At first I thought THE RINGER was going to retread the ground of S.I.W., where John Cassavetes is thought to be faking his wounds to avoid real combat. But this was a completely different twist on that plot device. As the story opens, we see guest star Mart Hulswit, smearing dirt on his boots and uniform and slashing his helmet mesh. When Kirby encounters him, Hulswit lets him think he's been roughed up. Claiming to be a stray from his own squad, Hulswit is taken in by Saunders until they can re-locate him. Right off the bat, this seemingly timid soldier does something audacious: he jumps a German within yards of other enemy soldiers and is immediately attacked. The K guys take care of it, and Hulswit gets out alive, but not without a vocal whipping from Sauders. Later, Hulswit initiates a grenade attack on an ememy outpost which leads to Littlejohn getting wounded. Saunders is over-the-top furious and looks into the newbie's background. Everything looks suspicious until Kirby is ordered to go thru the guy's pockets. He finds an Indiana newspaper notice about Hulswit's heroism and medals. But the guy is not really a hero (yet); his own father manufactured the heroics for the benefit of his home town. Suddenly, the guys are under attack, and Hulswit is required to participate in real combat. After a failed attempt to rescue a wounded Kirby, he sets out on his own mission to decimate the attacking Germans and ends up carrying the day. Saunders ends by telling Caje: "Remind me to write that guy up for a medal". A bit contrived, but an exciting and intriguing episode. The mystery of Hulswit is kept at bay long enough to hold the viewer's interest. The fight scenes are exciting. Mart Hulswit is a very good young actor and makes the most of his COMBAT appearance.

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