Prime Video’s Outer Range—one of the weirdest sci-fi series in recent memory, and among the weirdest sci-fi neo-Western series ever—is returning for a second season, which feels like a streaming miracle. You can likely thank the star power of Josh Brolin, who anchors the show’s oddball plot and tone with his performance as Royal Abbott, a Wyoming rancher dealing with family drama, neighbor drama, and cosmic drama… sometimes all at once.
If you didn’t watch season one, you have time to catch up: season two arrives May 16. Season two has a new showrunner, with Charles Murray (Luke Cage, Sons of Anarchy, Star Wars: The Clone Wars) replacing series creator Brian Watkins, and according to Brolin a big goal was making Outer Range a bit less confusing this time around. We’re OK with that—as long there’s no compromising on the weirdness. Thankfully, the trailer for season two suggests there’s still plenty of that in store.
But if you did watch season one, which premiered in April 2022, your memory might be a big foggy, because as Outer Range itself will remind you, “Time’s a motherfucker.” With that in mind, here are the 10 big takeaways (including some lingering questions) you’ll need to recall ahead of season two.
