It was always coming, but on this week's episode of Yellowstone, Beth Dutton and Summer Higgins finally came to blows. The knock-down-drag-out brawl found the two blondes going blow for blow in a battle for dominance and presumably for control of John Dutton's heart.
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Whether anyone really won, per se, is debatable, but ultimately Beth wore the battle a little better, with Summer tapping out first. Beth may have lost a tooth or two, but it seems like Summer may have come away from the beatdown with a newfound respect and sense of acceptance of the Dutton way of life—even if she's basically being forced to assimilate into it.
More Beth and Rip flashbacks
But more on that later. When the episode opens, '90s Rip is getting ready to mount up and head off on a long ride. '90s Beth is there too, and the cowboy she got busy with thinks it's for him. It's not, though, as she bypasses him and heads to young Rip, telling him, "Be careful."
After 2022 Beth wakes up crying at the memory of how badly she treated baby Rip, she tells him that she gets sad when she thinks about the past. Rip tells her, basically, that regrets are a fool's errand. "I think about now, I think about tomorrow, but I don't give much thought to yesterday," he says. "Yesterday is what eats everybody, which is why I don't think about it."
Rip and John have a chat about starting to brand their calves, with Rip saying he wishes the baby cows were bigger, but that if the ranch hands are going to be able to help out everyone else in the valley, they're going to have to get their duties done at home first. As he tells John, "It's tough saying no with you as governor." John decides he's going to turn calving into a sort of lesson on old-time cowboying, with the whole crew riding out to camp under the stars for a few days. They're not taking a chuck wagon or many supplies—just what they can carry and what they need to get the job done. We'll have to wait until next week to see how that turns out for them, but in the meantime, you can look at 1883 to see how John probably wants the whole affair to look.
Clara learns to play the Dutton game
One thing this episode was good for was getting to know John's new governor's assistant, Clara, a little better. She's still learning what he's into—for example, absolutely no meetings, Ron Swanson style—but she seems to be able to hang with the Yellowstone gang, even if she does insist on wearing sensible heels and a dress to wander around the barnyard for some reason. As we learn later in the episode, she's a capable rider, and she heads out on the expedition with John and company, both as an MEP (manufactured event for political purposes) and because if she's not there, he might not ever come back to being governor. Clara also gets him to agree to invite a whole bunch of muckety-mucks to party at the ranch by telling him "You could get through two weeks of meetings in one afternoon," so it's clear she's learning to play the Dutton game.
While I'm not incredibly into the way Beth seems super involved in her own father's sex life (yuck), I do think she was fair to give him advice about how he should at least think about why Summer is hanging out with him. Sure, he granted her clemency and put her under house arrest, but unless they get her on their side in some sense, she could just turn on them the minute that's over.
Family togetherness
The moment between Kayce and Monica was very sweet, especially with her acknowledging that she hadn't yet asked him how he was doing with the death of their son. He tells her he's worried about their family, their life, and his job, and she tells him not to quit his livestock police gig because "your job isn't why he died. The buffalo isn't why he died. He died because God needs him." Kayce ends up opting into the campout with Monica smartly bailing—she just had a kid like two weeks ago, so long days on a horse don't seem like a great idea—and they all get in some good family togetherness at the ranch before heading out.
Speaking of family togetherness: Beth talks Rip into letting her come on the expedition as well, despite the fact that she "hates horses and cold and being dirty and being told what to do," per Rip's description. More than anything, it seems that she hates being left out—and away from Rip's side—so she's heading out with the pack all the same.
After the events of last week with Jamie and Sarah Atwood, I thought she might have figured a little more prominently this week, but we really only got one glimpse at the pair in this episode. Sarah drops by Jamie's office for a little 6 pm surprise, but he balks and says what they did the night before was unprofessional. She responds by telling him that if he thought last night was unprofessional, he'll hate what's about to happen next, and then unbuttons her dress. That's where we leave them, but we can only assume she's using her feminine wiles to woo the very lonely, very sad Jamie.
Beth vs. Summer
Anyway, the fight: We got there after Gator made a big family dinner with absolutely zero vegan options. What it did have, on the other hand, was a very impressive range of game, including venison, roast duck, and dove. Summer mouths off, telling him, "You're serving the bird of peace for dinner?" and Beth, rightly pissed at her disrespect in their home, tells her that they should take a walk. It seems like things could go okay until they absolutely don't, with Beth fully laying Summer out in one blow. From there, it's a bit more even, especially when Rip intervenes and tells them, "Do you know how stupid you both look? Do you think you're going to beat the other one into respecting your opinion?" It's a fair point and one that certainly seems to make them stop and take stock. It doesn't actually stop the fight, though, with Rip then suggesting if they need to have it out they just "stand here and trade 'em until one of you has had enough." After exploding into tears, Summer ends the whole thing, and Beth tells her, "This is my fucking house. You will show me and everyone in it respect," and telling Summer that, in turn, she'll get back what she gives.
When the girls rejoin the table, Summer tucks into some mashed potatoes, butter and all, and then she and Beth have a spirited discussion about how, in Beth's opinion, humans aren't meant to eat solely plants because animals that live on grass alone have a four-chambered stomach and humans do not.
Speaking of discussions: Rip and John have a whiskey chat in the living room after dinner is over, with John spouting off some thoughts about how "today it seems like fighting is a liability" and "cowards rule the world with coward rules and coward customs." He thinks, "to succeed today, all you have to know is how to blame and how to complain," which I would argue seems like oversimplification at best, but there could be some notion of truth in the fact that, especially in politics, oftentimes people who make the most noise but do very little do garner a little more attention. I think we're supposed to infer that John is referring to Summer and her liberal cronies here, but I guess he could be referring to his own Republican pals as well, given how quickly he dismissed his policy board last week. As always, John's beliefs are a bit inscrutable, but that's okay. It's just Yellowstone, baby.
Random observations:
- When did Carter turn into Rip Jr.? Him telling Summer that "the only thing that can put out rain is God," because "God brings rain and rain puts out the fire," felt like he was quoting from the book of Dutton. I know he's really enjoying his time on the ranch, but I also liked fun, quirky Carter from last season, so I do hope he's still there somewhere.
At the end of the episode, Beth tells Summer that she should spend the days they're out camping taking a walk around the ranch to learn more about the family and see if there's a "forest in America in better shape." It's an interesting argument, though I'm sure Summer can also figure out how to spend a few days on her own, given that she's an adult woman who's just come out of a year or whatever in prison. She's probably got whole seasons of Housewives to catch up on or something.
READ MORE: The Duttons Return: A 'Yellowstone' Season 5 Character Guide
