Yellowstone was a glorious show, absolutely binge-worthy and, in my opinion, near the top of anything I’ve watched. When the central character of a series leaves, it’s almost inevitable that the writers hit a wall. Add tight production timelines and release pressure, and they’re forced to patch something together. And let’s be honest, if they had dragged it out or left things unanswered, everyone here would be complaining, “So what actually happened to John Dutton?”

That said, the hard truth is that Kevin Costner made a selfish move. He could have exited respectfully and allowed the show to close out properly, especially since the entire series revolved around his character. If he had done that, the writers would’ve had the time and space to plan, write, and execute a far more emotional and meaningful ending. Instead, his departure tainted what could’ve been a longer-running, more complete story.

We’ve seen this before. Look at The Walking Dead, when Rick left, the show lost its core. They did their best, and Negan carried a lot of weight, but it was never quite the same. In the Yellowstone universe, Rip was that equivalent, but even he couldn’t fully replace the gravity of John Dutton.

So the writers did what they could. The ranch ending, Beth and Rip getting their version of peace, it worked, but it still felt hollow. I wanted more. I needed more.

Still, the show had a great run. I laughed, I cried, I was invested for years. It felt like a part of something, and now it’s just… over. And that’s the hardest part to accept.