I have watched TV westerns since the mid 1950s, and, after five episodes I can state categorically "Hell on Wheels" is the best I have seen. How could it not be, combining a perfect cast, production values and the classic elements,so far of the masterpiece westerns, "The Outlaw Josey Wales," "Dances With Wolves," "Unforgiven" "Once Upon a Time in the West and, to a lesser extent, "The Searchers".
The characters are complex and completely credible. The writing is so top notch, I have yet to predict what will happen next. The pacing is nearly flawless, the music, appropriate, memorable and entertaining. The camera work and production has the grit and majesty of the best Sergio Leone westerns, along with faces memorable and recognizable from scene to scene. The camera work even incorporates Leone's extreme closeups, but only when necessary. If there is any one actor who stands out "by a hair's breath" from the uniformly excellent cast, he is Colm Meaney, as the railroad Tycoon, Durant, and this is perfectly appropriate for for the epic story of the building of the first intercontinental railroad and the scoundrel/visionaries who built them. I dare not overpraise this series, because I do not want anyone to go in with expectations that cannot be met by his our her own tastes or subjectivity. However, in the case of "Hell on Wheels," that would be pretty difficult.
The characters are complex and completely credible. The writing is so top notch, I have yet to predict what will happen next. The pacing is nearly flawless, the music, appropriate, memorable and entertaining. The camera work and production has the grit and majesty of the best Sergio Leone westerns, along with faces memorable and recognizable from scene to scene. The camera work even incorporates Leone's extreme closeups, but only when necessary. If there is any one actor who stands out "by a hair's breath" from the uniformly excellent cast, he is Colm Meaney, as the railroad Tycoon, Durant, and this is perfectly appropriate for for the epic story of the building of the first intercontinental railroad and the scoundrel/visionaries who built them. I dare not overpraise this series, because I do not want anyone to go in with expectations that cannot be met by his our her own tastes or subjectivity. However, in the case of "Hell on Wheels," that would be pretty difficult.