Tulsa King may have slowed down a bit at the midpoint of season 3, but the ending of episode 5 indicated things are going to get more exciting soon!
“On the Rocks” opened with the Montague winery in full swing of construction, with Bodhi managing to arrange for a score of wine critics to come by for the grand opening (and Bigfoot surprising everyone with his amazing ice carving skills). Dwight confessed to Margaret that he was worried, as things had a way of going wrong for him. They talked about her helping Cal’s campaign and having him come to the opening.
Billy talked to Vince about Dwight’s business, with Billy saying to talk to Dwight. Dunmire was dismissive of Cole's attitude, as he dismissed him as if he were just another employee. Dunmire met Attorney General Sackrider to try and get the opening shut down. Dunmire complained about Dwight “taking a good time in my life and turned it into a bad one.” As a major campaign contributor, Dunmire ordered the AG to find a way to shut down the event or else.
Tyson watched Dwight and Margaret banter and openly asked how Dwight kept getting all these hot women. Cole found Spencer to banter a bit before Tyson and Mitch took a road trip to talk about Serenity, with Dwight telling his young protégée he didn’t need to “man up” to impress Dwight.
Dwight showed up at the distillery to check on the progress, only for Billy to drop in to inform him about Vince and Ray buzzing on the business. Dwight was aware Vince was trying to turn Billy on him and figured he could handle it. Billy warned Dwight that something was up as one of his places had just been raided, even suggesting Armand had flipped on them. Billy told Dwight they had to take a stand, as “fortune favors the bold.”
A meeting with the Watchmaker
Naturally, Deacon the Watchmaker picked just this time to call in with Dwight at first refusing to take a meeting that day. A call from Musso (who had his phone tapped) and photos of the Watchmaker’s past victims convinced Dwight otherwise.
“People don’t get what they deserve, they get what they attract,” Dwight told Tyson as a warning to “the dark check that’s due” if Tyson wanted to be part of this life. Dwight met the Watchmaker at the salon to discuss a job and when the Watchmaker asked for a name, Dwight gave him Dunmire’s. Deacon wanted half his half-billion-dollar fee up front and the rest when it was done. A quick trip to the vault had the cash, with Deacon informing Dwight it would be ready on his own time. Tyson watched the Watchmaker leave as someone in a van took photos of him.
At the opening, Mitch and Cole “chatted” about Cole’s thugs around, while Cleo was worried about Dwight’s absence. An inspector popped up, with Joanne instantly knowing this was Dunmire’s doing. Bodhi warned her to calm down, as Cal was already regretting using this as a campaign event.
Crashing the opening
The inspection went on with Goodie trying to bribe the guy. Ironically, the place really did need an inspection, as a pack of barrels broke free from their holdings to crush the inspector to death. It was actually an attempt by Bigfoot to scare the guy, with Mitch deciding it was best to make it look like an accident. Not happy with the lack of news, Dunmire ordered his goons in.
Cleo was giving a big speech to the crowd as Dwight finally arrived to toast folks, just as Cal realized Billy was among the guests. The party ended as a combination of cops and Dunmire’s men showed up as Dunmire claimed he’d created the bourbon’s formula and it belonged to him. Cole started smashing up barrels as guns were drawn, with Dunmire gloating on how he’d ruined the night, even as the AG warned Dunmire on blowback.
Dwight tried to be positive about trying again, as Joanne fretted that they were ruined. He gave the crew a rousing speech before Goodie and Mitch showed him the inspector’s body. Knowing that hiding it would look worse, Dwight decided it was best to claim this was a “workplace accident.”
Billy visited Dwight on where he’d been as his guys followed Dwight to the bar. He accused Dwight of being greedy and of working against him. That angered Dwight to pull a gun on Billy who calmly pointed out that Dwight would be thinking the same thing in Billy's shoes.
Joanne was upset about Dwight pulling a gun with him refusing to talk. Billy was at an intersection when two cars hemmed him in and guys in tactical outfits with rifles surrounded him.
This is more about the simmering subplots like the conflict with Brooklyn and if there’s a rat in Dwight’s organization or just Musso listening in. It seems odd that Dunmire could have the advantage, given that he just publicly assaulted Dwight’s business and practically confessed to other crimes, yet it shows his daring. Hopefully, things pick up more as Tulsa King heads to the second half of its season.
Tulsa King season 3 streams Sundays on Paramount+.