As the fifth episode of American Primeval begins, Captain Edmund Dellinger writes to General Stafford to tell him about the settlers from Arkansas being murdered on the Old Spanish Trail. He insists the attack was organized and carried out by members of the Mormon Church. Wild Bill Hickman (Alex Breaux) reads the letter and whips James Wolsey (Joe Tippett). He blames Wolsey’s careless mistake for what they’re about to experience. Bill says they are the chosen and will not allow that to happen. The Lieutenant returns and tells Dellinger he ran into a company of Johnson’s men at Fort Bridger. Dellinger wants to wait a few more days for additional troops to arrive. He also confirms that Abish (Saura Lightfoot-Leon) is gone. Abish makes it to Winter Bird (Irene Bedard) and tells her about the Mormons who attacked her people. She explains she returned because she’s not ready to be found.
Isaac (Taylor Kitsch) returns to Sara (Betty Gilpin) and admits he didn’t see anyone. He’s confident they’re coming though. They find Devin (Preston Mota) and Two Moons (Shawnee Pourier) inside the cabin. Isaac believes Devin’s wound is worse. He believes they need to consider amputating the leg if the infection spreads. Sara yells no. Sammy Cottrell (Nick Hargrove) and Jim Bridger (Shea Whigham) see Brigham Young (Kim Coates) riding toward them. Young comes in and talks to Jim about Bill’s foot. He gives Jim his offer for the purchase of his establishment. Jim doesn’t agree that his offer is fair. Brigham hopes he will provide him with an answer before he departs. Dellinger writes about Brigham and his desire to control Fort Bridger and the entire Utah Territory. Isaac keeps checking on Devin’s wound. Sara realizes that it’s worse. She questions whether there is something else they can do for him. Two Moons may have an idea. She heats up a knife. Sara gets in the way and tries to stop her.
Isaac sticks the hot blade against Devin’s leg. Edmund is still rambling in his letters. The Lieutenant separates from the others. Dellinger his finger shot off out of the blue. He picks up his fingers and steps outside to gunfire. He gets shot. Dellinger is eventually killed by James Wolsey. Sara tells Isaac that Devin looks better so they should be able to leave soon. Isaac agrees that they’ll head to Crooks Springs. Sara asks if he’ll take them to California. Isaac doesn’t have business in California. Sara says Devin’s father is a decent enough man or at least she’s known worse. Sara wonders what he has against California. Isaac steps outside to check on the horses. Lucas (Andrew P. Logan) tells Virgil (Jai Courtney) that he can’t see anything. Bill Hickman walks among the dead. He pays the Lieutenant for his help. Wolsey says the Pratt woman is not there. He learns she went west and likely went back to the Shoshone. Bill kills the soldier moments later. Brigham Young speaks to his people.
Next, he visits Jim Bridger. Jim says he’s going to keep his name on the fort for a bit longer. He’s told there’s a warrant for his arrest from Judge Leonidas Shaver. There’s a standoff to prevent Jim’s arrest. Young is forced to leave empty-handed. Red Feather (Derek Hinkey) and Abish return to the camp where they find Dellinger and the others dead. Abish believes the Mormons came for her. She tells Red Feather they’ll kill all of them for her. Isaac and the group are still at the cabin. After all this time, Sara begins questioning why she brought Devin there. She suspects Isaac lost his son. Two Moons returns and says she saw wolves. Jane Pratt (Dane DeHaan) hears horses approaching. Isaac remembers the traumatic incident from his past. He tells Sara they have to move because the wolves will get bold enough to take the horses. Isaac tells Sara how he moved his family for a better chance of survival.
Red Feather makes it to Winter Bird and tells her about the dead soldiers. Winter Bird decides they should move west as Kinii Da-Dawon told them. Abish offers to hand herself over, but Winter Bird refuses to let that happen. Isaac tells the others they should leave tonight because they’ve been put for too long. While Sara is outside, she is approached by Virgil. Isaac hears something. He opens the door and gunshots are fired. Virgil’s men surround the cabin. Isaac says they’re out. He rushes outside and shoots at least one person before engaging in hand-to-hand combat. Devin begins yelling for him. Isaac goes back inside and fatally shoots the man holding Two Moons and Devin at gunpoint. Isaac confronts the man outside who tells him that they took Sara.
American Primeval Review
The wheels kept spinning in the fifth episode of American Primeval, but the story really didn’t move anywhere. The episode could’ve easily been condensed into one of the previous episodes considering how little happened. Most of the episode was told through Dellinger’s letters and Isaac and the group hanging out at the cabin.
One interesting hiccup here is the fact that everyone is pretending to be modern Americans. Anyone with any understanding of basic American history will know that America was a very diverse country at the time. According to the 1850 census, nearly 10% of the population at the time was born in other countries, including Ireland, Germany, France, Switzerland, Mexico, Norway, Holland, Italy, Britain, and Canada.
Another interesting tidbit is that William MacKinnon estimated that roughly 150 people died as a result of the year-long Utah War. However, 120 of the victims were migrants killed during the Mountain Meadows Massacre. That’s a lot of bodies to be adding to the slab for cheap entertainment purposes.
Through five episodes, the series is another missed opportunity to tell a great story or even multiple great stories. Instead, it’s another Netflix series with minimum effort meant to be half-watched and immediately forgotten. This episode scores a 4 out of 10. Recaps of American Primeval can be found here.
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Jay Skelton is a fan of all television shows and movies. He tries his best to keep up with the latest foreign television shows and movies. Jay loves skinny dipping in the dark too.
