| 1923 | |
|---|---|
_title_card.jpg) | |
| Genre | |
| Created by | Taylor Sheridan |
| Based on | |
| Written by | Taylor Sheridan |
| Directed by | |
| Starring | |
| Narrated by | Isabel May |
| Composers |
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| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 2 |
| No. of episodes | 16[1] |
| Production | |
| Executive producers | |
| Cinematography |
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| Editors |
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| Running time | 48–112 minutes |
| Production companies |
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| Original release | |
| Network | Paramount+ |
| Release | December 18, 2022 (2022-12-18) – April 6, 2025 (2025-04-06) |
| Related | |
1923 is an Americanneo-Western television series created byTaylor Sheridan that premiered on December 18, 2022, onParamount+. The series serves as aprequel toYellowstone (2018–24), asequel to1883 (2021–22), and is the third television series in theYellowstone franchise. It starsHelen Mirren,Harrison Ford,Brandon Sklenar,Julia Schlaepfer,Jerome Flynn,Darren Mann,Brian Geraghty, Aminah Nieves,Michelle Randolph, andTimothy Dalton in main roles whileIsabel May reprises her role as narrator Elsa Dutton from1883.
The second and final season[2] premiered on February 23, 2025.[1] The series concluded on April 6, 2025, after two seasons consisting of sixteen episodes.
The series follows a generation of the Dutton family in 1923, during a time of various hardships includingProhibition, drought, and the early stages of theGreat Depression, which affectedMontana long before theWall Street Crash of 1929.
| Season | Episodes | Originally released | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| First released | Last released | |||
| 1 | 8 | December 18, 2022 (2022-12-18) | February 26, 2023 (2023-02-26) | |
| 2 | 8[1] | February 23, 2025 (2025-02-23) | April 6, 2025 (2025-04-06) | |
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date [1] | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | "1923" | Ben Richardson | Taylor Sheridan | December 18, 2022 (2022-12-18) | |
In a flashforward,[17] Cara Dutton hunts down a man for attacking the Dutton family, and kills him in a standoff. In Africa, her nephew Spencer, a big-game hunter for hire, shoots a rampaging lion, then travels to Nairobi where he is hired to kill a leopard in a safari camp. In Montana, Jacob Dutton and his men pause to observe the destruction of drought and locusts over the grasslands before riding into Bozeman. Jacob presides over a meeting of the Montana Livestock Association, ruling against Scottish ranchers, led by Banner Creighton, who are trespassing on cattle ranches to feed their starving sheep. Back at the Yellowstone ranch, young Jack Dutton is set to marry a neighbor, Elizabeth, but is called on to help run the cattle to higher ground, leaving Cara to smooth things over with the bride's family. In the hills, Jack encounters a herd of sheep, and gets shot at. At a Catholic-runIndian boarding school, Teonna Rainwater suffers physical and mental abuse at the hands of Sister Mary. She fights back, only to face the wrath of the headmaster Father Renaud, and further repercussions from the nuns. | ||||||
| 2 | 2 | "Nature's Empty Throne" | Ben Richardson | Taylor Sheridan | December 25, 2022 (2022-12-25) | |
Jacob and the Yellowstone cowboys save Jack from the sheepherders. They hang five of them as justice for trespassing and for attacking Jack, although Banner manages to escape. Jacob orders the sheep to be driven down the mountainside and handed over to Native American riders to take to their struggling Reservation. Teonna continues to stand up to abuse at the hands of Sister Mary. Her grandmother Issaxche visits the superintendent of government boarding schools, seeking Teonna's custody. InKenya, after killing a pair of leopards, Spencer meets a British woman named Alexandra, and the two become smitten with each other. She leaves her fiancé and joins Spencer as he heads off on his next assignment in theSerengeti. | ||||||
| 3 | 3 | "The War Has Come Home" | Ben Richardson | Taylor Sheridan | January 1, 2023 (2023-01-01) | |
Jacob and his nephews return to the ranch. Banner stumbles his way back home and gathers the sheep herders to plot revenge against the Duttons. Jacob goes to town and speaks to the sheriff about the herders, while his family observes the modern trappings thatYellowstone National Park is bringing to Bozeman. On their way back to the ranch the next day, they are ambushed by the herders. John is killed, and Jacob and Elizabeth are seriously wounded. Reinforcements arrive and kill the herders, but Banner and several others escape. As the doctor tends to Jacob, Cara writes a letter, at Jacob's request, begging Spencer to come home to defend his family's land. In Africa, Spencer asks Alexandra to marry him and then saves her from a charging elephant and a pride of lions. | ||||||
| 4 | 4 | "War and the Turquoise Tide" | Ben Richardson | Taylor Sheridan | January 8, 2023 (2023-01-08) | |
The fallout from the rifle ambush by the sheep farmers is severe. Jacob is bedridden, while Jack and Elizabeth face her mother's insistence that she move east. With so many of his allies dead, Banner meets with the mining magnate Donald Whitfield to gain support for his war against the Dutton family. Jacob counsels Cara to take over the ranch's affairs, but to leave the fighting for Spencer's return. Telling the group that Jacob has gone to Wyoming to hunt down cattle thieves, Cara represents him at a meeting of the livestock association and convinces the members to agree to Dutton's plan for a new police force. After incessant abuse from Sister Mary, Teonna finally kills her before fleeing the school. Spencer grows closer to his fiancée and receives Cara's letter that a range war is in progress. | ||||||
| 5 | 5 | "Ghost of Zebrina" | Guy Ferland | Taylor Sheridan | February 5, 2023 (2023-02-05) | |
The Dutton ranch settles into a melancholy routine, and John's widow Emma takes her own life. In Africa, Spencer and his fiancée Alexandra begin the long journey to Montana. InMombasa, hearing that travel by ocean liner would take months, Spencer signs on as a deckhand on a local tugboat that will get him to theSuez Canal, where he will arrange onward passage to America. Alerted that Sisters Mary and Alice have been murdered, Father Renaud brutally interrogates Baapuxti, then sends three priests after her cousin Teonna. In theBadlands, Teonna fends off a wolf and then encounters a Crow shepherd Hank who offers to help her. Banner attaches his fortunes to Whitfield's gold mining plans, as the cattle business declines. Having missed their wedding, Jack and Elizabeth say their vows alone on a hillside. Later, Elizabeth reveals she is pregnant. Jacob slowly recovers from his wounds. Alexandra insists on joining Spencer. On the way to the Suez Canal, their tug boat is struck by an abandoned French cargo ship and capsizes. | ||||||
| 6 | 6 | "One Ocean Closer to Destiny" | Guy Ferland | Taylor Sheridan | February 12, 2023 (2023-02-12) | |
Spencer and Alexandra barely survive the tug boat capsizing in shark-infested waters and are eventually rescued by the S.S.Lambridge, which takes them toMarseille. Its captain agrees to marry them in international waters, offering his wife's ring for the ceremony. Back in Montana, Cara and Sheriff McDowell begin the process of hiring livestock agents. When Cara reluctantly admits that Jacob is alive and on the Dutton ranch, the sheriff visits and warns Jacob that he'll get to the bottom of the herder killings. Jacob's desire for revenge is overtaken by his realization of the mining magnate's intentions to squeeze the Duttons out, and he vows to stop the encroachment.Marshals raid Issaxche's home, killing her while searching for Teonna. Hank gives Teonna male clothing and the name Joe and burns her possessions from the school. | ||||||
| 7 | 7 | "The Rule of Five Hundred" | Ben Richardson | Taylor Sheridan | February 19, 2023 (2023-02-19) | |
Jacob, Jack, and the ranch's posse go with Sheriff McDowell to arrest Banner at the luxurious home given to him by Whitfield. Surprised to see that Jacob is still alive, Banner promises that their war is not over. One of the recently-hired livestock agents informs Whitfield about the situation, who then sends his lawyer to help Banner. Runs His Horse, Teonna's father finds Issaxche dead in her cabin. As he finds the attacker's tracks, Hank's son Pete arrives to inform him that Teonna is in hiding in the Badlands. They end up in a bloody encounter with the priests sent to retrieve her. Two of the priests find Teonna, and Hank saves her, but he is killed. Spencer and Alexandra find themselves inSicily, where they unexpectedly encounter Alexandra's former fiancé. | ||||||
| 8 | 8 | "Nothing Left to Lose" | Ben Richardson | Taylor Sheridan | February 26, 2023 (2023-02-26) | |
After the priests do not return, Father Renaud and Marshall Kent search for Teonna. Runs His Horse and Pete Plenty Clouds find Teonna and take her south with them. Banner is released without bail, and he and Jacob again threaten each other. Alice, the wife of Dutton ranch foreman Zane, is arrested formiscegenation and Zane is beaten by police. Spencer and Alexandra board the SSMajestic bound for London. Alexandra's former fiancé Arthur angrily harasses the couple before challenging Spencer to a duel, which Spencer wins. However, Arthur attacks him and Spencer throws Arthur overboard in self-defense. Although Spencer is not charged, Arthur's father, theEarl of Sussex, orders the captain to remove him from the vessel at the nearest port. Alexandra learns her parents have arranged for her to return to London and that she cannot leave the ship. Seeing Spencer taken away, she declares she will find him inBozeman, Montana. Back at the Dutton ranch, Whitfield arrives to announce that he has paid their property tax, and if they cannot pay him back by the end of the year, the deed for the land will default into his possession. Elizabeth suffers a miscarriage. | ||||||
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by [18] | Original release date [1] | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 | 1 | "The Killing Season" | Ben Richardson | Taylor Sheridan | February 23, 2025 (2025-02-23) | ||||||
The Dutton ranch faces financial hardship, forcing them to sell their remaining herd. Before heading to Bozeman, Jacob scares off a cougar on their porch. He visits aspeakeasy, where McDowell informs him that Zane and Alice remain separated and in jail. Still recovering from her miscarriage, Elizabeth heads outside but is confronted by the cougar, which Cara swiftly shoots dead. Having earned passage on a steamship bound for America, Spencer works alongside the young Italian, Luca. Spencer intervenes when another crew member rapes Luca and the ship's captain then executes the rapist. Spencer later talks Luca down after he prepares to commit suicide, and they work together to arrange fights between Spencer and other crewmates, earning them both money. Having returned to England, Alexandra remains heartbroken over being separated from Spencer. After revealing her pregnancy to Jennifer, she helps buy Alexandra a third-class ticket to America. Renaud and Kent continue hunting Teonna, and Kent ruthlessly kills severalComanche villagers as he grows impatient. Still on the run, Teonna asks Runs His Horse for permission to marry Pete, whom she later gets intimate with, until a lone cowboy stumbles across them and reveals they are in Texas. | |||||||||||
| 10 | 2 | "The Rapist Is Winter" | Ben Richardson | Taylor Sheridan | March 2, 2025 (2025-03-02) | ||||||
Jacob secures the release of Zane and his family by blackmailing the local judge. He visits Zane but finds that he has been severely beaten in jail and can barely walk. On their journey back to the ranch, they become trapped in a blizzard and take shelter under their wagon. After discovering that a hungry and likelyrabid wolf has slaughtered the ranch's chickens, it bites Elizabeth, and she is later forced to take a rabies vaccine against her will. Cara is awoken at night by the wolf breaking into the house and shoots it when it attacks her. Renaud and Kent continue their search for Teonna inAnadarko, Oklahoma, where the local marshal, Mamie Fossett, helps create illustrations of Teonna for wanted posters. The Comanche later retaliate at night, and Kent kills them, but finds that they are children. Spencer arrives inGalveston, Texas, where he meets the leader of a local crime syndicate,Salvatore Maceo. Despite Maceo's warm hospitality toward Spencer for saving Luca, he attacks Maceo's men after they prevent him from leaving. Maceo later allows Spencer to continue his journey, but must first help Luca smuggle illegal whiskey toFort Worth. | |||||||||||
| 11 | 3 | "Wrap Thee in Terror" | Ben Richardson | Taylor Sheridan | March 9, 2025 (2025-03-09) | ||||||
Alexandra arrives in New York City but is taken toEllis Island along with the other third-class passengers to be processed. Claiming to be Spencer's wife, she is forced to go through an invasive medical examination and convinces an immigration officer to allow her entry, despite her pregnancy. Locals warn Alexandra of the dangers she may face traveling to Montana alone, and after reaching theGrand Central Terminal, a man begins stalking her. Runs His Horse meets Anders, a Texan cowboy, and agrees to work for him. Fossett is informed of the dead Comanche children and vows to bring Renaud and Kent to justice. Having survived the blizzard, Jacob and his group return to the ranch, where they are informed by their doctor that Zane is suffering from asubdural hematoma and that his condition is worsening. Elizabeth plans to leave the ranch for good once she has finished her rabies treatment and asks Jack to join her, but he declines. Spencer and Luca run into a roadblock of lawmen inspecting vehicles for contraband. While Spencer chooses to abandon the illegal whiskey they're transporting, Luca continues on his own and is quickly gunned down by the lawmen. | |||||||||||
| 12 | 4 | "Journey the Rivers of Iron" | Ben Richardson | Taylor Sheridan | March 16, 2025 (2025-03-16) | ||||||
Whitfield holds a successful meeting for investors, proposing to turn Yellowstone into a tourist resort. He tasks Creighton with taking the Dutton ranch by force and hiding the evidence in alegal loophole so he can take ownership of the land. Alexandra is assaulted and robbed, but manages to make her train in time. Zane is given emergency brain surgery, relieving the pressure on his head and allowing him to walk again, and Jacob promises him they will get their revenge. Due to the immense pain she feels while taking her rabies vaccines, Elizabeth is discovered to once again be pregnant. Spencer is picked up by the sheriff of Fort Worth, who demands that Spencer continue delivering the whiskey so he can find the destination. After arriving in Fort Worth, the lawmen raid the bootlegger's warehouse while Spencer flees on foot and escapes onto a train. A group of vagrants later attacks him, but Spencer fends them off before jumping off the train. Runs His Horse, Teonna, and Pete help Anders and his cowboys herd cattle, but they discover the wanted posters and the bounty on Teonna's head. | |||||||||||
| 13 | 5 | "Only Gunshots to Guide Us" | Ben Richardson | Taylor Sheridan | March 23, 2025 (2025-03-23) | ||||||
Renaud and Kent arrive inAmarillo, Texas, where Anders informs them that Teonna has fled across a long stretch of wide-open plains. Pete separates from Teonna and Runs His Horse to search for water, but finds Renaud and Kent who chase him down until Pete falls from his horse, and they shoot at each other. Fossett finds Spencer and brings him to Amarillo when he reveals he is from Montana. She calls McDowell in Bozeman who confirms Spencer's identity, but he implores that Spencer not return home due to the escalating conflict between the Duttons and Creighton. Still seeking to avenge his brother's death, Spencer ignores McDowell's warning and boards a train bound forLivingston, Montana. Alexandra is forced to work as a waitress on board her train so she can eat. After she is sexually assaulted by one of the passengers, Alexandra viciously beats him and is locked in a temporary cell. When the train stops in Chicago, Alexandra is arrested by the Chicago police, but two passengers who witnessed the assault, Hillary and Paul, defend her and she is let go. After discovering that Alexandra's connecting train had been canceled, Hillary and Paul invite her to join them. | |||||||||||
| 14 | 6 | "The Mountain Teeth of Monsters" | Ben Richardson | Taylor Sheridan | March 30, 2025 (2025-03-30) | ||||||
McDowell informs Jacob that Spencer is on his way home, but Jacob fears that Whitfield will have Spencer killed to stop him from inheriting the Dutton ranch. Creighton sends men to intercept Spencer at the Livingston train station while Jacob arrives first with McDowell. Having reluctantly stayed with Zane to defend the ranch, Jack takes off alone to join Jacob but is discovered by two of Creighton's men and killed. Having killed Pete in the shootout, Kent loots his body while Renaud berates him about the morality of all the deaths they have caused. After Kent shows no remorse for his actions, Renaud shoots him dead. Teonna and Runs His Horse later discover Pete and Kent's corpses, and decide to return home. Renaud finds them while they sleep, and shoots Runs His Horse, but Teonna fights back and kills him. Alexandra tells Hillary and Paul about the extent of her journey, and they agree to drive her to Montana in theirautomobile. After traveling hundreds of miles through freezing conditions, Alexandra awakens to discover they had run out of fuel during the night while far from civilization and that Hillary and Paul had died fromhypothermia. | |||||||||||
| 15 | 7 | "A Dream and a Memory" | Ben Richardson | Taylor Sheridan | April 6, 2025 (2025-04-06) | ||||||
| 16 | 8[1] | ||||||||||
Fossett discovers the aftermath of Teonna's confrontation with Renaud and arrests her following a short standoff. Feeling sympathetic after learning of Teonna's past, Fossett doesn't charge her for Renaud or Kent's deaths. Teonna later goes to trial, but her case is dismissed due to a lack of witnesses. With no home or family to return to, she heads to California for a fresh start. Creighton has a personal crisis about working for Whitfield and flees with his family to the Livingston train station. Dozens of Creighton's men begin their assault on the Dutton ranch, intending to kill everyone, while Cara and Zane lead the defense. They manage to hold them off initially, but the men later return in greater numbers with an automatic firearm. Alexandra stays warm by creating a fire and uses it to signal a passing train. Spencer notices Alexandra from the window, jumps from the train, and they have a tearful reunion. After Alexandra is brought on board, she is treated for severefrostbite. As the train reaches Livingston, a shootout occurs between Jacob and Creighton's men. When Spencer protects his family, Creighton saves Jacob by shooting his own men, but is killed by McDowell. In his dying moments, Creighton reconciles with Jacob. In the aftermath of the shootout, Jacob and McDowell are wounded, but Spencer is forced to leave Alexandra and rushes to the ranch, where he almost singlehandedly kills the remainder of Creighton's men. Jacob stays with Alexandra, and they are taken to the hospital, where Alexandra gives birth prematurely. Although born three months early, the baby survives, but Alexandra refuses to allow the doctors to amputate her limbs that are afflicted withgangrene. Spencer and Cara soon arrive, and Alexandra dies hours later in her sleep. Seeking vengeance, Jacob and Spencer confront Whitfield in his mansion. Hoping to make an example of him, Spencer executes Whitfield and sets his home ablaze. Jack's body is soon recovered, and both he and Alexandra are buried on the ranch. With no reason to stay, Elizabeth leaves for good. Spencer takes charge of the ranch while Jacob retires to help Cara raise Spencer and Alexandra's son, named John. In a flashforward to 1969, an elderly Spencer visits Alexandra's grave and dies peacefully. | |||||||||||
It was announced in February 2022 that a secondYellowstone prequel series had been ordered titled1932 that would succeed the series1883.[19] In June, the series was renamed to1923.[20] In December 2022,Taylor Sheridan explained "No one has had the freedom I've had sinceRobert Evans ran Paramount," and discussed the1923 production cost: "I would argue that1883 was the most expensive first season of a TV show ever made. This was much more expensive. Much more expensive."[21] The series was predicted to cost between $30–35 million per episode.[22] The series was designed to run for two seasons with eight episodes each.[23] In February 2023, the series was renewed for a second season.[24][25][26]
To establish thecontinuity of the Dutton family saga that began with1883, Sheridan continued to use the1883 character Elsa Dutton, voiced byIsabel May, as the narrator for1923.[27][28]
In May 2022,Helen Mirren andHarrison Ford were cast to star in the series.[29] They had previously starred together 36 years prior inThe Mosquito Coast. Ford, as revealed in a February 2023 interview withJames Hibberd ofThe Hollywood Reporter, took up the offer to play Jacob Dutton despite saying in 2002 that he worked only once a year, citing theCOVID-19 pandemic and his commitments to thetitular role of the long-delayedIndiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny as reasons why he had not done as much work as he wished and wanted to try new things. As with his role inShrinking, Ford accepted the role before there was a script, trusting that Sheridan would deliver a good one.[30] In aDeadline Hollywood interview, Sheridan explained he got Ford to fly down in his own plane to Sheridan's ranch, and told him "[the script] ain't written yet and you got to commit to it now. I need to know who I'm writing for... I poured about two bottles of wine down him. He said yes". Then Sheridan continued, "Then came Helen [Mirren], and same thing. Have a glass of wine".[21][31]
In September 2022,Sebastian Roché,James Badge Dale,Darren Mann,Marley Shelton, Michelle Randolph,Brian Geraghty, Aminah Nieves, and Julia Schlaepfer were added to the cast.[32][3]
Pre-production began inButte, Montana in July 2022,[33] Filming was scheduled to begin on August 22, also in Butte, since that city was the stand-in forBozeman, Montana.[34][35][36] Principal photography took place across Southwest Montana, with many Montana-set scenes shot in the same locations asYellowstone.[37] Additional scenes were filmed in Kenya, Malta, South Africa, and Tanzania.[38][39] Some of the scenes set on the ocean liner,RMS Majestic, were filmed on theRMS Queen Mary, which is now a floating hotel docked inLong Beach, California.[40]
Filming of the second season was delayed due to the2023 Writers Guild of America strike[41] and the2023 SAG-AFTRA strike. Filming for the second season began in theAustin, Texas vicinity on July 8, 2024, and concluded on September 26, 2024.[42] Production moved toButte, Montana in October and continued until the end of November.[43][44]
The first season of1923 premiered on December 18, 2022, onParamount+.[45] The second season premiered on February 23, 2025.[46]
On the review aggregation websiteRotten Tomatoes, Season 1 of1923 holds an 88% approval rating with an average rating of 7.0/10, based on 41 reviews by critics. The website's consensus reads, "Distinguished by the ineffable star power of Harrison Ford and Helen Mirren,1923 is another solid if unrelentingly grim addition to Taylor Sheridan'sYellowstone universe."[47] OnMetacritic, which uses a weighted average, the first season holds a score of 67 out of 100 based on 15 critic reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[48]
On Rotten Tomatoes, Season 2 holds a score of 100% based on 20 reviews.[49] On Metacritic, Season 2 holds a score of 79 out of 100 based on 6 reviews, also indicating "generally favorable reviews".[50]
According to Paramount, the debut episode brought in 7.4 million viewers in both linear and streaming telecasts, making it Paramount+'s biggest debut ever.[51][52]
| Year | Award | Category | Nominee(s) | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2023 | Location Managers Guild Awards | Outstanding Locations in Period Television | D. Zachary Heine, Johan Van Der Walt, Joseph Formosa Randon, James Crowley, Eduard Klarenbeek | Won | [53][54] |
| Outstanding Film Commission | Montana Film Office | Nominated | |||
2024 | AACTA International Awards | Best Actress in a Series | Helen Mirren | Nominated | [55] |
| Astra TV Awards | Best Streaming Series, Drama | 1923 | [56] | ||
| Best Actor in a Streaming Series, Drama | Harrison Ford | ||||
| Best Actress in a Streaming Series, Drama | Helen Mirren | ||||
| Best Directing in a Streaming Series, Drama | Ben Richardson | ||||
| Best Writing in a Streaming Series, Drama | Taylor Sheridan | ||||
| Golden Globe Awards | Best Television Series – Drama | 1923 | [57][58] | ||
| Best Actress – Television Series Drama | Helen Mirren | ||||
| Satellite Awards | Best Drama Series | 1923 | [59] | ||
| Best Actor – Drama or Genre Series | Harrison Ford | ||||
| Best Actress – Drama or Genre Series | Helen Mirren | Won | |||
| Women's Image Network Awards | Outstanding Drama Series | 1923 | Nominated | [60] | |
| Best Actress – Drama or Genre Series | Helen Mirren | ||||
| Aminah Nieves | |||||
2025 | Location Managers Guild Awards | Outstanding Locations in Period Television | David Zachary Heine, James Crowley, Hayden Yancer (Season 2) | Won | [61][62] |
| Outstanding Film Commission | Montana Film Office (Season 2) | Nominated | |||
| Camerimage Film Festival | TV Series Competition | Corrin Hodgson, Ben Richardson | Won |
"1923" has lassoed a second season at Paramount+
The production took over the streets of Uptown Butte, one of Montana's most historical cities, which doubled as Bozeman.
That stunt actor absolutely deserves a medal. Because we threw him off the boat repeatedly, right into the water
