If you can’t beat ’em, then beat ’em down.
That’s the tactic little people take when they have no chance of overcoming the opposition.
It was also the undercurrent flowing through Yellowstone Season 5 Episode 6 as Jamie and Angela Blue Thunder realized they couldn’t defeat John or Rainwater outright, so they’d work to bring them down instead.
We’re addressing the unpleasantness of the episode first because there is so much beauty throughout that it will wash the ugliness away.
That’s what small people like Jamie, Sarah, and Angela Blue Thunder fail to realize — beauty will always conquer in the long run. They may gain power for a while, but it will be short-lived and not well remembered.
For a long time, I held on to the hope that Jamie could be redeemed. Unfortunately, someone who feels so little of themselves has no chance of redemption because their value comes from outside instead of from within.
I’ve got a pretty good beat on my appeal as a man, and it doesn’t add up to you.
Jamie
That quote reached out and slapped me. Sarah is trash. She’s a manipulative (whiny) bitch who uses her body to achieve her nefarious goals. If Jamie looks at her and sees someone above him, then he’ll never be able to climb out of the hole he dug for himself.
Small people who struggle for self-worth and intrinsic value in their lives need to grab it from others. When people are power-hungry, you need to ask why. It’s usually because they’ve got nothing else to offer, or they believe that to be true even if it’s not.
Sadly, even Sarah knows that by backing Jamie in a gubernatorial run, she’s got to play dirty because he’s no match for James Dutton.
They could play the waiting game, and Jamie could run for governor. If he played his cards right, he might have even won because what we know that he’s failed to ascertain is that John is a one-term governor. It’s his choice not to run again.
Jamie knows he wouldn’t win running against John, and if some part of him knows that John would never run again, he’s stamping it down in light of Sarah’s exuberance to get him in the seat.
Time is her enemy.
She’s got Market Equities on her back, and they’re counting the minutes that their plans for expansion in Montana go unattended.
Sarah will dig for dirt on John and use it to impeach him. That might be a harder bargain than expected since the people of Montana are very much on his side right now.
Rainwater is also experiencing upheaval in his term as tribal council leader. Angela Blue Thunder doesn’t like Rainwater and believes, like Jamie and Sarah of John, that he’s stifling progress.
Angela is cocksure that pushing Martin will be the answer, but she’s blind to the people. What neither Jamie nor Angela understands is that if you don’t understand your people, then you cannot govern them effectively.
Martin: It’s a big day for the people.
Rainwater: It’s just another day for the people. It’s a big day for you.
Angela put her cards on the table when she thought her people would be thrilled to see the president.
When government officials rain down on your town and kill your beloved pets, it casts a pall over whatever comes next. Angela doesn’t care about the people. Like Martin, Jamie, and Sarah, she cares only about herself.
For the longest time, John and Rainwater struggled to find common ground. As they find themselves in similar circumstances, maybe this will provide an opportunity for them to work together.
After all, John wants to keep the land unaffected by unnecessary progress, which isn’t much different than how Rainwater feels about the land. The difference is that John wants to retain his family’s land, while Rainwater wants to reclaim it for his people.
Surely, there is a best-case scenario where they can achieve a little of both.
That brings us to the beauty of the hour, some of which was so overpowering it had more than one Dutton fighting back tears.
John: And they wonder why we fight so hard. You see what you been missin’?
Beth: Anyone think to pack any vodka?
John: Beth, just look at the horizon.
Of course, Beth, faced with the greatest of American splendors, just wanted a drink. As she later shared with Rip, her idea of beauty is more personal, and sharing it with others robs her of its enjoyment.
But Rip is always attuned to his wife, and he had a surprise for her that overwhelmed even her. Once upon a time, she had a very specific location in her mind’s eye for where she wanted to get married. It was to be a place so special that memories had never been created there before.
Rip found the perfect place, and it offered a little respite from the gathering for the two perfectly matched souls.
The gathering has given Beth another chance to revel in what the ranch means to others. She’s fought against it most of her life, but with Rip at her side, she’s finding a new appreciation for it.
Beth: I mean, I don’t, I don’t need anything else. Cigarettes, whiskey, the meadow, and you.
Rip: Darlin’, you have a warped sense of priorities, I’ll tell you.
Beth: No, I don’t. Three things that make me feel good and the perfect meadow. I don’t need anything else, do you? Alright. You can have a horse.
Rip: I need cows to chase, or there’s no reason to ride ’em.
Beth: OK. You can have a couple of cows.
It says a lot that Beth could find happiness on her family’s land. It shows real growth on her part since the ranch was more of a necessary evil up to the recent past.
I think seeing Summer’s disdain for everything the ranch stands for has also pushed Beth over the edge. It’s one thing to think less of it yourself, but it’s another thing when someone else dares to suggest it’s anything less than paradise.
This latest adventure with Rip, her father, and the cowboys will renew her passion for the fight, and since Sarah is bringing Jamie’s fight to their front door, Beth will need all of the help she can get.
John was in his element. He didn’t give two figs that the president was going to be in Montana. There was no other place he’d rather be than on his ranch with his cowboys and herd, doing what God intended him to do.
I’ve come to think perfection only lives in little moments, you know. Can’t be sustained over hours, just instances, you know. Little whisps of time and the world becomes imperfect again. This day damn near proved me wrong.
John
As soon as John questioned Emmett’s ability to survive one more gathering, the writing was on the wall that he wouldn’t. But every cowboy wants to die with their boots on, so to speak, and Emmett went out doing what he loved.
Governor of Montana on the side of a mountain, sleepin’ with his boots on. This world may have a chance yet.
Emmett
His last words were prophetic, and I’ll be shocked if they don’t portend that John will win the battle making its way to his doorstep.
The hardest part for John was saying goodbye to his old friend and then telling Emmett’s wife that she’d lost her husband.
He couldn’t have anticipated that his simple act of kindness and compassion would be such a boon. The news anchors ran with it, and John received a free pass for steering clear of the president’s visit. Governing for the people by the people means exactly that.
By working his ranch and standing by other ranchers in the state, John represents the people because he is the people. That stands for everything, and all the Jamies and Angelas in the world combined could ever understand its power.
What remains to be seen is how Summer can aid in the fight. Lynelle, who is a little jealous, thinks that John has made a grave error. And, frankly, the way Summer slumps around the ranch and continues to dole out her brand of criticism, I’m inclined to agree.
Then again, she did hold her own against Beth, and that suggests something deeper inside than she lets the world see. Hopefully, she’s earning enough respect for the Dutton family and their way of life that she’ll do what’s right instead of what comes naturally to her.
So what did you think? I’d love for you to share your thoughts on “Cigarettes, Whiskey, a Meadow and You in the comments below.
While you’re there, please let me know if you’ll be watching 1923 on Paramount+ when it premieres, and don’t forget that you can watch Yellowstone online right here via TV Fanatic.
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Carissa Pavlica is the managing editor and a staff writer and critic for TV Fanatic. She’s a member of the Critic’s Choice Association, enjoys mentoring writers, conversing with cats, and passionately discussing the nuances of television and film with anyone who will listen. Follow her on Twitter and email her here at TV Fanatic.
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