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Eeesh. That was NOT pleasant. I was expecting the scaffolding, not the "hoist 'em up 'till they die" method.
Still.......was kinda expecting something more...epic(?)...between the two. But the guy had to go, so at least that's done. But now Bohannon has a disability; will that slow him down any? Will he finally settle down? From the previews, it doesn't like the wife wants him back.
They also kind of teased us a little there with Bohannon's leg.
Settle down? Bohannon's got a railroad to finish.
ETA: The Inside Look video at the official site confirms the vibe I was getting last night...this was all about Bohannon's journey...how far he was willing to no longer be the type of killer that the Swede was trying to "out" him as. Ultimately, it was a quest to bring Gundersen to justice rather than do the job himself.
Having just rewatched 1x02 yesterday, I have to nitpick some potential discrepancies in Gundersen's backstory. First he said that his supply train had been captured...I'd taken that to mean a literal train, which maybe wasn't supposed to be the case, but this seemed more like a camp. He also said that he was always more comfortable with numbers than people...whereas pre-Andersonville Gundersen seemed like the life of the party.
Also, I have to wonder why he'd perpetuate a nickname that he was given at Andersonville, only to make a point of regularly protesting that he was Norwegian. I'd always been under the impression that he'd gotten that nickname in Hell on Wheels.
Also, hats off to James Shanklin for coming back to do such a blink-and-you-miss-it death cameo as Aaron Hatch.
Seems like a bit too much of a coincidence that the people of HoW would have independently come up with that exact nickname. They were clearly intending to give us its origin. In which case it would only have been brought to HoW if he went out of his way to keep it going.
Was just rewatching online...I always get so much more out of this show with a second watch after seeing the extras pertaining to the episode on the official site...the usual Inside Look video, and in this case, a Q&A with Christopher Heyerdahl...plus the captions helped a great deal with this one, as I was missing a lot of dialogue last night. There was a lot going on between Bohannon and Gundersen this episode, which is likely to inform the former's arc in the remaining episodes.
And having long been under the impression that Bohannon will die some sort of arc-appropriate death in the final episode, I can't help but see the doctor telling him that he'll be carrying that shrapnel for the rest of his life as anything but foreshadowing. I have to think that the now-bum leg will play a role in his death...such that Gundersen will have a hand in Bohannon's fate from beyond the grave.
Yeah, if the people making this show really want to shock the shit out of me, the final episode will end with Bohannon living happily ever after.
Yeah...it seems like Fong's "cat" is gonna be out of the bag soon....
Did Cullen cry twice this episode? Kinder, gentler Cullen...I feel like I can call him "Cullen" now....
These definitely feel like the final episodes...major loose ends getting tied up each week.
Well...Hell on Wheels may prove to be more historically accurate than The American West. TAW just depicted their version of Durant hammering in the Golden Spike. Nope, didn't happen that way....
Seems like a bit too much of a coincidence that the people of HoW would have independently come up with that exact nickname. They were clearly intending to give us its origin. In which case it would only have been brought to HoW if he went out of his way to keep it going.
But I think that's where Thor's exasperation comes from, the inexplicable way the nickname keeps turning up. It just doesn't make sense for him to propagate it and then protest it's use.
He seemed to take it pretty lightly when we first met him in Season 1, introducing himself to Bohannon as "The Swede". The nickname hardly seemed like the traumatic reminder of Andersonville that it should have been. It was only when Gundersen started to fall from grace that he began taking exception to the nickname.
Just did what's becoming my traditional Sunday morning online rewatch...some really good stuff here. I especially like the scene with Brigham Young, because Cullen breaking down in that situation is so not what you'd expect, but it makes perfect sense...Young is hitting him exactly where it hurts most at this point.
Only five episodes left...I'm already starting to "miss" this show, knowing that it will be over so soon.
So what's up with Eva and the horsey? Is she going to find new purpose as a cowgirl or a rancher or something?
I dunno...seems like that served its purpose as a danger that Cullen had to get his family away from. I can't see those particular Indians coming up again for geographic reasons...the family's now squared away in Salt Lake City (and I doubt we'll see them again except for maybe a brief revisit in the finale), and Cullen's back in Truckee a couple of states away. And the series has a lot of ground to cover (figuratively and literally in terms of railroad progress) in just five installments, without the "been there, done that" of a major battle with Indians.
OTOH, Bendix is back, and he's gotta have something to do--Say, were those the same Indians' horses that he and his men were taking into Laramie? They made a point of noting that the Indians had been in a fight and lost their horses....I suppose that maybe those Indians might factor into Durant's push to get to Ogden, which is in their neck of the wildnerness....
ETA: Something I noticed about the teaser for the next episode....
The masked gunman who bursts into Durant's train car looks like a woman. I'm thinking that it's Eva, as part of some scam of Durant's...hence the fact that they reminded us of Durant and Eva's friendship this episode.
ETA: So all the drama last year about the exact routes that the railroads would take and where they'd meet up? I was just noticing that back in Season 2, Durant had the entire combined route for both railroads marked out on his office map! Good thing Brigham Young didn't pay him a visit then!
OK, I was very wrong about the identity of the masked robber, and god is Durant in over his head with this! Shea's been like a gun on the wall waiting to be fired for some time now....Poor Delaney.
That scene with sex on the nitro table was a bit OTT...!
At this point, I kind of hope for Bohannon's sake that Chang does suspect (or know) that Fong's a woman.
Also, I wasn't expecting that Strobridge would actually go. Is Bohannon fully occupying his historical role at this point? I knew we'd see that bottle again, but didn't expect that it would be so soon or under these circumstances.
Campbell's back!
ETA: Caught an interesting quote from Chang on the second viewing: "A man who desires only one thing will never be satisfied." Perhaps intended by the writers as a commentary about Bohannon?
Woah! A two-decade flash-forward to Durant's fate and a rare Bohannon-less episode!
And another main-title regular leaves the show...I was getting the sense that one might not make it out of the episode alive.
What would give Eva the impression that Mickey might murder his own kin? Um...Sean? (OK, they acknowledged that much at the end of the episode.)
Looks like things are coming to a head with the Fong situation next week.
Over the hump for the final seven...only three to go....
ETA: Interesting fact in the episode's Inside Look...Durant's scheme is loosely based on a true story. Durant was ransomed for $250,000, and people suspected that it had been a scheme.
I was also just realizing...Delaney's gone...looks like Mei's about to be outed...I have a suspicion that Bohannon's going to be getting his old job back.
Yeah, there's definitely been a stronger concentration of them, at least.
I was surprised that Bohannon took down Chang so unceremoniously...guess Chang brought words to a gunfight. The scene that ensued was great...Bohannon's badassery is well-established enough that we don't need to see every detail, but nice to see that the bad leg isn't slowing him down too much.
I'd been thinking that Bohannon was going to take Mei back to Laramie, so when they ended up back in Truckee, I had a feeling that things weren't going to end well between them. I really wasn't expecting him to not even have her in the end.
From the previews for next week, looks like we're in for a time jump to 1869, and they'll be playing fast and loose with history, having the railroads race for Ogden. IRL, the UP went through Ogden on its route to Promontory, though I read something about the CP eventually purchasing the track between Ogden and Promontory. Also, not sure if it makes sense for Campbell to be officiating in Utah, but I guess he's there to represent the government in general. And I gotta wonder why Mickey's got a bunch of gunmen to greet Bohannon....
Yeah, that gun fight was well staged. I liked the conceit of only seeing parts of it through the bar windows. All through that gunfight I kept thinking "wait, is Bohannon left handed?"
I liked that he just shot Chang down. As Mei was holding the gun on him, I kept yelling at the TV: "Shoot him!" And then when Bohannon comes in and Chang tries to talk his way out of it, well---it ended exactly how it should have. I was sad to see Bohannon and Mei part but also happy to see her on her way home to, one assumes, a happier life.
I was disappointed that Mary sold her out so easily. She was a minor character but one that seemed to have a strong personality.
I've really enjoyed this show. It'll be interesting to see how they wrap it all up.
I also like that they pay attention to ammo and reloading in their gunfights...second viewing, I was counting the shots.
Chang, at least, got a final badass moment when he was fighting all those workers HTH. According to the behind-the-scenes extra, the dynamic between him and Bohannon in this episode was that Chang was underestimating him because he never knew Bohannon when he was in full badass mode. He probably thought that he could talk Bohannon down by emphasizing the consequences of killing him or something...not knowing that Old Bohannon was happy to shoot first and figure his way out of it later. Also according to the extra, Bohannon shooting him down was at least in part about him wanting to spare Mei from becoming a killer.
I was about to defend Mary, but just rewatched the scene and saw the money changing hands. Guess she's about what's in it for her first and foremost.
FWIW timeline-wise, I noticed that the telegram was dated "8/1", so I guess it's supposed to be August 1868 as of this episode (previously discussed historical issues like Grant's presidency aside). Between Season 4 and most of Season 5, '68's been a busy year. I guess it makes sense that they'd time-hop past Nevada, assuming that Canada doesn't have terrain to pass for the American Southwest.
Regarding the end of the show...interesting that they appear to be getting to the end of the race in the penultimate episode...I wouldn't have expected that. Makes me wonder what all they've got in store for the finale.
