Abhiroop Das
Created by Taylor Sheridan, Paramount+’s ‘Landman‘ taps into the life of Tommy Norris, the newly appointed president of M-Tex, who has to manage both his complex relationships at home and a constant inflow of workplace troubles. When his son, Cooper, tries to start his own oil-rigging ventures, Gallino, a figure from the past, appears. Tommy is once again reminded that he has no shortage of enemies, many of whom do not shy away from using his loved ones as bargaining chips. Still, with a multi-billion-dollar company to run, he has no choice but to weather the storm. In the previous episode, Tommy and T.L.‘s road trip to Fort Worth turns into a family trip, one that is contrasted by Gallino closing the deal with Cami, against Tommy’s advice. In this episode, titled ‘Forever is an Instant,’ the three main relationships of this western drama series take center stage. SPOILERS AHEAD.
Rebecca Learns of Some Bad News About the Offshore Rig
Season 2 episode 7, ‘Landman’, begins with the Norris family celebrating a weekend in Fort Worth. However, the morning quickly turns sour for Tommy when a hotel server walks in on him naked. Turns out, Angela wanted to surprise him with an in-room breakfast, but that plan is now seemingly out of the window. Elsewhere, Tommy and Ariana have a far more pleasant morning experience, as they discuss how things went between Cooper and Elvio’s mother. With him having passed yet another test, he is now one step closer to actually marrying the love of his life, and that brings in both anxiety and euphoria. Rebecca and Newsom have a cozy morning of their own, as she wakes up to him grilling in the open sun, and joins him.
Newsom and Rebecca seem to have a connection with each other, but the conversation quickly takes a more serious turn. While Rebecca plans to have Newsom meet Cooper and Cami to finish up the offshore rig plan, things are not as easy as she initially thought. For starters, Newsom’s ability to predict oil fields does not guarantee success, as there are too many environmental factors to consider. With roughly a 10% chance at success, Rebecca finds herself defaulting to the earlier, riskier plan of reconstructing the original rig that was destroyed in a hurricane. However, here she learns of a second twist: it is impossible for a hurricane to have damaged a rig that typically lies hundreds of meters underwater. Monty‘s reports appear to be fabricated, further complicating the situation.
Boss’s Birthday Party Gives Way to a Reflective Mood For Everyone
In Fort Worth, Tommy and company prepare for an awkward journey back home. Tommy and Angela’s morning fight is implied to have extended well into the noon, and that means Angela is far from her usual bubbly self on the ride to the chartered plane that will take her home with Ainsley. Tommy and T.L. choose to ride the car the entire way, bisecting the family saga evenly into two. From there, the scene cuts to Tommy’s main oil rig team, who are gearing up, not for work, but for Boss’s birthday party. Having worked with M-Tex for two decades at this point, Boss is one of their most trusted employees. However, he has plans to shift to Houston soon, and that means bidding this job goodbye. The celebration, as such, also doubles as a farewell party of sorts, and Dale acknowledges Boss’s contribution to the company.
Tommy and T.L.’s journey goes about as chaotically as expected, including a middle-of-the-road pee-break that has T.L. barely avoid a snake. For Angela and Ainsley, things are far calmer and become more entertaining when they are joined by Cooper. Ainsley’s longstanding banter with her brother continues, but that doesn’t detract from his main purpose of visiting. An excited Angela hands him her own engagement ring, which is as glowing as ever. However, Cooper has big plans in mind, and the first step is a local boutique, where he buys an entire load of rose petals to hand-craft the perfect marriage proposal.
Cooper Gets Down on One Knee at Last
By the time Rebecca makes it back to Tommy’s home, she is at a complete loss about how to deal with the oil rig crisis. While recounting the dilemma to Nathan, she refers to Newsom as Charlie, his nickname, as opposed to Charles or Newsom. This is all Nathan needs to figure out that she is dating him, directly going against M-Tex regulations. In a particularly twisted move, he makes her sign a conflict of interest form, threatening that it can affect her job at the company. Still, they have a situation to deal with, and Monty’s string of lies only makes things worse, not better. As it stands, M-Tex has two options: either to gamble all $400 million on a 10% chance of success or to duke it out with the insurance company in court, where a jury might as well stomp them within minutes. In either scenario, Newsom is expected to meet Tommy soon.
On their way home, Tommy and T.L. take a quick break at a diner, where they drink beer and discuss their favorite topic, family. Once again, T.L. lists out how his son has just about everything a man could wish for, but is too caught up in his own professional circle to nurture the connections he already has. Coming from T.L., a man who has had a particularly difficult life, Tommy finally gets the wakeup call he needs and returns home with a renewed mindset. The first person he meets is Rebecca, who by now is nearly on the verge of tears. She wants to be the first to tell him about her relationship with Newsom, but is surprised to find out that Tommy simply does not care. However, he does realize that Nathan forcing the rulebook on her is excessive at best and a sign of jealousy at worst.
When it’s time for supper, the family sits down together, but this time it is Tommy who makes the first move. After inviting Angela for a walk, he earnestly apologizes for every time he has been rude or dismissive thus far. For Angela, this comes as a watershed moment, and she expresses that all she needs in this relationship is love. With this, the couple patches up, and the scene shifts to Ariana, who comes home to find candle lights and a trail of rose petals. At the end of that trail stands Cooper, who by this point is a nervous wreck. Ariana is scared too, as the weight of this committment really sets in for her just as much. However, when Cooper finally asks for her hand in marriage, the answer is a resounding yes, ending the episode on the happiest of notes.
Read More: Is Landman a True Story? Is Tommy Norris Based on a Real Landman?
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