User Reviews

The End Is But The Beginning is characterized by a great deal of suspense. Conflict prevails as Kimble finds himself in a situation whereby he may be able to make Lieutenant Gerard think he's deceased. The thought of this possibility makes even Kimble himself doubtful of its success potential as he respects Gerard's perspicacity. There is however an outside chance it just might work - so why not try.

Barbara Barrie plays an excellent role as Kimble's accomplice. She's familiar with his trial and believes him to be innocent. She has also fallen for him as a potential romance. Barrie's excellent dialog with Gerard is a tribute to superb screen writing in this episode.

Andrew Duggan is jealous of Kimble and is overly concerned with his interest in Barrie. After all this drifter has no solid base. In the subsequent Fugitive episode Shadow of the Swan, Duggan plays a suspicious uncle with the same skeptical mentality.

At least for awhile and maybe still, The End Is But The Beginning was ranked the 4th most popular Fugitive episode of all time. This is mainly because it evokes such suspense that a 1 hour episode seems closer to 2 hours in reality.

Kimble, working as a driver of a fuel oil truck, picks up a hitchhiker. He learns that the man just got out of the army and has no living relatives. An unexpected obstruction in the road leads to a crash. Kimble jumps free but the passenger dies in the explosion and fire.

Kimble develops a plan to make Lieutenant Gerard think he was the one who died in the crash, so he will call off the chase. Kimble ultimately is assisted by his romantic interest, Amy Rennick (well played by actress Barbara Barrie), who worked with him at the trucking company. Gerard comes to investigate, and is reluctant to accept that Kimble is dead.

The boss of the trucking company, John Harlan (played by actor Andrew Duggan), is himself interested in Amy, and has been jealous of her attentions to Kimble. Complications arise when he suspects something is not right.

Richard Kimble encounters another lonely, love-starved woman who immediately senses his innocence and tries to help him. This time she's played by Barbara Barrie, who works in the office of a firm Kimble works for that delivers flammable materials. She falls for him but Andrew Duggan, who runs the office, has fallen for her. Kimble picks up a hitch=hiker on a run- a rootless orphan just out of the service who's decided to see the country before settling down. There's an accident and Kimble leaps form the truck. The hitch-hiker, frozen with fear, goes over the cliff with the truck, which explodes into flames. Kimble now has a chance to be presumed dead, (as was the case, briefly in the similar Season One finale, "The End Game"). People will think it is he that died in the flames. But he was hurt in the fall and needs patching up. He goes back to his apartment and collapses where Barrie finds him and Duggan finds out about him. Meanwhi8le, Gerard comes to "tie up any loose ends".

The most interesting thing is when Kimble wakes up in bed at Barrie's house. She announces that she's sure of his innocence- but Kimble wonders if she should be. He seems worried about her naïveté and the resulting vulnerability. But he's also wondering about something else. Did he do enough to save the hitch-hiker: or did he really want the guy to die so he could fake his own death? Is Richard Kimble guilty after all?

Dr Richard Kimble is a man of many talents. He has demonstrated near world class ability to fix cars, fight bad guys, play poker and council troubled people. Just to name a few. But his greatest talent may be the ability to manufacture fake drivers licenses. How else could he get so many jobs driving trucks and chauffeuring people? This ability is also a fairly lucrative side hustle, providing ID for the underage kids of rich people.

In this one, Dick is, once again, a truck driver. He has caught the eye of lonely Barbara Barrie, who also has the attention of the boss, Hacksaw Andy Duggan. Dick picks up a hitchhiker who says he's just out of the Army, has no relatives, and would not be missed if he died. Just then, the road is blocked and the truck crashes to the bottom of Steiner brothers pass, where it bursts into flames. Dick is thrown clear, but is injured. He returns to his room with his clothes torn, his face bruised and bleeding, and three hairs out of place. His plan is to convince Gerard that the burned up body of the hitchhiker is really his. The Kimble is dead scheme didn't work in Never Wave Goodbye or End Game, but maybe the third time will be the charm. Barbara comes to Dick's room and finds him planting evidence of his real identity, and helps him with his plan, because he's too good looking to have really killed his wife. Carpenter breaks the news of Kimble's death to Gerard, who reacts as if a close relative has died. Just stunned, profound sadness. Probably because he was expecting at least two more years of employment on the show. Phil flies to Pennsylvania to make sure it's over, and has some tense scenes with Barbara. Dick remembers the hitchhiker had dog tags which will prove who really died, so he has to get them before the cops do. He and Barbara go to the crash site where Dick finds the dog tags, but old Hacksaw shows up with a gun. He shoots Barbara while aiming for Kimble, who stays to save Barbara's life with his mad medical skills. Hacksaw phones for an ambulance and good news bad news. Barbara survives, but Gerard gets wise that Kimble isn't dead after all. The chase continues.

Another suspenseful episode, worth watching!!! Gerard as always is nicely playing its role

When the show begins, Richard Kimble is posing as Steve...a truck driver. However, while driving for the company, he stops to pick up a hitchhiker and only moments later, as they round a bend, there is an accident and Kimble cannot stop in time. So, he spins the wheel and the truck goes careening down a cliff. He's able to get out in time but the passenger froze up and was killed. The truck explodes and the body is burned beyond recognition. Kimble now realizes he might be able to convince authorities it was him in the truck who was killed and Gerard will finally give up his chase. However, given that it's only the second episode of the second season...fat chance of that!

As is typical of so many episodes, a woman (Barbara Barrie) has fallen for him and wants to help him escape. However, as if often the case, a jealous man (Andrew Duggan) might derail this plot and turn in Kimble. Something, of course, happens at the end and Kimble manages to live to see another day as a free man.

This is a decent episode and is filled with so many of the plot elements the audience has come to expect from the show. And, once again, Kimble ends up risking his own life instead of simply escaping. Watch the show and see what this is. Well made and pretty much what you've come to expect in most every way.