Yellowstone Season 5, Episode 1, 'One Hundred Years is Nothing' Recap & Spoilers (2024)

The Yellowstone Season 5 premiere picks up some time after Season 4 concluded -- enough time not only for John Dutton to run for governor of Montana but for his bid to prove successful. The episode opens with John awaiting the election results and receiving a phone call from the opposing candidate, conceding the race and assuring his constituents that Dutton will work for all of Montana.

When John goes out to give his celebratory speech, his son Jamie,requests to introduce him. Jamie highlights that John is a fifth-generation rancher and a founding member of the state before welcoming John to the stage, calling attention to the Duttons' claim to the land. John calls Montana's most valuable resource its people and promises to protect their way of life: living with the land and ranching it. With sad and meaningful looks between Jamie and his sister Beth, the premiere sets up long-term Dutton family drama for Season 5 while establishing John's desire to work only for the part of Montana that ranches.

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In one of their only scenes in the premiere, Chief Rainwater and Mo discuss whether John's rise to Governor is positive. They note that it will kill the hotel and airport plans, saying that it will be good for the land but bad for them. Market Equities' Caroline and Ellis react to John's appointment as well, with Caroline losing her temper but Ellis noting that Jamie doesn't seem to be relishing his father's victory. They've noted Jamie as a weak spot in the Dutton armor, and they plan on bringing in a ringer to deal with him.

In one of the flashbacks teased by actor Cole Hauser, a young Beth and Rip flirt on the ranch before agreeing to head into town on a date. Rip admits to not knowing what a martini is, and when Beth shows off her cleavage to order one because she's underage, the two start to fight. Rip is flustered and uncomfortable with Beth letting other people look at her, and Beth reminds him that she will wield whatever power she has in whatever way she wants. Rip bolts, leaving Beth alone at the bar. Other ranch hands he meets on his way back home tell him that if Beth's this much trouble already, she's not worth it. Later that night, Beth comes home with the ranch hands and aggressively makes out with one in front of Rip.

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Back in the present day, Beth wakes up in the house she shares with Rip. The two discuss how they each need John. Rip says they're calving and asks when the Yellowstone ranch will get its owner back, and Beth tells him it'll be four, maybe eight years until he's finished as Governor and available again. The series is setting the stage for the struggle John will face between working in the ruthless world of politics and working his own ranch and shows off the people drawing him to each side. Beth changes the topic by offering Rip a blanket apology for how she acted in the past, saying she was awful to him and robbed them of time together. Rip tells her he's happy with her and the life they have. He says she needs to find someone else to fight and something that makes her happy.

As they prepare for a meeting, John tells Lynelle that the politicians could feed a lot of hungry people with the breakfast buffet on display for them. Lynelle takes the chance to tell John that he has no friends on staff -- that everyone will be pushing for their own agendas and that John will have to bring his own people. When John laments taking on this role, Lynelle reminds him that she wanted his son Jamie to do it because she could control him. John tells her that he's easy to bribe, reminding her (and viewers) of their occasional sexual encounters and John's not strictly above-board modus operandi.

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Kayce then makes his first appearance, leading a team of Livestock agents in a horseback stunt sequence after a group of horse thieves near the Canadian border. As the thieves approach the river dividing the two countries, they see Canadian police on the opposite side and quickly rush the horses across the river, remarking that they'd rather go to jail in Canada than America. Kayce follows them to drive the thieves back into America. When one bolts hoping for the relief of the Canadian judicial system, Kayce lassos him and drags him back. Kayce uses the threat of the American judicial system to get the Canadian team to agree that the thieves and the horses they stole should remain in America. He implies the Canadians are sheep before riding off.

Back in the city, John seems hesitant at his swearing-in ceremony. The official asks him to state his name three times before Beth approaches and encourages him to start the oath of office. Afterward, John announces to the gathered crowd that his first act will be to cancel funding for the Paradise Valley airport project and surrounding developments -- just as Chief Rainwater and Market Equities guessed. He then promises to increase property and sales taxes for non-residents. Jamie remarks to Beth that he's not sure if such policies are legal and that this will set the state back 30 years. She promises that their goal is to set it back 100.

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As the family leaves the ceremony, Beth pours a drink for her dad in the car. When Jamie asks for one, she refuses. John orders Beth to make Jamie a drink; she still refuses, so John hands Jamie his own drink and asks Beth for another. The strange and strained moment shows that Jamie may be working his way into his father's good graces, even if Beth is still out to get him. Beth and Jamie fight about canceling the airport funding and taking campaign money.

John laments that he's made a mess of things in his family and tells Jamie to do exactly what he says for the next four years because he makes choices for Montana based on whether they're good for the ranch. John asks for confidentiality from the driver, who agrees and says he'd do exactly what John is doing in his position. John asks that this be his driver every time.

The Yellowstone ranch is hosting John's inauguration celebration, and the ranch hands dress up in their logo regalia to visit the open bar, play lasso games and dance in the corrals. At the fancy dinner, John talks about how he hadn't spent a night away from his ranch since he took over running it until the campaign and now this is the first time he's been home in over a month. Beth goes to sit with Rip on the outskirts of the party, where he admits he's worried about the ranch. He believes that even with -- or because of -- John as governor, they'll end up losing it.

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A very pregnant Monica tells Kayce that she's having serious cramps even though she's three weeks before her due date. As she speeds with her son Tate to the hospital, her pain diverts her attention from the road. Combined with a wayward buffalo and distracted oncoming traffic, Monica gets into an accident. She and Tate survive, but her unborn child -- which she and Kayce named John -- does not make it in another shocking death this TV season. It's unclear whether the cause of death was complications that caused the cramps sending Monica to the hospital or the accident itself.

Back on the ranch, a grown-up Carter offers to saddle a horse for John, but he tells the kid he doesn't have the time. John gets in the car only to find out they have to detour to visit Kayce, Monica, and Tate at the hospital. There he learns about the death of his grandson and namesake as he watches his son hold the injured body of his wife. For the first time in a long time, the entire Dutton family -- including squabbling siblings Beth and Jamie -- are united and together, but in mourning at Yellowstone's latest tragedy.

Yellowstone continues with new episodes Sundays at 8:00 p.m. on Paramount Network.