Starring Kevin Costner as John Dutton, Yellowstone has for five seasons scripted success due to the solid performance delivered by the actor, as well as the gripping storyline set forth by showrunner, Taylor Sheridan. The latter, who boasts of projects such as Sicario and Hell or High Water, has always given little merit to anyone doubting his writing skills, by showcasing his prowess in building and navigating plotlines.
However, the same may not be true for the Wild West drama, as audiences point out potential missteps.
Rather, a strong case of the acclaimed writer bending to sell the show versus actually trying to build it has come to the fore thanks to a keen observation made by a new viewer. Hiding in plain sight, the incident happens at the very start of the show. Moreover, after the obvious pointing out, fans found themselves at a loss and divided, with several siding with the callback of having questioned the writing, while others defended the showrunner.
The Yellowstone episode that appears to be a no-brainer
Revolving around the largest ranch owners in the American frontier, the show has always set up Kevin Costner’s John Dutton as an uncompromising leader with an unmatched relationship with his family. However, a new viewer found himself stumped in the first season itself, and took to Reddit to seek clarifications on a rather sloppy narrative.
Newcomer here with a question!
byu/MrButterfeet inYellowstonePN
The events pertained to the Duttons trying to rescue the family’s stolen cattle from the Broken Rock Reservation with a “corral-type battle”. During this confrontation, John’s eldest son, Lee, is shot and mortally wounded by Robert Long. While it sets a dramatic tone for the series, it makes no sense when just over the course of the next two episodes, the protagonist gets his cattle back with his wit.
The question suggests that if it were so easy to pull off this ploy, then why did Costner’s character let his son die in the first place? Getting Thomas Rainwater into prison and forcing him to release the cattle did set up a power angle. Yet, it did a sloppy job of setting up Dutton as a menacing character, one who had just used his son’s death as a mere stepping stone.
Fans blame Taylor Sheridan for forcing the sequence
A long line of complaints already awaits Taylor Sheridan, ranging from his guest appearance as Travis Wheatley in Yellowstone to his several spin-offs bloating the storyline. Moreover, he has also faced the wrath of fans for having some characters being unnecessarily shadowed while throwing others into the spotlight, without much merit.
Regardless, the latest highlight has let fans believe that the goal of this pilot episode was to simply position the show to get picked up and get renewed for more seasons. The showrunner deliberately convoluted the plot to include the action scene and woo potential producers without any regard for the plot ahead, fans have alleged, even as others defended, that the sequence built up the show’s dynamics for future episodes.
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In Sheridan’s defense, the death of Lee Dutton has major implications for Yellowstone. Faced with grief, the relationship between John and his other son, Kayce, evolves. Thereafter, tensions between the Dutton family and the Broken Rock Indian Reservation accelerated, influencing local politics. Finally, the rift made way for a high-stakes confrontation that unfolded in the latter episodes and drove the show to new highs.
Yellowstone is available to stream on Peacock, fuboTV, Paramount Network, and Netflix.
