KNOTS LANDING

[Soapsuds]

And Peter's death resolution was so lame.

The cliffhanger sucked too.

Karen: There's a crack. We're going to have to start over and dig everything up. Huh?

It shouldn't ended the episode before where Peter's body laid in a pool of blood with Abby nervously drying her hands with a paper towel as Abby and Olivia are both seen at the crime scene.

[kalbir]

1987/88 was the season primetime soaps went off the rails and to me it feels like the natural end point for primetime soaps.

Knots Landing goes off the rails for me in the aftermath of Laura's departure. Constance McCashin has always kept it real by saying she was salary dumped.

[YRBB]

Gosh, Season 8 is so rough to get through again, even binging some of it like this today. I actually found a new appreciation for Season 7 as I rewatched a good chunk, although my issues with it remain. Season 8, however, I found worse than I remembered (even the theme song!).

I adored Karen's kidnapping, but it took such a dive. I had as much patience with the Jean Hackney story when I was first watching as one could possibly have, but it is such a horrific story in so many ways. I would easily count it as the worst story the show ever did. Paige had not clicked yet -- I remember she somewhat annoyed me for a good 2-3 seasons before she became one of my favorite things about the show. The tone has changed, away from soapy grandeur to a more down to earth one. That ultimately ended up allowing KNOTS to more than survive the late 80s-early 90s, but they have not fine-tuned it yet. I can see the attempts at creativity (the flashbacks, Hackney, etc) - they certainly were not lazy, it just all feels so... flat.

At least season 9 improved.... despite even more horrific stuff.

[te.]

It felt like they actually did start to push Olivia in an Abby-esque direction in season 11, with being miserable in her marriage with Harold and wanting more material things. But then they just kind of sent her on her way with Harold. I think they ultimately saw more potential in Linda / Lar Park-Lincoln as the younger version of Abby, but of course that ended up being cut short with her mindless murder in season 13.

[DRW50]

You're right. They had that tension with people like Gary. 

Olivia had unique relationships on the canvas, with Gary or Val, which could have been exploited. 

I agree Linda probably filled that vein more, although you see how that ended. 

[te.]

I loved Tonya Crowe as Olivia, but I think she gave off a very "young" energy (well, she was like 19 when she was booted off) and I think they thought it limited her. Even if she had relationships with Gary, Val and Karen, you could've never seen her seducing Greg (as an example). I mean, Greg and Paige always gave me the icks, so I'd be like Stan kissing Wendy in South Park if Olivia tried putting the moves on Greg, or any of the other older males on Knots. Michael was of course out of the equation for her.

Ultimately, Linda came off as more mature (since she is 10 years older for starters) and played the role of the gold-digging skank well. For whatever reason, her and Greg never bothered me because it was never played off as tru' wuv and I could've seen her go after any male on the cast (and let's just toss Karen in there for good measure). 

I re-watched the series a few months ago and killing off Linda has to be one of the biggest mistakes the show did in its later years. They tried to introduce Vanessa, but the actress was... erm, not very good.

[DRW50]

I think Tonya also struggled with her performances and finding the character more (as often happens when younger actors age). 

I loved what they did with Linda in her last few seasons. Lar Park Lincoln was unmissable in the part, and she added a fun and fresh spirit to a show with a number of moribund characters. Killing her was essentially snuffing out the show's future.

By the time they brought Vanessa in I was barely interested. It didn't help that I never really cared about the Greek guy either.

[Maxim]

Season 9 had 2 missed episodes that they didn't air. I hope they do air them next time the show is on.

 

[Vee]

I for one am very curious to watch the Latham/Lechowick years, which I know are very divisive among fans - people either love or hate them or have very complex feelings, I guess. But they were the foundation and vision for much of the latter half of the show. I'm curious to see them finally add a Black family, Paige, etc. And it does seem to get back to the cul-de-sac while also adding in more corporate intrigue, but not nearly in as dated a way as Dallas. The trick will be getting through a couple allegedly dodgy seasons (8? 9?) to see where it maybe hits something of a groove, lol.

I do think Pat Petersen and even poor Steve Shaw could've done more, but Petersen was allegedly not too interested in continuing acting as he grew up and Shaw of course passed away. Their skills also were not nearly as honed as the older cast. I love Tonya Crowe, but I haven't seen much of her teen or adult years yet so I can't judge.

I like the sandcastle intro and smooth sax too. I just think it's missing the visuals of the cast.

I know they allegedly considered rebooting the show near the end with just either Karen and Mack or Gary and Val and all-new young couples on the cul-de-sac. I guess it might've worked if they'd gone the Melrose route but with more mature writing, sort of a thirtysomething or Picket Fences-esque tone/age range but more serialized and soapy. But I don't think there was ever going to be any stopping the juggernaut of shows like the Spelling soaps let alone ER. Any of us who were there know they owned the night, all week.

When people talk about reviving Knots today I am divided - I think it's a fertile concept that has been harvested for many shows like Desperate Housewives, but without some of the old favorites and an entirely new cast (or maybe some of the kids/grandkids) it could be any show, and there is no plausible way any of the vets would still live there (except maybe the MacKenzies). Melrose Place's first revival had a similar issue, though I liked it more than most. (They talk about rebooting it now and I just don't get it - are they all going to come back and live in that complex at 50-60?)

Edited August 21, 2024 by Vee

[titan1978]

It’s hard to compete with shows that become cultural juggernauts. I was a teenager and was glued to 90210 and especially Melrose Place. You did have to be there, MTV and FOX were our networks. And then ER comes along and was just a juggernaut.

[Vee]

Exactly. I think KL could've potentially reinvented itself in a different environment, but CBS became a wasteland around that time and its attempts to do new soaps flopped. Nothing more homespun or scaled-down was going to compete with the heat coming off the Spelling soaps. Especially nothing that already had done 14 years.

[titan1978]

Ideally, what could have been was a short and core focused final umbrella season, much like they tried to do with the last few episodes. But I am talking 10 episodes or more focused on the classic characters, Joan Van Ark and Donna Mills come back at the beginning, and the show goes out in a true high note. And at that point I think Greg could have been killed off to add the finality and impact. Tie it in more forcefully to the book Val was doing about Greg and maybe pay off something involving Galveston, perhaps use Claudia as the architect.

I didn’t hate the last season, but I just wish it had been used to honor the show more, instead of just trying to keep going until they couldn’t.

[Chris 2]

I thought Laura’s death was mishandled. How convenient that she goes off to die alone so we don’t have to see the horrors of her disease. Or that two weeks after she leaves, she’s dead. Brain tumors are a tough way to go, and Knots didn’t help its credibility by writing her off the way that she did. Why not a heart attack - not uncommon in people Laura’s age? That way you can write her off the canvas quickly and with credibility.

I think this was the point they could have refocused on the cul-de-sac more. Bring in some new families - more than just the Williamses. And if they wanted to dump a big salary, Sumner could have gone. William Devane was excellent, but I felt his character at that point was pulling the show away from its roots.

[BetterForgotten]

Sometimes things last too long for their own good. In KL’s case, I think that was about 4-5 seasons longer than it should have. 

[Forever8]

Agreed!