Branded

- Season 1

(1965)

One characteristic, that McCord displays excellently in this episode, is MERCY. As well, he shows restraint. He could get even with Colbee, but chooses the high road instead.

Ned Travis is a reporter for the New York Herald who's made something of a career for himself writing about Jason McCord and Bitter Creek. He wants McCord to tell him the truth about what it's like to be the most hated man in the territory and what really happened at Bitter Creek. McCord won't talk so Travis goes to Mrs. Pritchett whose husband Lt. John Pritchett was killed at Bitter Creek. She shows him letters which could tell the true story of the incident once and for all but McCord has reasons of his own for not wanting the truth to be revealed.

Jason befriends a missionary priest to the Comanche Nation. When the Comanche warriors demand a test of the pacifist priest's courage, Jason steps in to demonstrate a broader definition of courage.

Jason rides into McKinnley one day to see an old friend, but he becomes personally involved when Charlie Vance begins talking rough to her and ordering her around. Then after Vance is killed, Jason is accused of murder.

Jason is "arrested" by a "friendly" bounty hunter who announces some unknown man has put $5000 on his head.

Jason helps a widowed woman after he discovers some men are trying to force her to sell her land.

The whole town runs to a silver mine to get rich and leaves the town practically abandoned. A gang of robbers find it a convenient time to rob the bank, and the leader orders Deputy Marshal Clay Holden to allow it to happen. Deputy Holden is still wet behind the ears and agrees to go along with them in order to keep the gang from burning down the town. When he goes to get Jason McCord's gun, however, Jason forces him to tell him everything. Jason then asks Deputy Holdon to trust him.

A chain of events leads Jason McCord to the White House standing in front of President Grant, and it all starts when an old flame comes back into his life. She announces that her father, Senator Lansing, has a job for him.

President Grant gives McCord an important mission in Mexico. The mission is highly secret, and when over, will deem him both a coward and a traitor. Jason takes the job, but soon learns the mission will be much more difficult than he thought.

Jason soon find he's in over his head when he decides to go on with the Mission after the events that happened the day before. It soon becomes a matter of life or death for the ex-army Captain.

Jason meets the family of the first man he ever killed and finds just how deeply the living was wounded.

A woman who hates Jason because her brother died at Bitter Creek must now turn to him for help.

Jason rides into a ghost town after receiving a letter about a job. He discovers a man and two sons who are seeking revenge for Bitter Creek in a strange way.

A West Point cadet maintains that McCord wasn't a coward, leading the USMA to sentence the youngster to be drummed out, unless he apologizes to Professor Beecher, his history teacher. Given a 30 day sabbatical to decide, Cadet Bain tracks down McCord to a failing silver mine, which the Great Stoneface hopes to revive. But extracting answers from McCord about the disastrous Battle of Bitter Creek, may be as tough as solving the mystery of the mine's constant flooding.

At a well, which young bucks on the warpath may have poisoned, McCord and a female doctor are surrounded by the warriors. McCord was escorting her to a colleague's desert office, but they came across the male physician, killed by arrows. The pair have used up almost all their water, caring for the wounded cavalryman they found with Dr. Marshal. Already at the oasis are a duplicitous pair of prospectors, and a tiny old man with kyphosis.

Lucy Benson wants to hire Jason to help her develop her town, but Jason soon finds he is not wanted there when he's beaten, then later robbed of a large some of money and his horse. He insists on staying, even though everyone seems to be encouraging him to leave.