‘Yellowstone’ Packs Punches in Season Finale

Grade: B-

Beth is still the boss. Rip is the bossman and Travis does his own thing with the 6666 crew. This episode shows that she calculated just how to dispatch her “brother” Jamie and takes a beating on purpose to show that she has been injured while trying to just talk things out with him.

This was never the case because she nevertheless knew exactly how to frame the fight even if Jamie did get some digs in and put her in the hospital with lacerations and cracked ribs.

Before all that, though, the transfer of the ranch over to Rainwater is made certain. He says an interesting line concerning “his people” who handed over the island of Manhattan allegedly for some beads and some fur. Who are “his” people? Wouldn’t they be a totally different tribe? This is not further explained. Kayce, although, feels the depths of liberty as he signs over the land. A blood oath with knifeware represents the transition of power that anyone with eyes and ears would have anticipated.

In other cowboy news, Teeter is still reeling from Colby’s demise. She asks Travis for a position at his ranch. He, with complete snideness, gives her money to learn proper English. She, still, arrives at 6666 and is expected to handle a not so tame beast.

Even before all that is a funeral for John Dutton. Who’s in the box? We never know but fun fact: Kevin Costner who plays Dutton was the corpse for the film The Big Chill (1983). The cinematographer never shows the face, only the self-inflicted injury marks on his wrists. Here, you’d never know, either. He is sent away in a closed casket ceremony and buried amongst the rest of the Duttons in a centuries old cemetery.

The cowboys dig the hole by the direction of Rip. Once the memorial service ceases, the officiant asks him if he should do another prayer. Essentially, Rip tells him that they’re “all prayed out” and that if he isn’t in heaven already “there ain’t one.” This leads to the atheistic tone of the show which has existed in the characters. It’s a malevolent take on atheist ideas, but it’s still a break in the God-fearing, implied Bible-thumping that has been a thread in the series since the beginning. Rip does have words of gratitude which he expresses at the grave when no one else is around. He simply says, “thank you” amongst other words. There exist the “signs,” of course. From the start, symbolism has played heavily on Yellowstone. The birds that appear overhead when someone is dying or dead is like the feather in Forrest Gump. It’s arbitrary and mystical and a bit of a distraction. Beth even sees a falcon float away at the gravesite.

Oh, and Beth kills Jamie. In a bloody, knock-down, punching and kicking battle, the “siblings” struggle until Beth stabs him with a knife. (More symbolism, of course.) Jamie’s kitchen and dining room look like a dust devil tore through it. His face, full of pepper spray, scarred and bleeding, is almost as bad as Beth’s. With blood streaming down her cheeks and under lips, she is setting all of this up for the uniformed cops and detectives to decipher what took place. She is seen with her husband Rip as he manhandles Jamie like a cheap toy. With the final blow, the idea of Jamie being in the cast any further becomes nixed.

Rip knew exactly where to go in Wyoming to dump the body. This has been a staple throughout the series. It is the bloodline that trails through the events since season one.

Objective observations:

Yet another moment doesn’t ring true. When Monica and Kayce see the wolf digging in the dirt they wonder if it’s looking for food. Mo (Moses Brings Plenty) explains that’s a practice for coyotes and foxes. The wolf is digging to hide its young. I would expect both Kayce and Monica to know that by now.

Is this the season finale or the series finale?