Abstract

In this essay, I analyze how cable channel AMC’s antihero Western drama Hell on Wheels centralizes its narrative around life at the edge of civilization. I juxtapose my analysis against the community experiences I observed and experienced growing up in a small “Western” town. Specifically, I inspect how the show’s (im)moral elements that emphasize Western themes of community, religion, and justice may not be melodramatic so much as sobering reality and a reflection of everyday survival for small towns and those who struggle within them.