Hell on Wheels: Season 3

1) The best westerns have that 'John Ford touch', using the natural beauty of the West. I think it exceeds Deadwood in this, but could go farther. Some of the shots have been magnificent.2) History regarding some characters and the history of the UP vis a vis artistic license excepted. Still, I think there is a good mix of technical accuracy within the show (except the scenes with the trains running like a Ferrari up the track in seasons 1 & 2-The old 4-4's and 4-6's look faster than Professor Fate's rocket rail sled in the 'Great Race'!"Push the button Max!"3) Some acting is questionable. Common needs more training. You know, like the good old 'studio contract days'. It would help him. Lee Strasberg School of Acting? Acting coach would help his natural talent. Colm Meaney is of the 'William Shatner School of Over-Acting', but has his moments. His soliloquies are not on par with Ian McShane, so the writers need less of this.4) I like the anti-PC aspect of the series. Indians need killing! Mormons are 'bad'! Love it. Enough trying to make movies/shows PC. There is the ugly side of all history. No need to sugar coat it for some fool's worry of offending a minority audience. The main protagonist is a good mix of PC, but with a theme of being an anti-hero, i.e., Admitting to lying about freeing his slaves. Getting a Mormon girl with child after a hay-ride...(the old 'Farmer's Daughter' joke was not lost on me).5) I know the liability issues and expense of westerns. Horses are dangerous (for one example-ask Kevin Costner, who took a bad fall in the Buffalo Hunt scene in 'Dances with Wolves'. He had broken bones-BUT STILL FINISHED THE DAY'S SHOOT). Costs killed Deadwood. Please encourage the continued production even if the high productions standards/values need to be cut. The story has potential and I think a great future. 'Gunsmoke' potential!!!!!!Timothy J. Robinson

We had seen the original series some years ago. Since then I've tried to find it on a streaming service that we use, but never have. I bought the full box set of the series, knowing that we'll want to watch it over again through the years. The saga of the building of the transcontinental railroad is told in compelling style. All of the characters are portrayed very well; the mid 19th century issues, post-Civil War are covered intensely. I did have to hold a pillow in front of my eyes during some of the more gruesome scenes, but the story felt true, historically. And hats off to the brooding Cullen Bohannan, played so well by Anson Mount!

Actually, this show has gotten better now that Bohannon's love interest was murdered at the end of season two. Liked her character during first season but as the show progressed she became sort of a duplicitous witch. Robin McLeavey is great as Eva. I have admired her ever since seeing her in the Aussie flick "The Loved One" where she totally chewed up the scenery and the other actors as a young girl from a very dysfunctional family. Kasha Kopinski has stepped forward with a much bigger role as Ruth, the practicing missionary in the camp. She isn't a lily white character and has failings but she does the best with what she has been dealt. I'm glad to see Anson Mount becoming a bit more sensitive and his scenes with Kopinski are wonderful. Suddenly, there are two people on the telly with chemistry. The plotting has been grand this year and there has been more adventures in the telling. Especially concerning Mr. Heyerdahl's evil character in relation to the little Mormon boy who has luckily come under the protection of Mr. Bohannon who sees his dead son lurking somewhere in the boy and has a very fatherly way of handling him. At this point the boy, who rescued Bohannon from dying of thirst, has not told anybody what Heyerdahl did to him and his family after insinuating himself into their company traveling across the plains and I believe by the time he and Bohannon come into each others notice, there just may be more blood than last year's encounter. I sure as heck will stick around for a 4th season. Hopefully there will be one.

Love this series and the acting.

Well, for all you Deadwood fans out there, this is better by a long rifle shot. There was an odd attraction to that western, and the plot was always rather vacuous, but the dialogue writing was over the top. Hell on Wheels cover the full spectrum of over-the-top. I bought all the episodes for my Kindle, it was that good. Fargo and Walking Dead are the only others I garnered first. This updated and gritted up western is awesome. Acting is top notch to go with the twisting and turning plot line. Great bad guys chase the good guys and vice versa. Hell on Wheels actually gets better as the seasons progress. Westerns are maybe an acquired taste, and it does have some brutal violence at times. So, get over it, and watch it.If you haven't yet grabbed a Kindle, just do it, as Nike says. I have the 9 inch HDX with 18gb(get more GB's) and videos on this unit blow away any other iPad-like device on the market. These videos like Hell on Wheels look ridiculously good on the 2500x1600(1920x1080 is your HDTV's resolution) screen that is the industry leader for clarity. Even with my glasses on, I cannot see a pixel from 6 inches away. Try that with your device! Get Hell on Wheels for your Kindle and you will love it, and can also be played on your Playstation or computer too.

Another gripping, powerful season, full of ever-changing fortunes. All involved are destined to suffer, some terminally. Crooked former boss Durant deviously plots his return to power. Cullen and Elam, despite differences, impressively offer the practical leadership the railroaders need.Problems multiply: trigger-happy military, a law unto themselves; Sioux, their territory held sacred; Mormon homesteaders determined to protect their property; and, of course, The Swede (he reappearing in a way that will greatly surprise). Add an outbreak of cholera, a big pit needed to bury its victims. Overshadowing all is the need to keep the proposed Union Pacific Railroad literally on track - retribution assured if deadlines are not met....Again the emphasis is on character, so many with problems not easily (if ever) overcome. It is good to see women with influence in what is very much a man's world: former whore Eva determined to do what is best for her baby; formidable reporter Louise Ellison, dedicated to telling her readers exactly how it is.Fine scripts. A superb cast. Ten action-packed episodes. (Some may feel the last one stretches credibility a bit!) Interesting bonuses, but the order puzzles. Surely "Where We Left Off" should precede the outline of the new season and featurettes on each episode? (No "PLAY ALL" facility on this occasion.)So much impresses, not least the sight of a town slowly but surely emerging where nothing had been. Tents give way to more permanent structures - occupants so keen to make something of their lives, whatever the odds against.Totally involving and offering much to think about.In short, great.

This series gets better and better. Well acted and portrays the reality of life on the railroad construction going across the old west with just the right amount of 'horror' at social conditions, with the need to keep moving on for a 'better' life.

This has turned out to be a very enjoyable series. My wife who is not the most enthusiastic fan of "Westerns" was glued to the screen, maybe it was because of the combination of Cowboy sand Indians with trains that gave it the edge. Nice production with a feel for the period.

This story is so well thought out, with the bad characters, and the reliable ones. Familiarity makes it such a comfort to watch, and makes you concentrate on every detail, to ensure you don`t miss a vital twist in the story - which is a must for a series.

Family entertainmentCollection box setPresent for birthday to complete the box set