Into The West: Ep 6

Back to non-Clay TV. This was the final episode of Into The West a six-part twelve hour mini-series from executive producer Steven Spielberg. It tells of an epic journey of to familes over nearly a century. The Wheelers a kind family of european decent and a band of Lakota tribes people.
In this episode we start in 1889 the reservations given to the Indians is being split up and settled by whites. Clara is still teaching at an Indian school outside of the reservation. Abe Wheeler who played a big part in the last two episodes is not seen or heard of, I thought he may have died during Custer's Last Stand along with his brother but what really happened to him is unknown. But during Jacob Jr.'s funeral he may have made peace with his family.
When Jacob Wheeler arrives at Clara and Robert Wheelers home he tells them that there are Wheelers scattered all over the west. He only seems concerned about finding his daughter Margaret Light Shines.
George/Voices That Carry is grown up and finds his brother who spent time playing an Indian in the Buffalo Bill Wild West Show.
A Piaute called Wovoka/Jack Wilson spreads the word of the Ghost Dance, a spiritual dance that will lead to the end of white rule and unite all Native tribes.
Margaret Light Shines eventually finds her parents and gets a camera by trading a "Ghost Shirt" to a reporter. She starts taking pictures of the reservation through her eyes.
White officials panic and order up 1,000 troops to contain the ghost dancers. After some small conflicts with the troops that lead do the death of Sitting Bull many of the Indians hide out in the Badlands. After some time a truce is declared with the troops and they are escorted to Wounded Knee. While turning over their guns an argument between the Indians and the overzealous troops lead to a complete massacre of the Indians at Wounded Knee. There was no need for troops to kill women and children yet they did. The reporter who saw this started crying while viewing the corpses left on the fields. Margaret Light Shines uses her camera to take pictures of the horror and mass graves. During the burials Loved By The Buffalo is taking lockets of hair while a white guy is selling the bodies for two dollars apiece.
Years later we see Clara newly pregnant and Jacob Wheeler telling the story of the two families to the next generation, at the same time Loved By The Buffalo is doing the same to his people.
Fade to black.
A DVD will be available on October 4, 2005 and the book of the same name authored by Max McCoy is available through the Peguin Group, probably many other places too.