Jamie's Betrayal Was Totally Justified, According to Yellowstone Fans
In the episode of Yellowstone "The Dream Is Not Me" (S5, E7), Jamie Dutton (Wes Bentley) is preparing to disrupt a dynasty. He confides with Sarah Atwood, a savvy businesswoman with Market Equities, that the Yellowstone Ranch is the only thing he ever truly loved.
However, it appears the young lawyer also has his eyes on something else, as Sarah manipulates and convinces Jamie into considering ultimate betrayal. She visits his office to discuss the conservation easement Governor Dutton recently placed on the property. Sarah explains the move is impeachable and that if he decides to run for governor in a special election, has the resources to get Jamie elected.
"He resents you, he's scared of you," Sarah reassures a skeptical Jamie. In the final moments of the episode, Jamie rehearses a speech in front of Atwood that prepares to damage the credibility of his father.
Of course, it's hard to argue with the closing moments of the episode not coming across as complete and utter betrayal. However, when you ask Redditors, Jamie's betrayal is more than justified.
Redditors acknowledge that having Yellowstone end with Jamie inheriting the property would be much deserved. In the past couple of seasons, he's been feuding with his sister, Beth (Kelly Reilly), while also rarely failing to meet the expectations or approval of his father. It's bittersweet considering that Jamie became a lawyer to please his old man.
Nevertheless, most Redditors agree that having Jamie end up with the Dutton ranch would be a crazy turn of events.
"It's probably an unpopular opinion," one Redditor admitted, "but I don't really see what Jamie's doing as betrayal to John. [His father] has always treated him like a second class citizen, despite all the good Jamie's done for the family."
For this reason, the Redditor argued, John is deserving of the bad fate. After all, there are consequences to all the problems and misfortune John has caused.
Consequently, most feel that karma is eventually going to catch up with John, even if Jamie doesn't put the noose around the neck first. It's justified, according to Redditors, that Jamie finally gets some recognition for frequently defending the family over several seasons of Yellowstone, even at the expense of John.
After all, some Redditors believe they can relate to a character like Jamie who suffers from low self-confidence and is assertive among so many dominant, power-hungry family members. It appears that audiences are rooting for Jamie to gain some confidence as well as carve his own path in life. While it's true that Jamie has fully bought into Sarah's manipulations halfway through season five of Yellowstone, it's also true that Jamie has never been more fully in control of his destiny.
Can he do so, however, without getting entangled deeper into Atwood's web of deception?