“Outer Range” Episode 7 repeatedly portrayed a billboard near the road that pointed out the fact that America doesn’t want its citizens to believe in the unknown, and that’s where the country is wrong. The fact is true in the universe of ‘Outer Range’ because the sudden appearance of a hole in the ground that can facilitate time travel isn’t a known phenomenon. Nevertheless, all these supernatural elements can be labeled as instruments of chaos. Sometimes they are traps set by the devil, and sometimes they are tests of one’s faith.
When Royal accidentally killed his father in 1886, he had a choice in front of him. He could have confessed the accident to his mother and sister, but instead, he ran away. He tried to escape his guilt, and thus God presented in front of him a supernatural element that acted as a test of his faith. Maybe, at that point in his life, Royal was too naïve to understand the world and thus took the bait and fell into the trap. He made a decision to jump into the pit, probably believing that it would free him from his guilt, but instead, the pit brought him to the future. He appeared in 1968. From thereon, each day, God gave him a chance to redeem himself, but each day Royal lied. He started living a lie, even though he knew that someday it would strike him back or his family. His fear finally turned into reality as the series began, and a pit, a symbolization of his past, appeared on his ranch.
The finale episode of “Outer Range” Season 1, i.e., Episode 8, brings forth shocking revelations about Royal and Autumn that inevitably influence the lives of others around them, especially Royal’s family, that finally broke apart after a long struggle to hold themselves together. Let’s find out further.
What Did Deputy Sheriff Joy Hawk Find Out?
In Episode 7, Joy Hawk came to meet a fella named Frank, who had earlier told her about the mysterious sightings of a “Mastodon” near a cave in his area. Joy wanted to meet Frank in connection to her upcoming election. However, when she arrived at Frank’s place, Harlan Ranch, she didn’t find him there. But instead, she noticed Abbott’s brand drawn on a large piece of rock that pointed toward the woods. As she walked further, she saw a black trail that led her deep into the woods. The black trail was probably made from the same black mineral that was the root of all supernatural events happening in Amelia County.
In Episode 8, Joy came out on the other side of the woods and found herself standing in front of a large patch of land where she saw thousands of bison running in a particular direction on a lush green pasture. However, what surprised her further was the sight of a small colony of native Indians settled near a stream. She witnessed hundreds of native Indian huts, as if she had traveled to a completely different timeline, probably a past one. These sightings also explain the presence of the extinct “Mastodon” near Harlan Ranch that inhabited the region during the late Pliocene era. Perhaps there was a hidden portal somewhere in the woods that was connected to the past which was why the strange sightings of the extinct entities became so common in this region.
It wasn’t revealed until the end of “Outer Range” Season 1 what Joy did after she witnessed these strange sightings. Perhaps she had accidentally traveled into the past, or maybe the entire herd of bison and the native Indians had arrived in the present. Whatever the case might be, ‘Outer Range’ Season 2 might be able to shed some more light on the mystery.
Did Rebecca Come Back?
Perhaps Autumn convinced Perry that his wife, Rebecca, would return if he would jump into the pit. Before jumping, Perry told Royal that Autumn knew a lot of things. She even knew that Royal was hiding a pit in the west pasture of his ranch through which he traveled in time. After Perry was certain of the existence of the mysterious hole in the ground, he started believing all of Autumn’s words. According to Autumn, Rebecca wasn’t gone and probably might return, and Perry was ready to take that chance by sacrificing his own life.
And all that was promised to Perry finally happened. During Rhett’s bull riding competition, Perry’s daughter, Amy, saw her mother, Rebecca, near the parking lot. At this point, Rebecca told Amy that she was hiding from someone, however, she didn’t explain anything and probably left all of it for season 2. Whatever the case might be, Rebecca took Amy away, and the two probably left Amelia County. As soon as Cecilia realized that Amy had disappeared, she went hysterical and tried to find her, but she was gone.
Maybe, Autumn knew where Rebecca was hiding or knew about her return, as when Billy took Royal to the Roller King parlor, he warned him that something terrible was going to happen to his granddaughter. Either it was Autumn who told Billy about it, or he saw it in his vision when he came in contact with the black mineral that came out of his father’s most precious stone. Or Perhaps at this point, Billy wasn’t referring to Amy, but Autumn, who too was Royal’s granddaughter, but from a different timeline.
Did Luke Tillerson Find Another Pit?
When Billy took Luke to the pit in “Outer Range,” Episode 7, he became obsessed with it and tried to kill his father so that he could inherit the property and use the wealth to purchase Abbott’s ranch. Fortunately, Billy arrived there and saved his father’s life. He later told Luke that the hole in the ground had vanished or was hiding somewhere else. However, what he wanted to tell his brother was that he could have the entire Tillerson property as he didn’t have an interest in his father’s ranch, and in exchange, he asked his brother not to try to kill their father again. Perhaps Billy already knew that he was going to die soon and hence handed over the ranch to his brother so as to protect his father.
Nevertheless, in Billy’s absence, Luke started digging holes on the border of his ranch near the west pasture of Abbott’s land in order to find the pit again. And by the end of “Outer Range” Season 1, he finally found something. As Luke struck a shovel in a pit, he noticed a black liquid coming out of it. At first, he believed it was oil, but soon realized that it was the same black mineral that he saw inside the supernatural pit. And before he could move or come out of the ditch, a portal from the past opened, releasing thousands of bison into the pasture like aimless creatures. However, when Luke came in contact with the black mineral, he didn’t get any vision, or probably he got one, but it wasn’t revealed in “Outer Range” Episode 8 and probably will be explored later in “Outer Range” Season 2.
Is Autumn Amy From A Different Time?
There was a vague sense of mystery around what Autumn knew and what she didn’t know, as every character in the entire season 1 just labeled her as some kind of messiah, and probably, in fact, she believed in that lie too. We already discussed the fact that Autumn was Royal’s granddaughter, Amy, who happened to come in contact with the mysterious black mineral and arrived in the past (maybe), probably when she was around ten years of age, as the exact age wasn’t disclosed in Season 1. Autumn also had some kind of trust fund, and nothing was revealed in the story so far about where it came from or how much money she had in it. Although in “Outer Range,” episode 8, she had a minute conversation with her mother, who couldn’t be Rebecca, because if she was Rebecca, then she would have probably stopped her from going to a place like Amelia County because of her horrifying past. Another point that Autumn was adopted by someone else other than Rebecca was the fact that she didn’t recognize Rebecca when Perry showed her the photograph. And she had no memory of her past life, so it was impossible for her to recognize her birth mother.
Nevertheless, after Perry jumped into the pit, Royal blamed Autumn for the miseries that had come upon his family and thus decided to put an end to her before it was too late. He took out the guns from the barn and went straight to the motel where Autumn was staying, but Autumn managed to escape. Later, during Rhett’s game night, Autumn called Amy’s phone and asked her to hand over the phone to Royal. She told Royal that she was in town, and Royal didn’t waste a moment to hunt her down. Maybe Autumn wanted Royal to leave Amy alone with Cecilia so that Rebecca could approach Amy and she could leave with her in Royal’s absence, and hence it was all part of her grand plan.
When Royal arrived in town, Autumn tricked Royal into following her. She escaped toward the Abbott ranch on Billy’s truck. However, while on the road, Royal pulled out his rifle and shot Billy. He died on the spot, and suddenly the truck lost control. Billy’s truck rolled down the steep hill, and Royal followed it in order to finish what was left. A wounded Autumn crawled out of the truck and moved towards the open land when Royal finally walked towards her with a gun pointed at her. However, before Royal could shoot her, he witnessed a herd of bison running toward them. This was probably the same herd that came out of the pit that was dug by Luke. Royal quickly took shelter under Billy’s vehicle that was flipped over, while Autumn, lying in the open, tried her best to protect herself from their lethal hoofs. As soon as the herd passed by, Royal saw the mysterious bison with an Indian arrow on its body that he consistently saw throughout Season 1. He finally pulled out the arrow from its body, maybe as a kind gesture that probably gave relief to the creature that had been wandering in pain for such a long time. As the bison left, Royal finally looked at Autumn’s wounded face and noticed a scar on her forehead. The scar reminded her of the bruise that Amy procured at the end of Episode 6 when a piece of glass accidentally scratched her forehead. The similar scar made Royal realize that Autumn was no one else but her own granddaughter. Amy, who has recently left Amelia County with her mother, will probably come into contact with the pit and end up in the past, only to grow up with a different set of parents with no memory of her past. She will grow up to become Autumn and will come back to Amelia County to search for answers to questions that have been haunting her for a long time.
It can also be surmised that Autumn didn’t have this scar earlier, but a change in the current timeline led to a change in the other timelines as well, i.e., a bruise on young Amy’s forehead led to a scar on an adult Autumn’s forehead. This further brings forth a possibility that if the future can really be altered by a change in the past, then Royal still holds a chance to save his land from exploitation by the BY9 mining company, whose large drilling machines Royal witnessed during his travel to the future timeline.
‘Outer Range’ Season 1: Ending Explained-Will There Be A Season 2?
After Royal found out the truth about Autumn’s real identity, he brought her home and made her lie on Amy’s bed. At this point, he finally confessed to Cecilia about his past life, where he accidentally shot his father and walked on Abbott’s ranch soon after it. In his confession, he didn’t reveal to her anything about the pit or his connection to the past, and Cecilia would probably learn about these important details in Season 2.
At this point, Royal told Cecilia that he was certain that his past had bled onto his family, and because of his actions, his family had to suffer the consequences. He tried his best to protect his secret and save his family from himself, but at the end of it all, he failed. He failed as a son, as a husband, and as a father, but he wanted to redeem himself and make amends. Royal wanted his family back, but Cecilia believed that it was all gone. She kicked the dining table with plates decorated on the surface that finally crashed into the floor, breaking them into pieces just like her family had broken apart. She told Royal that Perry was gone, and so was Amy, when finally Royal revealed to Cecilia that she wasn’t. Amy was with them, but not in a way that she was expecting. “Outer Range” Season 2 will continue the narrative from hereon while exploring the fate of its character. The upcoming season will shed some more light on Autumn’s past life, how she arrived in the past, and who her adoptive parents are. It will also explore what happened to Rebecca and where she took Amy. And in which timeline did Perry arrive after he jumped into the pit?
After Rhett won the bull riding competition, he confessed his feelings to Maria and decided to leave Amelia County with her. However, their vehicle crashed into the billboard after they witnessed a strange herd of bison on the road. Rhett had been yearning to escape Amelia County, but every time something or other pulled him back. It will be interesting to see if he returns back home after the crash or leaves the ranch for good.
And last but not least, it is the Tillerson. In Perry’s absence, Abbott’s ranch will be fortified by the government, and probably Luke Tillerson will buy it if Autumn decides not to help Royal with her fund. Luke discovered the black mineral on his ranch and may involve foreign authorities in the matter, resulting in total chaos. However, Wayne is not dead yet, and he is the only one who can stop Luke. “Outer Range” Season 2 is sure going to be filled with a lot of twists and turns.
