Landman Season 1, Episode 8 offers a ton of new material to analyze. After a relatively monotonous episode 7, the lowest rated episode of the season, Taylor Sheridan's Permian Basin oil industry drama returned with a vengeance this week. Billy Bob Thornton leads Landman's cast as Tommy Norris, an oil crisis management executive at M-Tex Oil, a fictional independent company created for the series. The season saw his complicated family life and tumultuous professional life begin to collide with issues related to the Cartel and the explosion of an oil rig that claimed the lives of three men.
The most notable event of the episode's climax was the destruction of a Cartel vehicle from what was presumably a National Guard missile attack test. Cooper and Ariana's relationship continued to develop, with Cooper negotiating a better deal for her following Rebecca Falcone's offer. This causes Rebecca to have a vendetta against Cooper, putting her at odds with Tommy. Jon Hamm's character Monty has been hospitalized for heart problems, which could lead to Tommy being cornered without the support of the big guns in the final two episodes.
What is a “bogey” in Landman
A Bogey is a specific military term
The final sequence of Landman sees National Guard helicopter pilots assessing the damage from their missile practice, using the term “bogey.” This is a real military term used in the Air Force to describe an unidentified vehicle or radar target. The Cartel appears to have been moving a drug vehicle in this area and ended up in the radius of the missile attacks, with the incident claiming at least one life. Although it is also implied in the scene, the word “bogey” states that the blow was accidental and was not intended to hit the vehicle.
What does the cartel attack mean
Violence will increase in the final episodes
Tommy's relationship with the Cartel has been volatile throughout the first seasonand with two episodes left, they probably won't be happy about this intrusion into their process. It is important to note that Andy Garcia was cast in a special role in Landman (through Deadline from May 2024) and has not yet appeared on screen. He could be the cartel boss the characters mentioned earlier in the season, which means the potential for an exciting face-off between Tommy and another legendary actor playing a powerful drug lord.
Tommy involved the National Guard, allowing them to practice in the region, hoping that the military presence would deter any Cartel business. His plan was not to go on the offensive, as that would create more unnecessary problems. The military that kills innocent civilians creates problems, but the National Guard being brought into a certain region by an oil company and accidentally killing a Cartel drug dealer seems like an even more dangerous set of issues.
The Cartel issue was always going to get worse before it got better, and now it looks like Tommy will have that in hand immediately. The Cartel could return with force, and Landman the end of episode 7 saw one of their members watching Tommy. If they think he is involved in the death of one of their members, they may try to attack him or his family at home before the end of the season. Tommy already has potential problems with Rebecca, but the Cartel situation seems much more prevalent.
Why is Rebecca still after Cooper
Rebecca Falcone is out for blood
Cooper came after Ariana and the other two families of the oil workers who died earlier in Landman episode 8, trading twice the total settlement of each of them. Ariana will now receive $1 million instead of $500,000 from M-Tex in exchange for not taking them to court, which, although risky, could have been won. The equipment was faulty, according to Tommy at the start of the season, and a proper investigation could have been a big problem for the company. Monty reluctantly hands over the $1 million.
Rebecca proved to be a powerhouse all along Landman season 1, facing Tommy and savagely destroying rival lawyers. In this fight with Cooper and Ariana, she suffers a huge defeat and is clearly unhappy about it. Rebecca began to weave her own web about what happened, creating a conspiracy about Cooper and Tommy's involvement. in the oil rig explosion and the deaths of those three men, suggesting that Cooper and Ariana planned to walk away with $1 million. This is a devious claim and the public obviously knows it is false.
Rebecca probably knows this theory isn't true, but she doesn't care. As she states in the episode, she is making her own truth. To simplify, she is angry about being outdone by Cooper and being scolded by Montyand she wants to gain a victory with what she has left. Whether she'll move forward with this remains to be seen, but it's important to note that Tommy's original assumption about her is coming true. She was quick to criticize Tommy's involvement in the oil crew's death, but is now willing to destroy Ariana's life out of pettiness.
What's wrong with Monty in Landman episode 8?
Monty's heart problems were teased throughout the first season
Monty quickly takes a turn for the worse in Landman episode 8, requesting that his driver take him to the hospital about halfway through the episode. This storyline has been teased throughout the season, as some combination of diet, stress and lack of exercise caused him to have heart problems. He monitors his heart rate with a wristwatch, and the situation with Cooper and Rebecca on the phone causes it to rise to an alarming number. Tommy's position doesn't seem dire, but his wife wants him to stay away from business calls to focus on his health and recovery.
This storyline has been teased throughout the season, with multiple conversations about Monty's exercise habits and caffeine intake. It's interesting that Jon Hamm, although fantastic in the series, only had a limited number of scenes. It will be curious to see if Monty survives the first season and what the power vacuum he leaves behind would be like. Importantly, for Landman episodes 9 and 10, his absence could mean difficulties for Tommy as he struggles to face the conflict on two fronts, between the Cartel breathing down his neck and Rebecca promising to cause him trouble.