in later seasons. However, we don't really consider them the stars of the show (but they are quite nice, in their own way).
Bart and Bret aren't your typical western TV show heroes. Let's just say, they aren't exactly law abiding citizens. Of course that does not mean they go around breaking the law all the time, but they do tend to be reluctant to fill in their 'Hero Shoes'.
But we love them anyway!

2) Lawman

These three....They're such a family! Marshal Dan Troop, with the help of able and lovely Deputy Johnny McKay, is in charge of keeping law and order in 1880's Laramie, Wyoming. And let me tell you, with the townspeople's track record of being absolute jerks (with the exception of Lily Merrill (guy on the right. JK, lady in the middle) and never, EVER, helping when Dan needs them, it's a good thing he's so tough and... Tough! He's a sweetie too, though. And of course, from the very first episode, Marshal Troop has the ever-needed help of Deputy Johnny McKay. In the first episode Johnny is green. Very green. Buuuuutttt, he proves himself to the ever-skeptical Marshal when he *sniff* practically saves his life. He's wonderful.
And let's not forget Lily Merrill. Literally the only female character in a western t.v. show that is interesting and helpful. She's also really spunky and fun, especially when she's around Marshal Troop. *Wink, wink*😍😎😏
And we mustn't forget to mention that we watched all four seasons of this in about three weeks... And it only took us that long because we had to order the next seasons from the library! It's just a really good show, very entertaining, very heart-warming, and very awesome! So watch it!... If you want to, that is...

3) Laramie

Ahhh, Laramie! So many fuzzy feelings. Most people don't understand just how wonderful this show is (namely our siblings) and it's quite difficult to explain. Just the whole family feeling you get when these four are together makes you want to smile and give them all a big bear hug! Let's talk characters. The two main characters are Slim Sherman(far left) and Jess Harper (middle left), who in the beginning don't hit it off very well. It was mostly Jess's fault, considering he trespassed and started teaching Slim's little brother Andy (far right) how to be a card shark...Anyway, Slim and Jess soon become the best of friends.
Andy and Jonesy (middle right) are the two secondary characters who unfortunately leave in the second season.

 The show is about the Sherman ranch that is also a relay station and that of course leads to a lot of mishaps and mayhem that our boys handle with aplomb!
The third season is not as good as the first two seasons (we haven't seen the fourth yet), but it still has good qualities. 

4) The Rifleman

So, Irene writing alone here for a minute. This is my show. I've watched all five seasons and know most everything about it. Anna doesn't dislike it, but she doesn't feel a strong attachment to it either. Mr. McCain (most people call him Lucas, but I like calling him Mr. McCain) and his son Mark (he's my favorite character) live on a nice little ranch in New Mexico near the town of North Fork. Mr. McCain, though a kind and loving father, as well as a good Christian, is also a highly skilled user of his uniquely designed Winchester rifle. Hence his title of 'The Rifleman'. Let me tell you, Lucas McCain has chalked up more dead bodies that the United States Marines. What I love about this show is the unique relationship, not shown on any other television program that I know of, between a widowed father and his only child, and the way that Mark grows up through the five seasons. It's honestly really wonderful to watch. And let's not forget the humor and action, both of which are in full supply throughout the run of the entire show. The Rifleman does not slowly lose it's quality as the years go by. Rather, it remains golden and fresh all its too-short life!

5) The Virginian and Bonanza

Now we know what you're thinking. This is six instead of five and well, you're not wrong. The truth of the matter is, we couldn't decide which one we liked better! (Isn't that the worst?)
The Virginian is about a bunch of ranch hands who always get into trouble, and Bonanza is about a bunch of ranch hands who are brothers who always get into trouble. To be fair, Bonanza is actually about three brothers and their dad who own the ranch, but whatever.
You can probably see our conundrum.
We love The Virginian because it has 'The Virginian' (top photo, dark haired center) who is just a really great guy and it also has Ryker, who is probably one of our favorite characters of all time! (That might be an overstatement, but it also might not be) Not to mention it has a bunch of side characters that often get their chance to shine.
We love Bonanza because who wouldn't love a show about a bunch of brothers that get in fights all the time? Adam, the oldest, is the more academic and 'cultured' one; Hoss, the middle child, is a big teddy bear who is very, very strong; and Little Joe is, well, Little Joe. He tends to be too big for his britches. Last of all is their father. What's great about Bonanza is the fact that unlike other shows, it has a great father figure who is actually - big shocker here - not dead!
As you can see there really is no way to tell which show is better, so therefore we could not exclude one and leave in the other.
If you've learned anything from this blog post it should be that you just need to watch both The Virginian and Bonanza (only the first nine seasons). 😁

Our last post for the last day of Legends of Western Cinema Week. That week sure went by fast. It was a lot of fun. Thanks to all the ladies who hosted it. We sure had a swell time! See you later, God willin' and the creek don't rise!

P. S. Irene also likes Tombstone Territory, but don't tell Anna she said that.