The following story contains spoilers for season 5, episode 10 of Yellowstone, “The Apocalypse of Change”
LAST WEEK, VIEWERS bid adieu to John Dutton after he was found with a hole in his head and a conspiracy on his hands. Needless to say, the death of the Yellowstone patriarch sent shockwaves through the Dutton family and Yellowstone ranch, and if the season look ahead is any indication, there will be hell to pay for whomever is responsible. That of course puts Jamie and his scantily clad Market Equities girlfriend Sarah Atwood in quite the pickle, even if Sarah is unaware just how lethal the Duttons are.
With only five episodes left in this season (and potentially, forever), there is a lot of story to unpack. But the signs are already appearing that the Duttons might be in over their head. I mean, take the opening scene in this episode where Teeter finds a rattlesnake in her sleeping bag. They kill it only to discover that they’ve built camp on top of a rattlesnake den, which feels like an apt metaphor, right? The snakes have joined the Yellowstone lot in bed, and there’s nothing to do anymore but fight and hope you don’t get bitten.
Let’s look back at what we learned from episode ten, “The Apocalypse of Change.”
Beth and Rip, Versus the World
Yellowstone kicks off the episode by launching us back into the past.
Now, Beth Dutton driving viciously down a Texas highway at dangerous speeds while listening to Miranda Lambert’s “Locomotive” is a vibe. She gets pulled over by a cop, and in preparation, hikes up her skirt and pushes her breasts up, only to be surprised by a woman who is more impressed that Beth’s husband is a rancher. She literally tells Beth to thank him, like he’s served in international combat. God bless, Taylor Sheridan. She drives down to Texas to surprise Rip, letting him know that she was able to find him because she put an air tag in his wallet. And when she tells Rip that she got them a (rattlesnake-free) hotel suite, he protests, until Beth announces to the ranch hands that the following week, if they were OK with losing Rip for a day, she’d fly all their significant others out for a hotel stay, drinks included. Beth is and will always be a woman of the people.
At the hotel, Rip reveals to Beth that this Texas trip is the first time he’s ever been out of Montana. Beth tells him they could travel everywhere if they weren’t shackled to the ranch, but Rip tells her that’s the life he chose, so instead, she settles for a trip to the speakeasy downstairs.
Avenging the King
In the present, in the wake of John’s death, Rip and Lloyd assess the situation at the Yellowstone ranch. Neither of them believe the reports of John’s suicide, but both men agree that they’re not sure who to fight either. With no other option, Rip even tells Lloyd that it doesn’t hurt to see who’s hiring, despite that both of them have committed their lives to the Yellowstone ranch.
Inside the house, Beth is pulling herself together for the plans that need to be made when she stumbles upon Summer, who is serving house arrest at the Duttons home. Summer thinks she’s beholden to the house, but as Beth points out, Summer is a free woman despite what John told her. Beth tells her, “it’s been a hoot, but it’s time to get the fuck out of my house.”
In the bunkhouse, Carter is feeling the grief as much as anyone, telling Rip that everyone in his life has quit on him, but Rip tells him that John certainly didn’t kill himself and that Carter will always have a home at the Yellowstone ranch.
A Cabin Isn’t Home Just Yet
Damn. Despite that nice renovation job they did on the cabin, John’s death has upended things for Kayce and Monica, who are now temporarily headed back to the main house to address the fallout from John’s assassination. But before they leave, Kayce takes Tate on a walk to personally deliver the news about his grandfather. He tells Tate that if he wants to continue the legacy of the Yellowstone, he’ll find a way to make that happen. When Tate asks, “Is that your job now?” Kayce responds, “Only if it’s your job next,” and reader, I gasped. The two hug, making for one of the most heartfelt scenes in all five seasons of this show.
Rotten Eyes (Slap, Slap) Are Watching You
Yellowstone fans are in near unanimous agreement that Jamie is the worst. He appears on screen, and it just makes you angry, right? But I always get a soft spot for him right as I discover he has to meet with Beth, because as much as we hate him, he almost never deserves whatever vile poison she’s prepared to spew at him. Sitting at his desk at the Attorney General’s office, Beth greets him at work with a white rose in hand. As she walks up to him, he can barely make eye contact with her before she unleashes a slap so violent that it cuts his cheekbone open. Then she delivers a second slap, then a third. He still can’t look at her, and it confirms all of her suspicions about Jamie’s involvement in John’s death. She gives him one final chance, but he doesn’t turn around. She says, “Next time is the last time. Seeing me is the last thing you’ll ever do alive. I swear to God, Jamie. I’ll be the last thing on this planet your rotten eyes will ever seen. And I will be smiling.” On her way out, she runs into Sarah Atwood, who taunts Beth until Beth grabs her by the throat and slams her into a desk.
Away from Jamie, Beth nearly collapses and says to herself, “I knew it. I fucking knew it,” before calling Kayce and confirming that Jamie had John killed. Kayce immediately gets to work and calls a contact to start “handling” the situation. Monica realizes the situation has gotten bad and tells Tate, “We can’t let this take him from us, Tate.”
The Snakes Are at Play
Following that mild case of battery, Sarah and Market Equities meet with Jamie, who has all but given up on trying to save the ranch. He tells them that he’ll have to get John’s will, and that it should be a year before they can all resume work on this damn airport. But the planning for the airport? That can start immediately. And Sarah looks thrilled. To rub salt in the suicide, they suggest Jamie should run for governor. But Jamie is scared of Beth, despite Sarah reinforcing that this battle is over, before taking all of her clothes off and revealing what is essentially two black napkins and a piece of yarn. And then Jamie has lunch on his desk, if you catch my drift.
Notes from the Train Station:
- Listen, I love a bit of counter culture, but the whole “Teeter likes to call people gay” thing last week, and this week’s discussion of whether you can still say “idiot” and “retard” is… gilding the anti-PC lily, Taylor.
- I told someone this week who called Yellowstone just “a show where cowboys are drunk on bourbon” that they clearly didn’t know the show. Beth Dutton only drinks vodka. Tito’s, to be exact. So color me shocked to see her make an exception for the Four Sixes vodka.
- There will never be enough scenes between Beth and Summer.
- What in the name of all the buffalo in Montana was Miss Sarah wearing at the end of this episode?
