‘Yellowstone’ is almost over. What the latest episode told us about saving the ranch
Season 5, Episode 13: “Give The World Away”
Spoiler alert: Sometimes there are things you just don’t want to know, at least not yet. If you’re a true “Yellowstone” fan and you haven’t watched Episode 13, don’t read this yet. Come back. We’ll be here when you’re ready.
Brayden Garcia, Star-Telegram reporter who covers all things in the Taylor Sheridan universe: The penultimate episode of this season was all about selling.
Things began on the Yellowstone as the crew got ready to start selling any and everything to help save the ranch. Rip and Beth share a moment, before she informs him that she’s headed to Texas to assist Travis Wheatley with the sale of the ranch’s most valuable horses.
Thomas Rainwater and Mo are seen overseeing construction of a pipeline on the reservation. They are discouraged about the project, with Rainwater hinting that they can’t build a pipeline without any pipe.
A disheveled Jamie wakes up to a news broadcast that knows a little too much about his relationship with the recently deceased Sarah Atwood. He ponders who could know about their relationship and makes a call to Beth, who is en route to Texas.
Jamie tells Beth that she will ruin the Dutton family name if she keeps this up and that they all have skeletons in the closet. But this is Beth Dutton we’re talking about, she doesn’t back down from a fight and tells Jamie that she won’t stop.
Ryan J. Rusak, opinion editor: Selling is a good way to describe it. Here’s another: Everything is terrible for everyone! Beth, Jamie, the cowboys, brooding Kayce — it sure doesn’t feel like anyone is headed for a happy ending here.
A somber return to Yellowstone ranch
Brayden: An awaiting Monica welcomes Kayce back home and he tells her about his run-in at the end of last week’s episode.
Around that same time, the Yellowstone crew arrived back to the ranch after months away in Texas. Everyone looks sad and tired, still grieving the fresh death of Colby.
Teeter makes a beeline to the bunkhouse, where she finds Colby’s empty bunk. Walker and Lloyd follow her in, with the latter giving Colby’s hat to Teeter.
Walker says that Colby died doing what he loved and maybe he’s still cowboying in the afterlife.
Beth and Travis’ Texas two-step
Beth arrives in Texas and visits Travis’ Bosque Ranch just outside of Weatherford.
Bosque Ranch does things a little differently than the Yellowstone, which Beth quickly finds out. Sadie (supermodel Bella Hadid) opens the door for Beth, who walks into a game of strip poker between Travis and a few others.
The game is short-lived as Beth kicks Travis into gear and lets him know their Brazilian buyers are ready to look at horses. Travis shows off the horse, and with a little encouragement from his maintenance crew, nets $3 million for the horse.
With a big payout heading to the Yellowstone, Travis and crew celebrate with a pool party, much to Beth’s chagrin. She asks Travis for his help with the auction in Montana, which he agrees to after another quick game of strip poker.
After securing Travis’ help, Beth gets the hell out of Texas.
Ryan J. Rusak, opinion editor: The beauty of creating, writing and producing your own show is you can make yourself a star, even if only in small doses. Sheridan really decided to go out with a bang in this one. From showing off his buff physique to writing rapid-fire quips for his character, Sheridan put his personal stamp on the penultimate episode.
It worked, because it was past time to see Beth get some of her own medicine. For five seasons, Kelly Reilly has been the most reliable scenery-chewer, taking down enemies and friends alike. We even got to see some of it later in this episode when she takes Teeter to a bar to gut men who hit on them. So someone giving it back to Beth — especially from someone whose help she needs — was perhaps the most satisfying thing in the whole episode.
One last thing: It seemed odd at first that Beth would charter a jet to Weatherford over the sale of a single horse. But then, I didn’t realize a single horse could sell for $3 million!
Jamie Dutton finds a helping hand
Brayden: As preparations continue for the Yellowstone auction, Rip tells Lloyd he wants him to stay on at the ranch. Lloyd wastes no time in accepting.
Next up, Jamie is waiting outside the house of Christina, his ex-girlfriend and mother to his son. Instead of telling Jamie to get out, Christina offers him a helping hand because they share a child.
She asks him about his involvement in John’s death and his relationship with Sarah. Once Jamie reiterates that he had nothing to do with John’s death, Christina starts formulating a plan.
Christina tells Jamie to call a press conference to announce investigations into both John and Sarah’s deaths. She also says to go to bat for all of John’s policies, while also denying any rumors of involvement in his death.
Jamie’s speech at the press conference will determine the course of his life, Christina says. Everything he does now will be in service of selling himself to the people of Montana.
Before the commercial break, we’re back at the Yellowstone as Rip tells Beth the story of how he and Travis became friends. Over 20 years ago, Travis stood side by side with Rip in a bar fight and the two have been friends ever since.
Ryan: Jamie’s arc in this episode is interesting. I’d forgotten that he had a child with his former campaign manager. Just when it looks like the walls are closing in on him, she’s there with interesting advice about how to get ahead of the murder investigation and his relationship with Sarah, whose role is clearly likely to be exposed.
It’s interesting advice, but it was weird that she focused on his political future. Uh, how about staying out of prison?
Everything at the Yellowstone must go
Brayden: It’s nearly auction time at the Yellowstone and Monica asks Beth if the sales will save the ranch. No, Beth says, it will only buy them time.
Around the same time, Kayce comes over and tells Beth that the coroner is ready to release John’s body. Beth wants to hold a funeral for John, but says to keep the guest list to family and ranch hands only.
At the pre-auction party, the Yellowstone ranch hands ponder their future and where they’ll cowboy next. When asked if the Four Sixes is hiring, Jimmy says they only hire married men, which none of the crew is.
The romance continues as Laramie arrives and embraces Walker. Ryan and Teeter, both still reeling from Colby’s death, look like they would rather be anywhere but here.
Among the cowboys, Sen. Lynelle Perry stops by and chats with Beth about John. Beth invites her to the funeral, which will take place soon after the auction.
As Turnpike Troubadours perform at the ranch, Monica and Kayce share the dance floor. Monica asks about the future, to which Kayce says he has a plan but can’t reveal it yet.
While everyone is having a good time, Teeter heads to the bunkhouse to think about Colby. She’s met by Beth, who says the one thing that cheers her up is going to a bar and making fun of tourists.
Teeter agrees and the two head to the Deerfield Club in a sequence reminiscent of an earlier scene this season, where Beth metaphorically slices and dices a tourist to shreds. Teeter gives it a go, but doesn’t quite have the ferocity that Beth does.
Kayce offers a ray of hope
Brayden: It’s auction time at the Yellowstone as horses are shown and orders are placed. A moment of silence is given for both John and Colby.
Beth tells Kayce they made over $30 million in cattle sale alone, which will only buy the ranch another year.
Before Kayce rolls out of there, he asks Beth a business question: If he bought her car for $1, how much would the sales tax be? Beth says sales tax is based on what you paid for it.
Beth then puts it together: If someone buys the ranch for a low price, the sales tax would also be low. She runs down her brother and says he is smarter than he looks.
While Kayce is mum on who the interested buyer might be, he tells Beth to give him some time. Kayce tells Monica the only way to save the ranch is to give it away.
Give it away to who? Now, that’s the question. One episode left, folks.
Ryan: The riderless horse tribute felt like a funeral for the show and the ranching way of life. The speech that preceded the auction was not subtle on this point, hailing John Dutton for protecting a fading form of freedom and Colby for living it out. The show has always been part soap opera, part Western elegy, so it seemed like Sheridan and crew wanted to hammer the point home one more time.
Early in the episode, it was frustrating to get yet another vague answer from Kayce on what he was planning to do about the ranch and his family’s future. So, the end scene was a welcome hint. It also helped tie together some elements that didn’t seem to be going anywhere.
RANDOM OBSERVATIONS ON EPISODE 11
From Brayden:
Bosque Ranch is a real ranch owned by, you guessed it, Taylor Sheridan. The ranch is located outside of Weatherford, just like the show says.
Supermodel Bella Hadid and her beau, Adan Banuelos, both make appearances in this episode. Hadid is a recent transplant to Fort Worth, while Banuelos is a celebrated horse trainer.
My line of the night is from Beth after her encounter with Travis, which she calls “Cowboy Twilight Zone.”
From Ryan:
Is it just me or are there suddenly more F-bombs in “Yellowstone” than in an HBO series? I’m not remotely sensitive about language in entertainment, but it felt like it was over the top just because it could be.
Why do we get so little of the Broken Rock tribe’s story? It was central to the first couple of seasons, and it feels like it’s been more or less on pause since. The brief scene in which chairman Thomas Rainwater basically instructs Mo Brings Plenty to sabotage the pipeline project under the tribe’s water source was so sparse as to be irritating.
For the finale, one prediction and one question. Kayce’s going to sell the ranch to the tribe. That will close the loop from the ending of “1883” when (spoiler for a show that premiered three years ago) an Indian told James Dutton his family could have the land for seven generations, after which his tribe would take it back. The question is this: Does Beth really do in Jamie? She can’t just kill the attorney general, right? A ride to the train station seems too convenient. So, does she simply ruin him by exposing his misdeeds?
Lots of drinking in this one. Beth was clearly sipping vodka on the plane. Travis’ party was well-stocked. Clearly, Tito’s is back as a sponsor, and Coors laid out a pretty penny, too. And there was a funny moment at the dance party on the eve of the auction in which Beth instructed the bartender to make weak drinks that night but doubles the next, to loosen up the bidders.
There were many candidates for line of the night; the episode was packed with characters telling stories, explaining their worlds and exchanging barbs. But I was struck by the simple, sad poignancy of Rip telling Ryan: “There’s a reason why we can’t buy life insurance. It’s just cowboying.”
This story was originally published December 8, 2024 at 10:57 PM.
