As a seasoned movie enthusiast who’s witnessed the rise and fall of countless TV series, I can confidently say that Kevin Costner‘s departure from “Yellowstone” was a misstep, not just for the show, but for his own career as well. It’s like when Captain Kirk decided to go where no man has gone before… in a different series!
⚠️ Caution: The following discussion includes plot details from the fifteenth episode of Season 5 (“Life Is a Promise”) of the TV series “Yellowstone,” which aired on Paramount Network on December 15th.
Kevin Costner‘s early departure from “Yellowstone” killed the show.
In most cases, when a popular series finds itself in a challenging position by losing a key character, fans often consider the subsequent seasons less favored than those featuring that character. For instance, after Steve Carell departed “The Office”, few fans cited the following seasons as their favorites. Similarly, “The X-Files” seemed to lose its spark once David Duchovny left. Even though it was appropriate for Netflix to dismiss Kevin Spacey from “House of Cards”, the final season without its main character was rather forgettable.
Simultaneously, Costner took a risky bet on his own career by departing from the profitable “Yellowstone” during Season 5’s first half to dedicate himself to his costly pet project, the movie series titled “Horizon.” Jump forward to the end of 2024, and we find that “Yellowstone” continues to draw massive viewership, in contrast to the initial “Horizon” film being a box office flop, with the second installment yet to secure a release date.
Despite being a questionable financial move, Costner’s departure appeared to be permanent, leaving series creator Taylor Sheridan with no choice but to write the final six episodes of this season as a heartfelt tribute to Costner’s character, John Dutton, the owner of the show’s namesake ranch and the emotional focal point of all the storylines. The first five episodes were challenging, but Sunday night’s finale demonstrated the profound emotional impact of one of television’s most gripping dramas.
In the midst of so many unresolved matters, the early episodes of Season 5B seemed to linger aimlessly rather than moving forward swiftly. The demise of John was described on numerous occasions prior to its depiction three episodes later. Frequent flashbacks were employed, disrupting the pace of the storyline. Sheridan’s appearances showcased his brand and physique prominently. “Yellowstone,” a series renowned for intense gunfights, passionate love scenes, and an incident involving Rip throwing a venomous snake into someone’s face, ran the risk of becoming monotonous.
In summary, the final episode “Life Is a Promise” stood out as a triumph because it masterfully combined the two most intriguing elements of the show: intense action with thoughtful cowboy poetry. The dramatic clash between Beth (Kelly Reilly) and Jamie (Wes Bentley) reached its peak in a life-or-death battle, complete with splattered blood and torn flesh in what seemed like a gladiatorial arena within a makeshift kitchen. However, the climax of Beth stabbing her brother’s heart was the release that the series had been building towards for years, as their sibling relationship gradually approached its inevitable end.
Yet the true key to the show’s emotional core came at the crest of their fight, as Jamie snarls at an on-the-ropes Beth, “You won’t even have to worry about the inheritance tax on the ranch anymore, because the class action lawsuit is going to take every inch of that place, and then you can sit back and watch me turn it into the most desirable recreation destination in America.” “Yellowstone” — as well as the prequel series “1883” and “1923” — has always been about land: Who owns it, who wants it and what they want to do with it. For much of the series, John has wanted to retain his land so it would remain pristine and untouched, while Chief Thomas Rainwater (Gil Birmingham) pursues it for the Reservation, as it was their ancestral land. Meanwhile, city slickers — nearly always aided by Jamie — were constantly flying out, trying to turn Montana into their vacation destination.
In the end, progress and growth are bound to happen as time moves forward, and it was only a matter of time before even the wealthiest or most powerful figures like the Duttons couldn’t withstand the underhanded political maneuvers that kept coming their way week after week. Realizing this, Beth and Kayce (Luke Grimes) understood that selling the land to the Reservation at a minimal cost was not just about ownership, but about something much more significant – it was about securing freedom and preventing further encroachment by developers eager to build low-cost condominiums.
In the initial episode of Season 5B, a relaxed setting by a Texas campfire shows Rip (Cole Hauser) expressing sorrow over the vanishing western customs and cowboy way of life, stating, “I don’t think anyone will still be doing this thirty years from now.” Although it appeared as though resisting progress would be the main focus in these remaining episodes, Walker (Ryan Bingham) provided the most insightful advice, discussing land that “will forget you until you vanish.
Beth softly says, ‘We’ve triumphed,’ to John’s casket at the heart-wrenching climax. As her wounds heal over time, the cowboys’ brand marks fade away, and the recollections of Jamie, John, and their forefathers gradually dissipate. Yet, the immense expanse that was once known as the Dutton’s Yellowstone ranch endures.
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2024-12-17 00:46