EPISODE: Bullet for a Bride

Reviewed by Sue W.

Episode 154, Season 5, aired Feb. 16, 1964

GUEST STARS:

Marilyn Mason as Tessa Caldwell

Denver Pyle as Marcus Caldwell

Steve Harris as Lon Caldwell

John Matthews as Preacher

Gail Bonney as Mrs. Partridge

Written by Tom Seller

Directed by Tay Garnett

SUMMARY:

We open with Joe and Adam out hunting a big cat (backed by the same wolf hunt music from "My Brothers Keeper". We'll also get music from "The Storm" later in this episode). After the brothers split up, we see the cat on a rock overlooking a passing wagon carrying Marcus Caldwell and his adult children, Tessa and Lon. Tessa spots the cat as it is getting ready to pounce and screams, "Papa, look out!" Joe reacts and shoots twice with his pistol, killing the animal.

Unfortunately, a bullet has struck Tessa. She has blood streaming down the side of her face and is screaming that she can't see. (Note the continuity gaffe here: the closer shots appear to have been shot on a sound stage and in these we see blood all over Tessa's hand and face. The longer shots were shot on location and in those there is no blood on her hand and much less blood on her head.)

Despite Ben's and Adam's efforts to reassure Joe it was just an accident - a ricocheted bullet - Joe feels guilty. And throughout the episode Mr. Caldwell and Lon throw little digs Joe's way to remind him he's responsible for Tessa's blindness. No one ever mentions that Joe saved the family from the cat. 

The Caldwells are staying with Cartwrights, with the Cartwrights footing all their bills - and Mr. Caldwell cognizant of the Cartwright wealth. We also learn that the doctor has said there is a good chance that Tessa will recover her sight (good thing, since Marlyn Mason's bright-eyed blind look seems to have come from the Gabrielle school of blind-acting).

When Tessa and Joe go for a buggy ride, we learn that Tessa is a nice girl who doesn't want Joe to feel guilty. They have a pleasant talk in which we learn about her father's fruitless lifelong quest for that pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.

At supper one night, Mr. Caldwell tells the Cartwrights that he missed a job opportunity in California because of the delay caused by the accident and, worse yet, the fiancé who was waiting there for Tessa has ended the engagement because of her blindness.  We can see from Tessa's and Lon's reactions that something is not quite right here, and it is confirmed later when Tessa asks her father why he told those lies.

In a heart to heart with Ben, Joe shares his desire to marry Tessa - "who can take better care of her than a husband?" Ben says he is proud that Joe has a sense of responsibility, but warns him not to make a martyr of himself. Joe protests (in raised voice) that there is no martyrdom involved, and that Ben should get used to the idea.

Tessa comes to Ben and asks him what to do because she can't see Joe's eyes to determine his true feelings. They have a nice talk, and we continue to see that Tessa is sincere that she only wants to marry for love.

Circumstances change when Tessa suddenly regains her sight after a fall. She is excited to tell Joe, but Mr. Caldwell entreats her to wait until after the wedding. She protests vehemently, but he lays a guilt trip on her about what will happen to him and Lon if she doesn't go through with the marriage.

Tessa finally tells Joe she'll marry him and when he rushes out to tell Ben, Ben walks into the room another way in time to see Tessa primping in front of the mirror then dashing upstairs, unaware of Ben's presence. When Joe comes in, Ben discovers to his chagrin that Joe doesn't know she has regained her sight. Ben admits to Hoss he doesn't know what to do (now that's a change for Ben Cartwright!). Ben hopes that she loves Joe enough to not go through with it.

The morning of the wedding Tessa tests the waters by telling Joe she seems to be getting some of her sight back.  She tries to give him an out by suggesting that now he doesn't have to marry her if he doesn't want to, but he won't hear of it. In a rather clever camera shot, she watches Joe's expression in the mirror when she asks, "Are you sure, Joe? Are you very sure?" He declares, "Of course, I'm sure," but a fleeting expression on his face tells us - and Tessa - otherwise.  Tessa squeezes her eyes shut in anguish.

Just before the ceremony starts, Ben has a last minute chat with Tessa in which he compounds her conflict when he once again talks of her being a wonderful girl who would do only what is right for Joe and herself.

With a rather somber group of guests looking on, the wedding ceremony commences. As the time comes for Tessa's "I do", we get a couple of tight close-ups back and forth of Ben looking concerned and Tessa struggling with her conscience. Finally, Tessa cries that she can't go through with it, and as her father holds her, he admits, "I guess I've known all along I was asking you to do the wrong thing."  Tessa runs upstairs with Joe behind her.

To Joe's relief, Tessa admits that she doesn't love him enough to marry him. She points out that his feeling of love for her was really guilt and her love was really the fear of being alone in the darkness.

We close with the families parting on good terms, Ben even providing the Caldwell men with a job contact in San Francisco.

REVIEWS:

“My complaint with "Bullet for a Bride" is that the Cartwrights should be the characters who propel the action, not a guest star.  After Joe proposes, it is Tessa who drives the story to the climax and resolution, not a Cartwright.  While Ben does play a strong role in helping to persuade Tessa to do the right thing, what ultimately happens is completely dependent upon Tessa.  It is certainly common in Bonanza for the guest stars to be in charge of their own destiny, with the Cartwrights' guidance and persuasion turning them in the right direction.  But in this case Tessa's decision will not just affect her own life, it will directly impact Joe's future as well. Meanwhile, Joe plays absolutely no role in setting the situation straight. To me, it should have been Joe who settled the matter and admitted they were marrying for the wrong reasons, not the guest star character.” Sue W.

“I always liked this episode. Joe is so full of angst and self-sacrifice as he takes the blame for what happened to Tessa, even though it was an accident. You can see he's planning to marry the girl out of guilt when he has his little talk with Pa. I always felt a bit sorry for Tessa in this story because you can see she thinks marrying Joe will make everyone happy -- it will solve her father and brother's problem and ease Joe's guilt. Yet deep-down she knows she's doing the wrong thing (although I personally would have said marrying Joe was not a bad thing!). And Joe looks so good in his blue suit on his wedding day! The one thing that bothers me about this episode, though, is Pa letting the marriage go on, even though he knows Tessa is lying about being blind. You'd think the last thing Pa would want is to see Joe deceived. It makes a better story line, I guess, to have Tessa do the dramatic confession at the last minute, but I always thought that Pa -- or even Hoss, after he learns the truth about Tessa's blindness -- would have told Joe about it. Just seems out of character for them to let Joe almost get married to someone who would lie to him.” Susan Grote

“I don't like either, that Ben left it up to Tessa. What if she just went on with the wedding?  Was Ben going to just stand there or would he stop the wedding? I can't see him letting it continue and letting Joe ruin his life.” Ginny

“Some other exceptional acting moments...ML during the scene in front of the mirror with Tessa and at the end when he rushes upstairs after Tessa can't go on with the wedding. Love the emotional depth and expressiveness of his eyes. My final comment...would I consider this one of the top Bonanza episodes? Probably not.  Just a bit too much overacting by the Tessa actress, I agree with Sue W., that the strength of the characters is lost some with those in the secondary roles.  But I thought I remembered reading somewhere that this episode got incredibly high ratings, beating out some top other top shows in that time slot that week.  Let's look at this...LJ was getting married or got pretty close to it.  For me, when I first saw this episode, it was like a dream come true.  Married at the Cartwright home; the house decorated; Hoss and Adam as standing up for Joe; Ben having that Fatherly talk with his future daughter-in-law.  Let's face it I bet people went nuts...hey it was ML, do you blame 'em?” Nancy (dreaming of marriage to a Cartwright)

“Maybe Ben knew that deep down inside the girl was truly good... and would tell the truth if given the chance? GAK! Or perhaps, Pa looked for a reason to have a party and make a big vat of his special punch?” Robin

“I thought Joe was a gallant hero in this show. He thought he should marry the girl and he was going to go through with it even though he didn't love her because he thought it was the right thing to do. It bothered me a lot that Ben was going to let it take place even though he knew she could see. I never could figure out if he had that much faith that she was a decent type girl and would come clean or whether he wanted to see if Joe would marry a girl he didn't love just to do what he thought was the honorable thing.” Deb

“A funny note....Marilyn Mason must have liked "blindness" in fact....she was the girlfriend of that blind detective (?) on "Longstreet" (Does anyone remember it?) He was played by James Franciscus.” Betsy

“I found that rather hard to take, too, that Ben would allow Tessa to take advantage of Joe like that and marry him, even though she had regained her sight. Ben was taking a huge gamble by not saying anything and letting her be the one to speak up One scene I do love in this ep, although it's not a favorite of mine, is when Ben and Joe talk and Ben expresses his concerns, saying that he only wants the best for Joe. Joe holds onto Ben's hand and says 'I know I have the best, Pa'. Waahh is all I can say to that.” Lynne Little Joe forever