The fictional M-TEX Oil is thriving inLandman, thanks to the petroleum landman and Operations VP, Tommy Norris (Billy Bob Thornton). He will deal with it whether it’s an explosion or a cartel problem. Thornton might not be as globally famous as the other lead actors that Taylor Sheridan has cast in his shows, but he is equally talented. Few can ever forget his villainousFargocharacter, Lorne Malvo, or the lawyer Billy McBride fromGoliath.
Thornton looks very comfortable in his latest vehicle too, and so do the rest of the actors. Everyone gives a great performance, but great acting is not the show’s only appeal. Like other Taylor Sheridan shows,Landmanheavily relies on ‘Shock Factor’ to propel the plot. Two episodes don’t pass by without a major incident happening. While some of the WTF moments fall within the realm of normalcy, others leave us wondering what Sheridan and his team were thinking.
8Ainsley Overshares Details About Her Love Life
Episode: “Landman”
InLandman’s premiere, Tommy’srather annoying teenage daughterAinsley shows up with her towering boyfriend, who just happens to be a high school football star. Understandably, he becomes concerned and begins questioning her about their relationship. Andshe opens up, perhaps more than she needs to. During a football game, Ainsleyspits out several explicit details about her love life, leaving her dad dumbfounded.
The Mandatory Premiere Shocker to Get People Talking
It’s not surprising that all this plays out during the first episode. The scene got people talking, withmany commentators highlighting the inappropriateness of the conversation. This was, presumably,Sheridan’s strategy to project more eyes onto the show.Yellowstone’s opening scene where John Dutton shoots a horse was also considered controversial, but it turned many casual viewers into longtime fans.
8 TV Characters That Show Taylor Sheridan’s Acting Range
Taylor Sheridan has proven over and over again that he’s not just a gifted writer and director, but also a dedicated actor.
7Gallino Rescues Tommy From the Cartel
Episode: “The Crumbs of Hope”
Towards the end of the first season, Tommy gets kidnapped by the cartel again. They torture him in the basement of a bar and just as Jimenez is about to kill him, the cartel boss,Gallino (Andy Garcia), arrives and kills all the sicarios. He thendemands that Tommy let him in on the oil business.
A New and Complicated Business Relationship
If anyone was ever going to save Tommy, we’d expect it to be a SWAT team, called into action after M-TEX filed a report. Interestingly, it’s the man fromThe Godfather: Part III. How will Tommy deal with thisnew non-consensual business relationshipin Season 2? It’ll be fun to see. But if there’s one person who knows how to maneuver such challenges, it’s him.
6Oil Rig Blowout
The final minutes of the premiere find Cooper at the oil rig. At one moment, the senior workers send him to get the wrench andwhen he moves a few meters away, an explosion happens, killing three men.Cooper is lucky, but the development traumatizes him because he is still new on the job.
Michael Peña’s Character is Killed Off
The explosion is unexpected, butthe death of Michael Peña’s character, Armando Medina, shocks viewers even more. Mostly known for his work inNarcos: MexicoandJack Ryan, Peña has made great contributions to the television landscape. Given his resume,fans expected him to be one of the central characters.Now Medina’s name can be filed undermemorable characters who only appear in the pilot.
5A Rig Worker Gets Crushed to Death by Drill Pipes
Episode: “Where is Home?”
Tommy is seen discussing with a site manager, who’s standing on top of a stack of drill pipes. A few moments later,the entire pile collapses, trapping the man by the neck. Tommy quickly concludes that removing the equipment from the victim’s midsection will cause him to bleed out, so he leaves as he is and calls emergency services. Unfortunately, the site manager dies before help arrives.
The Dangers of the Job
Arguably the most unexpected scene in the entire show, the accidentfurther highlights the danger of the oil business.Misfortunes can happen at any moment, so workers need to be extra careful. Even sadder, the victim asks for a phone so that he can call his wife and say goodbye.
Interestingly, the incidentis inspired by a true story. Series co-creator Christian Wallace shared that his uncle, a former oil field worker, once told him a story about a man who was instantly killed after a pipe rack fell on him.
4Monty’s Death
John Hamm played M-TEX owner, Monty Miller, in Season 1. Unfortunately, his character suffered a heart attack. After he underwent a third bypass surgery, doctors recommended a new heart for him, buthis condition wasn’t stable enough for him to receive one, so he succumbed.Undoubtedly one ofthe most shocking TV deaths.
Monty Was Slowly Becoming One of TV’s Coolest Bosses
Hamm is a wonderful actor and no one would have thought Sheridan would let him go that easily. After all, hewas an integral part of the show and was slowly becoming one of TV’s most likable bosses. Additionally, with his fitting suit and calm demeanor,he reminded us of Hamm’s character fromMad Men.Most viewers would have bet on him pulling through this health scare. Instead, we got a major surprise, paving the way for Tommy to take on bigger responsibilities.
3Cooper Gets Assaulted
Episode: “Where is Home”
Coopergets too close to Ariana after her husband, Elvio, dies during the blowout.Manuel isn’t happy, so he warns Cooper to keep off, but the young man is too smitten to listen. And why would he back off when Ariana is reciprocating the feelings? She even kisses Cooper in front of Manuel to spite him. Later on, Manuel shows up with his goons andjumps Cooper so badly that he gets admitted to a hospital.
Wrong Move
Manuel is the kind of character you’d expect to do something like this, but the assault scene still comes as a surprise since Cooper is the son of one of the most influential landmen in Texas.We’d expect Manuel to fear Cooper because of who his father is, but he still ends up pulling one of the dumbest moves on the show. Predictably, he pays for it.
2Angela and Ainsely Take the Members of the Retirement Home to a Strip Club
Episode: “Wolfcamp”
Angela likes having fun, so midway through the series,she ropes Ainsley into a plan to visit a retirement home and infuse some vim and verve into the members.One of her plans involves taking them to a strip club. When she learns the strip club doesn’t offer male dancers, Ainsley asks her newest boyfriend, Ryder, to be Magic Mike to prove that he loves him.
Typical Mommy-Daughter Move
Would this even be allowed in real retirement homes? And would the members agree to it? Ordinarily, elderly people tend to be more morally conscious. Many aren’t sexually active either, hence it would take a lot of convincing to make them go to the strip club. Angela and Ainsley, on the other hand, aretwo of the most carefree and sexually liberated characters on television, so the move makes sense.
10 Shows To Watch If You Love ‘Landman’
Here are some similar shows to check out while we wait for a new ‘Landman’ season.
1An Oil Tank Truck Crashes Into a Plane
Two narcotraffickers are quickly moving tons of cocaine from a van to a private jet. At the same time, an oil truck can be seen speeding down the road. What’s up with it? Well, the driver is dead, with his foot still pressing hard on the gas, sothe truck crashes into the plane, causing a huge explosion.
A Rare Kind of Accident
Even thoughthe oil industry’s growth in Texas has resulted in increased road crashes on U.S. Route 285, also known as the Highway to Hell or Death Highway, it’s rare to see a truck colliding with a plane. This is the show’s way of pumping up the conflict between the oil industry and the cartels.We later learn that the plane didn’t belong to the drug dealers. It had been stolen from M-TEX. It’s another major and annoying problem for Tommy to solve, but he does just fine.
