in the yellowstone Season 5 Episode 5 titled “Watch ‘Em Ride Away”, John Dutton (Kevin Costner) flees the Capitol with his assistant Clara (Lilli Kay) to attend Yellowstone’s annual spring cattle fire. While Jamie (Wes Bentley) flirts with Market Equites’ corporate shark Sarah Atwood (Dawn Olivieri) in his office, the rest of the Duttons head to the ranch. Kayce (Luke Grimes), Monica (Kelsey Asbille) and Tate (Breckin Merrill) visit branding for a brief respite from their grief, and Beth (Kelly Reilly) hangs out with Rip (Cole Hauser) because what women would do not do?
Stuck (and unhappy) in Yellowstone after a supervised release from prison, Summer Higgins (Piper Pearbo) is furious about her new abode and her potential role on John’s team. A furious argument with Beth at a family dinner speeds her adjustment to her new surroundings. The two women trade punches in an overlong fight sequence, but the truce they come to after the confrontation seems to signal that Summer is beginning to understand and accept the Duttons’ way of life.
From another cursed meal in the Great Room to Monica’s loving care for her grieving husband, here are 5 things to watch out for in Episode 5.
DAN JENKINS, do you remember him?
Even before their fistfight, Beth didn’t bother to hide her intense dislike for Summer. Beth’s antipathy has a lot to do with unease about Summer’s sexual relationship with John Dutton, but that’s not the whole story. Most importantly, Summer’s commitment to environmental activism reminds Beth of other Dutton enemies with hidden agendas. Beth warns John, “It’s no different than Dan Jenkins wanting a private club, or market equities wanting their frigging airport. They want the country, Dad.”
Are you familiar with the name Dan Jenkins? It should. Dan Jenkins, played by Danny Huston, was one of the main antagonists of seasons 1 and 2. The real estate developer was trying to acquire the land surrounding the Duttons’ ranch for a casino and hotel project. He was killed in the season 2 finale by an assassin sent by the Beck brothers (remember them?!).
MONICA GIVES KACYE SOME ADVICE
Remember that in Season 5 Episode 3 Kayce decided to quit his job as Livestock Commissioner because he couldn’t “serve” both his family and the state of Montana. He said to his father: “I choose [Monica] and I choose my son.” John reluctantly accepted his resignation in the next episode, but urged him to keep the position while he looked for a replacement.
In episode 5, Monica decides to talk sense into her grieving husband. She advises Kayce, saying, “Don’t quit your job. Your job is not the reason [our son] died. Buffalo isn’t the reason he died. He died because God needed him.” When Kayce expresses concern that the job “might come between us,” Monica reassures him by saying, “Nothing comes between us, baby. Nothing can.” That’s good for Kayce (and his fans) to hear!
NO FISHING TODAY, TATE
Kayce, Monica and Tate accept John’s invitation to join the spring branding for a change of scenery and some good old-fashioned family bonding. When John sees their truck pull up, he goes out to greet them. “Well, that makes me happy,” smiles John, and asks Tate, “Are you ready to be a cowboy?” “Think we could sneak into fishing?” Tate asks hopefully. “Not this trip, grandson,” says John ruefully.
Fans will recall that fishing was John and Tate’s bonding activity, but it wasn’t always associated with quiet times. In Season 1, Tate gets washed downriver on a fishing trip and John must race to save him. In Season 3, John takes Tate fishing again to help him deal with his PSTD after he was kidnapped at the end of Season 2.
THE DINING ROOM TABLE IS CURSED
As soon as John called Beth, Rip, and Carter (Finn Little) in to have dinner in the Great Room with Kayce, Monica, Tate, Clara, and Summer, it was clear all hell was about to break loose. “For once, this family is going to eat together,” John grunts as he goes out to get her. “You’ll be nice, but if you can’t say anything nice, you won’t say anything at all,” he tells Beth. When Beth downs a tall vodka before leaving the living room, both John and Rip know he made a mistake.
Fans will remember Beth’s legendary freak out in Season 4 Episode 8 when her bad behavior at the dinner table catapulted her into the living room. “It’s the suffocating, oppressive, fake shit fantasy of a family that just doesn’t exist. It fucking never existed,” she scolds while Rip listens patiently. His good, practical advice? “If you don’t like the room, then eat in another room.” John should have considered Rip’s solution and Beth’s wishes.
A FAMILIAR SPEECH
At the beginning of the branding synopsis at the end of the episode, John Dutton admonishes the cowboys, “We ride up Mount Chrism and push ’em down to Lewis Creek, hold ’em in the meadow overnight. If we’re lucky, we’ll get them all at once. There’s no way to set up camp up there, so it’s empty stomachs and cold backs for a few days. Yeah.” Did that speech sound familiar to you? Well it should!
It was almost the same speech young John Dutton (Josh Lucas) gave before he rode out with young Rip (Kyle Red Silverstein) and Rowdy (Kai Caster) in an earlier flashback: “We’re going to ride out to Mount Chrism. We set up camp there and drive down to Lewis Creek. They’ll want to get back at you. Just keep moving south and we’ll hold her in the meadow and push her into the river.” That the current John Dutton reflects his younger self as the annual cattle branding ritual begins is a testament to the soothing rhythms of life on the Yellowstone. No wonder the Duttons fight so hard to keep the ranch the way it is.