1883 is the first Yellowstone offshoot, a Western spinoff comprising one season of ten episodes that tells the story of the earliest-known Dutton family, helmed by James (Tim McGraw) and Margaret Dutton (Faith Hill). 1923 is 1883’s follow-up, which details the events 40 years later, led by Harrison Ford and Helen Mirren as Jacob and Cara Dutton. Ordered initially as one season, 1923 is a two-part story that plays out over two seasons, comprising 15 episodes. The 1920s saga finished its second part in April 2025, with 1923 season 2’s finale.
3. 1923
1923 Season 2, Episode 7 – “A Dream And A Memory”
Alex’s death fit the grim themes of the Prohibition-era saga.
Unfortunately, Alex Dutton’s death was the most significant event of 1923 season 2’s finale. Spencer’s wife died from complications of hypothermia after an extended amount of time in Montana’s unforgiving winter. While Alex’s death fit the grim themes of the Prohibition-era saga, it felt somewhat out of balance considering all the horrible things that happened to Alex Dutton in 1923, that she would die one of the franchise’s most gruesome deaths, and so quickly upon her arrival.
Yellowstone Season 5, Episode 14 – “Life Is A Promise”
In 1883’s finale, James Dutton meets a Crow elder named Spotted Eagle (Graham Greene) who tells him about Paradise Valley. Spotted Eagle tells James he can settle in the valley, but his people will rise and take it from him in seven generations. At that moment, Dutton promises that in seven generations, the Crow people can have their land back. Kayce Dutton’s and Thomas Rainwater’s agreement (Gil Birmingham) fulfilled the prophecy. Kayce relinquished the land, making Yellowstone season 5’s finale a cathartic ending despite its predictability, especially for those who had seen 1883.
Yellowstone’s finale delivered the elements fans wanted to see.
1. 1883
1883 Episode 10 – “This Is Not Your Heaven”
The most satisfying conclusion in the Yellowstone franchise is the end of 1883. In the finale, after Elsa Dutton (Isabel May) is struck by a poison arrow in the penultimate episode, James and his daughter fast-track to Paradise Valley on horseback, and Elsa’s fate anchors the end of the story. The bright-eyed narrator dies in her father’s arms, then meets her husband, Sam (Martin Sensmeier), in the afterlife. 1883‘s finale also concludes the stories of the other surviving wagon train members, showing how it ends for Shea (Sam Elliott), Thomas (LaMonica Garrett), and Josef (Marc Rissmann).
1883’s endings strike the right balance of drama and emotional payoff.
Elsa’s fate and that of Shea, Thomas, and Josef are sad but resonate with the circumstances and have satisfying payouts. We know precisely why the stories end the way they do, and Elsa’s 1883 death had a powerful message. Elsa’s death results from unrest along the Oregon Trail amid westward expansion. We see Elsa’s gruesome wound in the opening scene, and then 1883 takes us back through the events to explain why it happened, telling, too, the story of the Lakota warriors who mistook Shea and Thomas’ wagon train as the ones who murdered their families.
