Rip’s Big Mistake! Episode 4 Ending Explained

One-word review of Dutton Ranch, Episode 4: Ugly.

Rip and Beth’s actions midway through “Start With a Bullet” should crack any list of the Top 5 darkest Yellowstone franchise scenes ever.

What made the action so difficult to watch was the long, slow buildup.

Almost immediately, you’re left asking if what the couple is planning is really going to happen. I found myself hoping and praying for some sort of last-minute stay of execution from the governor.

• Episode 4 of Dutton Ranch is called “Start With a Bullet,” and it debuted on Paramount+ Friday morning (May 29) and Paramount Network on Friday evening.
• Viewers learn more about Everett McKinney and his relationship with Beulah Jackson, who seems to be trapped in a life she built.
• The bulk of the episode focuses on Rip and Beth’s solution to Episode 3’s problem.

Spoiler Alert! This recap and review of Dutton Ranch Episode 4 is going to reveal everything that happens during the show’s most recent screening. The Dutton Rules podcast team will spend more time breaking down the action next Tuesday (June 2) at 2PM CT.

Dutton Ranch, Episode 4 Review:

I can’t be alone in asking if Rip’s plan to euthanize his herd was really necessary or — if it was — necessary so quickly. A small amount of research into Foot and Mouth Disease supports that curiosity, but we’ll get there.

The opening scenes of Ep. 4 reveal that Foot and Mouth Disease has infected the entire herd. In an instant, Beth’s Ep. 3 win at the high-end Dallas hotel is wiped away and the couple are left wondering how they’ll survive.

That question is not answered before the credits roll.

READ MORE: Dutton Ranch‘s Beulah Jackson — Secret Revealed! 

On Rip’s orders, Zachariah and Azul begin to dig a huge trench as Beth and Rip round up the cattle. All the cows — approximately 100 — are siloed into the trench and the entrance is blocked off. Even the cute little calf they brought from Montana needs to die.

The method of execution is hardly humane. Rip fires at them one at a time and we see every shot. For nearly two straight minutes we watch as he fires, reloads and fires again. Dozens of gold shell casings litter the rim of the trench by the end, and an eerie silence falls over the pasture.

Check on anyone who managed to watch the whole thing. It was traumatic television.

Later that night, Beth lets Rip know she’s learned that the broker who sold them the bull falsified vet records, so Rip pays him a visit and burns down his trailer.

The couple’s next move is a big mystery, but most people believe that they’ll end up with a stake in the nearby Jackson Ranch by the end of Season 1.

Is Foot and Mouth Disease Fatal?

The degree to which Rip’s actions were necessary is debatable. I spent time reading USDA and NIH guidance on Foot and Mouth and came away with a few surprising conclusions:

1. There hasn’t been an outbreak in the U.S. since the 1920s, and Mexico and Canada have been free and clear of FMD for over 70 years.
2. It’s not fatal. There’s no cure, however, and infected animals will not produce much milk or meat.
3. You can eat the meat and drink the milk of infected animals.

At minimum, Rip and Beth could have taken a day or two to inquire about any possible way to monetize these sick cows. I’m guessing it’s probably pretty difficult to market FMD beef, but maybe they could have scored some money for 100 cowhides.

Burning down the trailer was also premature. Rip and Beth could have gotten more information out of J.R. Simon, or at least scoured his business for clues about who to go after next.

Everett McKinney Tragedy Revealed

The second most important thing from Ep. 4 was the conversation between Everett (Ed Harris) and Beulah Jackson (Annette Bening). It’s clear the doctor’s emotionally scarred and wants to protect his heart, even if he does seem to enjoy her company.

We also learn Everett lost a son named Levi. I’m jumping to conclusions a little bit here, but he spends time talking about a rope swing in his yard and how hearing it creak at night makes him think of Levi, and those thoughts spiral him into a depression.

Beulah also seems to be running from some kind of tragedy, or maybe she’s even caught in the middle of one. When she breaks down crying, we get the sense she’s mourning a life she could have had.

Later she tells Joaquin that she wishes she could turn the ranch over to him, but the way she says it makes it feel like she’s trapped.

Dutton Ranch, Episode 4 Review

This was the first episode of Dutton Ranch that felt sloppy. Rip and Beth’s actions notwithstanding, there were several head-scratching moments.

For example, why did Carter skip school to go work at some other ranch?

That storyline served no purpose, and then it ended with a random leopard. The whole sequence gave Yellowstone Season 5 vibes, when actors and celebrities seemed to get shoe-horned into the plot for no real reason.

No one really seemed to know how to include Oreana, either.

Beth walks in on her and Carter preparing for another romp and — surprisingly — the two women seem to get along. After that, she gets punished for behaving like a child, tries to sneak out (like a child), but thinks better of it when Austin comes limping home from the hospital.

READ MORE: Yellowstone Best Scenes Revealed [Season 1-5]

Most frustrating is, it was another episode focused on cattle diseases.

We’re not tuning in for a lesson on epidemiology, and the massacre leaves the show with a thin plot. Hopefully Ep. 5 turns us back toward the real action and an understanding of what Rip and Beth are trying to accomplish this season.

After three very strong episodes, a dip was expected and — to be clear — it’s not like we went from Grade A to E. “Start With a Bullet” was just sort of mid.