Into the West

Everything About Fiction You Never Wanted to Know.

A critically acclaimed TNT mini-series, produced by Steven Spielberg, that follows a variety of fictional characters as their lives become intertwined with each other and the real historical events of the Westward Expansion of the 1800s.

Tropes used in Into the West include:
  • Did Not Do the Research: Averted hard. The series was praised for it's accuracy and would probably fit right into a history class if it weren't so freaking long.
    • In-universe, one of the characters refers to the Chinese "alphabet". Of course, he probably wouldn't know that an alphabet refers to a specific form of phonetic writing, which Chinese is not.
  • The Dulcinea Effect: Again, Jacob and Thunder Heart Woman. He barely saw her for a few minutes and decides to duel to the death for her.
  • Going Native: Jacob Wheeler after marrying a Thunder Heart Woman. They and their children shift between Native and white society as the series progresses. Jacob's cousin, Naomi, also goes native when she marries a Cheyenne chief, Prairie Fire.
  • Historical Fiction: The series is an impressive example.
  • Loads and Loads of Characters: Enough that many scenes had to be deleted, leading to quite a few Aborted Arcs.
  • Magical Native American: Loved by the Buffalo, a medicine man.
  • Noble Savage: They're not exactly glamorized, but the Native Americans are portrayed respectfully and they come across as better than most of the settlers.
  • Screaming Birth: Averted by Thunder Heart Woman, who gives birth to their youngest child while they're briefly living with his parents; one of Jacob's cousins is surprised by her stoicism, saying that "She didn't cry out. Not once!"