Yellowstone season 2 finale review: Is Tate alive? The rescue mission
Let’s start with the most notable death at the heart of the episode — Malcolm Beck. That shouldn’t be much of a surprise. He and his people have been responsible for most of the carnage this season and after the kidnapping of Tate, we saw Kayce, John Dutton, and others on a warpath. John was able to get the name of the person holding Tate before he died, and that was enough in order to ratchet up the search in order to find him.
Also, we should commend the Sheriff (in the slightest overall way — this office is still very much corrupt) for finally deciding to not oppose the Duttons at every turn. Eventually, Kayce was able to find his son and they were able to breathe a little bit easier.
The Duttons were able to preserve their family … but at what cost? What’s always the cost here? A lot of it is just the reality that despite all of the work and the fighting that they do, they are losing this battle. Think about everyone who wants their land — developers, conglomerates, and people with infinitely more resources. There is only so long that they can fight what feels like the inevitable. There’s also a cost that goes into just fighting — less time with those you love, and less of an opportunity to recognize what it is that you have.
All of this fighting led to the most revelatory scene in the episode — Beth and Rip talking at the end of the episode, where Beth told him that she couldn’t wait (we’re paraphrasing to avoid the obscenities) for the family to lose their home. She has to fight because she knows no other way … but she also wants to sleep. We do still want to hope for something more with Beth and Rip, by the way — both of them are so broken that they compliment each other well, and in a way that few other people within this world do.
After the fighting, the rubble, and the realizations of what was to come, there was little left to do other than to cry. That’s what John did in the closing minutes — he felt the weight of not being the father that he should have, and he felt the pain thinking about his own father. He could rest for the day, but know that waking up tomorrow would be something more … but it may not be. It could end up being only more carnage.
CarterMatt Verdict
The Yellowstone season 2 finale had a high body count, though a lot of the deaths were mostly goons and people of slightly lesser importance. It also shelved the stories of Monica and many of the Bunkhouse Boys for the time being. This was more about John’s desperation to rescue his grandson, one of the few people he truly loved, while Rip also understood his place more as the surrogate son of this ranch. It was powerful, visually stunning, and while we wouldn’t say that it brought forward a huge cliffhanger, it remains clear that there are more stories to tell within this ranch and beyond. We’re looking forward to being there for them once more.
Related News – Check out more news regarding Yellowstone, including when season 3 could premiere
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