Go West, Old Man – As the first episode of Tulsa King begins, Dwight ‘The General’ Manfredi (Sylvester Stallone) is locked up at USP Canaan which is a federal prison in Northern Pennsylvania. Dwight has been in prison for the last 25 years. When he was 17, his father asked what he wanted to be and whether he’d want to be a barber like him. Dwight laughed in his face because he wanted to be a successful gangster. He questions whether it was worth 25 years in prison. Dwight believes the answer is no. He married this life. After 25 years of keeping his mouth shut, he is going to find out whether this life married him back. Once Dwight is released, he asks his driver about Scores since he thought there would be a party there. The driver says they gave him an address on Long Island. As they arrive at a fancy house, the driver admits they didn’t say whose house it is.

After the intro, Dwight goes into the house to meet with Chickie (Domenick Lombardozzi), Pete (AC Peterson), and the old gang. He gets upset when two guards want to stand behind him. He argues with Nico and Mario, but they won’t move. Once they sit down, Dwight wonders if he should be talking to Chickie or Pete so he is told that Charles is his underboss now. Charles reveals that Vince (Vincent Piazza) is one of his capos. He doesn’t know what Dwight is expecting but insists they can’t just rewind the clock. After doing 25 years to save his father’s backside after Charles whacked a guy, Dwight is expecting some form of adequate compensation. They insist they’re going to take care of him by sending him to Tulsa, Oklahoma where he can plant a flag and get things set up. Charles argues that there is nothing left for Dwight in New York. Dwight reminds them that his wife divorced him when he went inside and he hasn’t talked to his daughter Tina in 18 years.

As he continues complaining, Vince says he doesn’t understand how this works because they told him where to go. Dwight punches him and reminds Pete that this wasn’t their deal. Pete argues that he is giving him an entire city. Dwight calls it banishment. Chickie tells him he’ll kick up five grand to start. Dwight eventually calms down and decides to go to Tulsa. Once he gets out of the airport, he is accosted by a religious woman who sprays him with holy water. Tyson (Jay Will) offers him a ride to a hotel where no one will break his balls. While in the car, Dwight talks to Tyson about why they call Oklahoma the Sooner State. Dwight thinks it’d be nice if someone invented a device that could be used to look this stuff up. Tyson points out his iPhone since it can do that. When Dwight notices all the churches around there, Tyson informs him that he is in the buckle of the Bible belt.

Eventually, Tyson calls him a gangster and Dwight takes offense to that. Tyson tries to explain to him that it means someone is cool. They continue arguing about that until Dwight notices a weed dispensary called The Higher Plane. Tyson can’t tell him who runs it or which crew since they’re in the middle of nowhere. Dwight gives him money to wait outside while he goes in. When the security guard asks for his medical Id, Dwight says he isn’t going to buy anything. Dwight learns that they only accept cash, there are no cameras, and they only have one security guard. He asks Clint (Dashiell Connery) about the owner while Grace (McKenna Quigley Harrington) listens nearby. Security guard Fred (Justin Garcia-Pruneda) is told to go get Bodhi. Fred threatens him with his pepper spray so Dwight goes outside to grab Tyson’s juice bottle. He goes back inside and throws it at Fred’s face causing Bodhi (Martin Starr) to come out to see what is going on.

Dwight wants to see the books so they go into Bodhi’s office. He wants to know where the money is kept since the Feds could take it if it was stored in a bank. Bodhi eventually relents and opens the safe for Dwight. There are half a million dollars in the safe. Dwight wants to take 20% each week in exchange for protection from the gangs and the law. Bodhi is surprised when Dwight doesn’t take more money, but Dwight says they’re partners. When Bodhi asks if he has a choice, Dwight admits that he doesn’t. Dwight goes back outside where he learns that the repo man took Tyson’s vehicle. He gives him money so he can buy a Navigator. Tyson will begin driving for Dwight for two grand a week. After Dwight is dropped off at the motel, he tells Tyson to be there tomorrow at 10 AM. Dwight goes into the rundown motel room. Later, he goes into the office to ask the manager to get him a cab.

Dwight travels to the Bred 2 Buck Saloon. He buys drinks for two men and also gets something to eat. In the morning, Tyson arrives in his mother’s vehicle instead of the Navigator Dwight wanted him to buy. Tyson explains that they wouldn’t let him buy the car at the dealership because they thought he was a crack dealer. They go to the dealership so Dwight can confront the manager, Donnie Shore (Steve Witting). Dwight beats him up and forces him to sell Tyson the Navigator. After they buy the vehicle, they go for ice cream. As Dwight goes to the bathroom to wash up, he is watched by a stranger. Dwight and Tyson go back to the dispensary. They give him a security camera. Dwight learns that they’ve made a little over five grand today. Bodhi tells him that they get their weed from a greenhouse and a 40-acre farm a couple of hours north of there. He buys the weed from a guy named Jimmy and they’re licensed.

Dwight gives him advice for protecting his money from the Feds. Bodhi is surprised when he learns that Dwight is staying at the Western Plains motel. Dwight tells Tyson to get him a room at the best hotel in Tulsa which is The Mayo. He wants to go to the Bred 2 Buck Saloon after that. He wants Tyson to tell people he is an industrialist in the future because nobody knows what that means. At the bar, the bartender tells Dwight that he takes his dad to work with him so he can babysit him. He doesn’t trust anyone else to do it. He introduces himself as Mitch Keller (Garrett Hedlund). When he asks Dwight how long he was in the joint, Dwight says he was about to ask him the same thing. Dwight was in for 25 years while Mitch served a little over eight years. A woman wants to take a picture with Dwight, but he’d rather not. Mitch was a bull rider before he got the bar. He got busted up, addicted to pain pills, and ran into a little trouble.

Stacy Beale (Andrea Savage) comes over to ask Dwight why he was rude to her friend, but he says he just doesn’t like having his picture taken. She says he messed up because they were going to invite him to the Karaoke Castle party. Dwight has other ideas about partying. They dance at a club. The manager, Frank, comes over to tell Dwight they can’t be on the stage. Dwight gives him money and tells him to keep the pervs away from the women. One guy gets rough with one of the women so Dwight deals with him. Stacy tries to get him to dance with her, but he says tough guys don’t dance. They go back to his motel room for a little fun. They talk about their relationships as Stacy reveals she is in the middle of a divorce. He was the deciding factor. If she could actually go through with it, she doesn’t think there is any going back. She learns that he was a senior in high school when JFK was killed.

Stacy decides to leave because of the age canyon between them. Later, Dwight claims Tulsa is a prison and a result of a lifetime of bad choices. Eddie gets a call from Armand Truisi (Max Casella) who tells him that he just saw Dwight in Tulsa. Dwight claims he will earn so much money that they’ll choke on it. As the local ATF office, ASAC Hendricks (Miles Mussenden) tells everyone about Dwight being in Tulsa even though that isn’t their business. Stacy is surprised when she sees his picture on the screen. Dwight says he is bloodied but not beaten.

 

Tulsa King Review

The opening episode of Tulsa King established a typical mob story that is set in an atypical place for the genre. With the combination of Taylor Sheridan and Sylvester Stallone, Tulsa King will be sure to lure in many viewers. Most will likely be satisfied with the simple redemption story that they’re being presented because it is surprisingly entertaining despite all of its flaws. Sylvester Stallone is a good pick to play Dwight Manfredi and that is necessary considering the supporting cast didn’t stand apart in the first episode.

Certain performances are better than others, but the main performers are doing well and that will likely be the only thing that matters in the end. Although Tulsa King could be scrutinized for having credibility issues, fans of Sheridan’s previous works will probably enjoy it anyway. The first episode was enjoyable even if it wasn’t perfect.

If the quality remains, Tulsa King could become a must-watch each week. The story is nostalgic and simply entertaining while Dwight’s exploits are mostly fun, but he may face more resistance in future episodes. The opening episode scores a 7 out of 10. Recaps of Tulsa King are available on Reel Mockery here. Are you using ad blockers to improve your browsing experience? Consider supporting our independent entertainment site here.

 

 

Tulsa King Cast

Tulsa King is a gangster drama led by Sylvester Stallone who takes on the role of Dwight ‘The General’ Manfredi. Dwight was sent to prison for covering for his New York mobster friends. When he is released after 25 years, Dwight will be exiled by the man he protected, Pete Invernizzi. However, Manfredi will attempt to use his new opportunity in Tulsa to his advantage and prove that he still belongs among the elite.

To achieve his goals, he will team up with a ragtag group and extort the owner of a medical marijuana dispensary.

Sylvester Stallone as Dwight ‘The General’ Manfredi

Sylvester Stallone is the recently released inmate Dwight Manfredi. As the series begins, Dwight is released from USP Canaan after serving 25 years after covering for his former gangster buddies. He believes he will be accepted by Pete and Charles Invernizzi with open arms only to be disappointed when he is sent to Tulsa to set up operations there. Once Dwight arrives in Tulsa, he immediately finds a driver named Tyson who is happy to receive a couple of grand a month for his services.

Dwight has lost it all due to his prison stint including his wife and daughter, but he is adamant about striking it big in his new territory.

Jay Will as Tyson

Little is known about Tyson who is portrayed by Jay Will in Tulsa King. The taxi driver meets Dwight when he arrives at the airport in Tulsa. He quickly gives up his job as a taxi driver to become Dwight’s helper and driver for a couple of grand per month. Jay Will previously appeared in two episodes of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel and one episode of Evil.

Andrea Savage as Stacy Beale

Dwight Manfredi meets Stacy Beale in a local bar before taking her to his motel room. Stacy is having trouble in her marriage and uses Dwight to decide whether to go through with the divorce. When she finds out how old Dwight actually is, Stacy bails although their relationship will likely develop over the course of the season. Dwight may unknowingly find himself in a spider’s web since Stacy is on the opposite side of the law. The American actress had been in several television shows, including iZombie, I’m Sorry, Veep, and The Freak Brothers.

Martin Starr as Bodhi

Bodhi unwillingly becomes Dwight’s business partner when Manfredi barges into his weed dispensary and attacks his security guard. His employees, Clint and Grace, offer little resistance so he is forced to pay extortion money for Dwight’s protection. Dwight sees an opportunity to stake his claim by using Bodhi’s business to his advantage. Martin Starr was born in Santa Monica, California on July 30, 1982. Early in his career, he appeared in 18 episodes of Freaks and Geeks.

He has also been in Roswell, Revelations, Party Down, Mad Love, Burning Love, Hawaii Five-0, and Silicon Valley.

Garrett Hedlund as Mitch Keller

Garrett Hedlund was born in Roseau, Minnesota on September 3, 1984. In Tulsa King, he portrays Mitch Keller who runs the Bred 2 Buck Saloon which Dwight frequently visits. During Dwight’s regular visits, he begins developing a relationship with Mitch and quickly finds that they have a lot in common. For instance, both spent time in prison although Dwight’s sentence was significantly longer. A business partnership could be in store for their future.

Hedlund has mostly played in movies such as Four Brothers, Georgia Rule, TRON: Legacy, and Burden. He was also in eight episodes of Mosaic.

• Domenick Lombardozzi as Charles ‘Chickie’ Invernizzi
• Vincent Piazza as Vince Antonacci
• AC Peterson as Pete Invernizzi
• Miles Mussenden as ASAC Hendricks
• Dashiell Connery as Clint
• McKenna Quigley Harrington as Grace
• Justin Garcia-Pruneda as Security Guard Fred
• Max Casella as Armand Truisi