The Outer Range: Something is Out There

It is hard to tell by the description of The Outer Range if it has a supernatural aspect to it. But the first line confirms that it does. Spoken by Royal Abbott (Josh Brolin), it tells the story of Cronos and how he used his scythe to tear a hole open between our world and heaven to separate the earth from the afterlife.  The show plays as a standard drama, where a small rancher in Wyoming, fights to keep his kids and his land safe from the evil and rich land baron whose property is adjacent, but there is a very strong mystical element as well.  Royal finds a “void” on his land, a perfectly circular hole with swirling mist and small lights floating within it, and when an accident happens, Royal uses the void as a desperate means to protect his sons, Perry (Tom Pelphrey) and Rhett (Lewis Pullman).

The first couple episodes raise more questions than we get answers to.  The Abbott family is already involved in a mystery, Perry’s wife and mother to his daughter, Amy (Olive Abercrombie) disappeared without a trace.  Royal himself, has no memory of his childhood before the age of nine when he just suddenly appeared on the ranch.  In addition to the mysteries is the dramatic element.  The Abbott ranch has been in the family for at least three generations and over a hundred years, but they are on the verge of losing, at least part of it, to Wayne Tillerson (Will Patton), the evil land baron. Rhett is struggling while following his dream of being a rodeo star and win the heart of the girl he has had a crush on for years. Perry is still mourning the disappearance of his wife while trying to raise his daughter. What is the void? Where did it come from? And how is Royal connected?  And what does Wayne Tillerson know about it? You will need to watch to find out.

The series is very well written with an engaging story comprised of both mystical elements and family drama.  Even if we don’t get a lot of answers, the first two episodes give us enough information so that we can understand the family dynamics and their back stories.  This exposition is handled well and feels natural and not forced.  For a science fiction show, they didn’t use a lot of special effects, which adds to the realism of the series.  The void is dark with subtle hints of mystical elements. The music and sound effects appropriately inform our senses and sets the mood for each scene adding a rich texture to the beautiful Wyoming scenery where the story takes place. The acting is superb, with Josh Brolin (MCU’s Thanos) stealing the show as the classically stoic rancher who doesn’t communicate well but who feels deeply.