Parents' Guide to

Hell on Wheels

By Kari Croop, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 15+

Gritty drama revels in Wild West's vices and violence.

TV AMC Drama 2011
Hell on Wheels Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this TV show.

Community Reviews

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age 16+

Based on 6 parent reviews

NotDaPanda
NotDaPanda Adult
October 2, 2020
age 17+

Story rich gory drama with sex.

The story on this tv show was very well done except for the first few episodes at the beginning of season 4. There are some cringe worthy gore scenes and the violence is non-stop. There are eyes getting ripped out, limbs amputated, corpses chopped and fed to pigs, and much more. There is multiple sex scenes but none to inappropriate. I would say a mature teen could handle this tv show.

This title has:

Great messages
Too much violence
Too much sex
Too much swearing
Too much drinking/drugs/smoking
COMMONKRYSIA
COMMONKRYSIA Adult
July 9, 2019
age 18+

great western

Very good version of the history of the people who worked on the railroad with a likable main character and lots of action.
See all 6 parent reviews

What's the Story?

With the Civil War over, ex-Confederate soldier Cullen Bohannon (Anson Mount) journeys west to avenge his wife's death and finds work in the lawless town of HELL ON WHEELS, where the transcontinental railroad is staging its cross-country expansion. Once there, he crosses paths with an emancipated slave (Common), a greedy entrepreneur (Colm Meaney), and a freshly widowed woman (Dominique McElligott).

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (6):
Kids say (8):

On the surface, Hell on Wheels certainly looks like it could be another Mad Men or The Walking Dead, the type of well-made, cerebral drama AMC is known for. Both the art direction and costuming are thoughtful and detailed, and the period is well-defined. But there's something in the way this story's told that makes us care a lot less about these characters than we'd like to.

Perhaps the problem lies in the show's sweeping ambitions to tell too many stories at once, blending elements of Manifest Destiny, post-Civil War racial tensions, and the construction of the transcontinental railroad, just to name a few. That said, with the writing in the right hands, it's precisely that level of ambition that could be the series' greatest virtue.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about the show's portrayal of a specific historical time period and whether that portrayal seems accurate or exaggerated. What details make what you're seeing seem more realistic? (Think about violence, language, and costuming, to name a few.) How does the show compare with what you know to be true about the American West during that era?

  • How does the show address the racism of the time period? Whose perspective is the story told from? Do minority characters have much of a voice? How did the end of the Civil War affect the lives of African Americans? How did America's westward expansion affect the lives of Native Americans?

  • What role did the railroad play in our nation's growth? Was the "progress" of westward expansion truly positive for everyone involved?

TV Details

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Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.

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