Rip Wheeler Keeps A Yellowstone Tradition Alive In Dutton Ranch Episode 2

• Television
• Drama Shows

"Yellowstone" might have wrapped up with its controversial fifth season, but there's plenty more melodrama to come. We've already seen Luke Grimes' Kayce Dutton mount up once again in "Marshals," a spin-off that has (unfortunately) continued some depressing "Yellowstone" trends. Now, the second spin-off, "Dutton Ranch," has arrived, and it seems the show will also continue some "Yellowstone" traditions. In Episode 2, for example, we see Cole Hauser's Rip Wheeler recruit his newest wrangler from a prison, just like Kevin Costner's John Dutton taught him.

In "Yellowstone" Season 1, Episode 4 ("The Long Black Train"), Rip informs John Dutton that wrangler Fred Myers (Luke Peckinpah) has been dismissed from his job. "Replace him with someone who wears a brand," says John, to which Rip asks, "You got a cowboy in mind?" This is when John tells him to "do it like my daddy did it" and "get somebody from the prison." In Episode 5, "Coming Home," Rip follows through on his orders, waiting outside a prison and calling over Ryan Bingham's Walker as he walks out of the gates a free man. During this first meeting, Walker even talks about having worked on ranches in Texas, including the Four Sixes that's currently owned by "Yellowstone" creator and alarmingly prolific TV impresario Taylor Sheridan in real life.

Now, "Dutton Ranch" is calling back to these early "Yellowstone" episodes by having Rip once again pull up outside a correctional facility and recruit his next ranch hand directly from the gates.

Rip Wheeler is still following orders from John Dutton in Dutton Ranch

Now that Beth Dutton (Kelly Reilly) and Rip Wheeler have relocated to Texas, their operation is significantly more small-scale than the sprawling Yellowstone Dutton Ranch. When the spin-off begins, the Dutton Ranch, located in the South Texas town of Rio Paloma, has just one ranch hand assisting Rip, who soon decides to bring in new blood.

"Dutton Ranch" Episode 2, "Earn Another Day," includes a scene that's almost identical to the one from "Yellowstone" in which Rip recruits Walker. The Dutton Ranch owner sits in his car outside a prison and waits for newly-released convicts to exit. This time, he spots Marc Menchaca's Zachariah Moss, a cowboy who was locked up for some as yet unconfirmed offense but who has deep ties to the local area. After asking the newly-freed cowboy some questions, Rip tells him to get in the truck, thereby keeping the longstanding Dutton tradition alive in Texas.

When Zachariah arrives, we learn he and the existing ranch hand, J. R. Villarreal's Azul, go way back and that Azul's father, Hector, was the only one who didn't turn his back when Zachariah did whatever he did to land himself in jail. No doubt, we'll discover just what that was as the season goes on, but, for now, Zachariah is living proof that John Dutton's influence lives on — though considering how he was responsible for some of the worst deeds on "Yellowstone," that might not be a good thing.

You can stream "Dutton Ranch" on Paramount+