1993’s The Adventures of Brisco County Jr. only lasted one season, but it delivered a sci fi/western that was a ton of fun and is still well-regarded today.
What Is It?
This western with hints of steam-punk and sci fi delivered equal parts Wild Wild West and Indiana Jones as it followed bounty hunter Brisco County Jr. who travels through the old west seeking the outlaw John Bly (who killed his father) as well as answers to the mysterious and powerful “Orb” which Bly is also looking for. Helping Brisco out is fellow bounty hunter Lord Bowler, as well as his sometimes girlfriend Dixie Cousins, along with his employer’s liaison Socrates Poole.
Aired: FOX, 1993-94, 1 Season Totaling 27 Episodes
Cast: Bruce Campbell, Julius Carry, Kelly Rutherford, Christian Clemenson, John Astin
Crew: Jeffrey Boam (Creator/Executive Producer), Carlton Cuse (Creator/Executive Producer)
Legacy:
This genre-crossing series delivered wide appeal and a good sense of fun, and while it only lasted a short time, it is still remembered today as great series with plenty of potential.
A Closer Look:
In 1993, FOX was trying to stake its claim on the Prime Time schedule after several years of struggling, and it offered two genre entries that definitely stood out. One was The X-Files which ended up having a multi-season run and would go on to be considered a sci fi TV classic. The other faded much more quickly, but it is still well-remembered by those who watched it during its original run and for many years in syndication. The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr. came from Jeffery Boam (The Lost Boys, The Dead Zone) and Carlton Cuse (Lost, Locke & Key) who had written the script for Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. FOX execs wanted their own Indiana Jones-type show on the schedule, and they figured who better to hand the project to than the men who worked on the 1989 hit film.
As with Indiana Jones, Brisco County was a genre-crossing affair. It was a western series first, but it had elements of sci fi and steam punk as well. Some episodes were pure western action-adventure tales, while some–particularly those that focused on the mysterious orb–went heavy on the sci fi including adding time travel to the mix. But all of the episodes had a good sense of fun, making this a show that appeals to fans no matter what their genre preference is.
But what really brought this show together was its excellent cast. Fan-favorite Bruce Campbell delivered a highlight performance in the lead role, which is saying a lot considering his very storied career (he later claimed this was one if his favorites). But Campbell did not do it all on his own. Julius Carry as Lord Bowler often came close to stealing the show, and the two actors demonstrated a palpable chemistry on screen. Even the recurring roles stood out with Kelly Rutherford as the untamable Dixie Cousins, Christian Clemenson as the ever-flustered Socrates Poole, and John Astin stopping by to ham it up as the eccentric Professor Albert Wickwire. They helped the show stand out as more than just by-the-numbers Prime Time fare, and even though Brisco County lasted only one season, it is definitely worth seeking out for those who enjoy sci fi, westerns, or just good television.
Cancelled Too Soon?
Yes. Brisco County kicked off the 1993 season for FOX with impressive ratings, but its numbers quickly began to drop, blamed in part on its Friday night 8 PM EST timeslot. By the end of the season, it was one of the lowest-rated shows on the broadcast networks and FOX decided to cancel it because it was expensive to produce and also because it was pegged as too violent at a time when the networks were under pressure to cut down violence on television. FOX originally expected Brisco County to be a breakout hit and they kept it going for a full season hoping it would build its audience. The numbers did not improve and they ended up taking a chance on their other low-rated sci fi series The X-Files which was much cheaper to produce. Within a few years, that sci fi procedural had turned into a Top 20 hit, and perhaps Brisco County could have joined it if they stood by that one as well.
Bruce Campbell would later say the following about the cancellation in his autobiography If Chins Could Kill:
To explain why a TV show is canceled is almost impossible. Ironically Brisco, with its off-kilter humor, wouldn’t have been developed on any other network, yet the appeal of ‘Westerns’ was still rural – not the side Fox’s urban bread was buttered on.
Should It Be Rebooted?
Sadly, in 2008, Julius Carey passed away so there is no chance to bring the full original cast back together. And a complete reboot would be difficult because the charm of this show depends so much on the chemistry of the original actors. But interestingly, Brisco County himself–Bruce Campbell–had an idea for a revival that he shared back in 2023 in an interview:
You would bring [Brisco] back following the death of Lord Bowler to find out who killed Lord Bowler, and you have potentially a Brisco son with Dixie that we don’t know about, and maybe a Bowler’s son that we don’t know about, and maybe those guys team up. With me being a successful San Francisco lawyer, maybe he’s got to saddle up again at some point. But you’d have to take a new spin on the whole thing, but I’d be all over that like a cheap suit.
This is not to suggest that anything is currently in the works, but apparently Campbell has a strong interest in returning to the character. If fans were make some noise and Carlton Cuse (who is now a well-known name in television) were to lobby for it, perhaps Brisco County could ride again.
Interesting Facts:
Despite only lasting one season, Brisco County had an extensive number of episodes released on VHS (which was rare for the time) and had a healthy syndication run on TNT through most of the 90’s. Fans even lobbied that cable channel to produce new episodes, but it would have been too expensive for a cable network at that time, so nothing came of that.
The writers were already planning the second season before the cancellation was announced, and they were going to make some changes to the format. They would have had Brisco County settle down as the sheriff of a small town even though it looked like Brisco and Bowler were going to become federal agents agents at the end of the first season. The second season likely would have also continued to throw in some of the sci fi and steam punk elements.
Where Can You Watch It?
The entire series is available on DVD, though it has yet to receive the Blu-ray treatment. It is not currently available for streaming, but you can purchase the complete series VOD.
