The fight between father and son is on in Paramount’s Yellowstone, and another sibling is also set to pick a side in the battle, and as fans see it, it’s the right side.
Jamie Dutton has had it out for his dad for years, usually retreating back to a safe place to land at the ranch, knowing that being part of the plastics is better than being on the outside. Okay, we’re quoting the wrong piece of cinematic perfection, but you get the idea. Jamie knew it was better to be a Dutton than to be on their list of enemies, but that logic has flown right out the window as of late, and in its place exists the voice of Jamie’s new romantic interest, Sarah Atwood.
Pushing Jamie to take a stand against his father, Atwood echoes every voice Jamie needs her to. The midseason finale of Yellowstone was the first step in the impeachment process that the Attorney General’s office plans to lead against the Governor of Montana. As the cards started falling in today’s episode, it was set up in an emotionally gripping way.
As John stands beside Chief Thomas Rainwater in an attempt to stop the addition of a pipeline that would put his people into an unfair and unhealthy situation, both men are surprised that they’re standing together. Their bond has been hot and cold throughout the series’ history, but it feels like this is less gameplay and more human of John.
John begins a moving speech before Rainwater takes the stage; elsewhere in the state, Jamie has taken a stage of his own in an attempt to dethrone his father. The moment is beautifully shot, with pieces of their speech seeming to fit together while they’re as different in motive as they could be. John is trying to do what’s best for the people of Montana, and Jamie — although he says he’s thinking of Montana as a state — is acting selfishly.
As both Dutton men speak to their respective audiences, viewers at home couldn’t turn away; heck, we tried to stop blinking through the entire scene that started with Jamie.
“I have called this emergency meeting of the assembly to address an egregious act of dereliction in canceling funding for the Paradise Valley International Airport and surrounding residential, commercial, and mixed communities. Governor Dutton has violated state law and his sworn oath of office to act in the best interest of the state. He has exposed the state to litigations which I have been informed are forthcoming. He has robbed the state of billions in tax revenue and 1000s of jobs. By doubling taxes on nonresidents and initiating a sales tax on nonresidents. He threatens to extinguish our state’s single biggest generator of revenue, tourism. These are counts of calculated actions that are only in the best interest of the governor himself and will have devastating consequences for our constituents. The people who elected us…the reason we are here.
John:
“Progress: it seems like all I ever talk about, but I never talk about what the word actually means. It means to proceed — to move forward, that’s all. Typically, we interpret moving forward as better; better for us as people, better for the planet, which is usually better for us as people. If we use it in that manner, I agree, but when something benefits one group over another group, you can’t use that word anymore. You must another word; you must use bias. You must use favoritism. Running a pipeline against the drinking water in an already strained and impoverished community may be progress for the owners of the pipeline or owners of whatever runs through the pipeline or for those receiving it. But it can lead to disastrous effects in the land and the people this pipeline runs beneath, which is not progress at all.
Jamie:
“It is for those people and for the future of Montana…
John:
“And for that reason, as governor of Montana. I cannot support that endeavor and will use the full weight of my office to prevent it from happening.”
Jamie:
…that the Attorney General’s office under Article Five and section 13 of the state constitution is requesting a Senate tribunal seeking impeachment.
The speeches from the Dutton men come to an end as Rainwater addresses his people, joking that John stole his speech, but within seconds the crowd is distracted. Messages began pouring in that the Attorney General’s office was gearing up to impeach Governor John Dutton.
Of course, it didn’t end there. John tried to exit the situation as gracefully as possible, but everything was already out there; people knew what was happening and when Beth Dutton found out, the fire began burning brighter. Beth promised to protect her father and their ranch, no matter what, even if that meant turning against someone in their own family. It’s clear that the battle lines have been drawn, and there’s a right and a wrong side to this fight. Which one will win? Yellowstone fans will begin finding out when season five returns in the summer of 2023 after a midseason hiatus.