Yellowstone Season 5 Part 2 *** SPOILER WARNING ***

Last edited Sun Dec 8, 2024, 05:36 PM - Edit history (5)

This review is for Season 5 Part 2 up to episode 12 (episode 13 airs tonight). I'll start by saying that this is pretty much my favorite show, but I have to be a little tough here. Here are some of the character developments as I see them:

John Dutton: Part 2 has really suffered from Costner's exit. Dutton is hastily dispatched with by an apparent suicide. Costner is never seen. He couldn't be available for just one episode to allow for a more dramatic departure? While arguably not the most interesting character, he provided the cornerstone for everything else.

Beth Dutton: Beth is a great character, and Kelly Reilly really owns her. That said, Beth stomps around PISSED much of the time in Part 2. She's eternally PISSED at Jamie. She's not a fan of Sarah either. The writers wanted to show her soft side by having her comfort Finn Little.

Sarah Atwood: A pretty good character, the writers had to retcon her a bit as the mastermind of John's assassination. Apparently, this hit job cost $40 - $50 million. I wonder what the return on that investment is expected to be? Her death was quite unexpected and dramatic.

Jamie Dutton: Jamie has to be my least favorite character. Sarah came clean (mostly) about the assassination plot, and he doesn't really offer much of an opinion. Beth likes to camp out in his office and slap him across the face from time to time. You'd think an AG could instruct security to keep her out of the building. Sarah slaps him around a little bit too.

Grant Horton: This is the guy who spearheaded the assassination. He is a discount Gus Fring character who meticulously covers his tracks. Apparently, Horton isn't nearly as thorough.

Kayce Dutton: Mere window dressing last season, this season features a meaner, darker Kaycee who is single-handedly moving the plot forward. He takes over the investigation into John's death and steers the coroner's office to a proper cause of death with his lay opinions. He chokes out an assistant unnecessarily. He easily unveils the identity of Horton with a single phone call and sticks a gun in his daughter's face. He's BFF's with Mo now.

Monica Dutton: She is mostly window dressing again this season. She cheers for Kayce from the sidelines as he quarterbacks the whole game.

Jimmy Hurdstrom: Jimmy provided an interesting arc in the past with a lot of comic relief, but the Texas arc just seems to be a distraction at this point.

Rip Wheeler: Rip hasn't beaten anybody up this season. The writers had him reestablish his toughness by laying down the Cowboy Rules with a young couple asking to pet his horse.

There are only two episodes left, and it doesn't seem like things are coming to a close quickly enough. Many of these final episodes feel like filler, which is frustrating and similar to how Game of Thrones ended. This may be a trend now when there is a hit show and spinoffs are planned.