We’ve seen what it looks like when the Dutton family honors the land. We’ve seen how they arrived on it in 1883, and how they fought to preserve and build it into what it is today (per 1923, the upcoming 1944, and all those Josh Lucas flashbacks). In the 21st century, we’ve even seen the final years of the ranch and how John and his children fought to keep it out of the hands of those who would develop it. But if the people of Broken Rock are now set on restoring the land to its proper significance, and have effectively annexed it into the reservation, what exactly does that look like? How will Rainwater implement these changes, and will there be others who wish to stop them? Will Governor Steven Rawlings (Gareth Williams) try to fight Rainwater regarding the future of a Rhode Island-sized piece of land in Montana? Will Market Equities try to buy the reservation out? Beth and Rip may have moved on from Paradise Valley, but that doesn’t mean everyone else has.

‘Yellowstone’ Often Neglected Its Indigenous Cast (Though the Prequels Didn’t)

We’ve noted before that Yellowstone has always had a problem highlighting its Indigenous cast, particularly Gil Birmingham, who needed something more interesting to do than simply stand around and wax his frustrations. In Season 5 Part 2 alone, we had not one, but two scenes with Rainwater and Mo gazing at the oil pipeline noting that they “need to do something” about it before any action is finally taken in the super-sized Season 5 finale. While the prequel shows, 1883 and 1923, do a far better job highlighting the Native stories woven into the Dutton narrative, the flagship show never tackled much on the Rez. Compared to other neo-Westerns like Longmire, Dark Winds, or even Netflix’s latest drama, Territory, Yellowstone often missed the mark.