LANDMAN: SEASON ONE
Starring: Billy Bob Thornton, Ali Larter, Jacob Lofland, Michelle Randolph, Paulina Chávez, Kayla Wallace, Mark Collie, James Jordan, Demi Moore, and Jon Hamm
Creators: Taylor Sheridan and Christian Wallace
QUENTIN
For better or worse, Landman is more of the same from prolific show creator Taylor Sheridan. On one hand, you have a stellar cast (Billy Bob Thornton, especially) willing the show to be better than it should be through sheer charisma and screen presence (not unlike Sylvester Stallone in Tulsa King), as well as the dusty blue-collar vibe that Sheridan loves so much. On the other hand, Sheridan still can’t write a nuanced female character to save his life, and there are uninteresting and undercooked tangents shoehorned in to pad the season. That said, if you like Sheridan’s other shows, you’ll probably like this one too.
PRESTON
After Yellowstone took a dive following the departure of Kevin Costner, it is refreshing to see Taylor Sheridan (creator) attack another gritty, blue-collar world with an equally exceptional lead in Billy Bob Thornton. That said, Landman has some minor problems (don’t we all), specifically the borderline exploitative sexualization of his daughter, the inclusion of a lawyer and widow that operate at unbalanced extremes, and narratives that meander a bit too much; still, none of these issues have restricted my enjoyment or anticipation of every new episode. I hope this show is around for a while, but I’m already sold on whatever Sheridan’s next project is.
