‘Hell on Wheels’ season 4, episode 6 preview: Common stars in ‘Bear Man’ sneak peek

At this point, the word is probably out that Elam survived the bear attack during last season’s “Hell on Wheels” finale, but this hardly means that his journey is over.

Saturday’s episode “Bear Man” is expected to be in part just the story of the character (played by Common), and whether or not he is able to survive everything that comes after the attack. This includes him being taken in by a new group of people, lacking common ground, and ultimately struggling to fit in while dealing with the physical and psychological trauma of the attack itself.

Common kills it in the sneak-peek video below, as do the entire makeup and effects team for getting Elam so bloodied-up here. The guy looks genuinely messed-up as he slides along the mud, and at the end of the video, he appears to pass out again.

One of the great mysteries surrounding “Bear Man,” at least for right now, is simply whether or not you are going to see much of the other characters in here at all. None of them were featured in either the sneak peek or the promo that aired following this past episode, and this could ultimately be akin to “The Grove,” one of the finest “Walking Dead” episodes that featured just a handful of characters. Time will tell, but we’re happy to have a good hour of Elam’s story if this is what we end up receiving. He is one of the most memorable characters from the show, and there has been a void on the show without him. Plus, we really want to see Eva happy again.

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Photo: AMC