‘The English’ Recap: ‘Vultures on the Line’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

Caution: This article contains spoilers for Episode Three of ‘The English’. To revisit the previous episode, click here.
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There are a great many reasons that people continue to have a love affair with the Western. For not only does this genre feature stories about a unique time period in American history, where chaos ruled the day… but it also offers grand and sweeping stories. The kind that never waste a character or a moment and paint a proper picture of the lawlessness of the frontier. All while providing the viewer with cinematic images that are iconic and haunting in nature and that is precisely why The English on Prime Video is such a captivating and stunning series. For it accomplishes those very goals. After all, we’ve been privy to the darkness that rules this land and truly, the visuals are indeed breathtaking through and through, and the next episode… expands further upon the journey.

For ‘Vultures on the Line’ is a tale that truly took the time to dig deeper into the lives of the smaller characters that have been introduced thus far and expand upon the world surrounding our heroes. Since we came to learn that Hoxem was more than just a way station and example of the lawlessness of the west. It was also home to several men related to the life and times of Eli Whipp. Since the Myers and Flynn families laid down roots in Hoxem, and well, strange things were afoot regarding the heads of those households. The kind that involved suicide and murder and that was quite odd and undoubtedly beyond coincidence, since coincidence simply does not exist in the world of the Western and we also sadly… came to learn a great deal about Eli’s new friends, Katie, and John Clark.

Because the more time Eli spent paying off his debt to the two of them, the more suspicious he became of what exactly he was paying off. For the chores that he was working on, were basically silly busy work and of zero monetary value. Not to mention, there appeared to be nothing that this couple were selling or living off of and that prompted him to dig deeper and uncover… that they were grifters and opportunists of sorts. The kind who did illegal things for the highest bidder or looked the other way to get a cut, just to get by. Something Eli wasn’t good with in the slightest. The only downside was his desire to be free and bring these two to justice… came too little too late. For another bidder was interested in Eli and that put him in serious trouble.

The kind that Cornelia got wind of, at the end of her long and winding journey. In fact, it was the extended family of the kids she rescued that clued her in on the seriously troubling nature of the Clarkes… which in turn snapped us clear of world-building for a moment, so that Cornelia could rush back to their home with her mission complete… and be the help that Eli needed. The kind that offered cold vengeance to Katie Clarke for her role in handing Eli off to people unknown and John might have suffered a similar fate. All because they were happy to hand Eli off to someone eager to meet him, to learn about his past and well… it would appear the past is where this story is headed next. 

But while we wait to learn about the knowledge that Eli harbors in his mind, we can celebrate, another true Western episode. One that explored this world masterfully and set the stage for so much with its unique plot threads and build up, and of course… engaged us every step of the way through its incredible visuals and fine acting and well… once again, we are left eager to explore more of this universe and these characters. Because this truly is a perfect Western through and through, one that knows how to grab hold of us and never let go and now that we’ve reached the end of this fascinating journey, it is time to turn our attention to the next and likely learn all kinds of fascinating details regarding dark days gone by. Until next time.  

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