American Primeval – Season 1 Episode 5 Recap & Review

Episode 5

Episode 5 of American Primeval begins with Hickman punishing Wolsey after reading Dellinger’s letter. The mole returns to camp and claims that he has delivered the letter successfully. He notes that Abish is missing and Dellinger reveals she has gone West, possibly back to Red Feather.

She indeed goes back to the Shoshones and updates Winter Bird. The Native woman wonders why she doesn’t go to her husband and Abish reveals she isn’t ready to be found yet.

As for Devin, his leg is in a bad state and Isaac suggests amputating it. Sara vehemently refuses but they cannot leave till he gets better. Two Moons suggests cauterizing his leg and Devin agrees. The women hold him down while Isaac cauterizes the wound.

Meanwhile, Young offers more money for the fort and Jim refuses. As Young heads out, he charms the locals of the area. Dellinger continues to write in his journal that he believes Fort Bridger is the last stand between Young and Utah. If he gets the fort, all of Utah will be his.

However, Dellinger hopes love will save them. That is not the case as the Mormon Militia attacks in the middle of the night and kills all the soldiers. Wolsey personally shoots Dellinger in the head.

While Devin recovers, Sara starts doubting Crooks Spring. She wishes for them to go to California but Isaac refuses. She jokes that he can’t swim and Two Moons smiles.

Meanwhile, the Mormon Militia cannot find Abish. They pay the mole handsomely and he reveals she has gone to Red Feather. Hickman kills the mole and Young preaches that the Lord helps those who help themselves to do the right thing.

He then shows up with an arrest warrant for Jim for selling arms to Natives. The people of Bridger consisting of Natives, outlaws and pioneers outnumber Young’s group and threaten the Mormons into leaving. Bridger’s right-hand man, Samuel wonders if this is the end but Jim knows it isn’t. Nearby, Abish and the Shoshone head back to check on Dellinger and find everyone dead. 

At the cabin, Sara regrets trying to get to Crooks Spring. Isaac points out she still has her son and she realises that he has lost his.

A flashback shows that the cabin is his and it is where his wife and son were killed. He had gone as far as Salt Lake Valley while scouting for the Shoshones. Winter Bird refused to move their home but he didn’t agree which led to his family’s death. He realises that nowhere is safe. Sara observes that it is why he keeps everyone away so he doesn’t experience the pain of loss again.

Elsewhere, Jacob prays to god and smiles as Red Feather passes by him. But he doesn’t see Abish with them. Back with the tribe, she tells Winter Bird that the Mormon Militia is large and will kill them all for her. She decides to turn herself over but the Shoshones stop her as she is now a part of them. Nowhere is safe and so they will stay and fight.

At the end of American Primeval Episode 5, with Devin awake, Isaac gets ready to leave as Two Moons spots wolves. Sara goes out to get some herbs for Devin and Virgil catches her. His men shoot at the cabin but they are soon out of bullets. Isaac rushes out and kills everyone he sees. However, Virgil and Sara are nowhere to be seen. He asks a barely alive bounty hunter who claims Virgil took her away. Isaac then kills him.

The Episode Review

American Primeval Episode 5 slows down the narrative in favour of packing in some more action before we get to the finale. The Mormon Militia takes a drastic stance as they kill a whole US battalion and plan to wipe out the Shoshones simply to get to Abish. Not to be outdone, Young tries to take Fort Bridger forcefully but he cannot do it unless he wants to expose his violent and illegal schemes.

Amidst this warring, Jacob and Abish are caught in between. While Jacob plans to attack the Shoshones, Abish has become one of them. We called this in the last episode when she felt more comfortable with the tribe than with the Mormon group she was travelling with.

And then there is Sara’s group who face some hard decisions. With an infection, a broken leg, wolves, traumatic memories and a trigger-happy bounty hunter to boot, the group’s troubles are far from over. Looks like they won’t be making it to California anytime soon.

But we do hope they don’t introduce a romantic angle between Isaac and Sara as there has been no such inkling so far. Shows tend to force the male lead with the female lead together but American Primeval’s platonic dynamic is one of the best bits of the show. So, we hope it isn’t too much to hope that it finishes up in the same vein.