Warning: SPOILERS for 1923 Season 2’s Finale - “A Dream and a Memory”
This article mentions sexual assault.
1923’s finale stole the best moment from the end of1883,Yellowstonescreenwriter Taylor Sheridan’s earliest Dutton prequel. It was the perfect sendoff for Alex Dutton (Julia Schlaepfer), who otherwise had a tragic and devastating conclusion. Still, beyond the scope of what happened to Alexandra of Sussex,1923season 2’s finalewas a triumphant finish for the Dutton family. Spencer Dutton (Brandon Sklenar) finally arrived home by train, serendipitously encountering and saving his wife, who was stranded on the side of the railroad after nearly freezing to death. Moments later, Spencer heroically saved the Yellowstone Dutton Ranch.
When Spencer got home, relieving his aunt,Cara Dutton (Helen Mirren), Zane Davis (Brian Geraghty), and the rest of the ranch hands, he wiped out the remainder of Banner Creighton’s (Jerome Flynn) men with an elephant gun, making for an explosive end to Donald Whitfield’s (Timothy Dalton) war against the1923Dutton family. While Teonna Rainwater (Aminah Nieves) and Elizabeth Strafford (Michelle Randolph) had bittersweet endings, they were able to live past the tribulations they faced in1923.On the other hand, althoughSpencer lived to the ripe old age of 80,Alex Dutton died tragically young at 23.
Alex Dutton’s 1923 Story Ends With Her & Spencer In Heaven
Alex And Spencer Dutton Reunite In 1923’s Ending
Of thehorrible things that happened to Alexandra Dutton in1923,her devastating ending in1923’s series finale tops the list.Alex endured horror after horror on her journey through America, from being beaten in Grand Central Terminal to getting sexually assaulted on the train to Chicago. Of the atrocities Alex endured on her journey to Spencer, dying in his arms after finally reaching Montana will go down as the most memorable. Alex at least got to reunite with her star-crossed love and say goodbye, but Alex’s death was an unforgiving ending to her story.
Still, Alex’s story had a silver lining.1923’s finale shows Alex and Spencer in the afterlife after Spencer’s death. Alex chides Spencer, saying,“Took you long enough,”implying that she has been waiting. They are in elegant formal wear, dancing on an ocean liner similar to the one in1923season 1, withTaylor Sheridan shamelessly stealingTitanic’s ending, allowing Alex and Spencer to be together in Heaven like Rose and Jack. Since the majority of viewers would have preferred to see their romance continue, and Alex’s happy ending was cut short,Alex and Spencer Dutton’s ethereal ending was needed.
1883 Ended With Elsa Dutton’s Version Of Heaven
Elsa Dutton Reunites With Sam At The End Of 1883
Taylor Sheridan took a play out of1883’s playbook for1923’s ending. After her death,1883shows usElsa Dutton’s version of Heaven, which she describes as“where your dreams and your memories merge together, and form a perfect world.”In Elsa Dutton’s afterlife, she rides horses with Sam. She tells1883viewers that it’s always sunrise in her world, and there are no storms, because she is the only lightning. Elsa describes her perfect world, saying,“My Heaven is filled with good horses and open plains and wild cattle and a man who loves me.”
Considering Elsa’s tragic death in1883,her reunion with Sam after their heart-wrenching separation was consolatory, like Alex and Spencer’s.
Like Alex and Spencer’s1923ending, Elsa’s heavenly moment is1883’s closing scene.Elsa Dutton’s narrationcontextualizes her reunion with Sam, where they exchange a meaningful glance and ride off into the hills of the Great Plains. The scene recreates Elsa and Sam’s best moments. Furthermore, they are unburdened by the tribulations they face, and those who don’t want to see them together. Considering Elsa’s tragic death in1883,her reunion with Sam after their heart-wrenching separation was consolatory, like Alex and Spencer’s. However, unlike Alex Dutton’s death,Elsa Dutton’s death in1883was cushioned by a genuinely beautiful journey.
Why Alex Dutton Needed 1923’s Final Scene More Than Elsa
Alex Dutton Suffered Trauma And Abuse In 1923 Season 2
When reflecting on1883and1923,we needed Alex and Spencer’s happy ending more than we needed Elsa and Sam’s. WhileElsa’s1883deathwas quite possibly the saddest in theYellowstonefranchise, her untimely ending was earned. Elsa has a fantastic journey in1883before dying, and it makes her fate more satisfying.In contrast, Alex Dutton encountered a series of bleak and disparaging eventsin1923season 2, leading up to her death, marking it as a truly dejected occasion. If Alex had died at the end of1923season 1, that would have been one thing.
Alex had a beautiful story in1923season 1, wherein Taylor Sheridan balanced the Sussex native’s lows with the highs of her romance. Like Elsa, Alex’s story in1923season 1 earns her tragedy, getting separated from Spencer. After Alex’s series of grave events in season 2, I expected more wins in Alex’s story. Instead, she died in a hospital bed, with the lion-hearted Dutton opting not to have a life-saving procedure, departing from her will to survive. Therefore, Alex needed a silver lining even more than Elsa, whose tragic death, with James Dutton (Tim McGraw), was already a good end.
1923
Cast
1923 is a series following the Dutton family during the early twentieth century. It explores the challenges they face amidst pandemics, the end of Prohibition, historic drought, and the Great Depression, as they struggle to maintain their home in the mountain west.
