Landman's season finale channels Mad Men and, remarkably,...

What’s Happening

So get this: Taylor Sheridan wraps up the dramas second round with “Tragedy And Flies.

” B+ Landman ‘s season finale channels Mad Men and, remarkably, it kind of works Taylor Sheridan wraps up the drama’s second round with “Tragedy And Flies. ” Noel Murray — By Noel Murray | | 3:01pm Photo: Emerson Miller/Paramount+ TV Reviews Landman Copy to clipboard × Copy Link Copy Link — Facebook X Reddit Bluesky Email 0 Shut the door. (shocking, we know)

Let me tell you about how Landman —one of TV’s most frustratingly sloppy and at times borderline plotless prestige dramas—successfully pulled off its own version of one of the best television episodes of all time.

The Details

Granted, “successfully” is doing a lot of work in that sentence. Landman is still Landman , not Mad Men .

But judged against the show’s usual standards, the season-two finale “Tragedy And Flies” is downright thrilling and impressively crafty. No, it’s not on par with Man Men ’s “Shut The Door.

Why This Matters

) But it’s consistently entertaining and only a little bit infuriating. The best thing about “Tragedy And Flies” is that it gives Billy Bob Thornton’s Tommy Norris something to do besides his usual “woe is me” wailing. At the end of last week’s episode, Tommy’s old friend Cami Miller fired him from his position as the president of the oil company M-Tex because of incessant insubordination and general whininess.

Entertainment industry insiders have been buzzing about this.

Key Takeaways

• Forced to take control of his own life and career, Tommy stops sniping and starts planning.
• His big play involves his son Cooper’s insanely productive but poorly financed oil-drilling leases.
• If Tommy can persuade one of his cash-rich acquaintances to invest, he and Cooper can start their own family-owned, family-operated oil company.

The Bottom Line

If Tommy can persuade one of his cash-rich acquaintances to invest, he and Cooper can start their own family-owned, family-operated oil company. So that’s what this episode is about, in part.

Is this a W or an L? You decide.