Why Bruce Campbell’s 27-Episode Sci-Fi Western Deserves a Second Chance
A Bounty Hunter Finds The Orb
Campbell played Brisco County Jr., a former lawyer hired to hunt down outlaw John Bly, portrayed by Billy Drago. His journey across the West brought him into contact with the Orb, a golden object found in a mine.
The Orb granted extraordinary powers to those who encountered it, pushing the show beyond familiar Western territory. Some situations took on the strange, unsettling feel of The Twilight Zone, while one episode had Brisco ride a rocket as if it were a horse.
A Serial-Inspired Formula
Greenblatt wanted a television adventure with the spirit of movie serials. Cuse studied old serials and saw that many belonged to either the Western or science-fiction tradition; combining those genres became the show’s central idea.
Cuse told Slant Magazine that the team aimed to make each installment feel like a small movie. Episodes often featured memorable titles, cliffhanger endings, or both.
Comedy And A Lasting Legacy
Campbell’s charisma gave the series much of its humor. In the premiere, Brisco takes a gun from an outlaw named Pete and then hands it back, leaving Pete confused.
The show’s mix of comedy, Western adventure, and science fiction distinguished it, but it lasted only 27 episodes before cancellation. Its Orb-centered stories and other speculative elements later provided a foundation for Cuse’s work on Lost.
Key points
- Bruce Campbell played a bounty hunter tracking outlaw John Bly.
- A mysterious Orb gave people superhuman abilities.
- The series blended Western and science-fiction movie serial traditions.
- The show was canceled after 27 episodes.