AllMovie

In this episode from the first season of the long-running television series The Waltons, 16-year-old John-Boy (Richard Thomas) is deemed old enough to go hunting and he volunteers to join a turkey shoot. But John-Boy hates the idea of killing animals, and when a prize bird is in his rifle's sight, he finds that he can't pull the trigger. John-Boy is worried that his father (Ralph Waite) will think he's a coward, but soon John-Boy is given another opportunity to prove his bravery. Meanwhile, Mary-Ellen (Judy Norton-Taylor) has been saving her money to buy a baseball glove, but when G.W. Haines (David Doremus), a boy that she likes, begins spending his time with a pretty girl, Mary-Ellen wonders if she should buy a nice dress instead in hopes of winning back G.W.'s attentions. The Waltons: The Hunt first aired on October 5, 1972.