Cartwright Curse: Averted this time, but narrowly. Jamie and Neta have been stalked for hours by Bannon, who plans to eliminate both of them for being witnesses to him killing another man. Unlike previous episodes where Neta might have been killed before one of the good guys kills the assailant ... Neta's father arrives just in time to stop Bannon.
Helicopter Parents: There is strong evidence Mr. Thatcher, a widower, is alienated from an older daughter (Neta's sister) when he questions her about her whereabouts (after she returns late from school, after witnessing the roadside murder). Apparently, he so smothered her with his strict parenting style that she finally broke away and married someone he didn't approve of. When he sees that Jamie's motives of dating Neta are pure, he relents and lets them go on their picnic ... unchaperoned!
Imagine Spot: Neta — walking home from school the day after witnessing the roadside murder, has a flashback and imagines herself lying dead and being robbed by Bannon.
Just in Time: Neta's father's impeccable timing to stop Bannon from getting at Neta. (Although ironically, Mr. Thatcher's arrival at the Ponderosa was not to save Neta; it was to confront Jamie for going out with his daughter without his approval. Only when he hears gunshots and sees a man trying to climb into the hayloft does he realize what's going on and what Neta had been trying to tell him.)
Papa Wolf: Mr. Thatcher wants to give Jamie — and Ben — a piece of his mind by allowing him to go out with Neta, of whom he is strongly overprotective. In the end, the trope kicks in for a vastly different reason, when he thrwarts Bannon attempting to shoot at both Neta and Jamie ... showing that for often being a stick in the mud, he will protect his loved ones.
Would Hit a Girl: Bannon stalks and plans to do just that, before brutally killing Neta.
