Summary of ‘Landman’ Episode 2: Exploring Dreams and Setbacks

Taylor Sheridan has a deep passion for crafting and capturing moments that elevate labor to a higher, almost divine level. While his previous work on “Yellowstone” explored intense dramas within the Dutton family, it was the essence of cowboying brought to life through meticulous details that truly defined the show. Sheridan’s camera would linger on the distinct skills integral to the profession, imbuing the scenes with a sense of nostalgia for a fading way of life. In “Landman,” where Sheridan assumes the roles of writer and director for the initial episodes, he paints a stark picture of the West Texas oil industry as a ruthless entity that devours hard work without reverence, devoid of any sanctity. Here, the predominant belief system revolves around the relentless pursuit of wealth.

The second episode of “Landman” kicks off with a harrowing scene of raging flames and billowing clouds of dark smoke, signifying the tragic end of three men’s lives. In this desolate landscape, far removed from any semblance of civilization besides the work crew comprising Luis, Armando, Elvio, and Cooper, there exists a profound isolation. The aftermath of the accident, depicted by Sheridan’s lens, illustrates the site as a chaotic anomaly amidst vast stretches of desolate terrain, where the men’s essence now serves as mere fuel for an indifferent, profit-driven industry.

Amidst the arrival of emergency responders and Cooper’s medical attention, the burden falls on Tommy to contain the fiery eruption from the pumpjack’s valve. Despite his resourcefulness, Tommy sustains a painful injury as he accidentally wounds his finger with a hammer, displaying unwavering determination by self-amputating the injured tip with a buck knife. The scene encapsulates the unyielding nature of the labor demanded in this unforgiving environment, where setbacks like injuries are simply obstacles to overcome without the luxury of specialized medical care. Tommy’s stoic resolve extends beyond his physical pain, as he confronts the harsh reality of informing a young mother, Elvio’s widow, to swiftly seek employment due to the pressing demands of financial obligations, emphasizing the unforgiving pace dictated by economic pressures.

Together with Nate, his oil & gas attorney roommate, Tommy urged Monty to offer each surviving family $250k, “Just to get ‘em through.” But the accident is not going to shut down production. Crisis should not prohibit success. In fact, just like a plane stolen by drug smugglers that then explodes on an M-TEX-owned road, the realest questions are only about how and when the work will continue. Which is how Tommy meets Rebecca Falcone (Kayla Wallace). The corporate lawyer and chain of liability specialist was sent to Midland to deal with the TTP truck explosion from Landman Episode 1, but now she’s on point for this latest bit of trouble, and meeting up with Tommy at the Patch Cafe. 

“I quit drinking. I’ll stick with beer.” If that sentence makes no sense, then you don’t agree with avowed alcoholic Tommy Norris that the ABV in Michelob Ultra is only for maintenance. (Throwback to Taylor Sheridan’s script for the West Texas-based 2016 classic Hell or High Water, where Ben Foster’s Tanner Howard wondered who the hell could ever get drunk off a beer.) Rebecca wants to know how a manager like Tommy knowingly sending M-TEX employees to service faulty equipment isn’t a lawsuit asking to be lost. But he says those men knowingly sacrificed their safety for a competitive salary. And besides, if it’s about knowingly faulty wells and knowingly lax OSHA standards, then the entire oil industry is knowingly guilty.

With Cooper hurt and Ainsley pouting about breaking up with her boyfriend – “He’s supposed to change the way he feels and do what I want!” – Angela has decided to join her ex-husband and their kids in Midland. (Angela on FaceTime: “I’ll see you tomorrow, you fucking asshole.”) That will be fun. But in the meantime, Tommy’s corporate rental living situation continues to bring its own bits of broad humor to Landman. Like petroleum engineer Dale, who microwaves metal cans of beans – “they don’t taste the same” in a bowl – and who walks in on Ainsley in the shower because Tommy suddenly has his family living with his co-workers. 

Ainsley staying at the house is also an opportunity for Billy Bob Thornton, as Tommy Norris, to engage with some prime-cut Taylor Sheridan Speechifying. Because when she finds out that Cooper quit on his college degree to work in the patch, and that he got hurt doing it, Ainsley calls her brother a loser. Tommy’s features become a blank mask of stern. Loser? It used to be only those types and the dreamers who found their way west, either to make it or to die. But nowadays, as Tommy tells Ainsley, it’s the oil & gas boomtown where the dreamers and losers gather. And everybody’s looking to win. Which one will she be when it’s time to pick a side? It’s clear that Ainsley and Cooper don’t get along. But Ainsley was probably just making an errant comment, and not expecting a moody, barbed treatise on the oil patch as the American dream incarnate. 

When Tommy finishes lecturing Ainsley, he drives to the hospital to pick up Cooper and continue the lecture. “You know people are gonna blame you,” he says of his son and the accident. Especially since Cooper needs a favor. He wants to be put on another work crew. His studies at college? They’re losing value in his eyes. “I don’t wanna teach geology, I wanna live it. I wanna be a landman.” Despite nearly getting blown up, despite general response to the accident – what else is new; back to work – Cooper remains all-in on his path, where he’s the world’s first worm-to-roughneck-to-oil biz CEO. This kid could still be a loser. You know, of his life. But for now, he’s the dreamer. Tommy, an oil patch lifer himself, invites Cooper to the Patch for a beer.     

Johnny Loftus (@glennganges) is an independent writer and editor living at large in Chicagoland. His work has appeared in The Village Voice, All Music Guide, Pitchfork Media, and Nicki Swift.