One of the lures of a creation story such as “American Primeval” is the promise of pretty myths being burned down like a tribal village. And a reminder of how fragile civilization is, especially when self-preservation is at the top of everyone’s frontier agenda. These promises are fulfilled; the production becomes impossible not to watch. .... The performances are generally terrific.

American Primeval could have had better legs as an anthology with loose connective threads. But if you hitch yourself on this bandwagon, this is a wild ride that captures a historical turning point in a relentlessly unflinching watch.

American Primeval is an unsparing look at a segment of the American West in the 1850s that pretty much saw conflict, blood and death every single day. It’s certainly bleak, but it also reflects what it was really like for people heading West at that time, and why survival was probably their greatest achievement.

These plots are each varyingly compelling, and the cast does a believable job communicating this country’s grim history. But American Primeval’s story lines are so separated in terms of stakes, physical locations, and pacing that the whole thing often feels disjointed — like this single miniseries is actually three different shows.

It looks expensive, it features solid performances by experienced actors, and it offers a much darker take on its chosen genre than what you’d see in broadcast TV. But despite these superficial superlatives, there just isn’t much more to grasp onto beyond that. The characters are lackluster, the plotting is a mess, and despite gesturing towards America’s great history of violence, it does virtually nothing with these weighty ideas.

By the end of the six-episode season, this narrative has lapsed into mawkishness, despite strong performances from Gilpin (who’s made a career on blending grit with vulnerability) and Kitsch. .... The more intriguing characters who populate Primeval’s periphery—where a web of allegiances, compromises, and betrayals echoes our current state of sociopolitical chaos—fade into a fog of gunpowder.

As disposable entertainment, it’s mediocre; as history, it’s poorly researched white savior propaganda cosplaying as representation. Ugly inside and out and only passably engaging due to the valiant efforts of the cast, “American Primeval” misses its mark and then some and would serve the world best by slumping off on a ride towards the sunset, never to return.