Bonanza The Initiation (1959–1973) watch online HD

Ted (Ron Howard) is a street urchin who is befriended by Jamie (Mitch Vogel). These two and a few other boys have a secret club, and when they are initiating a boy with a preexisting heart problem he dies from terror. Ted makes the other boys promise and take an oath the never tell what happens. The others have reservations about keeping quiet, but agree. When a vagabond is arrested on suspicion of the disappearance of Sonny (the dead boy), Jamie has difficulty keeping his silence. Will he go to the authorities? Will he remain silent? Will he run away and join a gang of outlaws? Will they find Sonny's body? Will they hang the vagabond? Where are Ben and Little Joe? Will Hop Sing fix Jamie a special meal which he refuses to eat? Will Aunt Bee find out the truth about Opie? Will Andy Taylor take Opie to the tool shed? Will the Fonz come to Richie's aid? An interesting episode in the final season.

A lot of juvenile actors get parts in this Bonanza episode which focuses on Mitch Vogel the Cartwright adopted juvenile son. It seems as though a lot of the kids have formed a secret club which Vogel joined. But at the "initiation" ceremony one of them dies because he has a congenital heart defect that none of them knew about.

Instead of coming forward they let the body be discovered and blame fall on some drifter who came by the late boy's horse.

The issue here is Ron Howard who is an orphan kid working at the stable. He has reason as we see to be concerned as he is an outsider and the rest have families who will stand by them. No one more so than Vogel who now has the Cartwright name.

In the end the kids show more character than some of the grownups. Ron Howard plays a similar role to one he would do in a few years in The Spikes Gang.

All in all a nice Bonanza episode.