by Billy Russell, Staff Writer

“I was there, Gandalf. I was there 30 years ago.”
- Me, explaining that I watched the premiere of The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr. in 1993

It’s wild, though. For a time, The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr. was meant to the be the runaway hit that brought viewers in to watch Fox’s other Friday night show they were less sure about: The X-Files. The X-Files was a bit too scary for audiences, the suits at the studio thought. Brisco County was a surer hit.

Of course, things didn’t work out that way at all. If you asked anyone which show they remember of the two, I’m sure you’d be met with a lot of people asking, “Brisco who?”

Part of it is that The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr. was ahead of its time. It blended too many genres, went over too many heads. Was it a western? Was it a comedy? Was it a sci-fi action show? The answer to all three questions would be, “Yes.” It was all of those things. It was a western show, with a lot of humor, a lot of heart, and some plot twists along the way involving mysterious orbs from the future.

Another part of it is that for whatever reason, Brisco County was saddled with a bizarre reputation as being “violent.” Folks, this is a show where the handsome, dashing hero gets into a draw and then shoots the gun out of his opponent’s hand, without even a hint of blood. It was made to be enjoyed by families. Friday nights in the ‘90s were weird. The fam would watch Brisco County together, then the kids would be traumatized by whatever horrors The X-Files had in store for them.

Some poll from some shithead politician to show how violent TV had gotten arbitrarily chose his bone to pick to be with Brisco County. This poll measured violent acts in a single episode of a TV show and, wouldn’t you know it? Brisco County had dozens and dozens of violent acts and was deemed one of the most violent shows on TV. Even though the episode in question featured a bloodless boxing match and every hit, every punch, was counted as a separate act of violence.

Poor Brisco never had a chance. The good news, though, is that the show was able to end properly. The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr. isn’t some show that ends on a cliffhanger that never got resolved. Our heroes save the day and ride off for more adventures that, sadly, we will never see, but during our time with them, no loose threads were left untied. It’s a neat little package, a self-contained mini-series, almost.

The basic set-up is that Brisco County, Sr. legendary lawman, is murdered by a gang of no-goods. His son, Brisco County, Jr. (Bruce Campbell), a full-time bounty hunter and sometimes lawyer, is brought in by the Westerfield Club to track down the gang and arrest them. The gang, led by John Bly (Billy Drago) has a mysterious secret from the future.

Most of the show’s episodes are “adventures of the week” type deals where Brisco comes to a town with a problem, and he solves it. Every few episodes will be dedicated to the ongoing story of Bly’s gang and the mystery of these orbs that are from the future. The orbs contain vast power and are capable of many awesome things, including manipulating time itself.

Also, along for the fun are Lord Bowler, another famous bounty hunter (Julius Carry), Socrates Poole, Brisco’s boss (Christian Clemenson), and Brisco’s on-again-off-again girlfriend Dixie Cousins (Kelly Rutheford).

Just watching the show, you can tell Fox had a hit on its hands. The production value is top-notch and there are a whopping 27 episodes. So, while people are saddened that the show was cut down in its prime, before it had a chance to grow, 27 episodes is at least three seasons of a modern show—maybe even four. While it’s a shame it never got a season two, there are plenty of episodes to watch.

Before Brisco County, show creators Jeffrey Boam and Carlton Cuse had much success in the film word through the Lethal Weapon movies, The Lost Boys and, in particular, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. They were offered the opportunity to create a television show and Fox went nuts for it. Sandy Grushow, chief at Fox Entertainment, even said she’d eat her desk if Bruce Campbell wasn’t the next big television star. I’m not sure what the status on that desk is, but we could probably argue all day on the semantics what makes a star. Campbell has been in enough stuff that I think he’s had a stable, great career, but I think he could have been a much bigger star. I am glad though that after this, he was able to guest on The X-Files, which wound up finding all the success that they thought Brisco County would find.

I always love a good story about a celebrity being a good guy, so I’ll tell my story, even though it’s not really mine. My friend, when the show was new, was about 5-6 years old and was a big fan. When it was announced that the show would not be renewed for a second season, she told her parents she was sad, so they suggested writing a letter to the star, because it would probably a mean a lot to him. She wrote him a letter, told him she loved the show, was sad it was ending and instead of merely writing her, he called her on the phone to personally thank her for the letter and that it meant a lot to him.

What a good guy. What an awesome show. Check it out if you’ve never seen it. It’s available on DVD.