Knots Landing

[DRW50]

I'd like to see that too, as long as they don't make it like that Melrose Place remake.

To be honest I'm not sure I'd want to see most of the old group again; I think they had a thorough run. I might like seeing the twins, and their big sister Lucy popping in to interfere in their lives, and them bitching at Gary and Val over the phone to sort her out. Of the final cast members the one I'd only really want to see again is Abby, and then Anne.

I'd also like to see Greg find Laura, but I doubt that would happen.

I wouldn't mind seeing Ben again either.

[Khan]

If those responsible for KNOTS' hypothetical reboot (for lack of a better word) were at all concerned about maintaining some ties to the former series, then, yes, I would bring aboard Abby, Betsy and Bobby.

In fact, I have it in my mind now to do some story where Bobby, now in his mid-20's, hooks up with Abby. That would have Betsy, Gary and Val up in arms. And when the big physical showdown between Bobby and Gary results in Gary's heart attack and possible death...? All I can say is, Abby betta watch her back, lest she wants "poor Val" to come after her ass, lol!

Beyond that, though, I would want "KNOTS 2.0" to achieve a sort of diversity that the first KNOTS never could. I mean, fourteen years, and the closest we got was one Black family that only lasted, what, three seasons?

[DRW50]

I love it (they could even do the whole story where she falls for Bobby for real).

The show does need more diversity - I thought the show did a good job with Frank and the daughter (poor Pat - poor Lynne Moody), but something can always improve. At the very least I hope it's better than the cheap tokenism at Desperate Housewives (oh look, a gay couple!). I'm glad we won't ever have to hear, "We were the original Desperate Housewives" again.

[Chris B]

If you were going to include originals, I would focus on Paige and Greg since they would make it easy for the Mackenzie's and also Abby to make appearances. Then you can include Gary and Val by having the twins around. Olivia, Brian and Kate are also options. I'd simply have most of the originals living elsewhere and their homes inhabited by their children. Would be a little contrived, but could work. There are so many different ways you could go.

Another option would be to redo the Scenes From A Marriage theme of the early days and pick five couples to lead the way. Could do Brian & Kate (with their teenage daughter Molly & Grandma Abby), Olivia with somebody new, Bobby and/or Betsy with somebody new, Meg with somebody new, a recast Michael with a love interest and considering how Kent King has aged, I'd certainly have Julie around.

[RogerNewcomb]

I think we'll see a new Knots Landing and/or Dynasty if Dallas does well. If they are on TNT or a cable network, I think they have a chance. The landscape has changed since then though. There are more primetime soaps/serials than ever now.

[DRW50]

I wonder if Nicolette could even play Paige now.

[Khan]

Regardless, I wouldn't want her (Nicolette Sheridan) to be involved whatsoever with KNOTS 2.0. Same goes for Anne, and even Karen and Mack. (OTOH, Greg Sumner should be there, at least initially, as Bobby Ewing's business mentor and nefarious influence.) I see potential in continuing Abby, Gary and Val's stories through the twins that I don't with the Mackenzies, primarily because the BIG story of Meg learning she's Greg and Laura's daughter was told before the series was over. Plus, depending on how well DALLAS 2.0 does on TNT, the network (and really, I think the only network that would be interested in this concept is TNT) probably will mandate that KNOTS 2.0 be more Ewing-driven than the last series.

Moreover, I am of the opinion that the reunion movie should not be included in any backstories for KNOTS 2.0. IMO, that movie was a true, unmitigated disaster.

[KMan101]

I think there's still tons of potential angst between Meg and Sumner. For sure. Lots of storyline potential there. Karen and Mack would only be able to serve as the 'go-tos'. I can't see how they'd drive story. I'd say kill off Mack. He's been dead for about a year. Karen's had Michael and his new family move in with her (maybe they lost their house? foreclosure?). Michael could definitely be a 'hero' of the show (like his father until they killed him off). Maybe he and Julie married? Interactial relationship. They could have adopted. That would be interesting.

Betsy could definitely be a 'Val' type while Bobby could easily be the younger version of Gary. Betsy can be the one who pulls Bobby back in. I love the affair idea behind Abby and Bobby. Gold.

And of course Paige could fit in through Sumner and there's plenty to do with her. She writes herself.

I can see it working. I don't know if it's something that will grab a huge audience, it's not as 'big' as Dallas, even though it was just as much of a hit as Dallas was.

Not to mention there's Brian and Olivia, Abby's kids. Olivia's another character who practically writes herself.

Also there's Richard and Laura's son Jason. I bet he could be quite the interesting character. Shades of both of his parents would make for a great grey character. He could be Betsy's love interest, even though he'd be older, but ages don't really matter I guess.

Edited June 5, 2012 by KMan101

[Khan]

Other ideas for KNOTS 2.0:

* Gary and Val no longer live at Seaview Circle (and thus, Ted Shackelford and Joan Van Ark are credited solely as "special guest stars" in their recurring appearances on KNOTS 2.0). Several years ago, Gary managed to buy back his beloved ranch. However, Miss Ellie left them the deed to their former residence in her will. Ergo, Gary and Val choose to rent out the house; and in the premiere episode, we meet their latest tenants: a Hispanic couple, newlyweds; the wife, a product of a well-to-do family, who went to school with Bobby and Betsy; the husband, one of several children in a large family from East L.A., who has only a G.E.D. and works as an auto mechanic.

* Mack retired his law practice and moved with Karen upstate, to Berkeley, where he now teaches law. In their place as the show's older "anchor couple" are a thoracic surgeon and his African-American wife, a doctor as well. Both have been married before, in fact; and both have children from those marriages, too. The doctor husband's teenaged daughter is another Abby and Paige, a vixenish type who has her daddy wrapped around her proverbial little finger. She has a rivalry of sorts with her stepsister, who is roughly the same age as she but isn't as self-centered; and the stepbrother is a quick-witted pre-teen whose life remains relatively uncomplicated (...for the moment).

* Remember the newlyweds who moved into "the Circle" at the end of KNOTS? Well, they were a(nother) attorney and his wife, respectively. They have no children; however, they have a BIG problem: the husband is a closeted gay man, who is falling for the young, hunky UCLA student who does the couple's gardening.

[Khan]

Of course, there is the fact that Abby was involved, however obliquely and reluctantly, in his and Betsy's kidnapping. Given that it was perhaps KNOTS' biggest-ever storyline, too, they'd be insane not to reference it. But it's exactly those kinds of knotty complications, built on history, that I live for as a soap fan.

[KMan101]

Yup. Exactly. There's just so much natural history to play.

Soaps refusal to tap into that is one of the biggest reasons they are failing. God. Most of these characters just write themselves.

[Khan]

I'd want Brian there as a roadblock of sorts for Bobby and Abby's May-December relationship. Olivia gave up on her mother and her machinations long ago, but Brian is as concerned as the Ewings about the fact that his cougar mom is dating a younger man as well as someone who, at one point, was her own stepson. I see Brian being a temporary or recurring character, though, not one driving any story. For me, the whole point of the Bobby/Abby relationship is the sudden twist it takes when, in the first-season finale, Abby learns she has lung cancer.

[Khan]

I think the fact that Meg has now grown up knowing she's Greg's daughter is something that would color their dynamic, for sure. However, I see grown-up Meg as a smart, independent woman (like her mother...both of them, actually) who views Mack as her "real" dad; and I see Greg as the type who wouldn't ignore or refute that necessarily. Greg might attempt to get Meg to work for him on his big return-to-politics gubernatorial campaign, but he would just smile and curse in his quintessentially Sumnerian way when Meg tells him, "Not a chance."

[Chris B]

I was reading a pretty standard article about Dallas, which had some surprisingly good details. One thing I noticed is that the article says the producers reached out to Joan Van Ark and Ted Shackelford to appear in an episode. It would've been a small appearance, but imagine how nice that would've been! We could've had Gary and Val reunited with Lucy and hell, seeing them at all would've been amazing! Ted is the reason they didn't appear. He said the role wasn't big enough and turned it down. Now we know where the rumors of JVA appearing came from. I wonder if there's a chance she DID film the cameo by herself.

What do you guys think? Personally I find it short-sighted on Ted's part because who knows what this could lead to. They might be thinking of a Knots Landing spin-off and could do that by testing things out with guest appearances by Gary & Val and maybe Bobby and Betsy if Dallas is a big enough hit. Or even on Dallas there might be a place for them. I think it's great the writers tried to include Knots even if it wasn't successful.

Here's a link to the article: http://www.tvguide.com/News/Dallas-TNT-Ewings-1048494.aspx

[Soapsuds]

Ted is an ass....he would have been a nobody had it not been for Gary Ewing.

off topic but Id love to see Season 3 of Knots on DVD.

Edited June 5, 2012 by Soapsuds