The Kid
SIX YOUNG ORPHANS SIGN UP WITH THE PONY EXPRESS FOR THE GREATEST ADVENTURE OF THEIR LIVES...
An eclectic bunch of young orphans join the newly-established Pony Express and are assigned to the station in Sweetwater, headed by an eccentric former Texas Ranger named Teaspoon Hunter. From him, they learn how to ride, avoid hostiles and generally survive in the rugged plains of the West. During one of the riders' first run, he evades an Indian war party using firecrackers.
The young James Butler Hickok tries to establish leadership of the group by showing off his remarkable skill with the gun. All seemed impressed... except for the one folks called the Kid. When challenged by Hickok, Kid proves to be Hickok's equal, maybe even more. Embarrassed in front of the group, Jimmy tries to draw the Kid in gunplay but the young man shows the good sense not to engage the sullen gunfighter.
During a trip into town with the owner of the station, a lady named Emma Shannon, the boys meet Marshall Sam Cain. They also notice a bunch of bandits who were starting to disrupt the peace until they backed down under Cain's eagle glare. Later, these bandits take over a waystation and one of the riders is injured while trying to escape with the mail pouch. Left for dead, Lou is found by the Kid. While trying to check Lou's wound, the Kid discovers Lou's secret... SHE'S A GIRL!
Lou tells him she ran away from an orphanage in St. Joe and still has a brother and sister there. Lou tries to make the Kid promise to keep her secret but he remains non-committal. They decide to go after the men who robbed and destroyed the outpost when the other riders arrive. Kid shows a natural ability to lead as he instructs Ike to get more weapons from Emma's place while Jimmy's reputation as a hot-head is sealed when he insists they attack the men despite being badly outnumbered. Kid prevails and they successfully capture the men. Jimmy wants to string them up, but the Kid -- who doesn't want blood on his hands -- makes the decision to take the bandits back to Sweetwater for trial and the other riders back him up. However, the men escape prison and wound Marshall Cain in a shoot-out.
While on a run, the Kid encounters two of the men. They try to finish him off, but he manages to escape and kill them but not before his beloved horse Katy is injured. Later that night, Sam finds a guilt and grief-stricken Kid who makes the painful decision to shoot his wounded horse. Cain saves Katy and helps Kid come to terms with killing two men.
Back in the station, Kid decides to keep Lou's secret, saying she's got the right to make her own way. Teaspoon looks at his bunch of riders with approval and more than a little self-congratulation. He has successfully trained a bunch of rugged young men, loners all, into a working unit... the "young riders" of the Pony Express.
TRIVIA: The genesis of the Kid's devotion to his horse Katy is tackled in the first few minutes of the pilot. It shows how Kid painfully earned the money to buy the horse which he found and fell in love with inside a barn. Showing determination and strength of character, Kid joins a boxing contest with a professional as opponent. Despite being heavily beaten, the Kid manages to stand up and beat the clock, thereby winning $30 for his pain -- bruised face, broken bones and all.
There are also several scenes from the original script which were excluded in the "finished product." One scene shows the Kid's interest in Lou even BEFORE he learns she is a female. Apparently, Kid sees a kindred soul in Lou, someone who keeps the past a secret, an independent individual who prefers doing things on his own. Another scene shows Lou expertly handling a gun and teaching an innocent Ike how to load the weapon properly.
Did you also know that in the original script Kid didn't sleep inside the bunkhouse until after the incident with "Scarface?" He slept near his horse Katy in the barn.
Next || Days Of Our Lives || Feedback