Summary
Further revelations as the show ekes out a few of its many secrets. The series leans into its sci-fi credentials and manages to keep most of its believability, for now.
This recap of Outer Range season 1, episode 2, contains spoilers.
In a shocking conclusion to the premiere, Royal Abbott was pushed into the mysterious black hole by the equally mystifying Autumn. Many would expect the ranch owner to have either died or been sucked into a wormhole of endless, trippy possibilities. In an abrupt anti-climax to all those ideas swirling around in your head, our protagonist just wakes up in his very own field the next morning, still topless mind you. The second episode in the series picks up straight after the chaos of the night before, as the family tries to move forward with their lives, although the hole looms large on Royal’s mind.
Outer Range season 1, episode 2 recap
Having survived the vortex of doom with only a few mere flesh wounds, Royal returns to the family home. With wife Cecilia now in on the secret, the four discuss their next move. Tensions are high, but the sudden appearance of granddaughter Amy brings them crashing back to reality. This is clearly a family that cares for one another, even if that involves covering up a murder. Royal plans to solve more pressing issues and heads to his lawyer’s to sort out the land dispute.
The enigmatic camper Autumn explores the grounds, finding an unusual symbol on a rock face. She bumps into the young Amy, who notices that the symbol looks a lot like the Abbott family emblem. The strange woman says she’s been drawing this pattern her entire life. Believing she killed Royal last night, Autumn is surprised to find out he is still alive. Royal himself is hunting for her at the very same moment and ransacks her tent for any clues about this mysterious woman.
Josh Brolin played it pretty straight in the opening chapter, but in “The Land” he lets loose. Royal starts to fall apart, frustrated by the land dispute and confused by the hole. At an intense family meal, he asks to say grace and goes completely ballistic. This enraged prayer is full of blasphemy and brutal honesty, as he despairs at the supernatural events taking place, blaming God in the process. Brolin is stunning as this unhinged father close to a meteoric breakdown, losing faith in his religion.
Director Alonso Ruizpalacios uses some inventive camera angles and sprawling shots of the Wyoming landscape to great effect. There’s also some nice musical choices built into the episode too. He builds the tension throughout, yet it is in those final scenes where Outer Range comes into its own, likening strongly to the brilliance of the TV show Lost. Royal and Autumn finally meet for the first time since the attempted murder, they ask each other seemingly random questions, but it all adds up in the end. You can feel the scale of the show by reading between the lines. There is something bigger at play.
In the spoiler-filled final scene, we get to see exactly what happened to Royal when he fell through the magical hole. It thoroughly explains why he was so irrational in the episode, his entire world is caving in. The questions Royal gave to the hippy camper are cleverly specific, relating to his experience within the black hole. He awakened encircled by military personnel, floodlights and pumpjacks off in the distance. Autumn was there, dressed in commanding yellow, as well as his wife and a Tillerson brother. The Lost vibes grow stronger with every revelation. I adored Lost for the intricacy and mythology surrounding the show, Outer Range looks just as fantastical, but may not be as unpredictable or as well thought out. Only time will tell if it can match that series in greatness.
You can stream Outer Range season 1, episode 2, “The Land”, exclusively on Amazon Prime Video.
