Anyone who thought "1883" was going to have a happy ending wasn't paying attention.
Let's back up. "1883" is a prequel series to the smash hit "Yellowstone" that wrapped its first season last month. Make that it's only season: the story has been put to bed, although not necessarily for a good night's sleep, after getting its main characters where they needed to go. In that sense, mission accomplished, but nothing else about it can be considered happy.
Let's back up even more: why does "Yellowstone" need a prequel series? That's because the show is a last of its kind, a cable series that pulls exceptionally large viewership, and it keeps getting bigger. The Western series — it's like "Succession" by way of "Dallas," with Kevin Costner in the Logan Roy/J.R. Ewing role — nabbed 10.3 million viewers for its recent fourth season finale, up a whopping 81% over its Season 3 closer. That made it the most-watched cable program since "The Walking Dead's" third season premiere in October 2017, not to mention more popular than last year's Academy Awards telecast.
