In the “Yellowstone” recap, the Duttons gather for the annual branding, Thomas Rainwater and Montana receive an unexpected visitor and Jamie falls further into Sarah’s trap…
By Damon Martin — Editor/Lead Writer
It’s time for the annual branding on the latest episode of “Yellowstone” as John Dutton leads his cowboys back to the ranch for a tradition that dates back nearly 140 years.
Last week saw John gather his family, friends and cowboys to lead an expedition deep into the heart of the ranch to retrieve the herd and lead them back for the branding. In order to accomplish this goal, John had to set aside his duties as the Governor of Montana, which was not something those closest to him recommended but if there’s one thing we’ve learned thus far about Governor Dutton — it’s that he’s not doing anything by the book.
The branding also allowed Kayce to bring Monica and Tate to the ranch to give all of them a much needed retreat following the tragedy that they’ve been facing all season long following the death of their son.
Meanwhile, Jamie continued to fall further and further into the trap being laid for him by Sarah Atwood — the sexy assassin sent after him by Market Equities to do whatever it takes to bring the Dutton family down for good. More on that later.
This week also sees the return of Thomas Rainwater and the continued plans against his leadership by Angela Blue Thunder — a native woman with a lot of resolve and determination to lead the Broken Rock reservation in a much different direction than the current agenda. Angela proves to be a very worthy adversary as she not only plots to overthrow Thomas as leader but she’s grabbing for plenty of power of her own along the way.
With that said, let’s get into our recap for the latest episode of “Yellowstone” titled “Cigarettes, Whiskey, a Meadow and You”…
All I Need
John Dutton and the cowboys manage to wrangle all of the cattle into a field much quicker than initially expected, which means everyone will get a break and some much needed sleep before driving the herd back the next day.
All John wants at this point is to enjoy the view on the ranch he adores so much but his daughter Beth isn’t nearly as interested. She thinks the view from here looks pretty much exactly the same as it does on the porch at the ranch where there’s beds to sleep in, food to eat and whiskey to drink.
John decides to venture off about 100 years down the way to avoid his daughter’s opinion so he can enjoy the view for a little while longer.
Kayce also sees the joy in his son’s face as he teaches Tate how to wrangle cattle as they start thinking more about the simple things in life than the emotional turmoil their own family has faced lately. John believes that the experience witnessing this awe-inspiring view could be bottled up and sold but Kayce disagrees because he thinks everyone who would enjoy this life is already living it.
Later that day, Rip surprises Beth with a little expedition all their own as he leads her away from the other cowboys and the herd to a small meadow cut off from the rest of the world. Rip reveals that this was the secret spot that he had picked out for their wedding just as Beth wanted — a place all their own that was completely untouched by memories from the past.
As it turns out, Rip never got to show her that Meadow because Beth decided in a spur of the moment decision that she no longer wanted to be single any longer and they got married at the ranch in a last minute ceremony. Now looking out over this field, Beth can’t help but let the emotion wash over her because Rip really did try to give her everything she could ever want.
Rip proves himself even further when he reveals that he brought along a flask of whiskey and a pack of cigarettes, which is exactly what Beth wanted to truly enjoy this moment.
Beth tells Rip that this place is her ideal scenario — all she needs in life are cigarettes, whiskey, a meadow and her husband and she wouldn’t want for anything else for the rest of her life. That’s obviously where the title of the episode comes from as well.
While Rip decides he just wants to enjoy the sunset in silence, Beth isn’t interested in the landscape as she unbuttons her shirt and tells her husband that they’ve got something better to distract them.
Meanwhile, John prepares to hunker down for the night while sleeping next to his old ranching pal Emmett Walsh, who has become a major supporter of both his and the Dutton family (remember not long ago, he was actually touting Kayce Dutton as a potential candidate for Governor of Montana).
The cowboys fall asleep but in the morning only John wakes up.
“Well Emmett, I couldn’t have dreamed up a better death if you paid me. You sure earned it, old friend.”
~ John Dutton
Thankfully, John’s assistant Clara brought along a satellite phone to call for a helicopter to retrieve Emmett’s body. The Governor is more concerned about getting back with the herd so he can break the news to Emmett’s wife before she realizes her husband didn’t return with them.
The Real Agenda
Jamie wakes up in bed with Sarah Atwood next to him.
He’s certainly enjoying the lust-filled nights with a woman sent by Market Equities to dismantle his family but Jamie doesn’t appear to be thinking with his brain these days.
As they both get moving in the morning, Jamie can’t help but question Sarah’s motives while offering a bit of self-deprivation to understand his status in life compared to the woman who just shared his bed with him. Sarah disagrees when touting Jamie’s long list of accomplishments but right now she’s not feeling all that appreciated because the man she just spent the night with is essentially accusing her of prostitution by using sex as a way to manipulate him.
Jamie promises that’s not the case — although he’d be utterly stupid not to realize that she’s absolutely playing him.
Finally, Sarah “comes clean” by asking Jamie why he’s only holding the second most powerful office in Montana rather than sleeping in the Governor’s mansion.
“Let me ask you this? Why aren’t you governor? You clearly have the skill for it. You orchestrated the lease and the build in a manner that you unraveled, leaving no legal recourse for the company so it’s completely fucked. It’s likely to be bought by another company within a year. Your father won on the slogan ‘progress stops with me.’ Are there that many pissed off old white men in Montana?”
~ Sarah Atwood
Sarah heads off for a shower while simultaneously stroking Jamie’s ego and making him look defeated next to his father. A moment later, Jamie joins her in the steamy bathroom with a proposition — exactly the one that Sarah has been teasing this entire time.
“Help me win governor and I’ll give you your airport.”
~ Jamie Dutton
Now we’ve been here before — Jamie has done just about everything possible to put himself in a position of power yet he somehow always comes up short, especially when it comes to opposing his sister and her demands. Jamie is nothing if not ambitious but it’s strange how he’s always made to seem so stupid when it comes to making moves against his family.
Sarah’s true purpose and agenda might as well be stamped on her forehead and I’d hate to believe that Jamie is so dumb that he’ll just allow himself to be manipulated like this again. Here’s hoping this is all one big ruse and it’s Jamie who’s playing Sarah to not only bring down Market Equities but perhaps get back in the full good graces of his father and the rest of his family.
Because if not, Jamie is almost certainly going to fall flat on his face again.
80 Million Years
Back at the ranch, Summer Higgins is attempting to better understand John Dutton and his way of life even as she struggles to comprehend why he’s so hopelessly devoted to this land. She thumbs through picture albums and sees a bit of the family’s history before heading outside where she finds Monica helping Gator peel potatoes for the massive dinner being planned for when the cowboys return home with the herd.
When Summer asks for a good place to take a hike, Monica notes that she must not be from around that area because if she was, she would have offered to help with preparations. Summer takes the cue and starts peeling potatoes while talking to Monica about her own relationship with the Dutton family.
Monica explains that by all accounts the Duttons should hate her.
She married Kayce despite his family’s intentions that he would likely find some young rancher’s daughter to have for a wife. Now Kayce has no interest in running the Yellowstone-Dutton ranch despite John’s hope that his family’s legacy will continue through his son.
Despite all that, John and the rest of the Duttons treat Monica like family, especially Beth who has come to her defense numerous times over the years. Who can forget the shoplifting incident from a couple of seasons ago when Monica was accused of stealing and Beth went scorched earth on the police who responded and the shop owner who made the accusations in the first place.
“She has defended me over and over. She knows I love her brother and I’m no threat to this place. She sure thinks you are.”
~ Monica Dutton
Summer is still struggling to figure all this out but Monica explains that a place like this is so valuable because it remains untouched unlike the rest of the world. While skyscrapers will be built and eventually crumble, Monica knows that this place has looked the same for a thousand years and it will look the same for the next thousand years as well.
“The mountains have been around for 80 million years and they’ll be around for a million more. Name the city that will stand that long.”
~ Monica Dutton
Perhaps given enough time, Summer will understand John Dutton and why he fights so hard to keep the Yellowstone ranch. She gets an even better idea after wandering onto the family graveyard on the ranch where she finds tombstones that go back more than a hundred years when this first first became property of the Dutton family.
Monica even tells Summer that’s where her son is buried because this land means more to the Dutton family than anything she’ll ever know. The Duttons have literally given their lives to defend this land and that’s not going to change as long as this family is still breathing.
“When I say we give everything to this land, I do mean everything.”
~ Monica Dutton
Hail to the Chief
Breakfast at Mo Brings Plenty’s house is interrupted by some loud rumbling and the house shaking, which sends him outside to realize military helicopters are flying overhead. As the head of Broken Rock security, Mo should know why this is happening, especially with the helicopters flying so low to the ground and landing somewhere on the reservation.
As he follows one of the choppers, Mo eventually finds himself at a gathering where people are getting seated and a stage has been erected with Secret Service officers patrolling the area. He calls Thomas Rainwater to let the chairman know that something big is happening on the reservation and it will need his immediate attention.
Mo waits at the staging area when he witnesses an atrocity as the members of the Secret Service shoot and kill several dogs that they consider stray. Despite the fact that Mo tells them that the animals are actually pets belonging to people on the reservation, the dogs are shot and killed anyways.
Finally when Thomas arrives to the event, Mo reveals that the reason that the Secret Service have arrived is they are preparing to host the President of the United States.
When Angela Blue Thunder finally emerges, she welcomes Thomas to the event while revealing that she’s now serving as the President’s advisor on Native American affairs. She helped to orchestrate this little event to help the people on the Broken Rock reservation feel seen by the most powerful man in the world.
She also tells Thomas that the President will officially endorse her candidate Martin Kills Many as the new leader of the Broken Rock reservation. (Side note — Martin Kills Many might be the best name in the history of civilization).
Thomas scoffs at the power play made by Angela to take his job while reminding her that President Barack Obama once visited the reservation — and then announced plans to build a pipeline through the area two days later. Thomas wouldn’t want an endorsement from this president or any other because he knows they don’t really care about the native people.
“Presidents don’t see us even when they’re standing in front of us.”
~ Thomas Rainwater
Still, Thomas has to realize the threat to his job, especially now that Angela has positioned one of her acolytes as the person to take over the role as chairman. Thomas can’t do much about it right now so he ultimately joins the rest of the tribal council on stage and even shakes Martin’s hand before sitting down.
Angela promised Thomas that she was coming for him and now she’s making due on those guarantees.
The Cowboy Way
As Rip and Kayce help lead the herd back, John and his assistant Clara play catchup after a helicopter arrives to retrieve Emmett’s body. Once they make it back to the ranch, John quickly dismounts his horse and races over to greet Emmett’s wife, who was anxiously waiting for her husband to return.
John breaks the news that Emmett has passed away but he went out how all cowboys imagine — out in the great wide open while falling asleep looking up at the stars. He embraces her just as a camera crew there to film the event starts recording and they turn to see the Governor of Montana embracing a woman grieving the loss of her husband.
Elsewhere at the event, Ryan reconnects with Abby — the pretty singer who promised she wouldn’t get mixed up with a cowboy. As they continue making eyes at each other, Walker happens to notice and he offers to lend a helping hand to a friend in need.
He relieves Abby on stage to perform a song so she can go have a dance of her own with Ryan
The two of them dance and realize that this relationship probably has no hope to survive — she’s a singer and he’s a cowboy, who lives in a bunkhouse making minimum wage but they can’t resist each other. Abby decides it’s still worth the risk as she kisses Ryan while Walker continues to croon on stage.
As for John Dutton, he’s finally forced to deal with the two women in his life who aren’t his daughter. He sits with Summer after returning from the cattle drive but she can only notice that former Governor turned Senator that keeps her eyes locked on him from afar.
Summer turns down John’s offer for a dance and tells him maybe he should ask his “Milf Senator” instead. John decides to do just that as Senator Lynelle Perry informs him that the President of the United States will be in Helena tomorrow and he should plan to attend for his arrival.
John says he has no interest in gladhanding that “idiot” and he’s got much more important things to tend to on his ranch.
“I’m branding calves. If he wants to see me, he comes out here.”
~ John Dutton
Lynelle then informs John that she’s started seeing someone — the Secretary of Energy in Washington D.C. — and that she’s happy. When she then tells John that this new person in her life makes her laugh, he knows this might actually have a chance to survive.
As they hit the dance floor together, Lynelle tells John that there are two sides to him and she might have been able to commit to marriage to one half of him if that was the part that he actually listened to reason and good sense more often. Of course after Summer rejected him and Lynelle gave him hell for the decision to reject a meeting with the President, John can’t help but wonder if he’ll ever have a simple relationship with the women in his life.
As the party continues, Jamie and Sarah are watching the news at his house after realizing that neither of them got any work done that day after deciding to stay in bed together instead.
That’s when the report comes on about the President visiting Montana and Governor John Dutton declining to attend his event. The story then reveals that the Governor decided to stay at his ranch for the annual branding where he had to comfort a wife who just lost her husband.
The newscasters decide the Governor made the right move showing sympathy for a fallen cowboy rather than handshaking a President who probably doesn’t care all that much about Montana anyway. Jamie can’t help but remark even in thumbing his nose at a presidential visit, his father still somehow comes out looking like the hero.
Jamie knows if he’s eventually going to become Governor, he can’t beat his father in a fair fight. Sarah Atwood obviously has other ideas entirely.
“I don’t think we can let him show up to the fight, Jamie”
~ Sarah Atwood
Whatever she’s got planned, Sarah hopes to end John’s reign as governor long before his four-year term comes to an end. She’s already got Jamie under her thumb by promising him the world — along with a whole lot of sex — and he’s falling into the trap she’s laying to destroy the entire Dutton legacy. Here’s hoping Jamie’s smarter than anyone is giving him credit for and perhaps he’s playing Sarah right back.
Only time will tell on that one!
“Yellowstone” returns for a new episode next Sunday night at 8 p.m. ET on the Paramount Network.
