The first time Yellowstone fans saw Beth Dutton interact with Rip Wheeler, we were done for. Collectively, as a group of fans, there was no longer a space to exist in without feeling the power of their togetherness. Their first words to one another weren’t romantic; there wasn’t some otherworldly light shining from each of their glares as they glanced at one another.
Instead, it was almost primal — the desire they had for one another immediately took hold, and we quickly learned that these two had a history, and as Rip asked her to accompany him to a music festival, instead of a sweet reply, she served him five heartbreaking words:
“You ruin it every time.”
Now, lifelong romances usually aren’t built on telling your significant other that they ruin things after a steamy moment together and an invitation for a date night out, but what Beth and Rip share isn’t your run-of-the-mill relationship. They’ve been through a lot together, experienced the highest of highs and the lowest of lows, and built walls up to guard their hearts, only to break them back down in the end.
Speaking to the Hollywood Reporter, showrunner Taylor Sheridan says he doesn’t like to write about conflict in relationships because — well, no one wants to go through the emotional trauma of watching it.
“I don’t want conflict in my own relationship, so I don’t like to explore that in stories. There’s extreme conflict in my stories, but there has to be something to strive for — you want to find beauty somewhere. Everyone has been in a bad relationship. Who wants to go through the PTSD of watching that? I’d rather watch the fantasy of the relationship we all want.”
That being said, there are pieces of Beth and Rip’s story that are based around trauma, but the one thing they’ve been able to do for one another is to help each other through it. That’s where the love and romance come in — that’s where Sheridan shines in crafting the moments after the hurt. In fact, in recent seasons, we saw a love blossom between Rip and Beth that trumps the fairytales we all grew up believing in; that seems almost Shakespearean in stature and power and has the gentle touch of a warm blanket you want to wrap yourself in.
They’ve been drawn to one another since John Dutton first gave Rip his second chance at the Yellowstone Dutton Ranch, and their story was all but written in the stars for them.
For Rip, it happened immediately; falling for Beth was as natural as breathing. For Beth, it took a little bit more, not more time — but more trust; she required him to prove to her that nothing she did would be able to push him away. With each moment, Rip showed up — he stayed, he loved her, and at just the right moment, he saved her life.
“I believe in loving with your whole soul and destroying anything that wants to kill what you love. That’s it. That’s all there is.”
Sheridan’s masterful storytelling in the epic love story that is Beth and Rip is something unlike we’ve seen in recent pop culture, and trust me — as a hopeless romantic; I’ve seen a lot. There are several shows I revisit from time to time when I feel like watching two people fall in love again, and none exist with the beauty and vulnerability that Rip and Beth have and share space in with one another.
Beth’s proposal to Rip (yes, she asked him with a ring in hand and everything) is one of my favorite moments in television history as a whole. She laid her soul bare, asking him to live his life with her for the rest of their days together, days she hopes to never experience a second of without him.
“The ring means that you have me, that I’m yours. It means, ‘Come live your life with me.’ The only thing I ask is that you outlive me so that I never have to live another day without you.”
The romanticism in trusting someone with the entirety of your being can’t be understated; it’s not something you do without the vulnerability of accepting that there is a price that can come with giving your all to someone else and risking it anyway. On the other side of that risk is a reward so profitable that no amount of money could come close to having as much meaning. It’s the soul-baring and all-encompassing promise of a forever kind of partner, a love that doesn’t just last but transcends — it’s written in every single word that Beth and Rip utter to one another, every stolen glance, every sweet kiss.
Rip and Beth’s great love are what dreams are made of, and Sheridan is right to want to write more of it. Wouldn’t we all be so lucky to experience it for ourselves? The sun rises and sets with Rip, and Beth outshines every star in the galaxy for the handsome cowboy — what a treasure they’ve both found in one another.