The year is 1854, but it’s a tale as old as time: Two families, at war with one another. One defined by privilege and generational wealth, one formed by orphans and outcasts. Both led by two equally strong-willed matriarchs, played with electrifying finesse by Lena Headey and Gillian Anderson. Star-crossed love, betrayals, and violent secrets bind the two opposing families for a taut and turbulent action drama in the wild west. 

Headey’s character is Fiona Nolan, a devout Irish woman who came to Washington Territory in search of what she so desperately wanted: A family. Unable to conceive children of her own, she has found solace and purpose in adoption, gathering together lost souls known as the Abandons. There is silver lying underneath her land, making her family home a target—and she’ll protect their lives at any cost. Headey’s performance is soft yet unyielding, as tough and enduring as the land she commands. 

Anderson plays Constance Van Ness, a wealthy widow and mining magnate who leads with an iron fist; influence and privilege inform her every movement, and her steely resolve would make any man crumble. Anderson disappears into this role, giving you chills at the veracity of her character, while also allowing the humanity that drives Constance to simmer underneath.

While The Abandons’ overarching story involves the two warring families and the brutal chaos of their entanglements, the strongest thread that weaves them all together is the power of women’s pain. At a time when the world was immeasurably cruel, and female influence was controlled and tampered down, the women in this series move differently; still, often within the confines of their cages, but with a fierceness that will take your breath away. The sheer force of their determination—one to uncover the truth, one to protect her own—drags you along on this story, whether you want to see all the devastation they wreak or not.

Nolan’s daughter Dahlia (Diana Silvers) shows how much of their path she also follows, with one of the most grueling character arcs of the season. Meanwhile, the growing connection between Elias Teller (Nick Robinson) and Trisha Van Ness (Aisling Franciosi) gives this series a more tender side and asks if love can truly overcome all. And Natalia del Riego shines as Lilla Belle, a fiercely loyal daughter who walks two worlds. 

The themes of freedom and justice reflect The Abandons’ Western genre, using the family construct to tie the genre to its tropes. The set design’s false front architecture, lit by golden shafts of sunlight and firelight, adds to the Western feel, underlined by a searing score and tight close-ups set against panoramic backdrops. Muted browns and grays of the setting’s barren landscape match the detailing and well-worn feel of the costuming, which is also used to define class and character. And the showdowns are explosive and theatrical; classic cowboy-esque action with tightly-choreographed chaos. The thoughtful creative designs and shot framing all ground the show in its world and keep your attention on the intense character work by the cast.

Set at a time when European immigrants ravaged Indigenous lands and committed genocide in the name of colonization, and enslavement was still legal, the series deals in blood-soaked sins and the deadly political games that defined America. While many Westerns led by a predominantly white cast have a certain privileged lens over it, the series does work to portray the atrocities and divisions in a way that connects to the story, even if it sometimes feels a bit too glossed over. 

Perhaps I should revise my earlier statement: This series focuses primarily on the pain of white women and the ways they weaponize it. Whatever their intentions may be, the pain they inflict on others can perhaps be understood, but whether it’s justified is where the series sinks into morally gray territory. You are not meant to fully root for these characters, but merely to witness the depths of their survival. 

The Abandons explores what makes a family; is it blood or belonging? Love or duty? With portrayals of women’s strength and grief in ways that are reminiscent of Prime Video’s excellent 2022 series The English, it displays the many motivations that fueled humanity in a world beyond laws but within the bounds of honor and loyalty. It’s not an easy watch, but it is a gripping one, and its emotions resonate through history and time.