Landman Season 2 Officially Repeats Taylor Sheridan’s Most Problematic Trend

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Despite his intentions, Taylor Sheridan doesn’t seem to have a strong understanding of women. While he creates female characters meant to be unconventional – some are tough, independent, and rebellious, while others are portrayed as carefree and overtly sexual in shows like Landman – neither of these approaches truly creates the groundbreaking, realistic female characters he appears to be aiming for.

The first season of Paramount+’s Landman, inspired by the Boomtown podcast and created by Taylor Sheridan and Christian Wallace, didn’t offer much promise for its female characters. The show features four main women: Angela and Ainsley Norris (the ex-wife and daughter of a key character), the assertive lawyer Rebecca Falcone, and Cami Miller, a powerful businesswoman. Because the series is set in the male-dominated West Texas oil industry, these women are often sidelined from the central conflicts and relegated to discussions about personal or legal issues. Despite criticism of how the female characters were portrayed in Season 1, Taylor Sheridan continues to depict them in a similar way in Season 2, which only intensifies the problem – and it’s a mess that even the central character, Tommy Norris, can’t fix.

Landman’s Period Scene Takes One Step Forward and Two Steps Back

Viewers were surprised by a scene in Season 1 where 17-year-old Ainsley had a frank conversation with her father about her boundaries in a relationship. But Season 2 takes things even further. The show features exaggerated and stereotypical female characters, with Ariana being the only somewhat realistic one – and even she feels like a copy of a character from another show, simply existing to be a love interest for Cooper.

Although she appears in the Season 2 premiere, she isn’t at the heart of its most talked-about moments. While the episode introduces a new character, it’s better remembered for Ainsley’s awkward college interview and Angela’s outspoken speech about menstruation.

Ainsley and Angela are portrayed as confident and uninhibited friends who don’t worry about others’ opinions. This is exemplified by Ainsley’s choice to wear a very revealing outfit to a college interview – which, according to the story, doesn’t go well. Ainsley is depicted as naive and self-centered, primarily focused on her appearance and romantic interests. Despite this, she’s still accepted into college because she technically meets the basic qualifications.

The family celebrated Angela’s acceptance over dinner, but Tommy made a thoughtless remark, claiming Angela’s emotions seemed to work in reverse with her menstrual cycle. He jokingly said she was irrational for most of the month and only normal during her period.

Someone needed to stand up to Tommy, and when he criticizes her decision to buy a house, she finally does. She reacts explosively, completely wrecking the room and ruining dinner, but surprisingly, it feels good to watch. The problem is, the writer then has her backtrack and lose the argument, which undoes all the progress she’d made.

Honestly, it broke my heart to see her react like that. The moment Tommy said something about her body, she just…changed. All the hurt he’d caused with his thoughtless remarks seemed to vanish, and it became clear she was only focused on getting his attention. It’s so sad, but she just wants her ex-husband to find her desirable, and that’s all that matters to her right now – she’s desperate to win him back.

Taylor Sheridan Has a Male Perspective on Female Empowerment

This scene shows Sheridan hinting at character development, but ultimately failing to earn the trust of female viewers—a key element for writing strong female characters. Angela’s actions reinforce what Tommy believes: she’s willing to compromise her self-respect to gain his attention. This pattern in Sheridan’s work suggests that his female characters only succeed by adopting traits typically associated with men.

Taylor Sheridan’s strong female characters, like Elsa Dutton in 1883, Cara Dutton in 1923, and Joe McNamara in Lioness, showcase his skill in creating compelling roles for women.

While these characters display traditionally feminine traits, they’re primarily valued for exhibiting qualities often associated with masculinity – like self-defense, strong language, and physical toughness. This approach reinforces a limited view of gender, suggesting women are only acceptable if they either conform to submissive, traditionally ‘feminine’ stereotypes, or completely reject them to become aggressively independent. And, crucially, they’re still expected to be sexually attractive, regardless of which path they take. It’s as if women can’t simply be – they must fit into one of these narrow, opposing boxes, always with an emphasis on their appearance.

As a movie fan, I’ve noticed Sheridan’s work really stands out – she’s arguably the most popular character. But honestly, while it’s fun to watch her verbally dominate everyone, I think she’s a surprisingly shallow character. It feels like she’s written to act strong, and that strength just ends up mirroring typical male behavior – she’s powerful because she essentially embodies a male persona.

It’s interesting that many viewers dislike Monica, likely because she’s portrayed as gentle and avoids confrontation – making her stand out as the most traditionally feminine character. It’s also noted she sometimes hesitates to accept assistance from white characters. The show’s creator, Taylor Sheridan, seems to prefer characters like Beth and Rebecca, who are assertive and drive the story, over Monica, Ainsley, or Ariana. This preference likely stems from the fact that his core male audience can more easily relate to and identify with the more outwardly masculine and approachable personalities of Beth and Rebecca.

Landman Brings Sheridan’s Real Problem to the Surface

Sheridan doesn’t create flawed female characters across the board. Some of his female characters who challenge traditional expectations for women in the late 19th and early 20th centuries are well-developed, showcasing both strength and compassion. They are portrayed as genuinely good people, not just ‘good women,’ and the writing acknowledges that women, like everyone else, don’t need to be perfect.

In Landman, Sheridan attempts to show that women don’t need to be traditionally strong or capable – like intelligent, emotionally aware, or skilled in combat – to be compelling characters. They can be just as imperfect and flawed as men, and still be interesting.

One major issue with the show is how difficult it is to watch scenes featuring Angela and Ainsley. They come across as completely disconnected from reality, and Ainsley, in particular, doesn’t feel believable as a teenager. It’s frustrating that the creator didn’t seem to consider the age difference between the character and the actress, especially given the character’s overt sexualization.

It’s great that we’re seeing more characters who are open about sex on TV, but often they seem designed to excite male viewers rather than be relatable. It’s rare for women to see these characters and actually want to emulate them.

Angela and Ainsley are intentionally portrayed as imperfect people – they’re not meant to be role models. It’s interesting, then, that we don’t see many male characters treated the same way. Where are the men specifically written to be embarrassed or humbled, allowing others to feel vindicated? While Cooper experiences setbacks, his biggest ‘failure’ so far is simply being a kind person trying to help the widow and children of a former colleague – he doesn’t really elicit a sense of discomfort or revulsion.

Even flawed male characters are allowed moments of genuine insight. Meanwhile, Ainsley is stuck delivering anxious monologues about finding the right college and, ultimately, the ideal partner to have children with.

It’s not that female characters are poorly written simply because of historical restrictions. However, they often need to act like men to be considered strong or compelling. For example, in the film Landman, women aren’t allowed to enjoy traditionally feminine activities like shopping or self-care without being seen as weak or unimportant.

Characters shouldn’t have to suffer through difficult or dangerous experiences just to feel fully developed. If a character wants a complex life, that’s fine, but it should also be perfectly acceptable for them to simply want to enjoy life and not worry about complicated issues like the oil industry.

New episodes of Landman premiere every Sunday on Paramount+.

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2025-11-16 11:08