After a year-long wait, Yellowstone fans were treated to two-brand new episodes to usher in season 5 of the most-watched show on television. While many viewers found the question of “how to watch Yellowstone” frustrating, others dug right back in to the Dutton family drama. Fans on Instagram admitted that they “cried so much” and were left in shambles after the particularly brutal two-plus hour premiere. Here’s what got a such a strong reaction from fans.
Season 5 spoilers ahead.
John Takes Office
In a close race, John Dutton (Kevin Costner) is elected governor of Montana. First order of business: To protect Montana from being “the rich man’s plaything.” He vows to protect the farmers and ranchers by shutting down the airport project that threatened his land and the national park. He says he will double property taxes for non-residents of Montana and charge them extra sales taxes and fees. Governor Dutton is certainly setting himself up for a battle this season. John immediately fires his entire staff and appoints his daughter Beth (Kelly Reilly) as his chief of staff, and she takes on her brother Jamie (Wes Bentley) as her underling.
Kayce and Monica’s Tragic Loss
Kayce (Luke Grimes) and Monica (Kelsey Asbille) ended season 4 in a happy place: they had left the ranch to live in their own house, and Monica revealed her pregnancy. The beginning of season 5 finds Kayce away working a case while Monica, three weeks from her due date, goes into labor. She drives herself and their son, Tate (Breckin Merrill), to the hospital. Kayce sends an ambulance their way and promises to meet them. Monica gets in a car accident en route and the baby ends up dying.
In a particularly poignant scene, Tate tells his grandfather that he was really excited about being a brother and the baby was named John after him.
Comedic Relief from John and Carter
John encounters Carter (Finn Little) in the barn and finds the teenager to be unrecognizable. And we can’t blame him! We did a double-take when we saw him too. John tells him, “Quit eating the fertilizer … Quit growing. It freaks me out. You’re a living reminder of how much time I don’t have. If you grow a beard, you’re fired.”
Of course, because this is Yellowstone, the lighthearted moment was short-lived. Because of John’s responsibilities as governor, he had not been able to ride his horse much, so Carter started riding John’s horse. He was herding cattle with the ranch hands and the horse fell in a hole. Carter fell off, breaking his arm, and the horse suffered a broken leg, so Rip put him down.
Beth Makes a Heartbreaking Apology to Rip
A flashback scene shows a painful encounter between teenage Beth and Rip. Beth convinces Rip to take her on a date before she heads off to college. They go to a bar, and Beth is cruel to Rip, and he ends up leaving. Later that night, Beth returns home with one of the ranch hands and Rip sees them kissing.
Present-day Beth apologizes to Rip, giving him a “blanket apology to cover the past.” She says she was “awful” to rip and tearfully tells him, “I robbed us of so much time together.” Rip tells Beth “you did put me through hell,” but he loves her and wants her to be happy and tells her to stop beating herself up.
Rancher Hands Kill the Wolves
The Dutton herd has been attacked by local wolves, and two of the ranch hands, Ryan (Ian Bohen) and Colby (Denim Richards) set out to protect their cattle. They see a pack of wolves attacking one of their cows at night and shoot them using thermal imaging, only to find out that the wolves are from the national park. They’re wearing GPS collars and are protected. As Ryan points out, “These wolves have Facebook pages!” Rip helps them clean up this mess, but if anyone finds out that protected wolves were killed on Governor Dutton’s land, it would mean serious trouble for the family.
Katie Bowlby is Digital Director at Country Living, where she covers gift guides, product reviews, crafts, and TV shows like Yellowstone. She’s currently stitching up a cross-stitch pattern for the magazine’s next issue
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