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Based on 2 seasons, 15 episodes · through May 16, 2024
Outer Range is a mystery Western drama series about a Wyoming ranch family that discovers a supernatural black hole on their land. The story shows their struggle to protect their ranch and secrets. While it looks like a traditional cowboy show at first, it contains noticeable progressive and identity themes. It features a prominent gay Native American deputy sheriff whose story highlights her identity and family struggles. The show also explores themes of historical injustice and critiques traditional religious faith.
Why 70%? See the score breakdownBreakdown
These are the editorial factors and ratings behind our score for Outer Range.
Woke representation / casting
The show casts Tamara Podemski as Joy Hawk, a lesbian Native American deputy sheriff, and features her wife, Martha Hawk. This prominent LGBTQ+ representation adds a mandatory +30 points to this category. The casting also heavily features Native American actors in Season 2 to portray historical Shoshone tribes. While statistical diversity is possible in Wyoming, the casting pattern clearly emphasizes identity and representation.
42%
Woke political dialogue
The dialogue occasionally touches on identity, historical racism, and social issues. Viewers complained that characters sometimes make unnecessary social jabs. The sheriff's conversations about her sexuality and her struggles in a mostly white town feel forced to some audience members. However, the dialogue is mostly focused on the sci-fi mystery.
35%
Identity-driven story themes
The narrative explores Joy Hawk's challenges as a gay Native American woman living in a conservative, predominantly white town. In Season 2, the plot directly connects the time-travel mystery to indigenous history and Shoshone heritage.
58%
Western institutional / cultural critique
The series critiques core Western cultural elements like Christianity. It features a homophobic preacher who embarrasses the sheriff's family, and show events lead a Christian matriarch to lose her faith entirely. The story also contrasts the greed of white landowners with indigenous values. It depicts traditional cowboy masculinity in a critical light.
55%
Woke character or canon changes
Not relevant. Outer Range is an original series. It is not an adaptation of an existing book, comic, or film franchise, so there are no changes to legacy characters or established canon.
0%
Anti-woke backlash and complaints
Conservative and anti-woke viewers complained online about the show being "too woke" or "preachy." These complaints centered on the insertion of a lesbian relationship in a ranching drama and critiques of traditional religious faith. Some online reviews accused the writers of pushing a modern leftist agenda into a classic Western setting.
45%
Creator track record context
The creative team is a mix of traditional and progressive figures. Key contributors like writer Randy Redroad and director Catriona McKenzie have high woke scores and focus on indigenous representation. Showrunner Charles Murray also prioritizes representation-first projects. However, creator Brian Watkins and lead actor Josh Brolin have very low woke scores.
38%
Production
