Red Ryder Volumes 3 & 4 (VCI)
Picture:
C/C- Sound: C/C- Extras: C Main Films: C+/C
VCI
continues to issue various B-movies in the continuing adventures of Red Ryder. The difference this time is that they have
flashed forward to the late 1940s when Eagle-Lion, Pathé and Equity took over
the series from Republic and actually improved it. Jim Bannon easily took over the role from the
not-too-good Allan
Lane
and Robert “Bobby” Blake was succeeded by a young actor named Little Brown Jug
(actually Don Kay Reynolds) as Little Beaver.
The hour-long romps were now shot for CineColor presentation and the
result was the best Red Ryder since the Republic serial with Don “Red” Barry.
The Cowboy & The Prizefighter has the bad guys try to trap Red
in a boxing challenge, meant as a distraction to pull a heist, while Fighting Redhead (both 1949) mixes
murder with cow-stealing. Both have far
more energy and believability than the previous Republic Bs, and these are two
of the only four that got made. Volume Four brings us back to the
Lane/Blake programs with Oregon Trail
Scouts giving us the origins of the Ryder/beaver union, while Marshall Of Cripple Creek (both 1947)
is Lane’s last hurrah in the role, where thieves try to disrupt gold mining
claims.
The full
frame image on Volume Three is more
accurate than expected, but the prints still show their age and there is
softness throughout. The Dolby Digital
2.0 Mono is average, but better than Volume
Four. Extras include a 4:20 preview
for VCIs double feature Western DVD releases in general (on both volumes),
followed by three trailers for The Lone
Ranger feature film, Cattle Queen Of
Montana and Tennessee’s Partner,
as well as four biographies. Volume Four has poorer sound and
picture, as did Volume Two (reviewed
elsewhere on this site), so they are only good for being key installments of
the Republic series. It also adds the
1950 Gun Trouble Valley pilot episode
for the Ryder TV series, with Rocky Lane as Ryder, Louis Lettieri as Beaver and James Best
(later of The Dukes Of Hazzard) is a
supporting role. They makes an
interesting pair of film sets for fans.
- Nicholas Sheffo
