#527570
How The Tess Was Won
Original Air Date: April 14, 1987
Written by Deborah Arakelian
Directed by Ivan Dixon
Leap Date: August 5, 1956
This Time: Sam leaps onto a farm while holding up a pig. He quickly sees the farmer, Chance, trying to get his daughter, Tess, to marry. Unfortunately, the local ranch hands are not quite up to snuff, save Wayne, a handsome feller. Tess draws a line saying that if there is a man on the ranch that can keep up with her, she’ll marry him. Cue Sam having a problem with the pig. As Doc, Sam initially says that the pig may have hog cholera, prompting everyone to prepare to shoot the litter. Sam quickly backtracks and takes Piggy back to nurse and is chosen by Tess.
Arriving at his office/home, he finds Buddy, his assistant, strumming the guitar and singing a little ditty on the porch. Al comes as the assistant departs, fairly certain that Sam just needs to cure Piggy, not marry Tess which has a forty-seven percent certainty.
Sam goes to the ranch to take Chance up on his offer. He lasts several seconds on a horse called Widowmaker, though Tess manages just fine. He is somewhat more successful in roping, enough that Tess invites him to sell some livestock. At a poker game, Wayne deals Tess a winning hand so she can beat Sam.
While digging posts, Tess faints. Sam takes her back to his office to treat her. The two bond as she wakes up, but she won’t let him off that easily. They are tied, but Sam needs to win. She asks him to ride Widowmaker again. He accomplishes this task with a little help from Al, though he doesn’t take Chance up on his offer.
Tess comes up to Sam as he wallows in his sorrows. A dance – and kiss- later and Wayne interrupts them. All dressed up in his Sunday Best, Wayne proclaims his love for Tess, having been pining away at her for years.
Wondering when he’ll leap, he hears his assistant singing about ‘Piggy Sue.’ After a suggestion to change the lyrics, Sam leaps …
… half-dressed with a girl who expresses satisfaction before she runs off.
Fact Check: Sam ‘inspires’ a young Buddy Holly to find the lyrics to “Peggy Sue.” In fact not only was the song already created, essentially, but the band had formed, meaning that he wouldn’t be helping out someone in a small vet operation.
Stop Talking to Yourself: Sam reflects on how leaps can start off rewarding or not. He also finds it easy to locate his home in the openness of Texas. There’s also a reflection on how to calm a horse. He notes that his slow dancing skills are sub par.
Only Sam Can See and Hear: Al ‘figures out’ that Tina, his love interest, is cheating on him.
Mirror Images That Were Not His Own: Forty-four minutes into a forty-eight minute episode, Sam looks into the mirror (at Al’s insistence) and sees a nerdy cowboy doctor.
Brush With History & Something or Someone: Sam leaps after connecting the dots for a young Buddy Holly, his assistant, to find they lyrics to Peggy Sue.
Let’s Up the Rating: To prevent overheating, Sam strips Tess down to her skivvies. This is awkward when she wakes up after passing out.
One More Time: “I won’t breed with inferior stock, Chance.”
Tess telling her dad that her romantic standards are higher than the local ranch hands.
The Rainbow Treknection: Do you remember Haluk, one of the Voth from Voyager’s Distant Origin? Or Temo’Zuma from Deep Space Nine’s Hippocratic Oath? Both were played by Marshall Teague who is Wayne in this episode. Teague has a long and storied history in the genre. This episode allows him to act without all the rubber on his face though Teague is expressive enough to work through a prosthetic.
Trivial Matters: This episode is the first indication that animals can see who Sam really is as well as Al. In an episode chock full of animals, this makes sense, though no one calls it out. This is partly confirmed as Al calms Widowmaker.
Marshall Teague has been on Trek twice, but has a lot of other genre appearances, one of the most well-known is Te’Lon on Babylon 5.
Put Right what Once Went Wrong: “We’re gonna have to shoot the whole mess of ‘em.” “Shoot ‘em?” “Then burn ‘em.” You know exactly how this episode will end in the first five minutes. Tess chooses Doc over the other ranch hands and Wayne is the only other potential suiter. It’s all but guaranteed that Tess and Sam/Doc will flirt, but Wayne will end up with her in the end.
That isn’t to say it’s a bad episode. We’ve got some excellent shots of the wild west, including a crane shot. Plus, the actors know their roles. The standouts there are Lance LeGault as doting but grounded father Chance and Marshall Teague is excellent as Wayne. He gets enough stand out moments to showcase his acting chops. After watching him covered in rubber, it’s a relief and testament to his acting ability how well he can act without it as well.
The standout is Kari Lizer as Tess. She owns her character and is headstrong. The biggest challenge she overcomes is wearing a dress and expressing her feelings. Other than that vulnerability, she is rough and tough. It’s truly a pleasure to watch her performance!
One of the highlights in the poker scene. There’s a lot of jargon you might not get on your first watch, but there’s a lot in this scene. A cheating accusation, a dead man’s hand. It’s a clue to Wayne having an attraction to Tess in addition to their long friendship.
The plot moves along as well as it can. We have the necessary set pieces with the contests to win the heart of Tess and it’s an all-around fun watch, but nothing to run out and see.
Original Air Date: April 14, 1987
Written by Deborah Arakelian
Directed by Ivan Dixon
Leap Date: August 5, 1956
This Time: Sam leaps onto a farm while holding up a pig. He quickly sees the farmer, Chance, trying to get his daughter, Tess, to marry. Unfortunately, the local ranch hands are not quite up to snuff, save Wayne, a handsome feller. Tess draws a line saying that if there is a man on the ranch that can keep up with her, she’ll marry him. Cue Sam having a problem with the pig. As Doc, Sam initially says that the pig may have hog cholera, prompting everyone to prepare to shoot the litter. Sam quickly backtracks and takes Piggy back to nurse and is chosen by Tess.
Arriving at his office/home, he finds Buddy, his assistant, strumming the guitar and singing a little ditty on the porch. Al comes as the assistant departs, fairly certain that Sam just needs to cure Piggy, not marry Tess which has a forty-seven percent certainty.
Sam goes to the ranch to take Chance up on his offer. He lasts several seconds on a horse called Widowmaker, though Tess manages just fine. He is somewhat more successful in roping, enough that Tess invites him to sell some livestock. At a poker game, Wayne deals Tess a winning hand so she can beat Sam.
While digging posts, Tess faints. Sam takes her back to his office to treat her. The two bond as she wakes up, but she won’t let him off that easily. They are tied, but Sam needs to win. She asks him to ride Widowmaker again. He accomplishes this task with a little help from Al, though he doesn’t take Chance up on his offer.
Tess comes up to Sam as he wallows in his sorrows. A dance – and kiss- later and Wayne interrupts them. All dressed up in his Sunday Best, Wayne proclaims his love for Tess, having been pining away at her for years.
Wondering when he’ll leap, he hears his assistant singing about ‘Piggy Sue.’ After a suggestion to change the lyrics, Sam leaps …
… half-dressed with a girl who expresses satisfaction before she runs off.
Fact Check: Sam ‘inspires’ a young Buddy Holly to find the lyrics to “Peggy Sue.” In fact not only was the song already created, essentially, but the band had formed, meaning that he wouldn’t be helping out someone in a small vet operation.
Stop Talking to Yourself: Sam reflects on how leaps can start off rewarding or not. He also finds it easy to locate his home in the openness of Texas. There’s also a reflection on how to calm a horse. He notes that his slow dancing skills are sub par.
Only Sam Can See and Hear: Al ‘figures out’ that Tina, his love interest, is cheating on him.
Mirror Images That Were Not His Own: Forty-four minutes into a forty-eight minute episode, Sam looks into the mirror (at Al’s insistence) and sees a nerdy cowboy doctor.
Brush With History & Something or Someone: Sam leaps after connecting the dots for a young Buddy Holly, his assistant, to find they lyrics to Peggy Sue.
Let’s Up the Rating: To prevent overheating, Sam strips Tess down to her skivvies. This is awkward when she wakes up after passing out.
One More Time: “I won’t breed with inferior stock, Chance.”
Tess telling her dad that her romantic standards are higher than the local ranch hands.
The Rainbow Treknection: Do you remember Haluk, one of the Voth from Voyager’s Distant Origin? Or Temo’Zuma from Deep Space Nine’s Hippocratic Oath? Both were played by Marshall Teague who is Wayne in this episode. Teague has a long and storied history in the genre. This episode allows him to act without all the rubber on his face though Teague is expressive enough to work through a prosthetic.
Trivial Matters: This episode is the first indication that animals can see who Sam really is as well as Al. In an episode chock full of animals, this makes sense, though no one calls it out. This is partly confirmed as Al calms Widowmaker.
Marshall Teague has been on Trek twice, but has a lot of other genre appearances, one of the most well-known is Te’Lon on Babylon 5.
Put Right what Once Went Wrong: “We’re gonna have to shoot the whole mess of ‘em.” “Shoot ‘em?” “Then burn ‘em.” You know exactly how this episode will end in the first five minutes. Tess chooses Doc over the other ranch hands and Wayne is the only other potential suiter. It’s all but guaranteed that Tess and Sam/Doc will flirt, but Wayne will end up with her in the end.
That isn’t to say it’s a bad episode. We’ve got some excellent shots of the wild west, including a crane shot. Plus, the actors know their roles. The standouts there are Lance LeGault as doting but grounded father Chance and Marshall Teague is excellent as Wayne. He gets enough stand out moments to showcase his acting chops. After watching him covered in rubber, it’s a relief and testament to his acting ability how well he can act without it as well.
The standout is Kari Lizer as Tess. She owns her character and is headstrong. The biggest challenge she overcomes is wearing a dress and expressing her feelings. Other than that vulnerability, she is rough and tough. It’s truly a pleasure to watch her performance!
One of the highlights in the poker scene. There’s a lot of jargon you might not get on your first watch, but there’s a lot in this scene. A cheating accusation, a dead man’s hand. It’s a clue to Wayne having an attraction to Tess in addition to their long friendship.
The plot moves along as well as it can. We have the necessary set pieces with the contests to win the heart of Tess and it’s an all-around fun watch, but nothing to run out and see.
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