As good as Yellowstonewas at delivering juicy family drama and contentious land expansion, it lacked a compelling central figure to drive the narrative. Granted, Kevin Costner’s John Dutton III led the family ranch in Montana, but the story shifted perspective so often that it lost focus on the patriarch’s role. By contrast, A&E’s popular 2012 neo-Western series, which ran for three seasons before moving to Netflix for another three, is far more grounded in its protagonist-driven narrative.

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