“1883,” the record-breaking first spin-off of the popular Western drama “Yellowstone,” serves as a prequel to the original series and follows one generation of the Dutton family as they trek through The Great Plains toward what will become the famed Yellowstone Ranch.
Episode 4, “The Crossing,” sees the family and their group hit yet another bump in the road: the Brazos River. With livestock, wagons brimming with supplies, and dozens of people who don’t know how to swim, the water poses a threat to everyone. Shea Brennan (Sam Elliott) spares no time hurting feelings as he prepares the group to cross, forcing them to abandon anything that could weigh them down. However, this isn’t enough to stop the panic that strikes as they begin wading through the river.
On the “1883” subreddit, fans broke down the scene that proved fatal for several travelers, with some admitting that one major detail didn’t make sense to them.
Some fans thought the river crossing was too tame
A thread started by u/carolinamary409 praised the “beautiful” juxtaposition between Elsa Dutton (Isabel May) playing an abandoned piano as the travelers struggle to cross the river. However, some fans pointed out that it was odd to see characters drowning in such calm water.
“I had a hard time suspending my disbelief on that ‘river’ crossing,” said u/BrandonWent. “So many people inexplicably dying in calm, (waist) deep water. They needed to find a more dangerous looking river.”
Another Redditor agreed, adding that the part of the river they were crossing “wasn’t very wide, and was running slow.” However, they admitted that they were willing to overlook this detail.
Other fans offered explanations. Redditor u/carolinamary409 wrote, “ehh it wasn’t the river that killed them, it was their panic. they couldn’t swim and many hadn’t ever been in a body of water like that. I think the choice of a calm river was intentional, to highlight that ultimately they were their own demise.”
While this answer didn’t satisfy everyone on the thread, some agreed that the seemingly calm river added to the intensity of the scene. User u/BeauJob08 said, “I think the fact that it wasn’t an intimidating river makes it that much more impactful.”