The Rifleman: Season 4
Season 4 Lore Primer
Key plot threads, lore context, and character stakes you need to remember before diving into this season.
- Directly follows the overarching narrative developments of The Rifleman Season 3.
- Faction dynamics and core character alliances shift under escalating external stakes.
- Crucial mysteries introduced previously reach key turning points and narrative reckonings.
- Sets up serialized story arcs that build directly toward the climactic season finale.
Episode Guide
Season 4 Progress Shield
First Wages
Oct 9, 1961 · 30 min
Lucas tries to find out why Mark has taken a job as a stableboy.
Sheer Terror
Sep 16, 1961 · 30 min
Mark and Milly are held prisoner in her general store when two gunmen attempt a daring robbery.
The Stand-In
Oct 23, 1961 · 30 min
Lucas is taken hostage by two prison wagon drivers angered that he won't give them more whiskey.
The Journey Back
Oct 30, 1961 · 30 min
Mark goes to work for Will Temple, a badly scarred and very mysterious rancher.
The Decision
Nov 6, 1961 · 30 min
Corey Hazlett insists he's innocent of murder, despite Lucas's eyewitness testimony.
Knight Errant
Nov 13, 1961 · 30 min
Lucas tries to dissuade a latter-day knight from rushing into battle.
Honest Abe
Nov 20, 1961 · 30 min
Able Lincoln's claim that he's the Great Emancipator himself amuses everyone except Matt Yorty.
The Long Goodbye
Nov 27, 1961 · 30 min
Stubborn Grandpa Fogarty is Lucas's main roadblock as he tries to get young Woody Fogarty to attend school.
The Shattered Idol
Dec 4, 1961 · 30 min
Mark Twain visits Southfork, and quickly alienates the townspeople.
Long Gun From Tucson
Dec 11, 1961 · 30 min
Lucas tries to stop embittered John Holliver from venting his wrath on the people who expelled him from town years before.
The High Country
Dec 18, 1961 · 30 min
Lucas becomes the target of a vengeful mountaineer.
A Friend in Need
Dec 25, 1961 · 30 min
Mark finds himself the unwilling companion of gunman Carl Avery.
Skull
Jan 1, 1962 · 30 min
Lucas seeks an escape when he's captured by outlaws while seeking help for an injured Mark.
Gunfire
Jan 15, 1962 · 30 min
When an expected lawman doesn't arrive from Denver, several gunfighters arrive in North Fork and cause trouble.
The Quiet Fear
Jan 22, 1962 · 30 min
Lucas's old Army pal settles in North Fork with his deaf daughter.
Sporting Chance
Jan 29, 1962 · 30 min
An Englishman arrives with a custom-made rifle—and a plan to kill Lucas.
A Young Man's Fancy
Feb 5, 1962 · 30 min
The pangs of first love are painful for Mark: the object of his affections has eyes for another.
The Man from Salinas
Feb 12, 1962 · 30 min
Banker Hamilton is closing up for the day when Rudy Gray persuades him to stay open for one more transaction - a withdrawal at gunpoint.
Two Ounces of Tin
Feb 19, 1962 · 30 min
Sammy Davis Jr. stars as Tip Corey, son of a man allegedly murdered in North Fork.
Deadly Image
Feb 26, 1962 · 30 min
A reliable eye-witness rides into North Fork and accuses Lucas McCain of cattle rustling and cold-blooded murder.
The Debt
Mar 5, 1962 · 30 min
Mark learns that the prisoner Micah is escorting to the gallows is the man that saved his life three years previously.
The Tinhorn
Mar 12, 1962 · 30 min
Mark is shocked when he discovers that his father is a poker player.
None So Blind
Mar 19, 1962 · 30 min
Mark befriends singer-banjoist Lafayette Bly, a blind man with an acute sense of hearing—and a very strong grip.
Guilty Conscience
Apr 2, 1962 · 30 min
No one's more surprised than Micah when newcomer Leota Carraway claims he's her long-lost husband and the father of her child.
Day of Reckoning
Apr 9, 1962 · 30 min
Lucas is torn by conflicting emotions when he meets the town's new preacher—a former outlaw whom the Rifleman vowed to kill.
The Day the Town Slept
Apr 16, 1962 · 30 min
The town of North Fork becomes a haven for outlaws when suave Ben Judson smooth-talks his way into the marshal's job.
Milly's Brother
Apr 23, 1962 · 30 min
A veteran returns with tales of heroism and the fate of Milly's brother in the Civil War.
Outlaw's Shoes
Apr 30, 1962 · 30 min
A head wound wipes out Lucas's memory, leaving him with only one clue: he's wearing an outlaw's gun.