A Typical Lone Rider
Having received a letter from their friend Joe Hawkes, Fuzzy Q. Jones (Al St. John) and Tom Cameron (George Houston), aka The Lone Rider then find themselves being contacted by Joe's niece Jean (Dorothy Short) who together go to Joe's house only to find that he has been shot dead with a .41 calibre slug in him. Jean tells Fuzzy and Tom that Joe had been concerned over realtor George Clarke (Frank Hagney) who had been forcing locals of their properties after gold had been discovered in the area. To find who killed their friend Tom goes to see Clarke looking to join his gang but immediately raises suspicions.
For those who are unaware The Lone Rider was a western hero who along with his bearded side kick Fuzzy starred in a series of westerns during the 1940s, although the character did appear in a couple of earlier and later movies. What that means when it comes to "The Lone Rider Fights Back" is we have a popular character and a duo solving a western crime which in this case is the murder of their friend and Jean's uncle. Typical is the word which springs to mind, not only taken as part of an old western franchise but also as a western in general.
To tell you how typical "The Lone Rider Fights Back" is the opening scene is one of those old fashioned barroom brawls where chairs fly as quick as the punches. But this is then followed by a scene of Tom and Fuzzy camping in the wilderness where Tom happens to sing a song; yes we have a singing cowboy. In today's world it is incredibly cheesy but ticks all the boxes when you think of these western movie series from a bygone era.
The trouble is that whilst for a western fan "The Lone Rider Fights Back" is moderately interesting it isn't anything new and so just ends up a familiar drama just with a different named hero to follow. And to be frank George Houston whilst seeming to come across as very comfortable playing Tom Cameron the character itself ends up quite dull because of being purely typical.
What this all boils down to is that "The Lone Rider Fights Back" is once again one of those movies which now really only appeals to those who have a desire to watch as many western as possible rather than a movie for those looking for some western entertainment.
