Yellowstone is undoubtedly one of the best drama series around. Here, we’ve picked the biggest and best episodes when it comes to the baffling Dutton family.
The best Yellowstone episodes offer something for everyone. Jaw-dropping action, sizzling tension, and all the cowboy antics you could wish for.
And although we’ll soon have to say goodbye to Yellowstone, we’ll always be able to re-watch (what we think is) the best drama series again and again. In a way, revisiting the Yellowstone cast will be the only way we can get closure on the cancelation of the best TV series around, so to pay tribute to our ranching overlords, here are our picks for the best episodes of the mainline Yellowstone series.
Yellowstone season 1 episode 1: Daybreak
The first episode is a lengthy 93 minutes long, essentially making it a Yellowstone movie. But hey, that’s the power of Taylor Sheridan, and in making a feature-length pilot, he brought to life the best Yellowstone characters in the most meaningful way and immediately set the tone for what would become his Western masterpiece.
From the offset, the political and family dramas are made abundantly clear, and there’s almost no room to breathe once things kick-off. The climactic ending involving a shocking Dutton death establishes everything we need to know about John Dutton and his family. They can mess with each other, but don’t you dare.
Yellowstone season 2 episode 6: Blood the Boy
The episode begins with a flashback in which a young Jamie and John are working on the ranch. Jamie asks John what he can do to help protect the legacy of the Dutton ranch, and John tells him to become “a lawyer.” It’s the guiding force behind the rest of Jamie’s career and life, and only solidifies our theory at The Digital Fix that Jamie wants nothing more than to be a cowboy, he just doesn’t know how.
Back in the main Yellowstone timeline, Jamie does the unspeakable and winds up killing a journalist in order to protect his family’s secrets which he himself shared. It’s a moment driven by rage, panic, and sheer desperation, and sets him on course for what would be his arc for the rest of the show. Granted, we’ve talked some shit about Jamie around here, but we won’t deny a good episode when we see it, even if it’s all about him.
Yellowstone season 3 episode 1: You’re the Indian Now
Let’s be honest, Yellowstone season 2 was wild. It ended with Tate being kidnapped, held by a militia group, and the Yellowstone crew swooping in, killing everyone and bringing him back. The pressure was on for the season 3 opener, and it certainly delivered. The Dutton family is reeling from the dramatic events of the season prior, so some slates need to be wiped clean.
It’s an episode that sees John and Jamie attempt to right some wrongs, Jamie’s emergence from the bunkhouse after being banished there, and Tate is suffering from some PTSD after being taken from the ranch by the Beck Brothers. (Obviously.) It’s an episode that acts as a bit of breathing space, but still manages to prove that even when things aren’t at their most extreme, it’s still more gripping than most other shows.
Yellowstone season 3 episode 7: The Beating
As the series goes on, Taylor Sheridan tries to one-up himself each time with a brand new twist of delicious drama. In the past, it’s been dinosaur bones, exploding meth labs, and child kidnappings. This time, it’s adoption papers. If you’ve always wondered why Jamie seems like the black sheep of the family, this episode would have had you going, “Ah…that makes sense.”
That’s right — everyone’s least favorite Dutton isn’t a Dutton at all! Small blessings. Although Jamie’s big discovery might not be surprising to those who are partial to a good soap opera every now and again — and, let’s face it, Yellowstone is basically a ranch opera — it’s still a major turning point for a character who’s had the lowest lows and some pretty mid highs.
Yellowstone season 3 episode 10: The World is Purple
Let’s just say it: season 3 of Yellowstone is the most batshit of them all. All the dramas across the ten episodes accumulate when the finale shows each member of the Dutton family suffering an assassination attempt. John is shot on the roadside, Beth’s office is torn apart by a bomb (with her in it), and Kayce is attacked at the Livestock Association office.
It’s an ending that had us shaken, and threw so much doubt on each and every character that we genuinely had to wonder: “Is this Jamie’s doing?” This season 3 finale is a perfect representation of everything Yellowstone does best. A family, torn apart by their attempt to protect their legacy and power, being hunted down by the most malicious of opposing forces.