6 Details You Might Have Missed In The ‘Yellowstone’ Midseason Finale

Kelly ReillyJune 3, 2023

0 1,312 4 minutes read

Warning: There are some spoilers ahead for “Yellowstone” season five, episode eight.
Jamie went with his plan to get John impeached, and the cowboys begin their journey down south.
Insider broke down some details you may have missed in Sunday’s midseason finale.

Jimmy, a character who hasn’t been seen since season four, made a return.

After being heavily foreshadowed in episode seven, the show crossed state lines to catch up with Jimmy Hurdstrom (Jefferson White), who’s now working and living on the 6666 Ranch.

Viewers saw that Jimmy has finally settled into life as a ranch hand — even if he occasionally misses breakfast so he can spend more time in bed with his vet-tech fiancée, Emily (Kathryn Kelly).

Their loved-up bubble will perhaps burst when Yellowstone cowboys Ryan (Ian Bohen), Teeter (Jennifer Landon), Walker (Ryan Bingham), and Jake (Jake Ream), led by the ranch manager Rip Wheeler (Cole Hauser), arrive, though it’s not clear yet where this storyline will take audiences.

Carter’s exchange with his new love interest, Halie, mirrors an exchange between Rip and Beth in the first episode of the season.

There are many ways in which we’ve seen Carter (Finn Little) parallel Rip’s own journey as a ranch hand. Both were taken in at the ranch as orphans and transformed from rebellious teens into hardworking and respected members of the team that keeps Yellowstone ticking.

In a sweet nod to Young Rip (Kyle Red Silverstein) and Young Beth’s (Kylie Rogers) first date, shown in the season-five premiere, the latest episode showed Carter land a date with a young girl who seems just as free-spirited and strongheaded as Beth.

When Halie (Orli Gottesman) approached Carter after the workday, she asked him if he wanted to get out of there and head into town.

“I don’t have a truck. I’m just a dumb cowboy,” he told her.

As viewers will recall, Rip found himself in a similar position when Beth asked him on a date before she left for college, though she let him “play man” and drive them to Bozeman for their disastrous bar date.

Luke Grimes’ debut country song, “No Horse to Ride,” can be heard during the episode.

“Yellowstone” has become known for shining a spotlight on up-and-coming artists via its country-leaning soundtrack, and this episode turned that spotlight back on one of its own with the inclusion of a new song from Luke Grimes.

The actor, 38, released his debut single, “No Horse to Ride,” in mid-December. With lyrics including “All hat and no cattle and some tumbleweed boots,” it fit perfectly into the show during the montage of the cowboys from the ranch preparing for their big move down to Texas.

Audiences might be interested to know that Grimes’ love of music might’ve come before his love for acting — a press release from Universal Music Group Nashville said he grew up playing music in church as the son of a Pentecostal pastor.

There’s a tongue-in-cheek mention of Travis, the cowboy played by the series cocreator Taylor Sheridan.

While Rip prepared the trucks of cattle for their relocation to the 6666 Ranch, John Dutton asked him if there was a crew to receive them at the other end.

“Travis says he’s got one,” Rip answered with a chuckle.

As longtime fans will recall, Travis Wheatley is a horse trainer and rodeo competitor from the 6666 who was last seen in season four when he took Jimmy with him down to his ranch as a favor to the Duttons.

The role is a meta one for Sheridan: The 52-year-old actor turned filmmaker is an accomplished rider who’s competed in western horse-riding competitions throughout his life.

We wonder whether Travis will make an onscreen return after the midseason break.

Kayce revealed more details about the vision he saw in the season-four finale.

Before the episode closes out, Kayce finally confirms what he saw while on his hallucinogenic journey in season four in which he uttered the ominous words “I saw the end of us.”

“In my vision, the choice that I saw was between this place and you,” he told Monica (Kelsey Asbille) in the latest installment.

There had been speculation that this was the impossible choice he’d seen when presented with two paths at the end of his spiritual journey: to either live as a Dutton on the ranch or live with Monica as a member of the Broken Rock Indian Reservation.

Though the couple seem hopeful that their move to East Camp may let them bypass having to choose, this looks like a storyline that will continue into the second half of season five and beyond.

The episode ends with a dedication to someone close to Sheridan and connected to the 6666 Ranch.

As the screen fades to black after Kayce and Lloyd (Forrie J. Smith) prepare the final trucks of cattle to be moved away from the ranch and down south, an in-memoriam message appears.

“In loving memory of Dr. Glenn Blodgett,” it reads, adding that he was a horse division manager at the 6666 Ranch, a real ranch in Texas owned by Sheridan.

An obituary on the ranch’s website says Blodgett, known as “Doc” to those who worked with him, died at 73 on November 20 from a complication from surgery. He had worked for Burnett Ranches, a part of the historic 6666, for 40 years.

In-memoriam tributes are how TV shows typically honor someone who had a significant impact on the work, directly or indirectly. Viewers have seen “Yellowstone” pay tribute to crew and cast members and even country legends such as the musician John Prine.

Given that scenes set on the 6666 Ranch are filmed on location and that many horses are featured in the Paramount Network drama, Blodgett likely played an important role in ensuring animal welfare on set — though he wasn’t credited — and was familiar to people who’ve worked on the show.