Yellowstone Season 5, Episode 10, “The Apocalypse of Change,” is not nearly as dramatic as its title suggests. In fact, it’s relatively slow-paced except for a few exciting moments — all of them courtesy of Beth Dutton. This episode feels like everything the return of Yellowstone didn’t get to while it was establishing the details of John Dutton’s death. Now that the shock has worn off, the show can get back to the main story that it’s trying to tell.
“The Apocalypse of Change” follows Beth as she temporarily reunites with her husband Rip Wheeler, and then goes to the State House in order to confront her brother Jamie Dutton about his presumed role in John’s passing. Meanwhile, Kayce Dutton makes an important phone call, and some snakes meet an untimely end in a sort of metaphor for everything else. It’s not the most exciting episode but it moves the plot along, while the Yellowstone cast continues to be excellent.
Yellowstone Season 5, Episode 10 Continues to Deal With John’s Death
The Family Is Still Processing Their Loss
Season 5, Episode 9, “Desire Is All You Need” was about establishing the circumstances of John Dutton’s death and showing how that affected the already catastrophic situation between Beth and Jamie. “The Apocalypse of Change” is about how other characters deal with the loss, from Kayce to Carter and even Summer Higgins, whom Beth forgot about (and some viewers probably did too). This works to varying degrees. Rip’s conversation with Carter about the situation is predictably brief, as Rip reassures the young man that he’ll always have a place, and then tells him to “cowboy up” and get back to work.
On the flip side, Kayce’s discussion with Tate about it is more prolonged and much more poignant. Kayce tells his son that he’s never had a job that made him feel alive — which feels like commentary on Kayce’s character arc — and asks Tate what Tate plans to do with his life. Kayce isn’t sure about running the ranch in his father’s absence, but he’s willing to step into that role if it means the ranch will be there for Tate to take over after him. It’s a heartfelt moment between father and son, perfectly played between Luke Grimes and Brecken Merrill, and includes a line that probably sums up how a lot of Yellowstone viewers feel about this plotline.
Kayce Dutton: You’re gonna have to choose to miss him or to be mad at him.
But while viewers might be expecting more fireworks given all the strong words thrown around in the previous episode, it’s important that the show does take the time to at least touch on how other characters are processing John’s absence. Especially when John Dutton was built up to be this larger-than-life figure, when he’s suddenly not there anymore it’s going to have a large effect on more than just his immediate family. Did the series need to revisit Summer and reveal to her that John was lying to her about her house arrest? In the big picture, not really. Yet doing so provides a different perspective on what happened to John from outside the family — plus there’s one last chance for snarky banter between Summer and Beth.
Yellowstone Features Confrontation Between Beth and Jamie
The Battle Lines Are Drawn for the Last Time
The key scene in Yellowstone Season 5, Episode 10 is when Jamie arrives at work to learn that Beth is waiting in his office. In fact, not only is she in his office, she’s in his chair. Beth slaps Jamie repeatedly while trying unsuccessfully to get him to look her in the eye, which she takes as confirmation that he was involved in their father’s murder. This scene has to happen in order to keep audiences on the hook and move Season 5 along, and it might be relatively brief, but it’s very well done. Going through another episode of Beth just swearing Jamie killed their father wouldn’t have served anyone; that’s been thoroughly established. She’s not the kind to patiently sit with that information, and that’s not what the audience wants to see either.
Beth Dutton: Seeing me will be the last thing you ever do alive.
And for Jamie to not offer up a single word in his defense is the perfect response for that character. As easy as it is to feel some sympathy for Jamie given the various times he’s been forced into situations, there comes a time when the audience just wants him to step up for himself. He goes from being assaulted by Beth to being tempted by Sarah Atwood into having sex with her in his office. He’s too easy for both of them to push around, and it’s not until he starts asserting himself that he’s actually going to learn anything.
The icing on the cake, though, actually happens between those two moments as Beth runs into Sarah outside of Jamie’s office, and proceeds to grab her by the throat before shoving her around. It’s a reminder that all of Sarah’s confidence is more about hiding behind power and the work of others, while Beth’s confidence comes from her own power. Hopefully the remainder of Season 5 includes a final throwdown between the two because as much as Beth hates Jamie, Sarah deserves an equal amount of scorn — if not more, depending on how much one believes that Jamie is worth saving. Sarah reached that “love to hate” level a long time ago, and this sequence of events makes crystal clear who’s on what side for the remainder of the season and the series.
Yellowstone Illustrates Jamie’s Plans for Season 5
But Can He Realistically Prevail?
Season 5, Episode 10 does let some details spill in Jamie’s meeting with Sarah and Ellis: with John no longer around to oppose him, Jamie plans on reinstating Market Equities’ lease and letting their project move forward, while he runs for Governor of Montana with the support of the company. This isn’t a bombshell but it sets up a clear trajectory for him in the remainder of Season 5. Yellowstone can get plenty of momentum from Jamie’s campaign for Governor and Beth’s efforts to tear him down in the most terrible way possible. The one issue here is how it creates realistic tension along the way. Especially if Season 5 does turn out to be the end of the show, Jamie defeating Beth would be at odds with the premise of the show being driven by the Dutton family and their loyalty to each other and the ranch. So is Jamie doomed to fail?
There’s a heartbreaking and perhaps prescient scene between Beth and Rip in a hotel room, in which she talks about them being “shackled to that ranch,” and he responds by saying that he chose that fate and has no interest in traveling. A satisfying ending for the show would be the Duttons still being in control of the ranch, getting it financially stable, and maybe someone literally riding off into the sunset. If Jamie becomes Governor, maybe Beth winds up with him in her pocket — ensuring that no one will ever come after the ranch again. Yet it would be even better if Jamie somehow found more of a spine, turned sides and came back into the family fold. At least, that would give Wes Bentley more to play, and add more layers of drama for the Yellowstone writers to sink their teeth into. Season 5, Episode 10 makes things pretty back and white to give the audience a side to root for again, but there’s room to shake things up in the future.
Yellowstone airs Sundays at 8:00 p.m. on Paramount Network.