Paramount Network’s Yellowstone season five episode seven opens with a flashback, something we’ve grown used to this season. Rip (Kyle Red Silverstein) and Rowdy (Kai Caster) are watching the herd late at night when Rowdy has the nerve to bring up Beth. Rip beats the crap out of him after Rowdy pulls a knife as they fight. Rip warns him never to mention Beth’s name again.
Rip’s temper got the best of him, and Rowdy’s in terrible pain even hours later. He’s hurt bad enough to need a doctor but can’t ride. Rip will have to fetch help.
Before Rip takes off, Rowdy tells him to say he fell off his horse. Rowdy doesn’t want Rip to get in trouble.
Rip makes it to the big house and wakes up John (Josh Lucas). He blurts out the truth and admits Rowdy said inappropriate things about Beth. He also admits he hit Rowdy in the head with a rock.
By the time they make it back to the campsite, Rowdy has died.
John’s upset Rip didn’t just lie and say Rowdy fell off his horse, and Rip confirms that’s what Rowdy told him to say. But Rip didn’t want to lie to John. Unfortunately, Rip will have to lie now or else he’ll end up in jail.
Lloyd suggests that since Rowdy’s a drifter, they should just dump him at the train station.
Rip’s crying at this point and John orders him to knock it off. John warns Rip that if they take care of this problem, Rip can never leave the Yellowstone. “You’ll be part of this ranch until the day you die,” says John, adding, “And you will do for this ranch what I say to do…no matter what that is.”
Obviously, Rip agrees. The ranch is his home and he’ll never leave.
So, Rip killed a man over Beth AND learned about the existence of the Duttons’ unofficial graveyard as a teen.
Flash-forward to current events and Jamie (Wes Bentley) is sharing his life story with Sarah (Dawn Olivieri). Jamie explains he was born to run a ranch and be a cowboy, but then John decided he needed to be a lawyer. John believed the future would be fought with a pen.
Jamie didn’t even apply to Harvard, yet he received an acceptance letter. Jamie knows John applied for him but doesn’t know who wrote the essay. Sarah assumes it was Beth, and Jamie confesses he never thought of that.
Jamie believes John hates him for becoming exactly what he forced him to become. Jamie’s lived without John’s love his whole life, and that’s okay. But he wants his approval.
Sarah believes John’s both jealous and scared of Jamie. John knows the ranch needs to evolve but is afraid to make any moves. Sarah also believes the United States’ cattle industry is in its death throes and will be gone in 20 years.
Sarah’s doing an awesome job of planting ideas in Jamie’s head and suggests he needs to tell all of Montana that the future is tourism. Jamie’s eating this up because he’s finally found a person who he thinks shares his vision.
Jamie admits the only thing he’s ever loved is the Yellowstone Ranch, and Sarah asks him to let her help save it. Of course, her definition of saving it is to rid the ranch of livestock and make it into a vacation destination complete with an airport.
And speaking of the Yellowstone, the cowboys exit their tents before the sun rises. Abby (Lainey Wilson) spent the night in Ryan’s tent, but she’s not about to get up early. They kiss before Ryan (Ian Bohen) heads out, grabs some grub, and gets to work with the rest of the bunkhouse boys.
Over in Kayce’s tent Monica (Kelsey Asbille) is crying happy tears. Watching Tate become a man fills her with happiness.
Rip (Cole Hauser) joins John (Kevin Costner) and John confesses this is his favorite part of ranching. Rip admits his favorite part is when it’s done, and John laughs.
“That part just makes me sad it’s over,” says John.
All the women left behind wander out of their tents, and Beth (Kelly Reilly) greets them with a cheerful, “Look at all you sluts.” Summer and Beth engage in good-natured banter about marriage before Summer takes off to grab a shower.
Monica’s been hanging back and after the other women leave, she asks Beth why she’s so mean. Beth thinks it’s fun to point out what everyone’s thinking but Monica believes it’s cruel. Beth explains the cowgirls need it, but Monica doesn’t – and that’s why she would never treat her that way.
Monica doesn’t want to be treated differently just because she lost a child. Beth disagrees and, for the first time ever, wants to talk about what happened to her as a teen. Beth asks Monica to keep it just between them and reveals she also lost a child. She confesses she feels the loss every day, and truly means it when she tells Monica she’s sorry for the loss of her baby boy.
Monica thinks keeping this secret is why Beth’s mean, but Beth explains she keeps it a secret because of all the people it would hurt. And she’s always been a b*tch – even before it happened.
Chairman Thomas Rainwater (Gil Birmingham) and Mo Brings Plenty meet with Senator Lynelle Perry (Wendy Moniz) at her request, and she explains the Department of Interior approved a natural gas pipeline and a captured carbon pipeline in central Montana. The pipelines will go through the reservation, and Thomas points out the Secretary of the Interior was just here and never mentioned anything.
Thomas looks at the proposed pathway and is shocked it runs beneath the reservation’s reservoir. Lynelle explains that the Interior chose the path of least resistance. They avoided State lands and privately held ranches due to possible lawsuits.
Lynelle will oppose this, but the reservation doesn’t have any legal recourse if the proposal’s approved. The only reason Lynelle’s telling Thomas this now is because his political rival, Martin, will use this issue against him. Lynelle thinks Thomas should get out in front of it and make a public statement against the pipelines. Maybe that will force the Interior to stop their plans.
They negotiate when and how to make their public statements, and Thomas wants Lynelle to stand with him when they hold a press conference. Thomas knows their joint statement will mean she’s supporting his re-election as chairman. Lynelle briefly thinks about it and agrees.
Thomas wants John to appear with them, but Lynelle thinks they have a snowball’s chance in hell of pulling him away from branding cattle.
Back on the ranch, Walker (Ryan Bingham) spots his third stillborn buffalo calf. Lloyd checks it out and then rides off to fill John and Rip in on the deaths. Jake rides up and reports he found two stillborn bison calves, and Kayce (Luke Grimes) indicates he’s also found stillborn calves.
John’s assistant, Clara (Lilli Kay), asks what happened and John believes it’s brucellosis. The cattle will have to be tested and if one has it, the State will destroy the entire herd.
At this point there’s nothing they can do until they get back to the corrals.
Once there, the branding gets underway and even Clara pitches in. Teeter’s impressed and says, “Look at that f**king girl power,” but because it’s Teeter-speak, Clara has no idea what she’s saying. Summer (Piper Perabo) is also recruited to dispense shots so the cattle won’t get sick. Summer delivers the shots while apologizing to the animals and appears to be on the verge of a nervous breakdown.
Ryan and Colby (Denim Richards) watch Summer from the sidelines, unable to look away from this trainwreck. They’re next up to hold onto the calf as Summer gives the injection and she can’t stop repeating, “This is traumatizing.” Finally, Ryan and Colby have to yell at her to move faster because she’s so upset about the poor animals.
Rip, Kayce, and John discuss what might happen, and Kayce confirms the State will give the ranch money if it has to kill the herd. But it won’t be what they’re worth. John points out the herd’s insured, but 100 years of genetics will be wiped out.
If one tests positive, then it’s over for the herd. Unfortunately, there’s a bigger problem facing the ranch now if the herd is okay. They can’t use that south pasture where the dead bison calves were found, the lower valley’s dry, and there will be nothing to eat.
Kayce thinks they can send the calves to Nebraska, but John believes that will cost too much. John’s going to call around for acres to lease; that’s the only workable solution. They would need to send half the herd away for at least a year.
If half the herd’s moved down south, cowboys will need to go too to watch over them.
Rip calls Lloyd (Forrie J. Smith) over and explains the situation. If the herd goes, Rip will go with them and he’ll take Teeter (Jen Landon), Jake, Ryan, Walker, and Gator. Lloyd volunteers to go in Rip’s place so that Rip won’t be separated from Beth. Rip appreciates the offer, but as ranch manager, it’s his responsibility.
They’ll leave as soon as John signs the lease.
Rip huddles with the cowboys and tells them they’ll be heading down south with him. Ryan glances at Abby as Rip says they’ll be gone for a while. Walker’s all smiles, happy they’ll be doing some real “cowboy sh*t” now. And Jake and Teeter thank Rip for picking them.
Rip notices Ryan looking at Abby and asks if this is going to be a problem. Ryan assures him there’s nothing he’d rather do. He also thanks Rip for picking him.
Before Ryan walks away, Rip hands him cash and says to take the bunkhouse to the fair. After all, Ryan and the chosen cowboys won’t be seeing a town for quite a while.
Inside the big house, John picks up a Swarovski crystal decanter, ready to break it in frustration. Beth points out it’s 100 years old and was his dad’s. She all but orders him to pick something else to destroy. John listens and pours a drink instead. He explains what’s happening with the herd and that they’ll need to be moved to an area far enough south so that it doesn’t snow.
John thinks they’ll need at least 100,000 acres at $12-14 an acre. Beth does the math and comes up with $1.4 million a year. John corrects her – it’s $1.4 million a month! Beth’s shocked and says they don’t have that. John knows that and will have to take a loan.
Beth wants her dad to sell the cattle now, but John points out that would mean they don’t have any income next year. Beth counters that they don’t have any income this year if they move the cattle and that the ranch never turns a profit.
It’s Beth’s turn to want to break things.
They continue to work out possible solutions, and Beth asks about selling the heifers and the steers. That could be $1,100 each, which is less than $1.50 per pound. Beth can’t believe that’s true since steaks sell for $30 and even ground beef costs $5.
John replies, “We don’t sell beef; we sell cattle.”
“We’re in the wrong f**king business!” says Beth.
They argue over the ranch’s business model, with Beth taking the side that they’re running a failing business. The valley’s now full of vacation homes and hobby farms because other ranchers have had to call it quits.
Beth storms off and John begins making calls to find acres to lease.
Jamie arrives at work and his assistant informs him Sarah Atwood and Ellis Steele are in his office. She also confesses she’s worried about him being with Sarah. After fumbling through “I’m not [with her],” Jamie thanks his assistant for sharing her opinion.
Sarah and Ellis demand to know how Jamie could let John put his ranch in a land trust and the land in a conservation easement. Jamie had no idea John did this and although he could fight it, he’d be going against deep-pocket environmental groups. (I’m confused. They knew about the conservation easement. A press conference announcing it was held in episode three, and that’s when Market Equities’ CEO said to turn Sarah loose. Maybe Jamie didn’t know about the land trust portion of the agreement?)
Jamie’s so shocked by John’s action that he screams, “F**k!” followed by “God damn it!”
Jamie dismisses Ellis and Sarah, needing time to figure out his next move but Sarah stays seated. She explains Market Equities will now sue the State and will likely win a $4 billion settlement since the State negotiated in bad faith. $4 billion is 10% of Montana’s GDP, meaning the state will go bankrupt.
Sarah suggests this sounds like an impeachable offense. Jamie agrees. And if John resigns or steps down, Montana will hold a special election. Sarah confirms Market Equities is committed to electing Jamie and their PAC will fund his campaign.
Sarah tells Jamie to address the assembly. Now’s his chance to become governor and get the land back.
Beth begins doing research on beef and calls Four Sixes Ranch Beef, a company she found online. The man on the phone’s super helpful and confirms the beef is from their cattle and they usually sell out and even buy cattle from neighboring ranches. The only catch is that you have to feed your herd for two years before you make any money.
Beth shows her dad the Four Sixes’ website and suggests John obtain a loan to replicate what they’re doing. John’s a rancher but Beth’s a businesswoman who’s made $50-100 million deals, and she has the skills to figure out how to make the Yellowstone do what the Four Sixes is successfully doing.
Rip joins them and John has secured land, so Rip needs to hire trucks. Rip asks Beth to go with him to the county fair and she agrees.
Rip tells Carter to get washed up for the fair, but Carter’s upset Rip’s going to be leaving with the herd. Rip assures him it will be okay.
A short while later, everyone’s at the fair having a fun time, including Kayce, Monica, and Tate. John and Summer are also there and even pose for photos with people who want pictures of the governor.
Teeter orders Colby to win her a pink bear (she says “bar”) at a ball toss booth, and Colby’s sure he can’t do it. Colby doesn’t even look and tosses the first two balls in the 500 hole. He can’t believe they went it and is ready to aim for the third ball but Abby, Ryan, and Teeter tell him not to jinx it. He looks away and wins the bear. Teeter demands it but the poor guy can’t understand what she’s saying. Ryan, Abby, and Colby interpret Teeter-speak.
Night arrives and the group settles in to listen to music. Rip thinks he might be gone for a year, and Beth doesn’t think she can survive without him that long. She’s going to go with him, but she’ll fly and meet him there. And she’ll rent a suite at the nearest Hyatt and meet him for happy hour.
Ryan and the bunkhouse boys also talk about the year they’ll be gone, and Abby’s pissed Ryan didn’t tell her before this. Ryan compares moving 5,000 cattle to a land he doesn’t know to her singing at the Grand Ole Opry. It’s every cowboy’s dream. They kiss and Abby understands he’s chasing his dream. She wishes the dream was her, but it’s not. She walks away and doesn’t look back.
John confesses to Summer that looking around at all these people reminds him this lifestyle is dying. Summer regrets judging John and his family. She understands much more about what it means to be a rancher and respects it. Summer thinks John should invite some of those 12 million tourists who come to Montana to the ranch to show them what they do there and get them to understand the ranch’s importance. It will change their minds about who cowboys are and what their impact is on the environment.
John claims he doesn’t care what people think and kisses Summer in public. (He does use his cowboy hat to shield the PDA from at least some of the crowd.)
The episode ends with Jamie rehearsing the speech he plans to deliver to the assembly, urging them to impeach his dad. The teaser for episode eight confirms he’s going through with it. Jamie’s openly going to war with John and Beth.
- Luke Grimes and Kelsey Asbille Talk Yellowstone Season 5
- Yellowstone Season 5: Wes Bentley Interview on Jamie’s Shattered Relationships
- 1923 Episode 1 Recap: Introducing a New Generation of Duttons
- Yellowstone Season 4 Episode 10 “Grass on the Streets and Weeds on the Rooftops” Finale Recap
- Yellowstone Season 5 Episode 1 “One Hundred Years is Nothing” Recap
- Yellowstone Season 5 Episode 2 “The Sting of Wisdom” Recap
- Yellowstone Season 5 Episode 3 “Tall Drink of Water” Recap
- Yellowstone Season 5 Episode 4 “Horses in Heaven” Recap
- Yellowstone Season 5 Episode 5 “Watch ‘Em Ride Away” Recap
- Yellowstone Season 5 Episode 6 “Cigarettes, Whiskey, a Meadow and You” Recap
- Yellowstone Season 5 Episode 8 “A Knife and No Coin” Recap
