‘1923’ Season 1 Ending Explained: Where Does the Dutton Family End Up?

Well, that’s all folks! At least it is for this season of 1923, as Episode 8 left fans on the edge of their seat wondering what will happen next in the wild lives of America’s favorite ranchers. 1923 came in with a bang and kept a steady flow of drama and nail-biting predicaments faced by a new generation of the Dutton family. Don’t worry, because unlike 1883, it will not end with one season. With a far greater scope than Yellowstone, the prequel had several storylines around the world as fans saw new characters deal with the changing landscape of the world in the 1920s. So, now that Season 1 is in the books, where did we leave our cast of characters at the end of the episode? Let’s look at some key plot points for some of the central storylines and how they could play out when viewers go back to the ranch for Season 2.

RELATED: ‘1923’ Is Officially Better Than ‘Yellowstone’

The ‘1923’ Season 1 Finale Shows Teonna Hasn’t Escaped Yet

In the penultimate episode of the season, we saw a tragic battle with two priests end with Teonna (Aminah Nieves) badly beaten and Hank (Michael Greyeyes) killed. The episode begins with her waking in the care of her father and Hank’s son. Finally reunited with her family, things are looking up for her. However, she is not quite out of the woods yet, as Father Renaud (Sebastian Roché) has joined the hunt for her, and revealed that her cousin “has passed,” showing the lawmen the cemetery for all the victims of the boarding school’s cruel methods. They decide to go South to seek safety with a neighboring tribe, but upon discovering the bodies of his brothers, Renaud guesses their plan and decides to beat them to their destination by taking a train. Teonna has seen more suffering by far than any other character this season, and it seems that the road ahead will not be any easier for her. Alongside her father and Hank’s son, she will have a better chance of surviving the inevitable showdown with a vengeful Renaud and his men. Hopefully, Season 2 will reunite her with her people and give her character more opportunity to grow when she is not fending for herself in the desert.

Spencer and Alexandra Are Torn Apart in the ‘1923’ Finale

Fans hoped to see Spencer (Brandon Sklenar) and Alex (Julia Schlaepfer) arrive safely at the Yellowstone by the end of Season 1, but it seems fate has more in store for the couple’s epic journey to Montana. As they have finally procured passage back to London on a ship with much more to offer than a drunken captain with tuberculosis, who else should they find onboard than Alex’s spurned fiancé and his family? While Spencer tries to be the bigger man, he gives in to Arthur’s (Rafe Soule) goading and accepts his challenge to a duel. On deck, Spencer humiliates him in a sword fight, but when Arthur charges at him with a pistol, he is thrown overboard and killed, leading his Aristocratic family to use the full weight of their influence to bring the hammer down on Spencer and Alexandra. Spencer is thrown in the brig and Alex is locked in her quarters as the ship heads to port. Luckily, an old friend of Alex does the right thing and convinces the captain that Spencer was acting in self-defense, having the charges against him dropped. Unfortunately, Arthur’s father still has the right to have Spencer removed from the ship, and Alex is kept on board as he supposedly questions the validity of their marriage. As Spencer is rowed to shore in a dingy, Alex promises to meet him in Bozeman as they say their heartbreaking goodbyes across the water.

The journey has never been easy for everyone’s favorite couple, and just as it seemed they had made it out, the rug was pulled out from under them yet again. With 1923‘s commitment to avoiding fast travel tropes, fans may be in for a long wait to see the lovers reunited in Season 2, as they will each have to make their way to Montana on their own. Sklenar has implied that it will not be an easy journey for Spencer next season, stating that his character will be a different man when we see him next, and that “when they’re separated, he is pretty much in a place where he’s not sure that he’ll ever see her again at all, or if he’s ever going to see his family.” While Spencer has been focused on protecting Alex and being a decent man for her, we could see a darker side to his character next season, as he does whatever it takes to find her. It will also be interesting to see how Alex (who has relied on Spencer up to this point) will manage to trek halfway across the world on her own.

Whitfield Lands His First Blow Against the Ranch in the ‘1923’ Finale

The conflict between Jacob (Harrison Ford) and Creighton (Jerome Flynn) has reached a boiling point when Creighton is released from jail pending evidence of his attack on the Duttons. The two men basically declare war on each other in the courtroom, but later Whitfield (Timothy Dalton) reveals that there is a crueler way to destroy the Duttons than killing them. In the last few episodes, Whitfield has proven to be even more terrifying and power-hungry than any other Yellowstone villain we’ve seen in the past, and it looks like he is just getting started with Jacob and Cara (Helen Mirren). The ranch is facing problems of its own as Jacob doesn’t have enough money to feed the herd through winter, and the modernization of the banking system has left him unable to secure a loan to do so.

Others on the ranch are also facing their own problems as Elizabeth (Michelle Randolph) suffers a miscarriage, and one of the ranch hands is beaten as his wife is arrested for their illegal interracial marriage at the behest of Whitfield. Unfortunately, this is only the beginning of his nefarious actions, as he finally comes face-to-face with Jacob on the ranch and informs him that he has paid the property tax for the Yellowstone, and if he is not repaid by the end of the year, the deed for the land will revert to him. It seems the stage is finally set for real conflict to come next season, and Jacob and Cara will have to rely on each other to weather the storm.

The season finale of 1923 delivered plenty of action, leaving fans with more unresolved conflict than it began with. We will be waiting on bated breath to see where Season 2 will pick up with the Duttons, and how our favorite characters are faring in the ever-changing world they live in.