Yellowstone

Yellowstone, on its rugged surface, presents as yet another myth-making Western -- painted with the broad strokes of horseflesh, sunsets, and men clutching at the tatters of Manifest Destiny. But beneath the sweeping cinematography lies a brutish, strangely compelling fable about legacy, land, and the sheer inertia of inherited power. Kevin Costner, surprisingly, turns in one of his most interesting performances not by radiating moral clarity, as he once did, but by portraying John Dutton as a man whose grip on power is less a matter of brilliance than blind, stubborn luck. Dutton is not a Machiavellian mastermind, but rather a grizzled relic fumbling through crises, kept afloat by sheer historical momentum and the incompetence or stupidity of those around him. Costner plays him not as a titan or stereotypical hero, but as a man just clever enough to survive-barely-on the edge of his own fading myth. More ruthless minds circle him. Chief among them is his daughter Beth, whose strategic cruelty and emotional volatility make her the true warlord of the Dutton empire. Kelly Reilly channels something genuinely volcanic in Beth -- her actions often so scorched-earth and gleefully malicious that she makes her father look almost quaint by comparison. If Dutton is the dying king, Beth is his fire-breathing enforcer, burning bridges and enemies with equal enthusiasm. And then there is Jamie -- poor, perpetually perplexed Jamie -- whose tragic flaw is not hubris but a spectacular lack of instincts. He bumbles through legal maneuverings and familial betrayals with all the tactical finesse of a dropped pie. Yellowstone thrives on this chaos: a kingdom ruled not by intelligence or justice, but by blunt force, inherited grudges, and the dumb luck of those too ornery to die. In that, it is less a Western than a cautionary tale in cowboy drag. Persevere through the show's arid overtures and you'll find, to your surprise, that it gathers momentum and even moments of merit-proof that persistence, though rarely fashionable, sometimes pays off.

**Cheesy and bad writing** “**Spoilers may be inside**” The first episode starts with a socking scene, followed by good acting and beautiful views of Montana. Soon many characters are introduced and their complex dynamics start to shape in. So far so good. By the episode 5-6 onwards the show starts to lose its grip. No consistency in behavior, illogical violence, unnecessary screaming/cursing, followed by some lazy cowboy scene, and this becomes monotonous. The writing is so poor, e.g. someone kills somebody, and the next morning he is enjoying some cowboy moments, as if nothing happened. No fear, no remorse, nothing. The whole show becomes pretty repetitive and cheesy. I am surprised it got 8+.

Legitimately bad writing. All the scenes seem to needlessly end in escalation, hostility or outright violence to the point it's exhausting. There are shows about gangs, drug dealers and hit men with fewer murders per season. This ranch has an implausibly high body count, dozens if not hundreds of people have been murdered here and there's not been anyone looking into it? None of the lazily disposed of bodies get investigated? This one farmer is powerful enough to keep away state and federal police for decades? For whatever reason everyone is perpetually wanting to fight. They'll just escalate the most trivial interactions into a fight. Guy asks you for money? Bash his face in. Someone wants to quit their job? Kill them. Even the most aggro person wouldn't escalate to fighting as often as these people do just out of laziness/exhaustion. *** **Spoiler for S01E01:** The characters are extremely shallow, always trotting out the same spiels and back story. They will all talk endlessly about how traumatised they are about the death of their mother decades earlier without a single mention of their other dead family member who died on the show and is seemingly never mentioned again. *** Ultimately the whole show feels like a badly written soap opera, obscenely implausible scenarios occuring on a ranch with a body count in the hundreds. The characters become caricatures of themselves, dialogue and character development is shallow with the plot falling apart with even the slightest thought.