Year Released: 2021-2022
Directed and Written by: Taylor Sheridan
Starring: Sam Elliott, Tim McGraw, Faith Hill, Isabell May, LaMonica Garret, Marc Rissman
(Not Rated, Probably PG13, 10 episodes, approximately 1 hour each)
Genre: Drama, Western

“The land of no consequences behind us. We are in the land of no mercy now.” Elsa Dutton

Rattlesnakes, arrows dipped in manure, cattle rustlers, drunken rapists, tornadoes, and a group of hard-headed humans at each other’s throats. Sit back and enjoy the mayhem as you count your blessings.

If you loved Yellowstone, you will probably love 1883, too. And the harsh realities of the trip give it a good taste of reality.

A taste, but not quite a full meal. The authenticity runs hot and cold, with too much politically correct porridge stirred into the plot.

A prequel to "Yellowstone," "1883" follows the Dutton family as they flee poverty in Texas and embark on a journey through the Great Plains to seek a better future in Montana. Real-life couple Tim McGraw and Faith Hill star as James and Margaret Dutton, while Sam Elliott portrays Shea Brennan, a tough cowboy who has sadness in his past.

But first let’s concentrate on what Taylor Sheridan’s prequel does well. Number one is casting Sam Elliot as Shea Brennan, their wagon train leader. He has strength and presence and is used to commanding men, having been a Union Army Captain during the civil war.

Even when he is wrong, stubborn, of borderline suicidal – given the recent deaths of his wife and daughter from smallpox – he captures us. His rugged face is still handsome and his deep voice commands respect.

But he would not even be still standing if not for his loyal friend, Thomas (LaMonica Garrett), a Buffalo soldier under his past command, and a fellow Pinkerton agent .

It is Thomas who asks if Brenan is still willing to lead a wagon train of immigrants to Oregon and thus persuades him to put down the gun he is holding to his own throat.

Tim McGraw, showing his vocal chords are fit for acting as well as belting out country western tunes, plays another obstreperous character, unsurprisingly a long lost ancestor of the equally knuckleheaded Dutton clan in Yellowstone. And he can sit a horse pretty well, too. But as to managing his out-of-control daughter and willful wife, not so much.

Which brings us to Isabel May in a breakout performance as the unruly 18-year-old Elsa Dutton, or Lightning with the Yellow Hair, as she is dubbed by her Comanche lover, Sam.

It is her voiced over eloquent narration that gives the series some real class:

Freedom. To most, it Is an idea, an abstract thought that pertains to control. That's not freedom. That's independence. Freedom is riding wild over untamed land with no notion any moment exists beyond the one you are living.

But later on she becomes more realistic.

I knew nothing of the horror that hides in freedom’s shadow.

And even philosophical…

I think cities have weakened us as a species. Mistakes have no consequences there. Step into the road without looking, and the carriage merely stops or swerves. The only consequence, an angry driver. But here, there can be no mistakes because here doesn't care. The river doesn't care if you can swim. The snake doesn't care how much you love your children, and the wolf has no interest in your dreams. If you fail to beat the current, you will drown. If you get too close, you will be bitten. If you are too weak, you will be eaten.

Too bad Elsa’s class is relegated to words, not keeping her from a tryst with a cowhand so close to the camp that everyone can hear it. Or then, later on, moving without a blink to Sam, the Comanche who earns her love all too quickly as well. Before long she is riding with him, not just herding horses, but learning how to steal horses, kill a buffalo, and eat its heart. Her return to the camp with a still buffalo-bloodied face speaks to this feral quality.

But to Shea Brennan, at least, she is to be admired.

“I am 75 years old. And she has outsmiled me, outloved me, outfought me. She’s outlived me. She’s outlived all of us. “

We also begin to see the root of some of her rebelliousness in Margaret Dutton, Her mother, played by Tim McGraw’s real life wife, Faith Hill.

Here is the tepid way she deals with Elsa’s tryst with the cowhand,

( BTW to Different Drummer’s practical mind, Elsa risking scandal is not so dumb as risking pregnancy during this dangerous trip. )

If you decide to do it again, do it outside of earshot of the damn camp.

Then later, when she is supposed to be giving her motherly advice about sex, Margaret fails utterly, instead not just condoning it, but envying her supposed freedom:

Margaret: I envy you, becomin' a woman out here. No rules, no worries, or whispers about what you should be. There's no such thing as freedom, Elsa. Don't let anyone tell you there is. There's laws, there's rules, there's customs, responsibilities everywhere. The more people you cram together, the more rules there'll be. I don't know what life is like in Oregon, but there'll be rules there, too. This trail is as free as you'll ever be. The only rules you need to follow are the ones in your heart.
Elsa: Can we talk about sex now?: We just did.

***

I guess I will pass on the unlikely perfect teeth and coiffed hair of all the women, all unrealistically quite beautiful, by the way. Or Noemi, the gypsy – I’m surprised she didn’t call herself Roma, the now preferred appellation for the group – who speaks without any accent at all.

However, the politically correct porridge referred to earlier continues to rankle. First of all is the completely inaccurate use of the “F” word, something not common at all until at least WWI, and then with men and certainly not in the company of women. Taylor Sheridan taints Yellowstone, and at least this prequel with it like a chef overusing salt. It loses any meaning, and having Margaret Dutton cuss so nonchalantly is especially irksome.

More 21st century cultural mores inserted into 1883 include the over emphasis on girl power, especially when the girls (Elsa and her mother) act selfishly and impulsively without any concerns about that behavior on the rest of the camp residents: Margaret getting very drunk, for instance, or riding off to “save” Elsa once again, while ordering 2 men to guard her wagon instead of their helping the others who are in dire straits.

And all the Indians (Sorry, not using the PC Native Americans) are good, even the Dakotas who dip their arrows in horse dung to be more lethal. They are only reacting to the horrid actions of white men who burned down their tents and killed their women and children.

Of course, our government treated the Indians terribly, forsaking treaties, but the warfare between different Indian tribes was just as brutal and maybe even more so than the fights between the calvary/pioneers and the Indians.

Almost all the bad guys – would be rapists, cattle rustlers, food thieves, corrupt lawmen – are white.

Just looking for a little more balance here, Sheridan.

Different Drummer has waited a few weeks after binging on 1883 to post this review. The fact is, then, that some of the above things still taint what is for the most part a very watchable series. This trend to put current values in historical dramas, of course, is not limited to Sheridan Taylor. We see it in Endeavour, Grantchester, and Father Brown, especially the newer seasons The same also happened to All Creatures Great and Small, where characters were even invented or completely overemphasized to fit current social expectations. I actually could not watch the final episode of Season 2 because it seemed to revolve around Mrs. Hall, at most a tertiary character in James Herriot’s books.

Ending my rant, I remind you that lovers of Yellowstone will love 1883, too, and many more will also like it. It is well written, acted, and its flaws are not nearly so egregious as the current pap Hollwood and Disney continue to foist on us.

But damned with faint praise is all I can do.

–Kathy Borich
🥁 🥁 🥁 ½

Trailer

Film-Loving Foodie

The most common breakfast on wagon trains was a soupy gruel made with grits, white hominy rather than the yellow hominy used for the Italian polenta. My Italian grandmother used to make something very tasty she called Corm Meal Mush.

But we are not on the Oregon Trail, so let’s make our day and our breakfast a little less “grueling.”

I will let Kevin (keviniscooking.com) take over from here

I’m not typically a big breakfast type, but these Southern Bacon Cheesy Fried Grits hit the spot every now and then on the weekend. Smooth and creamy stone ground corn grits get mixed with cheddar cheese and crumbled bacon, spread in a pan to form overnight and get pan fried the next morning served with maple syrup. Too good!

I love grits and I love polenta. The only difference is the size and coarseness of the corn when milled. Thinner is polenta and a toothsome, hearty breakfast can be made with the larger sized which are grits. They can be yellow or white stone ground corn. –Kevin from keviniscooking.com

Bacon Cheesy Fried Grits

Ingredients

· 1 cup stone ground grits (See Note 1)

· 4 cups water or stock, optional for savory

· 1/2 tsp salt

· 1 tbsp butter

· 6 slices bacon cooked and crumbled

· 1 cup cheddar cheese shredded

· maple syrup (See Note 2)

Instructions

1. When cooking grit it's important to remember the ratio you need to remember is 4:1. It's 4 cups of liquid to 1 cup of stone-ground grits.

2. In a large heavy saucepan or stock pot bring water, salt, and butter to a boil, then carefully whisk in the grits gradually, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon. Reduce the heat to simmer and cook covered, stirring often, until water is absorbed and grits are thickened, about 30-40 minutes.

3. Stir in bacon and cheese, season to taste and pour into a greased 9x9" square pan or a 11x7" rectangle pan. Cover with foil and refrigerate overnight.

4. Remove the pan from the from the refrigerator and pat the top of the grits down with a paper towel to get rid of any moisture. Dust the top of the grits with flour. Place parchment paper on top and a baking sheet on top of the parchment paper. Invert the entire thing and remove the original pan. Using a paper towel again dot the top of the grits to get rid of any moisture. Dust the bottom side of the grits, now visible, with flour. Cut into squares or rectangles.

5. Fry with butter or bacon fat (optional). After several minutes carefully turn each piece and brown the other side. Remove from the pan and serve with maple syrup poured on top.

Kevin Cooks.com