Recap of Landman Episode 3: Lessons in Oil

In Landman episode 3, “Hell Has a Front Yard,” Cooper struggles to get on track with his new oil crew and Tommy’s ex comes into town.

The two-episode premiere of Taylor Sheridan’s Landman was quite a task. There were some disturbing conversations with teenage daughters, an oil well explosion and an ongoing investigation into aircraft theft.

Fortunately, Tommy Norris (Billy Bob Thornton) is involved in the case. At the end of episode 2, his son Cooper was out of the hospital after the explosion and begged Tommy to put him on a new crew. As such, episode 3 sees him struggle with reintegration, while Tommy tries to deal with a visit from his ex-wife.

Here’s our full recap of Landman Episode 3, featuring major spoilers forward!

There’s a drunken family reunion in Landman episode 3

Episode 3 begins with the personal revelation of Angela, Tommy’s ex-wife. The two have only communicated via FaceTime until now, but she is now arriving in Midland by plane. Tommy doesn’t seem particularly enthusiastic about her presence, and his reservations are quickly justified when she wants to spend the day at the country club on Monty’s dime.

Decisive

Speaking of Monty, the oil tycoon is on the golf course trying to give his lawyer some insight. He wants to know why they sent Rebecca – an aggressive young lawyer – to take on their missing plane case.

Unfortunately for Monty, his legal advisor has a point: they failed to report a missing asset that was then used for drug trafficking. He clearly shifts the blame to Tommy and also encourages Monty to report his husbandman for not working up to standards.

But as Monty points out, if every oil company were forced to report dodgy transactions, they would all are closed. Still, there’s an $80 million lawsuit on the line, and Monty needs to get his act together.

Cooper meets his new crew

Cooper is back at the man camp after the fatal explosion that killed Luis, Armando and Elvio, but things aren’t going smoothly. He is attacked by two men: Luis, Armando and Elvio’s cousins. But Cooper has high school wrestling on his side, and he quickly disarms them.

Decisive

They are frustrated that Cooper survived while the other men died, and they struggle to understand how he survived. Luckily, the crew’s boss (aptly named “Boss”) shows up and takes a liking to Cooper and invites him to join his crew.

Well, wouldn’t you know it, but Boss’ crew also includes Cooper’s attackers. Not quite the comeback he was hoping for.

Day at the country club

The rest of the Norris family is at the country club drinking margaritas, and Angela gives Ainsley some advice to help her get over her now ex-boyfriend (the deplorable Dakota Loving). Meanwhile, Tommy fights for his life to keep Angela from becoming too loud and Monty’s membership from being revoked.

Decisive

Tommy then receives a call from Rebecca, who wants to see the plane crash site. Tommy leaves Angela and Ainsley undressed by the pool and bullies a poor young waiter into not serving them any more drinks.

On the way to pick up Rebecca, Tommy calls Nate. The latter panics about the legal consequences and begs Tommy to get Rebecca on their side (even if it means sleeping with her).

On the other side of town, Cooper has arrived at Luis’ family home, where a funeral is taking place. He is invited in and gets looks from his new oil crew. He is given a plate of food and a chair next to Elvio’s wife, who has a new baby in her arms. The two hit it off, and she ends up crying, leaning on his shoulder for support.

The great oil debate

Tommy and Rebecca are already clashing at the plane site. When she pressures him about why he didn’t report the plane stolen, he lectures her on oil law. As he explains, equipment gets lost all the time and is usually returned after a while. From his perspective, it takes more effort to get the authorities involved.

Decisive

The two see some wind turbines, and Rebecca is quick to criticize the oil industry. But Tommy is not impressed. He does not believe that green energy comes before oil. In fact, he tells her so everything needs oil, even the turbines.

“Our entire life depends on oil,” he tells her. “We won’t have enough of them before we find a replacement.” We don’t do it because we like it. We do it because we have run out of options.”

Before they go back outside, there’s a classic Sheridan encounter with a snake, leaving Rebecca hanging on the ground in fear before Tommy chops its head off with a shovel.

Kill the well

When Tommy returns to the country club, Angela and Ainsley have passed out in the lounge chairs after overdosing on margaritas. After throwing Angela into the pool to wake her up, he brings them both back to his house. Along the way, a drunken Ainsley asks him if she can live with him until she goes to college.

In Tommy’s room, Angela goes to seduce him. She even admits that she wants to get back together with him, but the mood is immediately killed when he tells her what Ainsley said. She is saddened by the idea of ​​moving back to a big house all alone, becomes angry and complains about her life choices.

Decisive

Cooper’s morning with his new team looks a lot like his first. There is an early morning coffee in the pitch dark, but this time he has a knife held to his leg by Luis’ cousin, who warns him not to go near Elvio’s wife again.

Later, Tommy calls Monty with a new problem. There is a well that is over 35 years old and no longer producing, so they decide to go ahead and “kill” it. Monty’s wife Cami is concerned about Monty’s constant worries and encourages him to take his medication.

While working, Tommy curls up and watches as Cooper and the crew begin to dismantle the well.

Landman Episode 3 is now available to stream on Paramount+.

For more, check out our guides to Taylor Sheridan’s other shows, like Yellowstone Season 5 Part 2, The Madison, and 6666.