The narrator reveals that John Potter and Scratchy Wilson are different from typical frontier characters. While Potter appears like a weathered frontier man on the outside – his face is “reddened from many days in the wind and sun” (311) – his thoughts illustrate a man fraught with guilt over not telling the citizens of Yellow Sky about his marriage. Potter is a round character with complex thoughts and emotions; he would rather be anonymous, “a man hidden in the dark,” (313) instead of a “prominent person” (313) who would be mobbed by the citizens if they knew about his marriage. Because of his complex persona, Potter earns the reader’s sympathy and respect – he appears human and vulnerable, instead of the typical, flat, western sheriffs who serve as symbols of truth and justice.

Potter’s antagonist, Scratchy Wilson, also differs from stereotypical villains of the Wild West. Though he is the antagonist in The Bride Comes to Yellow Sky, he is not a devilish flat character intent on driving the sheriff out of town. While Wilson first comes across as a cantankerous drunk, the reader learns that he is usually “kind of simple,” the “nicest guy in town,” (316) according to the Weary Gentleman’s bartender. The reader learns that Scratchy issues “cries of ferocious challenge” (317) because he sees gun fighting as a game – the narrator even mentions that Wilson “was playing with this town; it was a toy for him” (318). Wilson, like Potter, is a round character – more complex than just a drunken gunman. When Wilson confronts Potter at the end of the story, he is astonished that his enemy is now married. Seeing Potter’s wife, Wilson becomes “a creature allowed a glimpse of another world,” (319) a man now reduced to a “simple child” (319) when confronted with the reality that his playmate has grown up. This climactic confrontation at the end of the story makes the reader pity Wilson – a feeling not usually reserved for the villain in a Western story.

The reader is surprised by the story’s ending because Crane’s plot builds suspense as one anticipates a classic Old West shootout between Potter and Wilson. By starting with Potter’s perspective, Crane lures the reader into a false sense of security. The worst thing that could happen, according to Potter, is facing the unsuspecting citizens of Yellow Sky. But when the reader learns that Scratchy Wilson and his dual revolvers stand in the way of Potter’s marital bliss, he or she understands that a confrontation must occur and anticipates a fight. Crane builds suspense by waiting till the last half of the story to introduce the antagonist – the reader only hears of Wilson at first through the fearful residents at the Weary Gentleman saloon. The climax of the story brings the reader’s anticipation to its zenith – when Wilson confronts Potter and demands that he will “settle with [him] my own way,” (319) the reader expects the situation to turn ugly fast. But Crane abruptly solves the problem with Wilson’s explanation and surprises the reader with a non-violent ending. The ending is effective because of Crane’s plot organization – if Wilson had been introduced immediately, the reader might infer that the man was not dangerous and the story would lack the build up of suspense.

By transforming the typical Western story, Crane illustrates the twilight of the frontier era. Scratchy Wilson is the last of the gunslingers looking for a final moment of glory, while his opponent, Jack Potter is ready to settle down. The Bride Comes to Yellow Sky is symbolic of order descending upon the Wild West, taming outlaws and sheriffs alike.