The 10 Best Yellowstone Episodes of All Time
Before the western drama returns, let’s look back on the Dutton family’s finest moments.
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How does one pick a favorite Yellowstone episode? The modern western drama has remained one of the most popular shows on television for more than six years and five seasons. As the Dutton family protect their ranch in between barbecues and violent brawls, it’s hard enough just to pick a favorite character. The series is Succession meets Justified, with all the craziness in between. On November 10, Yellowstone finally returns to television.
It’s true, folks: The Duttons are ending their lengthy hiatus and returning to finish out the series, even if off-screen drama removed patriarch John Dutton (Kevin Costner) from the equation. Hopefully creator Taylor Sheridan writes John off in a way that lands his farewell on our list of Yellowstone’s ten best episodes. Until then, let’s take a walk down memory lane (making sure to avoid the train station!) and recall the best moments of Yellowstone so far.
10. Season 1, Episode 4, “The Long Black Train”
Just a few episodes in, Yellowstone made sure viewers understood that the Duttons were not saints in their crusade to protect the land. John Dutton brands his workers like cattle and expects them to do the dirty work in exchange for living on his ranch. He’s like Yellowstone’s Tony Soprano. If you threaten his family, there’s a good chance you’ll end up with a trip to “the train station”—a largely unchecked canyon on the border of Montana and Wyoming where the Dutton family disposes of their enemies.
9. Season 1, Episode 7, “A Monster Is Among Us”
Badass John Dutton fights and kills a bear in this episode! Not only are evil corporations trying to take his family ranch away from him, but Mother Nature is attacking him from all sides as well.
8. Season 2, Episode 6, “Blood the Boy”
The first half of season 2 isn’t the most exciting time in Yellowstone. The series sets up a set of evil brothers as the next antagonists, and Jamie attempts to enact political revenge against his father for ruining his chances in the election for attorney general. Jamie also begins leaking information to the press about his family’s nefarious deeds. In episode 6, he finally realizes the errors of his ways and kills the journalist before she can print the story.
7. Season 1, Episodes 8 and 9, “The Unraveling”
Okay, I’m technically cheating by putting Yellowstone season 1’s two-part finale under one entry. But parts 1 and 2 of “The Unraveling” dive deep into one of Yellowstone’s most popular characters. The two-parter explores Rip Wheeler’s backstory, as audiences learn why he killed his abusive father and remains loyal to John Dutton.
6. Season 4, Episode 10, “Grass on the Streets and Weeds on the Rooftops”
Season 4 had one hell of a finale. Jamie kills his biological father! Plus, Kayce fights off his demons in a Native American ritual. (It’s not unlike Willem Dafoe’s hallucinogenic temptations from the devil in The Passion of the Christ.) Plus, Beth and Rip finally marry each other—after all their enemies are buried, of course.
5. Season 4, Episode 1, “Half the Money”
Yellowstone fans waited over a year to find out if any of their favorite characters survived the explosive season 3 finale. Lucky for audiences, every single Dutton family member survived the episode. Rip begins to seek his revenge, and the family recoups. They spend the entire season on the offensive until every threat is crushed into the dirt.
4. Season 5, Episode 8, “A Knife and No Coin”
For nearly two years, the cliff-hanger at the end of season 5’s mid-season finale was likely the end of Yellowstone forever. The entire Dutton family promised to kill each other before the hiatus—positioning everyone for a fiery season ending that might have never come. Beth found out about the train station, Jamie ordered his evil new girlfriend to hire professional murderers to go after his sister, and John faces impeachment as Montana’s latest governor. When Yellowstone season 5 finally returns November 10, hopefully the series can do right by the Dutton family and provide a proper ending.
3. Season 1, Episode 1, “Daybreak”
The first episode of Yellowstone sets the entire series in motion as it introduces audiences to John Dutton and his wayward children. The show dazzled viewers with its gorgeous scenery and its commitment to real horseback riding. Plus, the surprising death of Lee Dutton in episode 1 drove home the real danger.
2. Season 3, Episode 7, “The Beating”
“The Beating” is three episodes away from the season 3 finale, and it still delivered some of the largest reveals in Yellowstone history. Jamie’s life is turned upside down (for the fifth or sixth time) after John tells him that he was adopted. Plus, Beth asks her father if she can marry Rip—and then proposes to the ranch hand after receiving his blessing. Love ... heartbreak ... season 3 has it all!
1. Season 3, Episode 10, “The World Is Purple”
The fate of every Dutton hung in the balance in the season 3 finale after Jamie’s biological father waged war on the Montana ranch. Trained hit men came for Kayce, planted a bomb in Beth’s office, and even left John for dead on the side of the road. It was almost the end for the Dutton family—and one of the best cliff-hangers in TV history.
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