Landman is BACK.
Yesterday, the second season premiere of Landman dropped. The series is another banger from Paramount Network’s billion-dollar boy, Taylor Sheridan (soon to be NBC’s billion-dollar boy). Landman stars Billy Bob Thornton, Jon Hamm, Demi Moore, Ali Larter, Michelle Randolph, Kayla Wallace, and now, the great Sam Elliott, for an action-packed, West Texas, big oil drama.
Fans were eagerly awaiting to see how the show would pick up after the season-one finale, in which the head of M-Tex Oil, Monty Miller, died, leaving the operation in the hands of his wife, Cami Miller, and Tommy Norris. Based on the trailer for the second season of the show, fans could tell that the plot would be nothing short of action-packed as Norris puts out fires in the oil field and the boardroom, along with Cami Miller stepping into a gritty oil executive.
The second season’s official synopsis implies that a boiling point will be reached one way or another:
“As oil rises from the earth, so do secrets – and Tommy Norris’s (Thornton) breaking point may be closer than he realizes. Facing mounting pressure from M-Tex Oil, Cami Miller (Moore), and the shadow of his kin, survival in West Texas isn’t noble – it’s brutal. And sooner or later something’s got to break.”
However, after the first episode dropped, a few plotlines that fans said they could have done without emerged.
DISCLAIMER: IF YOU SCROLL PAST THIS TRAILER, SPOILERS WILL BE REVEALED.
The first episode of season two, “Death And A Sunset,” opens with a luncheon gathering all the oil executives at Fort Worth’s Bowie House to introduce M-Tex Oil’s new fearless leader, Cami Miller, who Demi Moore plays. Miller, although going through loads of grief after tragically losing her husband, puts on a stern face and presents herself to this group of ruthless men and women, letting them know that she is meaner than her husband and does not plan on taking any lip from anyone in this room.
Billy Bob Thornton’s character looks on proudly from the side stage as Miller delivers her powerful speech, like a proud father, giving fans the feeling that these two are going to make an unstoppable business duo.
@landmanpplus Cami is here to stay 👏 #Landman #LandmanPPlus #DemiMoore #BillyBobThorton ♬ original sound – Landman
We also get introduced to Sam Elliott’s character, who is Tommy Norris’ father, and fans learn the heartbreaking news that Norris’ mother passed away while in a memory care facility. I am very interested in seeing how Elliot’s character develops, because from the few moments viewers have spent with him, he is a very strong-willed individual.
As for Tommy Norris’ personal life, his children also make appearances in the season two premiere, with his son, Cooper Norris, striking gold while drilling one of his first wells, and shares the exciting news with his love interest, Ariana Medina. As for Norris’ daughter, Ainsley Norris, she’s in the middle of her college admission process, visiting Texas Christian University with her mother, Angela Norris.
The mother-daughter duo were characters to say the least in season one and are on that path again in season two. While meeting with the college admissions counselor, Ainsley gives a speech about why she wants to attend TCU rather than Texas Tech, citing their athlete-dating policy, which leaves the admissions counselor in sheer horror. However, due to her priority walk-on status on the cheer team, they must grant her admission to the private university, making her an official “horny toad,” as Angela Norris calls it.
When the family unites to return to Midland, Texas, a celebratory dinner takes place, as Ainsley parades around the house in her Horned Frog cheer uniform. However, that dinner turns sour as Tommy Norris makes comments about his wife’s hormone fluctuations, given it’s that time of the month. The scene ends with cacio e pepe on the wall, broken glass on the floor, and Tommy and Ali on the floor making up with each other.
Both Ainsley and Ali’s characters are light-hearted and add to the chaos of Tommy Norris’ life; however, many fans sounded off after the season two premiere that, if these two women remain on their TV screens, they hope for meaningful character development this season.
While I often chuckle watching these two on my screen, I do understand where these fans are coming from, wanting some more depth from them to show the complexities of women versus leaning into the stereotypes of blonde bimbos that have crazy mood swings because of hormone fluctuation. Some of Ainsley’s sexually suggestive comments, especially the conversation with her dad in Season 1, add nothing more than shock value… it’s like the Hollywood version of rage bait.
The overall feedback from fans is to show less of the chaos at home and more of the chaos in the field and boardroom. We’ve still got a long way to go in season two, so maybe this mother-daughter duo will grow on fans as the episodes continue, but they are getting heat from fans after “Death And A Sunset.”
Check out some of the commentary while you’re here:
