NOTE: This post contains spoilers for Yellowstone season 5 episode 3, "Tall Drink of Water." Catch up with our Yellowstone season 5 episode 1 and episode 2 recaps.
Beth Dutton (Kelly Reilly) is not afraid to get into a scrap. In fact, she may relish it. It's unsurprising then in Yellowstone season 5 episode 3 she throws the first punches that set the fight between the Duttons and Market Equities into full gear (John's nixing of the development was just the preamble).
Before that, however, episode 3 begins with a flashback with young John Dutton (Josh Lucas) finding some of his cattle eaten by wolves. This isn't just a problem for the Duttons, as many ranchers are angered about the wolves reintroduced in the area by the government, but who now seemingly can't control them. The government officials think it's all an overreaction, but John, who is Livestock commissioner at this point, agrees with the ranchers and warns the government they need to figure it out.
In the present, Beth wakes up early to head down to Salt Lake City for some business dealings. Before she does she talks with John (Kevin Costner). When she asks what he's thinking about, he says there are some things parents just can't tell their children, which Beth scoffs at considering she told him about her first threesome; though after John's shocked reaction, Beth may have misremembered that incident. He finally says he's thinking about how he regrets Beth didn't get to know her mother well enough to realize what a magnificent woman she was. Beth doesn't believe that was what he was originally thinking, but either way, it leaves an impact on her, as she still carries the weight of the complicated relationship she had with her mother.
Elsewhere on the ranch, as the cowboys wish Lloyd (Forrie J. Smith) a happy birthday, Rip (Cole Hauser) has to deal with the fallout from the wolves killed in episode 2, as a pair of US Fish & Wildlife agents arrive to investigate after discovering one of the collars on a log.
It looks like the ranch isn't going to have Kayce (Luke Grimes) to back them up in this situation, either. When talking with Rainwater (Gil Birmingham) and Mo (Mo Brings Plenty) about funeral rites for the baby, Kayce tells them his vision showed he had to make a choice between being Livestock commissioner and his own family, and he chooses the latter. But this means he needs a job; Mo suggests he look into becoming a state investigator. Inside, Monica's (Kelsey Asbille) grief bursts out, as she screams and cuts off part of her hair. Kayce wants to help, but they tell him this is something she needs to do as part of the process.
Rainwater has issues of his own. A protest calls his leadership into question, while Angela Blue Thunder (Q’orianka Kilcher) straight up threatens it, telling Rainwater he has been playing by "slave rules," but she is going to show him what things look like when you play by "master rules."
Another important faceoff happens with Jamie (Wes Bentley). Market Equities has filed suit against the cancellation of the lease, which Jamie laughs off in a meeting with Ellis (John Emmet Tracy) and Sarah Atwood (Dawn Olivieri). This actually impresses Sarah, but she tells him that business moves faster than government and posing the question of how Montana is going to make money with the loss of the project's potential tax revenue. She sets a dinner with Jamie to discuss further, hoping to turn Jamie against his family once again.
Back on the ranch, Rip takes the agents to the spot where tracker says the wolves were, but the field has been ploughed, which Rip says is something they do to grow their horse feed. The agents are frustrated, but Rip brushes it all off and the agents are seemingly at the end of the road. However, the scene ends with a shot of a paw print in the dirt (hard to say if it is a wolf or horse print), teasing this storyline isn't over yet. With this and the flashback that started the episode, wolves in the area and their impact on the ranchers appears to be a big subplot of the season.
The major event of the episode happens in Salt Lake City. Beth meets with a business partner to offer them her controlling stake in Schwartz & Meyer; all she wants in return is the land the company has in Montana. The deal seems too good to be true, but Beth assures him this is all about screwing Market Equities, as she is going to put the land into a conservation easement, which will prevent them from seizing it and ending their legal fights.
The deal has an immediate impact on Caroline (Jacki Weaver). Ellis tells her what Beth did is entirely legal and is basically checkmate. However, Caroline won't go down without a fight. Her sole mission now is to ruin the Duttons, starting with Beth, telling Ellis to set Sarah loose.
Unfortunately, Beth gives Caroline some ammunition right away. Excited after her victory, she wants to party and convinces Rip and the other cowboys to head into Boseman to celebrate Lloyd's birthday properly. While everything seems to start out OK — Ryan (Ian Bohen) even continues his flirtation with singer Abby (Lainey Wilson) — things go south real fast when Beth smashes a bottle over the head of an out-of-towner who hit on Rip, setting off a brawl.
Rip tries to deescalate the situation with the police, explaining who Beth is. However, the new sheriff is not intimidated and arrests Beth. Beth's love of a fight is what makes her brilliant, but it's a double-edged sword, as this is certainly going to have an impact on everything moving forward.
New episodes of Yellowstone air Sundays on Paramount Network in the US and Mondays on Paramount Plus in the UK.
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