Lawman (1958)

Western

Lawman is an American western television series originally telecast on ABC from 1958 to 1962 starring John Russell as Marshal Dan Troop and featuring Peter Brown as Deputy Marshal Johnny McKay. The series was set in Laramie, Wyoming during 1879 and the 1880s. Warner Bros. already had several western series on the air at the time, having launched Cheyenne with Clint Walker as early as 1955. The studio continued the trend in 1957 with the additions of Maverick with James Garner and Jack Kelly, Colt .45 with Wayde Preston, and Sugarfoot with Will Hutchins. One year later, Warner Bros. added Lawman and Bronco with Ty Hardin. Prior to the beginning of production, Russell and Brown and producer Jules Schermer made a pact to maintain the quality of the series so that it would not be seen as "just another western." At the start of season two, Russell and Brown were joined by Peggie Castle as Lily Merrill, the owner of the Birdcage Saloon, and a love interest for Dan.

IMDb rating: 8.1 (1,159 votes)
Episode average: 7.9 -0.2 vs IMDb
Seasons: 4
Language: EN
Type: TV series

Rating trend: this show's seasons do not settle into one shape. Rising Shows ranks whole shows by the shape of their rating trend rather than one average score, which is how you find a show that got better rather than a show that started well.

Browse shows by rating shape → Open in Rising Shows app → View on IMDb

Ratings refreshed Oct 3, 2026 · 4 seasons indexed

Cast

Seasons

Season 1 (1958)

8.03 avg 39 episodes 8.7 → 8.5 30 min avg

Season 1 episodes - IMDb ratings
#	Title	Rating	Votes
1	The Deputy	8.7	147
2	The Prisoner	8.3	87
3	The Joker	7.9	82
4	The Oath	8.2	90
5	The Outcast	7.9	75
6	The Jury	8.0	74
7	Wanted	8.1	69
8	The Badge	7.5	71
9	Bloodline	7.9	67
10	The Intruders	8.1	65
11	Short Straw	7.9	66
12	Lady in Question	7.5	68
13	The Master	8.1	69
14	The Outsider	8.0	68
15	The Captives	7.7	67
16	The Encounter	8.0	80
17	The Brand Release	7.9	63
18	The Runaway	7.5	65
19	Warpath	7.8	61
20	The Gunman	8.1	66
21	The Big Hat	7.9	64
22	The Chef	7.4	69
23	The Posse	8.1	69
24	The Visitor	7.9	66
25	Battle Scar	7.5	73
26	The Gang	8.6	81
27	The Souvenir	8.4	66
28	The Young Toughs	8.4	65
29	Riding Shotgun	8.4	62
30	The Journey	7.9	63
31	The Huntress	8.1	65
32	The Return	8.0	54
33	The Senator	8.2	64
34	The Ring	7.9	60
35	The Bandit	8.6	65
36	The Wayfarer	8.6	74
37	The Conclave	8.0	63
38	Red Ransom	7.8	58
39	The Friend	8.5	71

Season 2 (1959)

7.92 avg 37 episodes 8.5 → 7.8 30 min avg

Season 2 episodes - IMDb ratings
#	Title	Rating	Votes
1	Lily	8.5	88
2	The Hunch	7.9	68
3	Shackled	7.9	64
4	The Exchange	8.2	72
5	The Last Man	8.0	71
6	The Breakup	8.1	62
7	Shadow Witness	7.9	68
8	The Prodigal	7.8	67
9	The Press	8.4	70
10	9:05 to North Platte	8.2	70
11	The Hoax	7.9	64
12	The Shelter	8.1	64
13	Last Stop	7.9	64
14	The Showdown	7.9	70
15	The Stranger	7.8	60
16	The Wolfer	8.0	60
17	The Hardcase	7.6	59
18	To Capture the West	8.3	86
19	The Ugly Man	7.7	74
20	The Kids	7.6	72
21	The Thimblerigger	8.0	77
22	The Truce	7.8	74
23	Reunion in Laramie	7.4	67
24	Thirty Minutes	8.5	78
25	Left Hand of the Law	8.2	70
26	Belding's Girl	7.5	74
27	Girl from Grantsville	7.9	69
28	Surface of Truth	7.7	60
29	The Salvation of Owny O'Reilly	7.8	67
30	The Lady Belle	8.0	66
31	The Payment	8.0	68
32	The Judge	8.2	68
33	Man on a Wire	7.3	67
34	The Parting	7.9	67
35	The Swamper	7.4	59
36	Man on a Mountain	7.8	58
37	Fast Trip to Cheyenne	7.8	62

Season 3 (1960)

7.91 avg 39 episodes 7.8 → 8.0 30 min avg

Rebound

Season 3 episodes - IMDb ratings
#	Title	Rating	Votes
1	The Town Boys	7.8	68
2	The Go-Between	7.7	63
3	The Mad Bunch	8.3	75
4	The Old War Horse	7.2	64
5	The Return of Owny O'Reilly	8.1	67
6	Yawkey	8.5	77
7	Dilemma	8.1	64
8	The Post	7.9	63
9	Chantay	8.4	71
10	Samson the Great	7.8	64
11	The Second Son	7.7	55
12	The Catcher	8.1	59
13	Cornered	8.5	64
14	The Escape of Joe Killmer	7.6	55
15	Old Stefano	7.4	58
16	The Robbery	7.5	62
17	Firehouse Lil	7.6	58
18	The Frame-Up	7.8	53
19	The Marked Man	8.1	50
20	The Squatters	8.1	63
21	Homecoming	8.2	61
22	Hassayampa	7.6	53
23	The Promoter	7.7	52
24	Detweiler's Kid	7.7	62
25	The Inheritance	7.5	52
26	Blue Boss and Willie Shay	8.3	71
27	The Man from New York	7.8	52
28	Mark of Cain	7.4	57
29	Fugitive	7.7	51
30	The Persecuted	8.2	55
31	The Grubstake	8.3	60
32	Whiphand	8.4	60
33	The Threat	8.0	58
34	The Trial	7.7	53
35	Blind Hate	8.3	61
36	The Break-In	7.8	56
37	Conditional Surrender	7.8	58
38	Cold Fear	7.8	53
39	The Promise	8.0	51

Season 4 (1961)

7.92 avg 41 episodes 8.0 → 8.5 30 min avg

Rebound

Season 4 episodes - IMDb ratings
#	Title	Rating	Votes
1	Trapped	8.0	60
2	The Juror	7.8	59
3	The Four	8.1	63
4	The Son	7.9	63
5	Owny O'Reilly, Esquire	7.4	64
6	The Substitute	7.7	61
7	The Stalker	8.1	64
8	The Catalog Woman	7.6	56
9	The Cold One	8.0	60
10	Porphyria's Lover	8.0	59
11	The Appointment	7.8	58
12	The Lords of Darkness	8.0	60
13	Tarot	7.8	54
14	The Prodigal Mother	8.0	60
15	By the Book	7.9	55
16	Trojan Horse	7.9	57
17	The Locket	8.4	62
18	A Friend of the Family	7.9	60
19	The Vintage	7.8	61
20	The Tarnished Badge	8.0	66
21	No Contest	7.8	63
22	Change of Venue	8.0	56
23	The Holdout	7.9	56
24	The Barber	8.0	57
25	The Long Gun	8.2	65
26	Clootey Hutter	8.5	71
27	Heritage of Hate	8.3	60
28	Mountain Man	7.8	59
29	The Bride	7.8	64
30	The Wanted Man	8.3	59
31	Sunday	8.3	54
32	The Youngest	8.3	60
33	Cort	7.4	55
34	The Doctor	8.2	56
35	The Man Behind the News	7.3	52
36	Get Out of Town	7.7	48
37	The Actor	7.8	68
38	Explosion	7.2	57
39	Jailbreak	7.3	60
40	The Unmasked	8.0	53
41	The Witness	8.5	65