Yellowstone Discussions and stuff

[Rove]

1883

Has someone been sniffing around TellyTalk? I've always advocated for a Dallas prequel set back in the early days. I think the time is ripe for westerns to return.

 

[Willie Oleson]

I still haven't figured out how YELLOWSTONE is trying to hook me. It looks more like a movie that sorta kinda reluctantly agrees to be a dysfunctional family TV series.
There's even a sense of shame that needs to be covered up by means of no-nonsense masculinity and an exclusively plot-driven narrative, almost as if the characterization of the characters is off-limits, and the slightest whiff of melodrama or quirkiness shall be considered trespassing.
Another aspect of the series "movie" style is that the dialogue has to be as perfect as the scenery which makes for a poetic but also rather stilted script.

I'm getting some perverse satisfaction out of the idea that this movie whores itself out to be a series. The youngest Dutton son finds himself in the most precarious situations, like, continuously, and for all its earnestness the story can be quite laughable.
The third episode was the first one that managed to put a smile on my face, and I mean for good reasons. There's a big confrontation between brother and sister and it feels refreshing after the many brother vs. brother stories that I've already seen.

I hope the series will loosen up a little bit and embrace its soapy format instead of fighting it otherwise it's going to be a very dusty but also short-lived ride for me.

 

[Willie Oleson]

Episode 4 reveals more of the ranching community, it's basically Sons Of Anarchy On The Prairie.
At least I can't say it's not over-the-top enough.
Beth Dutton is still revelling in her misery, playing the washed out and boozed up bar fly. There's a big tragedy behind it of course so I've decided to put up with it (for now).
Little grandson Dutton is the perfect character to show us all the hazards of prairie life, like so many other TV kids before him have done.
Big snakes, wild rivers....I feel a bee nest storyline coming up!

Middle son Jamie Dutton (played by American Horror Story star Wes Bentley) could be gay, although he explains it as celibacy but without explaining why. Hmm.
Then there's the mysterious but charming loser Jimmy and for reasons that are not clear yet he had to become part of the ranching community. I feel a spectacular paternity reveal coming up.

I don't think I will like it as much as THE YELLOW ROSE but it seems interesting enough to watch the other 15 episodes.

 

[Willie Oleson]

p.s. I've edited the thread title because the title of the series is in the prefix.

 

[Willie Oleson]

I loved episode 5!
Beth acts like a real skank but I do feel sorry for her. Her mother was a heartless bitch and daddy Dutton decides to capitalize on his daughter's inner demons.
He also plans to keep his other son Kayce and his family on the ranch. That's good because a soap family needs to live like a community.
A new ex-con has been recruited to work on the ranch as a cowboy and he plays a lovely song on his guitar.
I forgot to mention another soap trope in YELLOWSTONE: the patriarch has a fatal disease. I think Jimmy is becoming my favourite character and I also like to see more of Dan Jenkins' horny wife Vicky.

 

[Willie Oleson]

I hope the series will loosen up a little bit and embrace its soapy format

Be careful what you wish for.
Kayce's wife Monica almost dies twice after a bizarre accident and the storyline reeks of "already running out of ideas".
On the other hand, maybe it serves as an excuse for her to recover on the ranch, and then it will be difficult for Kayce to say no.
John Dutton is getting weaker because of the cancer, but he also feels that things could change for extremely wealthy land owners.
Ironically, Beth has gone through some sort of healing process and she's very ready for the upcoming battle.

The hospital staff in YELLOWSTONE doesn't take any of The Family's bullshit antics - it's a revolution in SoapLand!
Are bears not protected wildlife in America? Seems like a waste to kill such a majestic animal.

I feel the series is beginning to win me over. The first episodes were way too pretentious, and it reminded me of what I hate in modern "epic" movies.
To be considered "epic" is something that a movie or series has to earn, and it's a byproduct not a goal. It's not a style or genre that you can force onto the viewers and I think that's exactly what modern Hollywood often tries to achieve.
First you have to be good, and then maybe - maybe - people will say "wow, that was pretty epic!" There's no shortcut for this.
Yeah, I think that describes my initial opinion of YELLOWSTONE.

 

[tommie]

Again, it becomes even soapier.
The season three cliffhanger is the soapiest yet and I'm aching for the solution for it.

 

[Willie Oleson]

Again, it becomes even soapier.

Last night I dreamt of San Pedro that someone posted this comment, but I think it was Rove. How very Lynchian of me that my dream can predict the future.

 

[tommie]

Last night I dreamt of San Pedro that someone posted this comment, but I think it was Rove. How very Lynchian of me that my dream can predict the future.

 

[Willie Oleson]

OMG! What does that mean? Is season 3 going to end with a vulcano eruption? OMG! During a wedding? Yes, probably. OMG!

 

[Willie Oleson]

YELLOWSTONE goes full on GREY'S ANATOMY with another freak accident!

To use a Carol Burnett quote from FRESNO: What's happening to this family?

Rip is a wild character, very loyal to Dutton and the ranch but he's also very dangerous. And he doesn't like Kayce at all.
Kayce and Monica are having Pam & Bobby-style marriage problems.
I don't understand all the business technobabble between Tom Rainwater and Dan Jenkins but I'm sure it's something big.
And now I'm gunna watch the season 1 finale. Bye!

 

[tommie]

OMG! What does that mean? Is season 3 going to end with a vulcano eruption? OMG! During a wedding? Yes, probably. OMG!

That would be an excellent season 42 cliffhanger of Dynasty - and of course there's a volcano catfight to go with it.

 

[Willie Oleson]

I forgot to mention another soap trope in YELLOWSTONE: the patriarch has a fatal disease

And the next soap trope: he's not really sick!
According to Dutton himself, this changes everything. Or is it too late?

A new season, new characters. A black cowboy shows up - well, his name is actually "Cowboy" - and even though he doesn't mention burnt champagne there's definitely something about his attitude.
I'm glad Jenkins didn't die because without Dan there's no reason for Vicky (and I'm not talking about Dan Fixx and Vicky Gioberti).

There are only a few seriously likeable characters: Monica and her grandfather, and also Jimmy the misfit cowboy.
I *think* I'm supposed to like Kayce...but I don't.
I noticed a little bit of loyalty conflict between John, Kayce and Poppa John and it's a storyline that begs to be explored.
Gosh, I start to sound like a Yellowstone fan.

 

[Willie Oleson]

Episode 2.2 is another winner.
To describe it in 1980s soap lingo: it would be similar to Jock Ewing asking Ray Krebbs to groom Bobby to become the next Southfork tycoon.
I feel there's a lot of underlying emotions that, apart from a physical fight, haven't reached their peak yet.
Beth's observations and commentary kinda glues it together and her scenes with Rip and Kayce are really awesome.
Extra points for the two estranged characters having a chance meeting during a physiotherapy session in the swimming pool. YELLOWSTONE goes original!
Monica teaches her students the true version of Columbus and I think she called us Eurotrash. How dare she!

 

[Willie Oleson]

Lookee! It's one of those mini versions of a Big Plan!

A new couple of movers & shakers have arrived on the scene, I think one of them is Crazy Dave from Desperate Housewives.
The whole scene sizzles with excitement as poor Dan Jenkins faces yet another obstacle that could jeopardize his Montana dream.

Another great scene plays between John Dutton and his mistress/currently opponent Governor Perry played by Wendy Moniz-Grillo.
It's not too clever, it's not schmaltz, it just feels like a very intimate moment between these characters.
The very idea that I had almost given up on this series fills me horror. Thank you Yellowstone for proving me so very, very wrong.
But that brings me to another and far more realistic problem: the number of episodes. It's not enough.
I haven't even finished season 2 yet but the potential in this series is overwhelming and that's why there should be at least 10 seasons. But what if that's NOT going to happen and I don't get everything I want? Maybe that's why I kinda like Dan Jenkins. He knows it too.

Why is nobody watching this? Why are we yet again discussing the reasons why TNT Dallas "sucked"? I find it all so disheartening.

 

[Willie Oleson]

The Beck brothers turn out to be notorious troublemakers, and it's great to see how that affects the Dutton/Rainwater/Jenkins feud.
The Duttons are the horrible protagonists; people who have too much and will stop at nothing to protect it, and the only reason to root for them is because they are the series, like the Ewings were DALLAS and the Sopranos were THE SOPRANOS and the Lyons were EMPIRE.
Destroy them, and you don't have a show anymore. It's almost like supporting a drug addiction.

But they're also very damaged characters and there aren't many moments of happiness or victory. Or just plain rest, for that matter. The relentless antagonism that these greedy prime time soap clans have to deal with - episode after episode - kind of redeems them, and it also manipulates the viewer to believe in their "cause".
And like the less fortunate folks they also have to deal with loss and trauma and there's plenty of that in YELLOWSTONE. Nevertheless, there's no sanitizing going on in this series and the characters are often depicted in the most brutal way possible.
The thing that YELLOWSTONE does so well is to use that ugliness and brutality to make the characters seem more likeable, and daughter Beth Dutton is probably the best example of that.
Her whole life being dominated by that fateful day she's balancing between extreme rebellion and extreme loyalty. In other words, Fallon Carrington on steroids.
She can be hard to watch sometimes, especially the way she treats her brother Jamie, but I find her brilliantly consistent.

Son Kayce is the Bobby who's trying to make things better on the ranch, good luck with that. He and his cute family represent the little bit of wholesomeness in YELLOWSTONE but in some ways I find him the weakest and most unreliable character. His trauma is the war in Afganistan but since this show has nothing to do with Afganistan I find the way it's being used in this character plot a little too casual.

The killing of Sarah Nguyen was kind of predictable and at the same time it didn't make much sense to me. Did Jamie really think his plea would make her change her mind? I guess he had been pushed around and scolded a few times too many and like Andre Lyon he often seems to teeter on the brink of something.
His father doesn't love him even though he's never disobeyd him until very recently (and for reasons caused by his father), his sister certainly doesn't and I'm not sure about Kayce because they haven't shared any storylines yet.

Jimmy becomes a horse bucking champion because he's too stupid to fall off. The female cowboy has left the ranch just as unexpectedly as she arrived, I'm still not sure what that was all about.

 

[Willie Oleson]

The Beck brothers turn out to be notorious troublemakers, and it's great to see how that affects the Dutton/Rainwater/Jenkins feud.

But it also sidetracks the battle that had been building up from the very beginning, and that would have been OK if it had been 20+ episodes but now it just ends the second season with very little progress.
There's something unreal about the Beck brothers, as if they appeared from outer space with unlimited power and some vague reasons about their own casino.

The inevitable happens: grandson Tate is being kidnapped and everything points at the Beck brothers, like it did after the cow massacre.
YELLOWSTONE isn't very big on the twists and turns and the last two episodes look like gangsta-by-numbers.
Dan Jenkins really died this time - boo! hiss!

The biggest surprise happens when Christina drops the pregnancy bombshell - ironically, the oldest storyline in the world.
Beth's hatred of her brother Jamie seems a little disproportionate sometimes. Is there something else going on between them, something I failed to notice?
Apart from killing the undercover journalist Jamie is not allowed to react to anything and I think my main issue with YELLOWSTONE is its "cold" approach of the characters.
I don't mean likeable vs. unlikeable, but there's something about this series that keeps me at arm's length. It looks great and terrific stuff happens but it's not a very addictive series.
Maybe it's still taking itself too seriously, jarringly juxtaposed by a sappy country ballads soundtrack. It's a mixed bag imho

 

[Willie Oleson]

Alright. I'm back in the saddle, as it were.

The new antagonist o' the season has arrived and it just looks like YELLOWSTONE has no idea what to do with Thomas Rainwater because they keep giving the battles to other characters - or am I being tricked and are they planning something truly spectacular for him?
I expect lots of fun accidents caused by nature, can we have an evil eagle, please? The Fate Of Tate Show.

Monica gives social commentary on cellphone addiction and the fact that a small group of rich people are selling our world back to us. Which is true because you have to pay for fekking everything these days.
"Subscribe to this and that, but if you really want it to work then you also need to purchase this and that expensive feature".
It's time for a revolution -kill kill kill! - but first I'm going to finish season 3. Bye!

 

[Willie Oleson]

There's more room for unapologetic romance in season 3, or so it seems.
It looks very nice but I can't forget that some of these characters are cold-blooded killers. It's a prairie mafia story but it also capitalizes on American romanticism and Western wholesomeness.
The rednecks meet the Sons Of Anarchy but this time the Sons are not in their own show and as a result they're being defeated and humiliated to the core.

I demand more screen time for Jamie Dutton because I find his storylines more interesting than all those endless grandfather-grandson bonding scenes.
A new female kick-ass character teams up with Thomas and Mo, I also need more of this.
Little Tate runs into the woods but - plot twist! - he's not eaten by the wolf.

Only six episodes left, stop staring at trees and cattle and get this story moving!

 

[tommie]

It's been a while since I watched season 3 but let's say it's building up to a classic soap cliffhanger (possibly Moldavia).