Taylor Sheridan's '1923' Is Over -- Here's How It Ended

Spoilers for the entire series of 1923

Let’s start with the good news: Jacob, Cara, and Spencer Dutton (Harrison Ford, Helen Mirren, and Brandon Sklenar) all survived the finale—and rightfully so. Harrison Ford may have appeared in a few westerns early in his career, and of course there’s the sci-fi western we’d all rather forget, Cowboys and Aliens, but it’s hard to overstate how great he is in 1923, especially in the finale. He’s at his most Harrison Fordiest: heroic, wry, stubborn, and perfect (though there’s no way he realistically survives the train-station shootout, where he basically just stands out in the open while gunning down bad guys). He’s especially good in his few scenes with Alex (Julia Schlaepfer). (His performance in 1923 is, oddly, a great companion to Shrinking).

Helen Mirren, as always, is equally fantastic—taking out her scope, gunning down men from a window, and later caring for baby John Dutton. She proves, once again, that she can do anything. Taylor Sheridan did right by Mirren. Or rather, Mirren transcended her material (as she is also doing on MobLand, which replaced 1923 as the streamer’s anchor).

Meanwhile, Spencer finally made it home. He stayed on the train in Livingston and mostly witnessed the shootout meant for him. Earlier, when Alex flagged him down by lighting their train car on fire (as it passed by), he jumped off, ran a mile or so to the stopped train, and rescued her. They shared a brief reunion before Spencer had to return to the ranch, while Alex remained in the hospital with Jacob (who had an old bullet wound open up during the shootout).

And return Spencer did, ready to take care of business. Back at the Yellowstone ranch, Spencer basically mowed down Whitfield’s remaining men with a shotgun capable of dropping two or three at a time. It was absurdly one-sided, but crowd-pleasing all the same. Afterward, he returned to the hospital to be with Alex, who had just given birth to John—- the ancestor who would carry on the Yellowstone legacy.

Alex, tragically, didn’t survive. She gave birth three months prematurely and, rather than have her frostbitten limbs amputated, chose to succumb to her injuries in Spencer’s arms. I hated her death — she would’ve been a perfect heir to Cara’s legacy — but it was undeniably affecting in a very end-of-Titanic sort of way. A truly devastating love story.

Spencer held Whitfield responsible. After Alex died, Spencer and Jacob walked into Whitfield’s mansion, where Whitfield was dining with his partner and the sex worker they had abducted. Spencer shot both Whitfield and his partner dead. It was somewhat satisfying, but after the torture Whitfield inflicted — on those women and on us, the viewers — I might’ve preferred something slower and more painful.

Somehow, baby John survived. I looked it up: a baby born three months premature in 1924 surviving would’ve been a medical anomaly, but not impossible. That baby, John Dutton III (played in old age by Dabney Coleman), would go on to live a long life. Spencer lived another 45 years but never remarried. Elizabeth, meanwhile, left the ranch after Jack’s death to start over with her baby elsewhere. Zane and his family also survived, and presumably helped Spencer maintain the ranch.

It’s also worth noting that after witnessing Whitfield’s cruelty, Creighton Banner decided to send his wife and son on Spencer’s train to Portland. Banner ultimately took Jacob’s side in the shootout at the train station but was shot and killed, but not before being granted some small redemption.

Finally, Mamie Fossett (Jennifer Carpenter) did apprehend Teonna Rainwater, who was tried for murder. The real Mamie Fossett was known for testifying in trials against Native Americans. Here, she offers no testimony. With no living witnesses to Teonna’s actions, she was set free. That never would’ve happened in real life, but after all the horror Sheridan subjected Teonna to, he at least gifted her freedom in the end.

And that’s how 1923 concludes. Most of the two-hour finale was spent in shootouts or people waiting to shoot at each other. I’ll never forgive Sheridan for killing off Alex so needlessly. Otherwise, though, it was a fitting close to another tragic Taylor Sheridan western, and I wouldn’t be surprised if the next prequel takes place in the ’70s or ’80s, after Spencer’s death.