Hell on Wheels this weekend

[PALADIN85020]

The series "Hell on Wheels" has been one of my favorite shows since it started on AMC a few years ago. The main character, Cullen Bohannon, is ably played by Anson Mount, who can speak volumes with just a look.

The guy I've always loved to hate is the character "The Swede" (played masterfully by Christopher Heyerdahl) who always claims that he's not Swedish, he's Norwegian. And nobody cares. At any rate, he's always been a very detestable guy with no morals, who will kill you right after he attempts to sweet-talk you.

Apparently, he's gone from the cast now. Bohannon finally dragged him into an Army post to try him for his last couple of cold-blooded murders. He was convicted and hanged.

I gotta tell ya, the hanging scene was the most graphic portrayal of that practice I've ever seen. In no way would I want a kid to see it. He was lifted up on a rope, and essentially strangled, twitching, grimacing, and foaming from the mouth. They then got his carcass down, held a mirror in front of his nose, and pronounced him dead.

Bohannon then walks away after witnessing the whole affair.

But my question is: is the Swede really dead?

John

 

[the ringo kid]

I cant answer your question but, I did see that episode--which is the first one ive ever seen.

 

[Targets Guy]

I couldn't take the series. Might try again later sometime.

 

[wilkoi]

It was the most graphic hanging scene indeed. I say yea, he is dead.

 

[inspcalahan]

The wife and I absolutely love that series! We were excited to find we had a new episode. While I did enjoy the hanging scene, in the sense that it was very graphic and couldn't have happened to a more fitting bad guy, we really didn't enjoy the episode.

Morals, wishes and justice aside, Bohannon should have shot and killed the Swede right at the start. If not, then after he was so severely wounded and trying to take him to justice...on several occasions. It was frustrating and lowered my sense of rooting for the good guy.

I hope they get Bohannon back on the smart, survival on the frontier track that he was so good at.

As to the Swede, I don't believe he can die...as long as his head is still attached. He'll be back....

Other than this one long "drag it out" episode, the series overall has been outstanding!

 

[Watchdog]

The guy I've always loved to hate is the character "The Swede" (played masterfully by Christopher Heyerdahl) who always claims that he's not Swedish, he's Norwegian.

Here's an interesting little side note about Christopher Heyerdahl.

His father's cousin was Thor Heyerdahl, the famous Norweigian explorer and ethnographer.

As a boy, I was totally enthralled by his book, Kon-Tiki, a true account of his voyage across the Pacific on a hand made raft made of balsa wood. His objective was to give credence of his theory that native boatmen from South America could have colonized Polynesia.

 

[eb07]

Great series. Gonna miss "The Swede" his character and the actor playing him was great.

 

[10mmauto]

It's been a great series, but enough of the Swede (really the Norwegian) already. I can't believe they wasted an entire episode getting rid of him. And even with that, we can't be sure.

I think it would be a crock to bring him back.

 

[DWalt]

The Swede also wet his pants as he was hanging there. I think that was an added touch of realism. It appeared that he was hanged by the Army after some judge pronounced the death sentence on him. Would the Army get involved in carrying out a civilian's execution?

 

[eb07]

The Swede also wet his pants as he was hanging there. I think that was an added touch of realism. It appeared that he was hanged by the Army after some judge pronounced the death sentence on him. Would the Army get involved in carrying out a civilian's execution?

The army was the law in the territories.

 

[WardenRoss]

Excellent series. One of the best on TV.

 

[Kevin J.]

I love this show but was also disappointed with this episode. It was so over the top. Bohannon's wife could have reloaded easier than crawling out a window and trying to run. Bohannon would and could have drowned the Swede in the river. Then a trip to an army post with an infected leg wound. Just seemed way over the top, especially for the quailty of the previous seasons and episodes. IMO.

 

[okiegtrider]

I love this show but was also disappointed with this episode. It was so over the top. Bohannon's wife could have reloaded easier than crawling out a window and trying to run. Bohannon would and could have drowned the Swede in the river. Then a trip to an army post with an infected leg wound. Just seemed way over the top, especially for the quailty of the previous seasons and episodes. IMO.

I like HOW too, but I thought this episode was over the top too. Just drawn out and contrived. Not the quality of many of the preceding episodes.

They are wrapping up the series, just a few shows left. The Swede is done.

I always envisioned the series ending with Swede and Bohannon locked in a life and death struggle aboard a flaming locomotive after the road was built, crashing into a gorge, sending them both to the hereafter on a hot rail...

 

[model70hunter]

Well now that the cats out of the bag I will watch it anyway.

Lots of realistic killing, We love the show, my wife loved Lilly who looks like our Daughter in law. When we bought horses she named hers Lilly.

Then the Swegian killed Lilly, if my wife had one of her revolvers I think she would have shot the tv.

I agree that Bohannon who was pretty revengeful and efficient at first should have terminated the Swede early on.

Will the Swegian be back? I don't think so, isn't this the last year of the series? If he comes back it will be to kill Bohannon.

A person who plays a a bad guy well will always be remembered.
For example, "We have a failure to communicate". The line immediately takes one back to the scene in the movie.

The Swegian will always be remembered for being pure evil.

 

[Grayfox]

I like the show and have watched from the beginning. I think the point was that Bohannon's sense of justice demanded that the Swede be convicted in a court and hung for his crimes.
I didn't particularly care for this episode. Too drawn out and pointless. I agree that Cullen should have just shot the Swede at the start and been done with it.

 

[35Rem]

I think mount waned to redeem Cullen fr some reason by dragging the trash to "justice" nearly at the cost of his own life. In the setting and conditions it was extremely foolish and wasteful. There was no more justification needed than Thor having killed his wife's family at that moment, or hunting his wife down in the woods, or just shooting Cullen himself. Forget all the past transgressions. It should have ended in the creek, which would have been poetic, since the swede drown the Mormon family to assume their identity earlier in the series.
Anson Mount's political leaning lead to this ridiculous first episode. He is quite liberal in my eyes.

 

[eb07]

Back then. Men would rather be shot or drowned than face the rope.

So I understand why he did it.

 

[PALADIN85020]

I think mount waned to redeem Cullen fr some reason by dragging the trash to "justice" nearly at the cost of his own life. In the setting and conditions it was extremely foolish and wasteful. There was no more justification needed than Thor having killed his wife's family at that moment, or hunting his wife down in the woods, or just shooting Cullen himself. Forget all the past transgressions. It should have ended in the creek, which would have been poetic, since the swede drown the Mormon family to assume their identity earlier in the series.
Anson Mount's political leaning lead to this ridiculous first episode. He is quite liberal in my eyes.

I saw a rather lengthy interview with Anson Mount in which they did a post-mortem with him on the series.

He related that when he read the script of the Swede's death, he questioned the writers and the director about it, thinking that Bohannon would have simply put a bullet between the Swede's eyes out of revenge and let his corpse rot. He said that's what he, as an actor, would be very comfortable with.

The reply was that Bohannon had striven constantly to stand down from his Civil War combativeness and was in the process of developing his integrity to become a better man. He could have shot the Swede, drowned him, or let a poisonous snake bite him - but with his renewed self-image, complete with now iron-clad integrity, he had to take the Swede in for legal justice even at the risk of his own life.

But had it been me, I would have just shot him, quite justifiably in self-defense.

So be it.

John

 

[BAM-BAM]

In season 1 Bohannon went west in search of revenge...... for the killing of his 1st wife in Va. ...... IIRC the show opened with him killing one of the former Union solders ......

I think he's found out that revenge isn't "sweet" as it kills a little of the humanity of the one seeking revenge....................



I liked the back story on the Swede.......1863 showed him as a nice guy/Union Sargent Quartermaster..... didn't even have/know where his gun was...... and it was not even loaded ........ driven crazy at Andersonville prison.....

 

[eb07]

I recently read this book on kindle:

[ame="https://www.amazon.com/Story-Outlaw-Study-Western-Desperado-ebook/dp/B01BLWYU5Q/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1466098942&sr=8-2-spell"]Amazon.com: The Story of the Outlaw: A Study of the Western Desperado eBook: Emerson Hough: Kindle Store[/ame]

Published in 1905

He went into detail about even the most hardened criminals fearing the rope and how they went to great extents to avoid it. Preferring the bullet over the rope at all costs.

I assume it is because the Hell on Wheels portrayal hanging was a pretty accurate and was a grisly event that was witnessed by many and not the way one would want to go, choking, foaming, struggling, and urinating or defecating yourself in front of a crowd. Pretty demeaning death if you ask me.