Collider examines a continuity problem in the Yellowstone franchise: the character Monica Dutton (played by Kelsey Asbille) has been entirely absent from the newly concluded first season of Dutton Ranch, despite her significance in the original series. Her omission follows her death in the spin-off Marshals, which centres on her husband Kayce Dutton (Luke Grimes), and the article argues that erasing such a major character rather than acknowledging her leaves a conspicuous gap in the new show.

The piece situates this within Taylor Sheridan's wider Dutton franchise, which has dominated Paramount since Yellowstone premiered in 2018. Dutton Ranch has drawn fans back with the return of Beth Dutton (Kelly Reilly) and Rip Wheeler (Cole Hauser), yet the writer notes that Monica's death from cancer in Marshals falls into the "dead wife" trope, even though the character featured across roughly six years of storytelling. The article frames her total absence from the latest chapter as the "elephant in the room" for an otherwise well-received return.