Billy the Kid was a legendary outlaw in the Old West.
Epix provided TV Fanatic with an exclusive clip from the premiere episode of Billy the Kid, airing Sunday, April 24, at 10 p.m. ET/PT.
Think of this new Epix presentation as an eight-episode biopic.
The series will show how Billy McCarty went from being a cheerful 12-year-old Irish immigrant with two loving parents to an infamous outlaw by age 18.
The U.S. government wanted to settle the land taken from the Indians and colonial powers and promoted the western frontier as a paradise for immigrants.
As Billy’s family and their neighbors, the O’Connors, discover, such propaganda downplayed the many dangers of the move west.
They lose most of their few possessions when a wagon capsizes, crossing a raging river. Billy’s father, Patrick is never the same after that.
Later, horse thieves attack their camp, killing a member of their party.
They finally reach the settlement of Coffeyville, Kansas, which is hardly the Eden as the government had described it.
Based on the events on the journey, Billy has to grow up quickly. After seeing the power of the gun during the earlier raid, he learns to shoot from the old man Moss, who is running the ragged wagon train.
His mother, Kathleen convinces the sisters who run the local boardinghouse to accept the housekeeping by her, Billy, and his brother in exchange for a room for the family.
Buoyed by that result, the indefatigable Kathleen goes with Billy to meet with a banker, as shown in this exclusive clip.
Kathleen believes that the banker would give her a loan because she was willing to work hard.
The snobbish banker feels no need to lend to an immigrant family with no collateral headed by a woman, not the invalid husband.
He also doesn’t feel it’s the bank’s responsibility to aid those misled by the government’s extravagant claims.
The anger is building inside Billy, who walks off with the banker’s fancy pen.
He’s already learning that might makes right in the West. Now, this intriguing series will continue to answer how he ended up on the wrong side of the law.
Check out the exclusive clip below.
What are your thoughts on what made Billy an outlaw?
Will you give this series a try?
Would you like Westerns to make a comeback?
Comment below.
Dale McGarrigle is a staff writer for TV Fanatic. Follow him on Twitter.