Elkhorn

First off, I've always been interested in TR. I've read many things about his life in politics. But, what also fascinated me was his"free spirt" he always showed and presented beyond just politics.

So, with the lose of his beloved wife and mother on the same day, and his " free spirit" and determination he presented in all my reading of what he did after those great losses, I was fascinated and intrigued by what his decisions after. GOING WEST.

I thought what a great story that would be. And, yes, Elkhorn is that story. Sure, I realize the budget on the production of Elkhorn was modest and the story itself deserved more. But, Bravo for this story.

Very well cast, scripted and directed. Kudos to Michael Ojeda, the director for getting the most from his cast. We're well paced.

Thank You for the story Dan Blair.

I am a huge fan of westerns and for me the jury is still out on this one. Mr. Roosevelt rides off to a destination with the only directions being, "ride 40 miles due north" and miraculously rides right to it. All the provisions for this 3 day trip are in one small bag hanging from his saddle. The firewood he uses is perfectly cut with a saw. After riding for some time, he dismounts from his horse and walks away, (not tying the horse up) apparently trusting the horse not to run off and leave him stranded in middle of nowhere.

Three other riders make the same trip, and they too carry nothing with them. When the cattle arrive, the actors close to the camera are dressed to look the part, but the riders in the distance, working the cattle clearly are wearing modern clothing and hats. At the beginning of the show, guns are fired, and no one even flinches at the sound. In one episode, a single cowboy has a red-hot branding iron and is interrupted as he's about to brand a cow, who is standing up! That wouldn't end well! Roosevelt enters two fist fights without even taking off his glasses. Really?

It's the director's job to pay attention to details like these that can make a show believable. (or unbelievable.) I would think there must be someone on the set who would point these things out and try and make it a little more authentic.

Hard to understand how some reviewers rate is show a 10 !

Fairly accurate story telling. T. R.'s last name was NOT consistently pronounced correctly in the series. Its ROSE-a-velt rather RUZE-a-velt. While T. R. was 5-10 in height, the actor who played him, Mason Beals is only 5-7. T. R.'s wife, Alice, called him "Thee" rather than Teddy. Despite, these mistakes, the series fairly accurately tells the story of T. R's days as a rancher in the Dakota Territory in the late 1880. The Production company needs a script consultant.

Elkhorn gets 4 stars for the scenery. As for the actors, none of whom I'll admit I ever heard of, they all seem more suited to community theater than television series or movies. I've watched four episodes and the more I see, the less I like it. The actor playing Paddock, I think his first name is Nate, may be the most annoying of the bunch. I refuse to believe he actually sounds like that! It feels like he made a conscious decision to sound and look like some new version of Sam Elliott! Every time he smirks and starts speaking in that Sam Elliott drawl, I have to laugh. Not sure I can finish watching the entire series. Honestly, I'd rather watch reruns of the old T. V. westerns from the 1960's. If you want to see a new Western series with great acting and writing, you should watch 'Billy the Kid' on MGM+ It's a hundred times better than Elkhorn.

This is got to be the worst acting I have ever seen. I am sorry to say. It reminds me of a 7th grade play.

Yet, I keep watching this series, hoping the dialog/acting will get better.

I was brought up on "westerns" and that is what interested me in this series.

If the series is renewed for a second season, I will hope writing/acting will improve.