Sippable spin-offs soon come
Add "prestige TV series" to the list of things that are now hard seltzer
For years, friends and enemies alike have been telling me to watch Yellowstone, the Manifest Destiny fanfic about Kevin Costner and his handsome ranching brood rejecting modernity/snowflake libs and embracing tradition/steers Out West™. “Watch Yellowstone,” they’d say. “Have you watched Yellowstone yet?” I finally caved and signed up for a free trial to Paramount+ to take in a few episodes; never really got into it. Maybe it’s because the show’s political frame is noticeably conservative and I’m a godless coastal elite, or because Costner once allegedly banged Cal Ripken, Jr.’s wife which alway struck me as slimy behavior given he’s an A-list hunk who could probably bang anybody he wants, both then and now. Or because it’s just not a very good show and everybody is wrong and I am right. Who’s to say, really.
Regardless: Yellowstone is massively popular, pulling ratings not seen since last decade’s small-scr…