I just finished watching the Yellowstone series and decided to write a bit about the American shows I’ve watched recently — eleven in total. Here’s a quick review of each.
Yellowstone#
Yellowstone is already at its fifth season, and it looks like they’ll keep going. When I first started watching, I genuinely got hooked — a beautiful, grand series with stunning cinematography and gorgeous scenery. Plus, you get to see how real American ranchers herd cattle — actual ranchers really do have that old-money landowner vibe…
Season one’s plot holds up fine — the dynamics between the Dutton family, the Native Americans, the state government, and the developers work well, and you can casually enjoy watching cowboys herd cattle along the way. But the plot in later seasons… is unexpectedly bad. Downright incomprehensible. It lowers the bar for screenwriting.
Zooming into the show’s core: why do so many people love this series? Because Yellowstone doesn’t just depict authentic cowboy life (they even filmed some genuine ranch cowboy life later on) — it also reflects the harsh reality that old ranches can barely survive under modern societal development. And cowboy culture and private land are the very heart of American identity. It’s not just the Dutton family stubbornly trying to preserve the ranching way of life — it almost feels like a clash between urban American development and native cultural preservation.
I can responsibly say: the plot definitely gets worse with each season — so bad that the main storyline becomes unwatchable. But if they release more seasons, this show will still be my top priority over everything else.
Personal rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Recommended: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
1923#
A Yellowstone prequel series. Maybe because Yellowstone is so famous, this prequel 1923 ended up with a bit too many stars — it left a bad impression from the start. Perhaps the creators thought Yellowstone’s plot wasn’t good enough, and that a show purely about cowboys would be hard to craft a compelling script for, so they added two subplots to 1923. But adding subplots created another problem: the show doesn’t feel enough like Yellowstone. Constant cutting between storylines — no “slow-paced” Yellowstone vibe.
The Native American girl’s storyline seems completely disconnected from the main plot — no idea when it’ll tie in. But this Native girl subplot is actually pretty good. Native lands were stolen, and their children were sent to boarding schools to be forcibly indoctrinated with white Christian beliefs. This subplot genuinely carries the Yellowstone spirit. The Native characters are cold-blooded killers too — none of that “bullet in the body but still politicking” dissonance. The narrative flows smoothly without dragging; this subplot is quite watchable.
As for the Africa subplot… while they do capture some scenery, it’s just not as good as the Dutton ranch — doesn’t have that feeling. And once they leave Africa, it starts dragging, heavily focusing on a grand romance set against the era’s backdrop — but what does that have to do with Yellowstone? And this storyline waited an entire season without converging into the main plot… An entire season of setup for one character, framed as “the Dutton ranch’s hope rests on him” — the stakes are too high, and the subplot itself isn’t that compelling. Season two is highly likely to be a massive flop.
The early part of 1923 still had some ranch-versus-the-tide-of-history flavor. Later it’s pure padding — they don’t even film cattle herding anymore. Completely devoid of interest. Can’t even muster a decent fight. Kind of bad. Only eight episodes in the whole season, and the plot starts falling apart halfway through — didn’t learn anything from Yellowstone except how to botch the ending.
You can tell this show wanted to inherit Yellowstone but also try something new — depicting that era’s America and Europe (even colonial Africa) — but ended up being a mess of everything and nothing. If you want to revisit that era, I recommend Boardwalk Empire, which is set around the same time (Prohibition era) and has far more period atmosphere than this show.
Personal rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Recommended: ⭐️⭐️
1883#
1883 — a grand, tragic Western epic. A Yellowstone series entry, the prequel to the prequel. It feels like watching an epic saga, leaving you wanting more. It’s no longer just a simple TV show — the cinematography even has literary and artistic qualities, while also carrying a slice of American pioneering history. The U.S. had just emerged from the Civil War, everything was waiting to be rebuilt…
I personally really enjoy shows like Yellowstone — the filming style suits my taste. But the main series plot is aggressively terrible; I’d rather just watch them ride horses on the ranch and skip the main storyline entirely. 1883 fills that gap perfectly — not too much complex plot (but not too little either), just right. Look at the valley, look at the horses, add some epic BGM, and the immersion is strong.
The entire 1883 series doesn’t actually have much plot, but it tells a very complete story. America had just ended its Civil War, in an era of lawlessness — cowboys, bandits, sheriffs, European immigrants, Native Americans… There’s some classic cowboy shootout action, but the focus is more on cowboy life and immigrants’ yearning for freedom. Yet the road to freedom is full of hardship: horse thieves, Native tribes, rattlesnakes, tornadoes, and this unforgiving land. A deeply profound show. Other than the female lead’s runny nose being a minus, there’s nothing to criticize. The plot is that rare combination of complete and perfectly proportioned. Very, very highly recommended.
Here’s a favorite line describing cowboys:
Personal rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Recommended: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Tulsa King#
A pure thrill ride. Starring 70-something Sylvester Stallone as an old-school mobster who’s been locked up for decades, now reasserting order over a small city’s underworld. “It’s not that I can’t adapt — it’s that people today have messed-up rules.” Us old-school gangsters follow a code~ The plot has no real flaws, no dragging — just pure entertainment. Not sure if they’ll keep making more.
Personal rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Recommended: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Wednesday#
A fun watch, pretty decent. I’d never seen a gothic Lolita-style American show before, and it looks pretty good. The early parts are quite engaging and fresh. Later, when it leans into mystery, it falls off — everyone can tell who’s behind it, except Wednesday (the main character)… (A lot of American mystery shows are like this — start strong, then gradually fall apart.) If you’ve never tried the gothic Lolita style, give it a shot.
Personal rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Recommended: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Last of Us#
Adapted from the video game of the same name — which I somehow never played! Precisely because I hadn’t played it, I could watch the show with a calm mind. Starring the hugely popular Lyanna Mormont (Bella Ramsey) and Oberyn Martell (Pedro Pascal) from Game of Thrones — both deliver smooth, natural performances. It’s a post-apocalyptic zombie-type show, but the zombies aren’t from a virus — they’re from a fungal infection. The zombies’ brains are full of fungus. One memorable scene: Bella’s character cuts open the head of a zombie stuck between rocks, and the fungus inside spills out — still alive. Maybe because of the fungus element, it’s more satisfying than the average zombie show. The visuals are great — not dark and murky, and not overly disgusting. A complete, well-told story with excellent cinematography. There’s one segment near the end that personally left me with some psychological discomfort, but overall the plot absolutely holds up. Several smaller storylines are beautifully told. Very good overall, highly recommended.
Personal rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Recommended: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Boardwalk Empire#
A series spanning four seasons, now complete. Set in 1920s America, right after Prohibition was enacted. Women stood outside bars calling for their rights; politicians publicly supported women while privately running bootlegging operations; gangsters stepped out of cars in trench coats, Thompson submachine guns blazing… Boardwalk Empire is about the gangster empire of Atlantic City (just below New York), built on bootlegging into a wealth rivaling nations. I imagine many have seen Once Upon a Time in America — you can roughly think of this show as its TV series counterpart. This one is hard to summarize — let’s go season by season.
Season one is god-tier. Plenty of risqué scenes, and the plot isn’t just smooth — it’s miraculous. Women, black communities, bootlegging, jazz, gang wars, WWI veterans… Gangsters have essentially seized control of the city — even the newspapers don’t care what the mayor says.
Season two is a direct continuation of season one — also excellent.
Season three introduces problems. It doesn’t feel like a continuation of the first two seasons (though some plot threads connect) — it could almost stand alone. Is the plot bad? Yes, it’s disconnected. But is it terrible? Taken on its own, it’s not flawed — it’s even somewhat entertaining. This season has many brilliant segments: Half-Face taking on ten men alone, the jaw-dropping plotline of the formidable madam, extended solo blues performances by black characters — all superb!
Season four is full of issues. I thought my favorite character, dormant for three seasons, would finally take center stage and do something meaningful — instead, he was hastily written off. Dear writers, if that’s how it was going to be, could you not have put him on the poster? Made it seem like something big was coming — got my hopes up for nothing… Season four’s protagonist has risen too high, making it hard to drive the plot (you could already feel this in season three). The only highlight of season four is the protagonist’s childhood flashbacks — a perfect closure to his arc.
Many characters’ later arcs are unsatisfying, but many characters’ mid-series arcs are just too brilliant… Although this show isn’t hugely popular, it did win awards, and you can see many scenes being referenced by later, higher-profile American shows. For example, Gus Fring’s arc in Breaking Bad borrows from Half-Face; King Tommen’s suicide in Game of Thrones “completely” borrows from the butler’s suicide…
I really love this show — it immerses you in the glamorous cities of that era, the decadent urban life, the jazz of underground speakeasies, the gangsters… A narrative that holds nothing back (I mean that about everything). The series as a whole is excellent, rich with period atmosphere.
Personal rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Recommended: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Band of Brothers#
I’m sure many have heard of this show’s reputation. Yes — I somehow hadn’t seen it. My elementary-school-level writing ability and limited education prevent me from offering any meaningful critique. Only one word can describe it: divine. I’ll find a chance to watch it again~
Personal rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Recommended: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Pacific#
The Pacific was made shortly before Band of Brothers. It’s actually a very good show, but then that monster came along, and this one’s reputation never reached the same heights. Band of Brothers covers the European theater of WWII; this show covers the Pacific theater. Strangely, the two shows mirror their respective theaters — the European theater is far better known, and the shows follow suit… Even within the show, at the same dinner table, a European theater soldier shows off a captured Nazi banner while the Pacific theater soldier has nothing to show — a touch of melancholy.
Though not as famous, this is a very, very highly recommended show.
Personal rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Recommended: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Mandalorian#
The Mandalorian is already at its third season. Also starring Pedro Pascal, also a dad-with-kid storyline… The first two seasons were quite good and fairly popular. This third season? Not so much. The Mandalorian should probably remain a ronin-like figure driving the plot forward — a whole group of Mandalorians building a homeland just doesn’t feel right. The protagonist’s identity even gets a bit diluted. (Run, man — take the kid and adventure across the galaxy — isn’t that better?)
My appreciation for this show is premised on liking the Star Wars universe. In China, Star Wars fans are genuinely rare. If you’re not into it, you probably won’t get through it — feel free to skip.
Personal rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Recommended: ⭐️
The White Tower (Shiroi Kyoto)#
This one is a Japanese drama. I want to end with it, because it truly is exceptional — near perfect. Though it’s somewhat old, it never feels boring while watching. Many ideas are surprisingly forward-thinking, the plot rises and falls dramatically, good and evil are never absolute, and several female characters are beautifully drawn. You’ll see some classic love triangles and plot twists, and revisiting them is still quite rewarding. Professor Zaizen’s final act brings the entire series to a perfect close. Japanese drama — number one!
Personal rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Recommended: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Closing#
All of these are worth watching, and many are masterpieces. Some shows I couldn’t find subtitled versions for, so I watched them raw — like the Yellowstone prequel 1883. Since the dialogue wasn’t overly complex, I managed to get through it (the narration is quite sophisticated)… Marking my first raw viewing.
These are basically all the shows I’ve watched in the last half year or so, so I’m bundling them together. There are many other brilliant shows from earlier that left a deep impression — I’ll save that for another time when I’m in the mood~
Hoping to find more good shows in the second half of the year.