Yellowstone season 5, episode 13, titled “Give Away The World,” sets up a payoff for its biggest story that falls far short of expectations. While “Give Away The World” expands on the aftermath of the discovery that Yellowstone’s John Dutton is dead, the story again takes place in Texas, with Beth attempting to oversee Travis’ sale of horses there. Travis’ antics take up the bulk of the episode’s time, with Travis being so interested in making women strip when he beat them at cards that he almost misses the opportunity for the sale and later challenging Beth to a game.
Beth’s storyline is part of a larger story in which she sees no way forward except for selling enough livestock to pay part of the mortgage, which will buy her enough time to figure out how to save the rest of the ranch. Rip doesn’t see this as a sustainable business model, but Kayce comes up with another idea that he keeps mostly to himself. With only one episode of Yellowstone left, it’s hard to see how the ranch can be saved, and there is very little time to deal with other storylines that have not yet been wrapped up.
Yellowstone Season 5, Part 2 Hyped Up Beth & Jamie’s All-Out War
This Story Was Supposed To Be An Epic Battle To The Death
Yellowstone’s pre-premiere marketing suggested the season would revolve around Jamie and Beth fighting to the death after John’s disappearance. While the series did a good job of keeping John’s murder under wraps by suggesting he had merely vanished, its inaccuracy regarding the war between Jamie and Beth is not justifiable. The war was hyped as being central to the season, yet in reality, it has gotten less screen time than any other story despite audience excitement about it.
It would have made sense for the war to have been a lot more central than it has been thus far. Beth has been somewhat of a loose cannon since Yellowstone’s premiere. The most consistent parts of her character are her loyalty to John and her hatred of Jamie. Thus, Beth should have fought Jamie with everything she had, especially after becoming convinced that Jamie had a hand in John’s death, instead of quickly resigning herself to losing the ranch and working on selling the livestock.
Beth & Jamie Have Barely Interacted & Yellowstone Is Already About To End
The Two Have Not Moved Past The Same Argument
Although Beth promised Kayce that she would “take care of Jamie” after she and Kayce realized that Jamie’s probable arrest meant he could spill every secret about the Duttons’ illegal activities, no such thing has occurred on-screen. Colby’s death in Yellowstone took place immediately after Beth made that promise, and she was next seen helping Lloyd pack Colby’s things, and Beth and Jamie only shared one scene in “Give Away The World,” in which they had the same argument again about whether Jamie will take Beth and the family down with him.
Beth has consistently gotten sidetracked by other issues related to selling off parts of the ranch while Jamie keeps making amateurish moves that should get him in more trouble.
Scenes like these do not move the story forward in any significant manner, especially when they are retreads of old conversations. There is now little time left for the exciting fight to the death between Jamie and Beth. Instead, Beth has consistently gotten sidetracked by other issues related to selling off parts of the ranch, while Jamie keeps making amateurish moves that should get him in more trouble. However, the authorities seem no closer to arresting him than before. Thus, the entire story seems stuck in limbo despite how little time is left to address it.
Can Yellowstone Still Deliver A Satisfying Payoff To Beth & Jamie’s Feud
The Finale Could Focus More On This Story
Yellowstone still has one episode left to address all of its remaining storylines. Theoretically, the series finale could focus on Jamie and Beth’s feud, giving the audience the long-awaited epic confrontation between the two. However, even if the finale were to revolve entirely around Jamie’s imminent arrest and Beth’s determination to punish him her own way, it would not be completely satisfying because the story would be told all at once instead of moving steadily toward its climax throughout the season.
Having the battle and its resolution during Yellowstone’s final episode would be better than ending without the two doing more than sniping at one another over the phone. However, it would still feel rushed because of the lack of build-up over the last several episodes. At best, the neo-Western will deliver some powerful scenes that make the ending semi-satisfying, but it will not be able to completely make up for neglecting this story throughout the second half of the final season.