More than two years after the war between Jacob Dutton (Harrison Ford) and Donald Whitfield (Timothy Dalton) began brewing, 1923 is riding off into the sunset. But the Yellowstone prequel isn’t going quietly. On the contrary, while the final, supersized episode, “A Dream and a Memory,” doesn’t pile the corpses as high as last week’s chapter, it delivers nearly two hours of long-awaited revelations, reunions, and reckonings. 

Giddy up!

The finale opens on the Dutton ranch, where everyone’s on edge over Whitfield’s imminent attack. Cara (Helen Mirren) sits on the porch, cradling her shotgun and sipping tea: Zane (Brian Geraghty) patrols the perimeter; and Elizabeth (Michelle Randolph), unaware of the unfortunate fate Jack met last week, anxiously awaits her husband’s return. 

Tensions are also running high in town, where Jacob and Sheriff McDowell (Robert Patrick) wait for Spencer’s (Brandon Sklenar) train to arrive. Livestock agent/mole Clyde (Brian Konowal) is also at the station, eager to meet the hunter for entirely different reasons.

Banner (Jerome Flynn) should be there as well, waiting to put a bullet in Spencer, but he’s having second thoughts. “I’m not a good man,” he tells his wife. Sitting in the dark, he goes on to detail the depths of Whitfield’s evilness. He can’t take it anymore. He asks his wife to pack their belongings. “We’re leaving.”

We next get some closure on last week’s cliffhanger, which strongly suggested Alex (Julia Schlaepfer) was about to freeze to death in the Brits’ iced-over car. But the tenacious duchess has an idea. She peels the gloves from her deceased friend’s frozen fingers, puts them on her own frostbitten hands, and braves the brutal elements to retrieve the husband’s cigarette lighter. She returns to the vehicle and builds a tiny campfire on its floorboards.

The scene starkly transitions from Alex burning newspapers to Whitfield reading the day’s news at breakfast. Of course, his morning meal wouldn’t be complete without a side of sadism, so he pours scalding hot water down the back of his new prisoner/prostitute while the other live-in sex worker fondles her.

Aminah Nieves as Teonna in ‘1923’ season 2, episode 7. Lauren Smith/ Paramount

A brief check in with Teonna’s (Aminah Nieves) story reveals Marshal Mamie Fossett (Jennifer Carpenter) has found the bodies of Marshal Kent (Jamie McShane) and Pete (Jeremy Gauna). The Crow Native American helping her with the investigation quickly connects the clues to determine what happened. He also spots smoke in the distance.

This brings them and Fossett’s deputy to the next crime scene, where Father Renaud (Sebastian Roché) and Runs His Horse (Michael Spears) also lie dead. The perceptive Crow man again puts the pieces together, and the trio ultimately decide — with everyone involved expired, except Teonna — not to dig any deeper. 

Unaware she’s about to be left alone, Teonna takes a shot at the group from a distance. Fossett and the men catch up with her, and a shoot-out ensues. Teonna kills the deputy, but Fossett gets the jump on her before she can get off another shot. Teonna pleads her case, and the Crow man vouches for the torture she likely endured at the boarding school. The Marshal clearly feels for the girl, but tells her a judge will have to decide her fate. 

Back at the train station, Jacob encounters Banner. The former assumes the latter is there to join his men and kill Spencer when he arrives. But Banner insists he’s had a change of heart; he just wants to leave town with his family and start fresh. Jacob tells him that he’s not allowed to run from the war he started. He agrees to spare the sheepherder’s family, but demands Banner stay to finish the fight. 

Banner may have abandoned Whitfield’s war against the Duttons, but his men didn’t get the memo. Four cars full of armed goons arrive at the ranch. A couple of Jacob’s cowboys take position on the roof, Zane takes cover out front, Elizabeth arms herself with a shotgun inside, and Cara occupies a sniper perch with her husband’s elk rifle. Severely outnumbered, the tiny Dutton army does its best to hold off the attackers. But it’s not looking good.

Things aren’t looking much better at the station, where more of Banner’s men have just rolled up to ensure Spencer doesn’t set foot off the train alive. Jacob and the sheriff realize the odds are severely stacked against them — and Spencer’s train is just 25 minutes away.

But his ride is about to be delayed. Cut to Alex, desperately tending to her dwindling fire while berating God for letting her experience love, only to rip it away from her. Her angry prayers are answered, however, when she hears a train in the distance. Not just any train — her husband’s train. She ignites the dying fire with the remaining whiskey from the Brits’ flask. Spencer sees the burning car, then spots Alex waving her arms. 

The train doesn’t stop, but the hunter hauls hide through its cars, ultimately jumping off its caboose and into Alex’s arms. The reunion we’ve been waiting literal years for finally comes to fruition. It’s a beautiful, emotional moment punctuated by Alex revealing that she’s pregnant. The two also pick up their on-brand banter without missing a beat: “Did you by chance ask the train to wait for us?” she playfully asks. “No, it slipped my mind,” he dryly replies. 

Prepared to carry her to the next town, Spencer scoops her up in his arms. Unsurprisingly, their feel-good moment is interrupted when Alex winces in pain. Luckily, they spot the train up ahead — it has stopped and is waiting for them. Alex is immediately seen by a doctor, who removes her gloves and socks to reveal her extreme frostbite. He also notices she’s pregnant and suffering from dehydration. He tells Spencer she was just minutes from death when he found her, but she’s not out of the woods yet. The doc advises them not to disembark in Livingston, but continue on to Bozeman, where she can be properly treated.

Back at the ranch, Cara and the cowboys have managed to hold off the gunmen. In fact, Banner’s army is retreating. Zane knows better though. He warns Cara that they’ll be back under the cover of darkness, probably armed with fire to set the house ablaze.

At the station, Spencer’s would-be executioners begin to gather at the platform, while Banner speaks to his family inside. He tells his wife to take the money he’s hidden in her bag and start a new life in Portland. As she sobs, wondering what he’s about to do, he kisses her and his son. “Trust me,” he says, before heading outside. 

As Spencer’s train arrives, he spots suspicious activity on the platform — notably, numerous men barely hiding firearms beneath their coats. He leaves Alex, who’s beginning to warm up. 

With their hands anxiously hovering over pistol grips in every direction, Jacob and McDowell cut the tension and draw on Banner’s men. As expected, chaos ensues. Whitfield’s forces — who are seemingly everywhere — respond in kind, while civilians chaotically scatter. As gunfire fills the air, Clyde spies Spencer in the train. He takes a shot at him, but misses.

While bodies drop left and right, Banner’s family attempts to board. They’re nearly caught in the crossfire when Spencer rescues them, pulling both the wife and son into the train. Jacob and Spencer then enjoy a reunion of sorts when the latter saves the former from a gunman at the very last minute. The two exchange a friendly glance. Before Jacob can take a breath, though, Clyde gets a bead on him. But Dutton is saved once again, this time by Banner, who shoots Clyde dead.

Harrison Ford as Jacob Dutton and Robert Patrick as Sheriff McDowell in ‘1923’ season 2, episode 7. Trae Patton/ Paramount

Sheriff McDowell, who’s on the ground wounded, sees Banner kill Clyde. Unaware of the livestock agent’s betrayal, he puts two bullets in Banner’s chest. His wife screams from inside the train as he’s gunned down. When the dust finally settles — in Dutton’s favor, no less — Jacob approaches the dying Banner. He respects that his enemy kept his word and stuck around to finish what he started. In turn, Jacob gives Banner his word that he’ll ensure his family gets to Portland safely. 

Jacob and Spencer have a proper reunion on the train, but it’s soon interrupted when the doctor notices the Dutton patriarch has been shot. Jacob pops his head out to make sure the sheriff is okay. McDowell is propped up on a bench and still breathing, so all good. 

Spencer takes his uncle to meet Alex and figure out their next move. He plans to continue on to Bozeman with his wife, but Jacob warns they may not have a home to return to. With Alex’s encouragement and support, Spencer makes the difficult decision to stay behind and fight for the future of his family’s ranch. He kisses his wife goodbye and says he’ll meet her in Bozeman. On his way out, he sees McDowell, who’s apparently hitching a ride to the hospital as well. He borrows the sheriff’s gun before joining what’s left of Jacob’s men outside.

As dusk settles over the ranch, one of Banner’s soldiers approaches. Cara and the cowboys spot him, but are quickly caught off guard when he begins peppering the house with machine gun blasts. The tommy-gun-toting attacker lays down cover fire while another dozen or so men charge the house. A literal firing squad unloads everything they’ve got into the home. As a barrage of bullets and glass fills the living room, Elizabeth hides beneath a table, still clutching her shotty. 

Just as Zane expected, some of the men toss molotov cocktails into the house. The cowboy is able to put out the fire, but not before taking a slug. Two men enter and pin Zane into a corner, but Elizabeth surprises them with a blast of buckshot to their legs. Zane finishes them off and, while grateful for the girl’s surprise assist, orders her to hide upstairs.

Meanwhile, Whitfield describes what’s currently going on at the ranch to his investors: “I’m in the final negotiations on that property as we speak,” he says when asked about the progress on his ski resort. His tuxedo-clad guests cheer him on as he continues to tell them how much money they’ll make from Montana’s tourist trade.

As the machine gun thug tries to seal that deal for Whitman, Cara attempts to get him in her rifle’s sights. But instead, she spots her long-lost nephew through the scope. The cavalry has arrived. Armed with the same rifle he hunted big game with in Africa, Spencer puts a big hole in the chap wielding the tommy gun. He then puts several more holes in several more men who’ve breached the house. 

And with just 30 minutes left in the episode, we get the other big reunion we’ve been holding our breath for. Spencer yells for his aunt, who immediately comes running down the stairs to greet him. After all those heartfelt letters, begging her nephew to return home, Cara finally comes face-to-face with Spencer. 

The pair enjoy a beautiful, emotional embrace, but of course it’s cut short by new trouble. Cara notices Jacob has not returned, while Elizabeth notes Jack (Darren Mann) is still missing. Spencer tells his aunt that Jacob is safe with Alex in Bozeman, but Jack is still unaccounted for. Cara sends two of the cowboys to look for him. Before Spencer leaves for Bozeman to reunite with his wife, he gets the lowdown from his aunt on Whitfield. 

At the hospital, we learn Jacob’s injury is just an old wound aggravated during the gunfight. After yelling at the doctor to stop digging around for a bullet that isn’t there, he hears screams coming from Alex’s room. He enters to find her giving birth. The doctors tell her that the baby is premature and won’t survive. They want to abort the pregnancy and get Alex to surgery as soon as possible. It seems she’s also at death’s door due to her frostbitten appendages becoming necrotic. The doctors must amputate both her legs and one of her hands.

But she’s not hearing it. Alex insists on delivering her child. Upon giving birth, she asks to hold her baby. The doctor protests, saying its undeveloped lungs won’t allow it to survive more than an hour or so. The baby begins to cry, and Alex again asks to hold it. The doctor warns Alex that she’ll die if her necrotic extremities are not amputated. But she’s willing to take that chance if it means getting even an hour with her newborn.

With some strong urging from Jacob, the doctor hands the baby over to Alex. She begins breastfeeding and tells Jacob she’s going to name him John, after his brother. Evaluating the dire reality of the circumstances, Jacob gently suggests Alex leave the baby and go to surgery. But she’s adamant about staying with her son during his final moments, even if it means meeting her own end. 

Cara and Spencer soon arrive at the hospital. Both Alex and the baby are still hanging on. With her fate pretty much sealed, she tells her husband to be patient with their baby: “If he’s anything like me, he’ll be a terrible child.”

With tears welling in his eyes, Spencer lays down beside his wife and child. When he wakes the next morning, Alex has passed on, but the baby is still breathing. Spencer kisses Alex on the cheek, calls the Dutton matriarch in to help, then meets Jacob in the hall. He wants to go see the man ultimately responsible for his wife’s death.

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Before we come to that satisfying confrontation, though, we briefly return to the ranch. The next scene reveals that the cowboys sent out to find Jack have discovered his body on the trail. When we cut back to Spencer, he is walking towards Whitfield’s mansion. He effortlessly incapacitates the guard outside, enters the house and, without hesitation, fires a shot into Whitfield’s gut. 

Loyal prostitute Lindy lunges at Spencer with a knife. He shoots her, too, before letting the other, terrified woman leave. Jacob then enters the room. Clutching his fresh wound, Whitfield reminds Dutton of the oath he took when accepting his badge. He insists the head of the Livestock Commission cannot simply murder a man in his dining room and get away with it. 

Whitfield continues, “So be it — to jail we go,” and begins to stand. Spencer puts another bullet in him. Jacob explains that they’ve already killed anyone they’d need to answer to. He wants Whitfield’s demise to serve as a warning to any more of his deep-pocketed kind with similar plans for Montana.

But Spencer just wants vengeance. “You killed my wife,” he growls, pointing his pistol at Whitfield’s head. He makes him say Alex’s name, and as soon as it leaves his lips, Spencer puts a final bullet in him. As the antagonist’s brain spills onto his dining room floor, Jacob and Spencer walk calmly from the mansion, which is now completely engulfed in flames. 

With Whitfield dead and Spencer reunited with his family, the Yellowstone prequel wraps up Teonna’s plight. Charged with three counts of murder at the Indian boarding school, she sits before a judge. Unfortunately for the prosecution, the only witnesses to her crime — Father Renaud and Marshal Kent — are dead. Marshal Fossett is also willing to testify on Teonna’s behalf, saying the witness’s deaths were unrelated to the accused’s crimes. 

Jennifer Carpenter as Marshal Mamie Fossett in ‘1923’ season 2, episode 7. Lauren Smith/ Paramount

And with a crack of the gavel, the young Rainwater girl’s nightmare is over — she is free to go. But with no family left, she doesn’t know exactly where to go. The Crow man that assisted with the investigation kindly offers Teonna a horse, a rifle, and some advice. He tells her to head to California, where she’ll have an easier time starting over. As Teonna rides west, he yells to her that she did the right thing by fighting back. “Maybe,” she replies, “but it cost me everything.”

Back at the ranch, the Duttons hold a small funeral for Alex and Jack. After the service, Cara feeds now-thriving baby John on the porch. A car arrives to pick up Elizabeth. The new widow feels guilty about leaving, but Cara encourages her to move on, look to the future, and live her life. 

Over by the barn, Spencer is preparing to wrangle wild cattle in the mountains. He asks Jacob to join him, but the Dutton patriarch is retired. He just wants to sit on the porch, enjoy the new baby, and ponder the meaning of life. They say their goodbyes, for now, and Spencer rides off to be a rancher. 

As promised, Jacob joins Cara on the porch. She asks him what Alex was like. He says, “If a shooting star could talk… that’s what she was like, honey.”

“Talking stars? Can you imagine?” she responds playfully.

“Who’d have thought there’d be two?” he fires back without missing a beat.

The two exchange loving smiles, and the camera begins to pull back. It briefly hovers over Spencer, as Elsa Dutton’s narration offers a teasing peek into his future. She says Spencer never remarried, but he did have another son with a widow with whom he took comfort.

We then see an older, grayer Spencer hobbling to his true love’s grave. As his fingers gently run across the letters forming Alex’s name on the headstone, Elsa stresses how his memories of her never faded. But when they did begin to fade with old age, he simply closed his eyes and dreamed up new ones. As he lies down by his beloved’s final resting place, we learn that he joined her 45 years after her passing.

The series’ final scene offers a heartfelt peek at that reunion. In the apparent afterlife, they meet at a fancy ball. Dressed to the nines, they smile at each other from across the room. Spencer approaches Alex and takes her hand. “Took you long enough,” she says. He holds her close as they slow-dance and, finally, enjoy the happy ending they deserve.