Netflix’s “American Primeval” promises to show “America like never before.” But as fans of frontier stories know, there’s really nothing new under the Western sun.

Suspicion. Rebellion. Murder. The Netflix show American Primeval depicts how tensions between Mormon pioneers in Utah and the U.S. government came to a violent head in the 1850s.

After sitting on top of the Netflix top 10 list for a while, American Primeval, the limited series starring Taylor Kitsch, is now down to #2 thanks to the arrival of Monday Night

In the latest LDS news, we sample critical reviews of "American Primeval" and explore the Netflix series from a historical perspective.

Netflix’s new historical drama “American Primeval” is currently the No. 1 series on the site. But how much of the show and its characters are based on the 1857 Utah War?

Jim Bridger, played by Shea Whigham, was a real life pioneer who built the town of Fort Bridger, which features in the series and was a real town. Brigham Young, played by Kim Coates, was also a real life figure. He was the head of the Mormon church at the time and had his own army known as the Nauvoo Legion.

American Primeval features a huge twist for Sara and Devin in its ending, but the reveal was actually set up in the show's first minutes.

Westerns – thanks to shows like Yellowstone – have come back in a huge way. And what’s more: American Primeval tackles a fascinating subject, which is America’s only indigenous religion: Mormonism and it’s (literal) war for legitimacy.