Reviews (2)

James Garner vs. Clint Eastwood in a superb western comedy.
This is required viewing and a unique experience for Clint Eastwood admirers since he has a huge role as a colorful but loathesome gunfighter/villain and plays it sublimely well. Edgar Buchanan (the marvelous character actor that played "Uncle Joe" on "Petticoat Junction") and Abby Dalton round out the guest cast of this sensational episode of "Maverick" with James Garner. Bret Maverick (Garner) and Eastwood are at loggerheads over Dalton and the sequences illustrating Eastwood's quick-draw ability and Garner's reactions to it are extremely funny and perfectly played straight. The saloon fistfight between Garner and Eastwood is riveting and Maverick's gentle friendship with Buchanan's character is beautifully drawn. This was the first episode of "Maverick" to be offered on video and with good reason. No one could possibly be disappointed with this episode of my favorite television series.

Bret Maverick faces John Wesley Hardin in a gunfight
In his only Warner Bros. TV appearance, Clint Eastwood guest stars as Red Hardigan, a local tough-guy who is itching to provoke James Garner as Bret Maverick into a showdown. Red is jealous that "Maver-ack" is showing too much attention to Carrie Christiansen, played by Abby Dalton. But Red has to wait in line when notorious gunslinger John Wesley Hardin arrives in Sundown and "calls out" Bret. Episode also features Jack Kelly as brother Bart Maverick. Originally aired: Feburary 1, 1959. (This review is a paraphrase of the WB video release box cover review.) ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Robert Redford in an early appearance as a cowboy.
Robert Redford put in an extremely early appearance in this fine episode of "Maverick" featuring Jack Kelly as the title character's brother Bart. This one's a very good straight western involving a cattle drive and a character whose hand was amputated by Indians and casually uses an iron prosthetic to crush the skull of an argumentative associate. Redford has an oddly baby-faced look here, with ample cheeks and a hint of his famously acne-scarred complexion visible. Fast paced and well acted, this is an excellent example of a 50s TV western and an intriguing curio for Redford admirers. ... Read more

Reviews (5)

the best of maverick
maverick is a gambler and this is truer to the story line and is very entertaining it's clean fun to watch and maverick gets a taste of his own medicine buy it enjoy it!

Okay but not great...
The cover is misleading it shows Bret (James Garner) with his brother Bart (Jack Kelly), but Bart's not in this episode. The show is okay, but not as enjoyable as "Shady Deal at Sunny Acres."

A superb episode of James Garner's classic 50s TV series.
If someone asked me to choose one episode of "Maverick" that superbly illustrates my favorite television series' strengths, this might be it. James Garner's fascinatingly complex character Bret Maverick is on full display and Diane Brewster as Samantha Crawford, Maverick's primary female nemesis, is introduced in this episode in all her slipperiness and duplicity in a plot that revolves around a New Orleans riverboat gambling contest that hinges on an obscure poker rule of the day. The principals later segue by stagecoach to a western town with a crooked casino, where they encounter Leo Gordon as Mike McComb, Maverick's strapping Irish ally. Jodie Foster's character in the recent Mel Gibson movie version was based on Samantha, and Ms. Brewster's performance is a revelation, forcing the viewer to bemoan the policy of that period preventing most television actors from moving into theatricals. Warners' unsung but mesmerizing stable of character actors are peppered throughout the show to good effect, as is always the case with this series, and this episode has a classic feel, with lustrous lighting and photography and fascinatingly nuanced performances. This is one to watch repeatedly and serves as a superior companion to the movie version.

Perfect choice to know the best TV of the period
I saw this when I was younger and liked it then. It is ahead of its time. It instructs patience in the face of setback. Maverick loses badly to a woman, something that doesn't happen to a western hero, but Maverick takes it in stride, never missing a beat stays focused on his final outcome. There are lessons in morality, justice and determination. The best of its kind

Bret Maverick meets his match...
It's one thing for Bret Maverick to lose a poker game, it's another thing to lose to a woman, it's even worse when she beats him by invoking an obscure rule from Hoyle's Book of Games. But Bret's adventure with Samantha Crawford, played by Diane Brewster, is just beginning -- as he discovers when he follows her in an attempt to get his money back.

Originally aired: October 6, 1957 ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Garner started a new genre
Maverick is at his best as the cowboy - gambler who is the smartest guy in the room but used quips instead of arrogance to make his points. He is almost the anti-hero, because he isn't the fastest gun and knows it. He uyses his brains and sense of humor to win the day. He also has a strong sense of right and wrong, which was probably odd for a professional gambler.

I love all the garner Mavericks and wish they would release more.

Given that these were had in the 50's, they are all family friendly.

maverick-point blank
i got the maverick serouis years ago and its a great western to watch it differant than most becuse its funney and adventous and enjoyable to watch i recomend it to anyone its a good story and so are the rest! columbia movies? i think offers the conpleat searous of tapes thats how i got mine!check it out, it also offers have gun will travel great show i have almost all of them!

Good Maverick, not the best
I thought this was more of a standard western than other Maverick episodes. If you like the series, you'll enjoy adding this to your collection. if you haven't seen the series, I'd suggest starting with "Shady Deal at Sunny Acres" or "According to Hoyle."

The Maverick episode written first and meant as the intro.
This was the first episode of "Maverick" to be written. Roy Huggins had intended it as the first one to be broadcast as well but the studio insisted on using a rewrite of a story that they already owned instead, so that they wouldn't have to pay Huggins the creator fees. Standard policy for the period. 29-year-old James Garner is superb in delivering the complex and mature characterization of Bret Maverick and a young Mike Connors, who later played TV's "Mannix," is the episode's guest villain. The show has a verve, energy, and intelligence that set the tone for the run of the series. It is by definition an excellent start for experiencing "Maverick." ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Roger Moore replaces James Garner as Maverick.
"Maverick" had suffered a steep decline from its glory days by the time this episode was filmed, but it's still a good show. Roger Moore replaces the absent James Garner as Maverick in this one, a task about as enviable as his replacing of Sean Connery in the role of James Bond years later. Moore did some extremely good episodes, though, one in particular written and directed by Robert Altman, but this isn't one of them and this isn't it. Jack Kelly as Bart Maverick and Moore as his cousin Beau work hard at it but the script in this one just isn't quite up to snuff, and Kelly plays the material a bit too broadly, something that would have been inconceivable in his work with Garner. It's worthwhile to dyed-in-the-wool Maverick adherents (like me) and Roger Moore admirers (you won't believe how young he looks in this, shot long before his later series "The Saint"), but this one should only be ordered after you've experienced the classic earlier episodes with Garner and Kelly. It's easy to see why Moore was chosen to replace Garner, though, since the resemblance between the two actors throughout the 60s is eerie. Later in the same season the studio went that one better, though, by hiring Garner lookalike Robert Colbert, dressing him in Garner's signature black outfit, and calling his character "Brent." ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Great opener to a great series
I especially like the Maverick episodes that emphasize humor, and this one has many clever scenes. The highlight for me was seeing Bret sway the election to the ex-judge. However, I have to side with Phineas in the poker game at the beginning--No way I let Maverick bet with a sealed envelope.

The first episode is a strong introduction to James Garner.
This is the first episode of "Maverick" and is a marvelously written and photographed introduction to James Garner in his signature role of Bret Maverick. This program had to compete with the Ed Sullivan and Steve Allen variety shows, then considered impregnable, and understandably knocked them for a loop, with neither of them ever completely recovering their former standing in the ratings for a continuous period. Garner and his role are so striking that it's easy to see why; in an era of flat and colorless western heroes, he played a much more adult, complex and chronically fascinating character, making an electrifying impression on viewers of the day. Even though set in the Old West, "Maverick" has as urban a feel as anything on film. All the elements of the character are quickly established and Garner's performance is practically perfected out of the gate, with only a few minor changes made later: in this one Maverick wears a bow tie with his usual black broadcloth gambler's suit and hasn't yet figured out that he basically wears his hat on the back of his head (something Garner forgot when the series was revived in the eighties) but aside from that everything else is in place. Garner is also noticably thinner than he ever was before or since in anything, since he had an uncharacteristic bout with dieting and working out at the gym immediately before the filming of this episode. To kick off the series with a splash, this installment is a kind of rolling extravaganza of everything, with Maverick saving an entire town from the clutches of an mining baron in spite of the townspeople's fears. It is a television masterpiece. If that sounds anomalous, watch it and see if you don't agree. ... Read more

Reviews (7)

Standing the Test of Time
I was about eight years old when Maverick was popular but I remember my family sitting around the television in the evening and watching the original episodes. When I found the Maverick video website I ordered two immediately. I looked forward to their arrival with great anticipation. At the same time I wondered if the program would live up to my recollections. I was astounded to find that it did, and we all laughed out loud at Shady Deal at Sunny Acres and the other videos I have purchased. The writers and producers of Maverick put a lot of time into these scripts and it shows. Its great to enjoy them again.

Best Maverick episode I have seen
If you are a fan of the 1950's TV series Maverick, starring James Garner and Jack Kelly, and have not seen this episode, then buy this video, and prepare yourself to be blown away. "Shady Deal..." is quite an excellent installment (among very many) of Maverick. What I love most about this particular episode is that it expresses quite well the foolishness of greed and of selfishness when it shows Mr. Bates, a dishonest banker, steal Bret's money and then immediately lunge into another man's monetary affairs, unaware that he is about to be conned out of his shoes. The episode makes me laugh when I see Bret just sitting and whittling, acting as if Mr. Bates' dishonesty does not worry him in the least. And above all, when I realize that brother Bart, Samantha, Gentleman Jack, Cindy, Dandy Jim, and Big Mike--quite a roster--have all assumed false identities, I am reminded that no one messes with the Mavericks and gets away with it. This episode was written unbelievably well, with the sharp, diligently collated plan carried out by Bart and his friends, and with Bret's laid back, subtle sense of humor, which portrays him as just an easy-going person and gives the show an amiably comical atmosphere--a quality that seemed to disappear from Maverick after Garner left the show. "Shady Deal at Sunny Acres" is sure to be esteemed among the greatest installments of the Maverick TV series. I hope you will enjoy it as much as I did.

WHAT A GREAT SHOW!
I'm apparently a little young to remember this show when originally broadcast. I bought this one 'coz I love James Garner, and now I'm hooked on it. What a great show! It's got a solid plot, wonderful and well-executed characters, a good balance between humor and compassion, and the good guys win! What more could you ask for? I recommend this video even if you're not a great fan of the western genre.

The most fondly remembered episode of the best TV series.
This is the quintessential episode of "Maverick," the one that everyone remembers first and the one that sticks in everyone's mind. The entire supporting cast of running con-artist characters is featured, including the perfect Diane Brewster as Samantha Crawford, Efrem Zimbalist, Jr. as Dandy Jim Buckley (his most winning role), Richard Long as Gentleman Jack Darby, and Leo Gordon as Irishman Big Mike McComb, among others, with John Dehner as the sublimely execrable villain of the piece ("If you can't trust your banker, whom can you trust?"). Jack Kelly as Maverick's brother Bart runs a complex con that is the forerunner for the film "The Sting" while James Garner as Bret Maverick spends most of the show sitting in a rocking chair and whittling, telling scoffing townspeople that ask how he intends to recover a stolen $15,000 within a self-imposed two-week deadline that he's "working on it." Somehow the image of Garner rocking and smiling and whittling is one of the three most memorable television images of the 1950s, along with Elvis Presley on the Ed Sullivan Show and Fess Parker as Davey Crockett on Walt Disney's Disneyland series. If you can't understand how this can possibly be the case, see for yourself.

Quintessential Maverick
I think this gem is my second-favorite Maverick episode (behind "A Fellow's Brother"). Some of the Mavericks were basic westerns, but this great sting episode showed the genius and humor of the show. John Dehner is once again great as a comedic villian. Definitely makes me wish that more Maverick episodes were available. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Duel at sundown
This is a very good movie with James Garner and Clint Eastwood. It also has some comedy at the end. If you like Mavericks, you'll love this one. ... Read more