Tulsa King – Season 2 Episode 1 “Back in the Saddle” Recap & Review

Back in the Saddle

Episode 1 of Tulsa King season 2 starts with Dwight behind bars. He speaks to a fellow suited guy called Harlan and explains how the rules of the joint works. You see, behind bars, you need to show that you’re not just going to roll over and take it. You need to fight back and send a message. And a perfect example of that is the loudmouth across the cell from them, running his mouth.

Dwight knocks the guy out with a single punch and tells Harlan that given he has money and connections, he could probably hire someone to help him out. Dwight has taken a particular interest in this guy because he managed to scam the government out of millions thanks to his wind farm.

Meanwhile, the rest of the group try to work out how to handle this Dwight mess. Bodhi believes they need a contingency plan, including a lawyer. In court, Dwight pleads not guilty but his bail amount is set at 3 million dollars, which is very steep. However, Tina steps up and puts her house as collateral to get him out. When Stacy finds out though, she is not happy. She’s jittery and tries to get a transfer.

On the way home, Tyson shows off his great driving again, losing the tail and eventually making it back home, where Goodie relinquishes his very brief stint as the interim boss.

There’s a new guy in the bar too, a man by the name of Bigfoot. Dwight agrees to hire him onboard and they drink to their newfound partnership. As for Dwight though, he’s thinking bigger now. After talking to Harlan about his scam, he thinks they could go straight-ish and act like politicians; bending the rules to fit them while seeming to be doing the right thing. The others agree and it seems like they’re on.

With their plan in motion, Dwight speaks to the FBI agents following him on the road. He’s taken aback when they insinuate he’s threatening Stacy, given she put him away, and warn Dwight to stay away from the ATF office. Well, he does… and shows up at her place instead.

Dwight explains that he’s not there to hurt her but to look her in the eyes and speak the truth. He once felt something for her but given their separate lives, they couldn’t be together. He points out they played her and she was used. “It was nice while it lasted Stacy,” He says, before leaving.

Tyson sees the gun when he heads back into the car but Dwight is quick to nip that in the bud and explain that he didn’t kill Stacy. With that sorted, he has Tyson pick up some suits and get ready for a good night together. Nothing too crazy though, because this is all business of course.

Speaking of which, alongside the casino the weed shop is close to opening. Bodhi explains a little about the insurance of the place and how they could be liable for stupid people being, well, stupid. Especially if they get high in their establishment. Dwight though brings up his plan for the future. His idea is to basically piggyback on Harlan’s business plan and take his subsidies to power the wind farm which would, in turn, power their own hydroponic weed farm.

With the basic outline established, the gang show up that night to the big fundraiser event. Their target (no, not to kill) is a guy called Cal Thresher. He’s the largest weed distributor in Oklahoma and they want to get on the right side of him as he could do wonders for their business.

The wildcard here though is Armand. He shows up drunk, bumping one of the cars outside. Dwight reminds him that he’s representing their business, as Armand explains has family issues back home. He’s too much of a wildcard so Dwight tells him to leave.

Cal Thresher is immediately on the backfoot though when Dwight approaches. He believes Dwight is out to destroy his business. He knows everything about Dwight and warns him to stay in lane. Thresher antagonizes him and basically claims Dwight is all bark and no bite. Thresher is definitely not going to play ball, and so it seems like our rivalry for season 2 is set up.

However, there’s also the small situation involving Chickie to deal with too. As the episode closes out, alongside Cal making his move with one of the local businessmen, Goodie is forced to listen as Jerry is shot dead.


The Episode Review

If there’s one creator right now you can always rely on to deliver the goods, it’s Taylor Sheridan. Tulsa King is back and the first episode does a great job setting the scene for the new rivalry and drama to follow this year.

There’s a nice bit of closure between Stacy and Dwight too, while the echoes of the past look set to bite Dwight in the ass, especially if Thresher continues to throw his weight around and hit out at Dwight’s intent to expand.

That chat between the two at the party was intense, and it helps that the entire scene is really well acted from start to finish. Ultimately, everything is set up nicely for the rest of the season. Next week’s episode should be quite the dramatic follow-up!

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