It is understandable that DEADWOOD is not for every viewer, the treatment of women, children and men - regardless of size, shape and color - is often violent or at the least brutal, heartlessness abounds and a pretty picture it does not make. The only thing is, it is done so well you are impelled to watch some more, the characters so convincingly portrayed that even though a great deal of fictional license is taken in portraying historical figures, the feel and sense of the place and the people who lived there seem real. The entire production is of the highest quality no matter what aspect might be considered. And because we intuitively know that this phase of America's history is based on violence and brutality, lawlessness and heartlessness did abound and this does not fit well into the self-image that the so-called Heartland so cherishes. Despite some stiff competition, from Sopranos to Six Feet Under, there is probably no show on television which shows Americans and their sense of family and community better than Deadwood. Hopefully HBO will continue to produce such quality writing.