Warning! This article contains SPOILERS for Tulsa King season 3, episode 2.After three seasons, Tulsa King is somehow still telling the exact same story about Tyson Mitchell, and it needs to figure out something new as soon as possible. Tyson has been a huge part of the cast of Tulsa King since the beginning. He was the first person Dwight met in Tulsa, and he’s technically the most senior member of the gang by the time of Tulsa King season 3.
Tulsa King season 3 has also refocused on developing the other members of the gang more than previous seasons did. Mitch and Bodhi, for example, have already gotten a huge spotlight in the first two episodes of season 3 after being mostly sidelined until the end of Tulsa King season 2. Their stories are new and interesting, but Tyson’s story is the same one we’ve been hearing for years now.
Tulsa King Season 3 Is Telling The Same Story Of Tyson’s Parents No Longer Recognizing Him
Since the beginning of the show, the majority of Tyson’s story centers around the struggle he has between his desire to be a gangster and his disapproving father and mother. Tulsa King season 1 saw Mark kick Tyson out of their house. Tulsa King season 2 saw their relationship briefly get fixed only to be just as damaged after Mark’s car was blown up by Jackie Ming’s men.
Now, in Tulsa King season 3, Tyson’s story still centers on his disapproving mother and father and the tension between his life of crime and his family. Tulsa King season 3, episode 2 saw Tyson try to enlist Mark’s help as a plumber for the distillery, and he initially didn’t want to help. He mentioned that he didn’t recognize Tyson through his luxury items and gangster lifestyle, and there’s a clear tension there.
At this point, Tulsa King has explored the tension between Tyson and Mark three separate times now, and it hasn’t drawn any conclusions yet. Mark and Angie are still angry that their son is a gangster, but they’re not willing to cut him out of their lives. Tyson still wants to be part of his family, but he’s not willing to give up on his dreams of wealth to do so.
Tulsa King feels like a broken record at this point; there must be some other story it can tell with Tyson. At the very least, it should have decided one way or another how to deal with Tyson and his family. Either let Tyson leave Dwight’s crew and go back to his family, or have Mark and Angie cut him off entirely. Instead, Tulsa King has been drawing this out for years now.
Mark’s Near-Death Experience Should Have Completely Changed His & Tyson’s Story
What makes Tulsa King‘s repetition of Tyson’s story even worse is the fact that it should have ended the storyline in season 2. There was a prime opportunity: Mark nearly died when Jackie Ming’s car bomb hit him instead of Tyson. The car bombing should have been the turning point where Mark offers his son an ultimatum: leave Dwight or leave the family.
Instead, Mark half-forgave Tyson for his involvement, and Angie seems to have forgotten about it entirely by season 3. There was no ultimatum, and they made no progress in their relationship. It’s like the car bombing never even happened, and Mark, Angie, and Tyson are having the exact same conversation they’ve been having since 2022.
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Tulsa King Season 3 Release Schedule |
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|---|---|
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Episode Title |
Release Date (Sundays @ 3 a.m. ET) |
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Blood and Bourbon |
September 21 |
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The Fifty |
September 28 |
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The G and the OG |
October 5 |
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Staring Down the Barrel |
October 12 |
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On the Rocks |
October 19 |
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Bubbles |
October 26 |
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Art of War |
November 2 |
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Nothing is Over |
November 9 |
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Dead Weight |
November 16 |
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TBA |
November 23 |
All Mark’s near-death experience accomplished was getting Tyson to kill Jackie Ming at the end of season 2. That, too, should have been a point of no return, but it wasn’t. Tyson killed a man in cold blood, and that should have made him realize he can’t go back to a loving family. Mark and Angie also still treat him like a kid who’s in over his head instead of the blooded gangster he now is.
The most annoying part of the absolute standstill in Tyson’s Tulsa King story is that it seems like the last two seasons didn’t matter. All the fights they had in the past, all the corruption Tyson has gone through, means nothing if he still has the same family dynamic he did in season 1. Tulsa King also continues to dedicate valuable screen time to a story it seemingly has no interest in progressing.
Mark Helping Fix The Distillery Needs To Finally Result In A Big Tyson Story Change
Something has to change in Mark and Tyson’s dynamic and story; it’s been a long time coming. Luckily, Tulsa King season 3 has the perfect opportunity to change it. Now that Mark is working on the distillery, their relationship can actually progress. Mark can either realize that he has to accept his son, or Tyson can realize that he values his relationship with his father more than he does the luxuries of the gangster life.
It really doesn’t matter how Mark and Tyson’s relationship changes, just so long as it actually changes. We can’t do another full season of Mark telling Tyson that he “doesn’t recognize him” and hear that many more debates about the virtues of an honest day’s work. Tulsa King has run that route into the ground over the span of three years now, and it would really hurt the season if it tries it again.
If Tulsa King doesn’t do something new with Tyson’s story, it will be missing out on a big opportunity. Tyson is practically Dwight’s protégé, and he’s the perfect symbol of the effect Dwight has on others. There are so many possibilities — good and bad — Tulsa King can use Tyson for. Tyson could have a huge impact on the show and Dwight if he could just get past this hurdle of telling the same story over and over again.
- Release Date
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November 13, 2022
- Network
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Paramount+
- Showrunner
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Dave Erickson, Terence Winter
