Taylor Sheridan Finally Fixed Landman’s Biggest Plot Hole in Season 2

Ariana Is a Single Mother, But Rarely Has Her Baby in Landman

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Some Landman viewers have noticed that, while Ariana Medina (Paulina Chavez) is a single mother in the series, she rarely has her baby with her. Ariana is Cooper’s girlfriend in Season 1. However, she has a son from her marriage to Elvio (Alejandro Akara), who died in an oil rig explosion in the series premiere of Landman. As Ariana deals with the fallout of her husband’s sudden and wrongful death in Landman Season 1, there’s an emphasis on Ariana having to do everything herself. That made it all the more odd that the young mother rarely had her baby around, with Season 1 containing just a few scenes of Ariana tending her son.

As such, Ariana can get a lot done around the house while also navigating the beginning of her relationship with Cooper in Landman Season 1. In the season premiere of Landman Season 2, Ariana’s tone begins to shift, asking her boyfriend, “You forget I have a baby?” when he comes home yelling her name after he strikes oil. However, in the next scene, Ariana is without her son, Miguel, again as she rides with Cooper in his truck to witness his oil well, which has struck a pocket that will produce roughly $10 million per year. Therefore, audiences were still wondering where Miguel was when not with his mother, and they finally received definitive answers.

Landman Season 2 Finally Explains Ariana’s Plot Hole

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Landman finally explains Ariana’s situation after she and Cooper part ways. After Medina and Norris Jr. break up in Landman Season 2, Episode 2, Ariana applies for a job at the Patch Café in “Almost a Home,” interviewing for a position as a server. However, she lands a gig as a bartender on account of her temperament.

When getting interviewed by Tommy’s favorite Patch Café server, Ellie (Robyn Lively), Medina finally reveals how she’s managed so much time to herself as a single mother. When Ellie asks if Ariana has daycare figured out for her son, Medina admits she lives right across the street from Miguel’s grandmother, who watches him when she’s busy. It seems that Ariana is referring to Miguel’s paternal grandmother and Elvio’s mother. If Ariana were referring to her own mother, one would expect her to specify that it was her mom. Regardless of the connection, Medina tells Ellie that daycare is the one thing she has figured out after her husband’s death, effectively explaining the plot hole.

Will Ariana & Cooper Get Back Together in Landman Season 2?

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As Ariana begins building her life up without Cooper’s support, one of the biggest questions circling Landman Season 2 is whether Medina and Norris’ relationship was meant to last or whether it was just a chapter in the larger story. Sheridan typically builds relationships to last. However, Ariana and Cooper have formative issues to contend with.

As pointed out by Tommy Norris and other Landman characters, Ariana and Cooper rushed into their romance far too soon after Medina lost her husband, Elvio, in an oil rig explosion. Norris Jr. witnessed the explosion and went to Ariana’s house to support her, but soon began a romantic relationship with her as they spent more time together. While Ariana did some grieving by herself and with Cooper throughout Landman Season 1, it makes sense that Medina needs to make time for herself to properly mourn her husband’s death and get adjusted to life without him. That said, Ariana and Cooper are likely to get back together eventually, since her connection to the story is through Cooper.