1883 has a sprawling cast of characters that reflect the myriad groups of people who found themselves drawn to the American West for better opportunities. The Yellowstone prequel series follows James and Margaret Dutton as their family joins a wagon train headed to Oregon from Fort Worth, Texas, escorted by two Pinkerton Detectives; a cantankerous veteran of the Civil War, and a former Buffalo Soldier.
The perilous journey often forces the characters to have to make tough decisions, slowly robbing them of their innocence the longer they're away from civilization. From impressionable Elsa Dutton to world-weary Shea Brennan, the main characters all have something likable about them.
Aunt Claire
Arguably one of the least likable characters in the series, fans are blessed with the fact that Aunt Claire isn't featured as prominently as she could have been. She doesn't believe in James Dutton's dream of finding a paradise in Oregon, and when she begins the journey with the wagon train, she causes nothing but trouble due to her combative personality.
She also insults Elsa for her life choices at every turn, and later, Aunt Claire's antagonistic tendencies turn an altercation with bandits at the settler camp into a tragedy-filled nightmare. With her love of the urbane over the natural world and her snarky admonishments about propriety, Aunt Claire represents everything the Duttons are leaving behind — and good riddance!
Josef
Josef is the leader of the immigrant families who hire Pinkerton Detectives Shea Brennan and Thomas to guide their wagon train safely to Oregon, and because of his ability to speak and translate English, he does most of the interpreting. Josef isn't a natural-born leader and often looks to the cowboys around him for guidance, but avoiding his responsibilities — like telling everyone to boil water before drinking it — only places innocent people in harm's way.
Josef does have a few standout moments, such as when he challenges the man who stole his family's supplies, and when he fends off a bandit attack on his wagon. But his more impressive turn is reminding the American settlers that just because he came on a ship with fellow immigrants, doesn't mean they're all the same, and sweeping generalizations about the immigrant experience won't do any good if no one agrees to work together.
John Dutton
As the youngest Dutton, John can't always participate as much as he'd like in the grown-up tasks on the journey to Oregon, but it doesn't mean that there aren't plenty of opportunities for him to make his mark among the wide variety of travelers.
Not only is John adorable, but he also has a perspicacious curiosity that shines through his wonder at looking at the lands they travel through. He wants to learn everything all at once, and it's endearing to see his personality develop more and more, the one small piece of innocence in the entire wagon train.
Wade
A longtime cowboy with 15 years of experience guiding wagon trains and bringing in herds, Wade is one of the more venerated cowboys of the wagon train, as well as one of the more observant. He decides to escort the Duttons to Oregon because it's the "gentlemanly" thing to do, and because he likes the open country.
Wade is dependable in a gunfight, and his tracking skills are invaluable, allowing the settlers to avoid having all their supplies stolen by bandits. The banter between him and his friend Ennis is a delightful method of reducing tension in episodes filled with too much death and sadness.
James Dutton
James Dutton is not a very approachable man, and his irascible nature is a means of coping with the PTSD he suffers from serving in the Civil War. His dream to get his family to Oregon may break it apart, but he's determined that they start fresh in a place that doesn't hold so many sorrowful memories.
James is likable precisely because he doesn't care if he is; the only thing that's important to him is his family, and he's willing to be hated if it keeps them safe. He reflects the gruff, dutiful archetypes and tropes found in the Western genre, but also brings in ever-so-slightly modern sensibilities, like approving of his daughter Elsa becoming a cowgirl.
Margaret Dutton
Margaret Dutton is an amalgamation of a lady and a cowgirl, trying to retain a sense of decorum in a savage world but yearning to be able to cast it aside like her daughter Elsa does with so much ease. Margaret is adept at riding horses, herds cattle with the best of them, and knows exactly what part of a cactus is safe to eat, making her one of the most capable survivalists on the wagon train.
Women in the American West have always had to be strong, and it's refreshing to see Margaret's story taking its own shape, independent of her identity as simply a mother and a wife. She defends her camp from marauders, rescues drowning settlers, and proves that she's a truly inspiring woman and one of the best TV moms of the past decade.
Ennis
A young and slightly green cowboy, Ennis nevertheless makes up for what he lacks in experience with boundless enthusiasm. From herding cattle and settlers on a wagon train to courting James Dutton's daughter, Elsa, he puts his entire self into what he wants. While at first Ennis comes across as a little goofy, he matures over the course of the first season and turns into a very dependable person.
With so many rough-and-tumble characters around like James Dutton and Shea Brennan, it's a treat to see someone for whom the experiences of life on the frontier haven't been made completely jaded. Ennis can still connect with Elsa's perspective and appreciate the beauty of the land, and even when he begins to lose some of his innocence, it makes for one of the series' most tragic — but effective — storylines.
Thomas
A former Buffalo Soldier turned Pinkerton Detective, Thomas has a violent past like many of the men on the wagon train, but he doesn't let his trauma cloud his judgment (except perhaps in matters of love). Astute and worldly, he has a better grasp on people and their motivations than most and is refreshingly introspective.
Unlike his best friend Shea Brennan, with whom he served in the Civil War, Thomas doesn't let his tumult define him, and his insight is a welcome alternative to men letting their aggression interfere with their reasoning. His relationship with Noemi, one of the immigrant widows, is also a bright spot in a vacuum of pain and suffering.
Shea Brennan
Though he can seem a little rough around the edges, wagon boss and Pinkerton Detective Shea Brennan possesses a great amount of emotional depth that he keeps buried. After fighting in the Civil War and burying his family, he loses much of his will to live until the Duttons and several immigrant families need him to guide their wagon train to Oregon.
For someone so seemingly hardened by life's tragedies, Shea has many moments of displaying a great degree of vulnerability (such as when Thomas sees him experiencing night terrors, or he weeps for the drowned settlers), subverting masculine tropes found in many Westerns through highlighting the dignity of men revealing their feelings.
Elsa Dutton
Fans see the allure of the American West through Elsa, who arrives for the journey from Fort Worth, Texas to Oregon with a spring in her step and desire to leave the civilized world behind. To her, the Great Plains promise adventure and genuine living, and it's hard not to fall in love with her perspective given all the tragedy that comes to the Duttons later on.
For one so young, Elsa is an emotionally intelligent and insightful character with a poetic way of describing her surroundings. Much of the journey is seen through her point of view with beautiful narration, and over time she blossoms into her authentic self tempered by life experience, representative of the heart and soul of the show.