Yellowstone Finale Argues The Importance Of Taylor Sheridan's Forgotten Prequel

Spoiler Alert for 1883 & Yellowstone season 5, episode 14, "Life Is A Promise"

The Yellowstone season 5 finale concludes some of the franchise's best stories, including one that began years ago in a prequel series. Yellowstone creator Taylor Sheridan also launched the prequel series 1883 and 1923 after starting the flagship series, and they weave into the modern-day Dutton family tree. When Kayce sells the ranch to the Broken Rock Tribe in the Yellowstone season 5 finale, he pays off a vital tale from a different show, highlighting how important the beginning of the Dutton story is in 1883.

Paramount Network stages a super-sized finale as Yellowstone season 5, episode 14 has a lot of ground to cover. Beth and Jamie resolve their enduring war, the Broken Rock Tribe stops the pipeline on their land, and John Dutton is laid to rest. Kayce and Beth can finally start their next chapter after selling the Yellowstone Ranch to Thomas Rainwater and Broken Rock. However, the ending of the show was long revealed, arguing the importance of another Sheridan series.

Yellowstone's Ending Was Long Revealed In 1883

1883 Is The Ultimate Yellowstone Spoiler

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Long before Kayce revealed that he was giving the Yellowstone Ranch away in Yellowstone season 5, episode 13, Sheridan established the ending of the flagship series. In the 1883 finale, the Yellowstone prequel series saw John Dutton III's great-great-grandfather, James Dutton, settling in the Paradise Valley in Montana, where the family would live for the next 140 years. James found the valley due to a Crow elder named Spotted Eagle, who told him about the lush area due to his daughter's unfortunate fate, saying they could settle the Crow people's land with a significant caveat.

Spotted Eagle told James Dutton that his people would congregate in seven generations to take the land back from him. James Dutton said that his family would surrender the land when that time came, and Kayce's actions followed through on that promise. This makes the Yellowstone season 5 finale all the more satisfying for those who witnessed the Dutton family's arduous journey from Texas to Montana in a covered wagon. Moreover, if Yellowstone viewers aren't familiar with the prequel, they might be more inclined to view it now, seeing its ties to Kayce, Beth, and John Dutton III's story.

Elsa Dutton's Yellowstone Ending Monologue Perfectly Wraps Up The Ranch's Story

Isabel May Returns To Wrap Up Yellowstone's Story

Elsa Dutton's Yellowstone story encompasses her family's journey, and an understanding of the character and her father's promise to Montana's Indigenous people saturates the Yellowstone season finale with intention. While Yellowstone's 1883 story includes Elsa's entire family and a group of emigrants, the tale is narrated from her perspective as she has a coming-of-age experience in the wilderness she travels. After her death, Elsa's narration returns throughout 1923 sporadically.

May's monologue could have felt out of place for those unfamiliar with her character, highlighting the importance of watching 1883 to immerse oneself fully in Sheridan's Yellowstone.

Isabel May's narration as Elsa Dutton features in Sheridan's Yellowstone prequels, but her voice never emerged in the main show. That changes in the finale when Elsa explains her father's promise to the Native Americans and the majesty of their untouched ranch. The Dutton family journey begins with Elsa, so it's fitting she would send the Yellowstone Ranch off with her narration. However, May's monologue could have felt out of place for those unfamiliar with her character, highlighting the importance of watching 1883 to immerse oneself fully in Sheridan's Yellowstone.