Sylvester Stallone’s Tulsa King recently included one of the best scenes in a gangster movie or show since Goodfellas came out in 1990. Tulsa King has been one of the best shows on Paramount+, and it’s been a major hit for Sylvester Stallone. Tulsa King season 1 boasts a very high 89% score on Rotten Tomatoes, and the second season has an early 100% rating. It’s been such a success that Tulsa King season 3 is already confirmed, and the series is making quite a name for itself within the crime genre.
Though Tulsa King is a resounding success, it also has some stiff competition from other entries to the crime genre. Martin Scorsese’s best movies are shining examples of what gangster stories can be, and some of the best movies of all time are about gangsters. To live up to those giants of the genre, Tulsa King season 2 introduced one of the best gangster scenes since Goodfellas. It was an intense, suspenseful, and absolutely brutal scene, and it proved that Tulsa King has the chops to live up to the crime genre’s best.
Tulsa King Season 2, Episode 3’s Ending Is One Of The Greatest Gangster Scenes On TV
The ending of Tulsa King season 2, episode 3 was a fantastic moment for the show, and it was one of the best scenes in any gangster show. Tulsa King did a lot of work to foreshadow a hit that Bill Bevilaqua (Frank Grillo) put out on Dwight. The show made a point of implying that Goodie was going to betray Dwight and of showing all of Dwight’s friends and family giving him a prolonged goodbye. The lead up to the hit made it seem like Dwight would at the very least be hurt, and that some members of the gang could die.
The attempted hit on Dwight’s life was a great moment that was full of suspense, twists, and turns, and it could easily go down as one of the best scenes in a modern gangster show.
Then, Tulsa King perfectly subverted expectations by revealing that Dwight knew about the hit all along and was waiting for it. He sent Bigfoot (Mike “Cash Flo” Walden) out to ambush Bevilaqua’s man, and then had Goodie stab him to death in an awesome and satisfying twist. Just for good measure, he then sent the body to Bevilaqua’s estate with a menu from the Bred2Buck. The attempted hit on Dwight’s life was a great moment that was full of suspense, twists, and turns, and it could easily go down as one of the best scenes in a modern gangster show.
Tulsa King’s Execution Was Just As Good As Joe Pesci’s Death In Goodfellas
The end of Tulsa King season 2, episode 3 also had some striking similarities to an iconic gangster scene: Tommy’s death in Goodfellas. Tommy, played by Joe Pesci, was supposed to become a made man, but he was instead killed for some of his past transgressions. It was an iconic plot twist that has gone down as one of the best in the entire crime genre, and Tulsa King perfectly flipped it on its head. Just like Goodfellas, the hit on Dwight had a great twist and flawlessly encapsulated the brutality and backstabbing that gangster movies and shows are known for.
Tulsa King Is One Of The Best Gangster Shows In Years
There have been some fantastic gangster shows in recent years, from The Sopranos to Peaky Blinders and even The Penguin. They all deserve their glory, but Tulsa King is also making a very strong argument that it should be included in the list of the best crime shows. It’s got everything other contemporary gangster shows have, from its ensemble cast to its strong leading actor. The hit on Dwight proves that Tulsa King can do high-stakes gangster drama as well as any other show, but the series has its own unique features as well.
One of the best things about Tulsa King, and one of the things that sets it apart from other gangster shows, is its Western setting. Because it takes place in Oklahoma, Tulsa King is able to offer a unique blend of Western stories like cowboys, honky-tonks, and country music, while still delivering great gangster moments like Dwight’s hit and his court case. The show also has some much lighter subplots than series like Peaky Blinders, since it focuses on Dwight’s journey to becoming a better family man. While that’s not for everyone, it does make Tulsa King unique.
Again, the crime genre is filled with some all-time great movies and shows. It’s difficult to say that Tulsa King is better than some of the best crime shows of the 21st century, like The Sopranos or Peaky Blinders, but it comes very close. At the very least, Tulsa King is a serious contender to be considered one of the best gangster shows in years. Any show that can produce a scene as intense as the ending of Tulsa King season 2, episode 3, deserves to be in the conversation about being considered the best.