The Rookies: A Test of Courage (1974)
Season 3, Episode 11
10/10
A pastor who is also a gunrunner - now there's an interesting concept!
16 September 2021
This one is about a cop named Johnny Dane (played by David Soul) who gets shot in the leg while attempting to stop a robbery by a couple of thugs who work for a pastor.

This is a superb episode with lots of action, a unique plot and tremendous performances by David Soul and Georg Stanford Brown and fine performances from the rest of the cast too.

David Huddleston's performance as the nutty pastor is brilliant. David Canary is excellent too as one of the pastor's goons who steals guns to sell to the pastor, who then resells them at a profit in order to raise money to purchase land for the church. Well, you can't say this story isn't original.

The action is non-stop, with several shootouts, chases, spinouts and even a fight scene at the end involving Webster.

Bruce Fairbairn's hair is looking good once again. He remembered to comb it before all of his scenes, so congratulations to him. He really needs to keep this up to avoid being compared to Michael Ontkean, which would be humiliating.

Jill has several scenes in the hospital as she updates the rookies on Dane's condition.

Ryker wasn't his usual annoying self but was unusually low-key and didn't do any yelling. He also didn't talk about his ulcers, which we can all be thankful for.

This is a fantastic episode. It's one of the best I've seen yet. Season three continues to impress.
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