Abhiroop Das
Created by Chad Feehan, Paramount+’s ‘Dutton Ranch‘ is at once a spin-off and sequel to ‘Yellowstone.’ Following the events of its progenitor, the western drama series captures the lives of Beth Dutton and Rip Wheeler. The setting takes us to Rio Paloma, a place that brings its own challenges and rivalries. Surrounded by strangers who may or may not be their enemies in the making, Beth and Rip struggle to make the new place their home and give Carter a life safe from the horrors they have witnessed. However, fate seems to have other plans, as the season inaugurates with a fire threatening to lick up their ranch, and continues with a host of new setbacks for the couple. In the previous episode, a deadly disease sweeps through Rip and Beth’s cattle, just as Carter and Oreana begin to fall in love. In this episode, titled ‘Start with a Bullet,’ both of these arcs coincide, bringing the characters to make decisions that might be too hard to swallow. SPOILERS AHEAD.
Beth and Rip Make the Toughest Choice of Their Ranching Career Thus Far
‘Dutton Ranch’ episode 4 begins the morning after Beth learns that all of the cattle have been affected by foot-and-mouth disease. With even the littlest of calves limping and frothing at the mouth, there remains only one grim solution in Rip’s mind: killing all of the cows before the disease can turn into a local epidemic. Rip is certain that all of this can be traced back to the bull they recently purchased in the Rio Paloma auction. While his official records show perfectly clean blood work, Rip suspects that the bull has been illegally shipped from Mexico, and this might just be a ploy against the Duttons. Still, realizing what needs to be done, Beth decides to send Carter away, only to walk in on him having sex with Oreana.
The fact that Carter has been skipping school makes for a tense situation as is, but it also doesn’t help that Oreana is a part of the Jackson family, who are not on the best of terms with the Duttons. Putting this star-crossed love story on hold, Beth decides to drive Oreana back home. There, she meets Beulah yet again, and though the latter tries to extend an olive branch, Beth opts for reservedness, knowing that there are most likely enemies sprouting somewhere in town as they speak. Once she’s gone, Beulah explodes on Oreana, ultimately taking away her credit card and assigning her a permanent bodyguard, ending the chances of her sneaking out with Carter anytime soon. Oblivious to all of this, Carter spends the morning looking for a job at the local community center, where several ranchers have come to shop or supply.
Carter may be skilled and strong, but the fact that he doesn’t have his own horse puts a dent in his hireability. However, just when he’s about to give up hope, a lone rancher invites him to do manual labor in return for minimal cash but a constant supply of food. Meanwhile, Beth tries calling up the veterinary hospital that is registered as the bull’s caretaker, but is surprised to find that no such records actually exist. Elsewhere, Everett too gets a call to help a pregnant mare deliver her calf, except this time it’s from 10 Petal Ranch. Even more curiously, when he goes there, there is no mare that needs assistance, as all of this turns out to be an elaborate plan by Beulah to get him to sit and chat.
Beulah and Everett Have a Past That Cuts Deeper Than Expected
While we don’t get a lot of insight into Beulah and Everett’s complicated past from this tiny conversation, one major detail revealed is that Everett had a son named Levi, who died at a young age. He brings up a tire tied to a tree in front of his house, which has weathered many a summer, winter, and monsoon but refuses to fall, constantly, bitterly reminding him of someone who used to be the joy of his life. It’s unclear whether Beulah is the boy’s mother, but she seems to empathize strongly with what Everett has been feeling for decades now. Though she offers him a chance to escape all of this and go on a trip with her, the master veterinarian bids his goodbye, leaving her in suppressed tears.
With Beth completing her research into the bull, the hard part of the day finally begins, as she purchases what most likely won’t be enough alcohol to pour down the guilt. Meanwhile, Azul and Zachariah buy all the material needed to create a mass burial for the cows, including several cartridges. Rip is waiting at the ranch and decides on the division of labor. While he and Beth bring the entire herd to the designated point, Zachariah and Azul are to dig a hole wide enough and set up perimeters. The plan works smoothly, only to give way to a scene of pure tragedy, as Rip arms himself with the shotgun and kills every single cow in his cattle. The last to be shot is, ironically enough, the calf he nearly lost his life saving, as such is the nature of tragedy.
Rip and Beth Take Revenge on the Corrupt Auctioneer Who Cost Them the Herd
Carter’s day appears to be going much better, as he learns the inner workings of ranches in a way the Duttons couldn’t have taught him. When things get tiring, the mystery man asks him to sit by and relax with a chilled beer, discussing how he has lived quite the eccentric life. His words aren’t just all for show, however, as he eventually gets up to show Carter his most prized possession in the entire ranch: an African leopard that he has kept in a cage this entire time. While the sight strikes Carter with awe, he remembers that Beth has specifically told him to take Oreana out for dinner. However, that too makes for a near impossible task, as Oreana’s new bodyguard is too stern to listen to any of her arguments or entertain her escape attempts.
Elsewhere in the 10 Petal Ranch, Beulah reaches out to her son, Joaquin, in a moment of particular vulnerability. Having given her all to ranching, she feels burnt out and lonely, and yet she feels uncertain about handing over the reins to Joaquin. Beth and Rip, on the other hand, go off on a wild adventure of their own, as they have just confirmed that the blood reports of the bull were indeed faked. Storming the house of the auctioner who conned them, Rip beats him black and blue before forcing him to run. Beth finishes the deal by setting the house on fire, and yet not even that can help either of them live down what they have had to do today. At home, Beth’s surprised to find Carter back early, and he confronts her about trying to cocoon him, before storming off. Rip, meanwhile, cannot even bring himself to step into the house and chooses to lie on the ground and let the stars condemn his fate.
Read More: Where is Dutton Ranch Filmed?
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