21 hours ago, Reverend Ruthledge said:

I'm strange in that I go against popular opinion with most things. I thought the first season was the best for all the primetime soaps I watched (Dallas, Dynasty and Falcon Crest). Except for Knots Landing.

 

20 hours ago, DemetriKane said:

I don't think you're alone there.

IA.  You're not alone in your thinking, @Reverend Ruthledge.  The first seasons of DALLAS, DYNASTY and FC were probably their best, if only because they adhered the most to their creators' intentions.  They weren't being forced to "glam up" yet, so more attention was paid to developing characters and so forth.

KL's first season was good, too, but the limitations in David Jacobs' original "Scenes from a Marriage x 4" concept become apparent almost right away.  For one thing, the inclusion of Gary and Val throws the rest of the ensemble off-balance, with Kenny and Ginger getting cheated out of better stories.  For another, as John Pleshette pointed out in that online interview, it gets really difficult to get the four couples to interact realistically when, IRL, neighbors aren't so involved in each other's lives.

Edited July 12Jul 12 by Khan

Remember too that Knots Landing was a community-based show so it didn't have the same limitations in storytelling and expanding the canvas as the family/business conflict-based shows did.

 

2 hours ago, Khan said:

KL's first season was good, too, but the limitations in David Jacobs' original "Scenes from a Marriage x 4" concept become apparent almost right away.  For one thing, the inclusion of Gary and Val throws the rest of the ensemble off-balance, with Kenny and Ginger getting cheated out of better stories.  For another, as John Pleshette pointed out in that online interview, it gets really difficult to get the four couples to interact realistically when, IRL, neighbors aren't so involved in each other's lives.

There's also a certain late '70s earnestness and cheese that can be tiresome in the first season, mainly in the Karen-heavy PSA episodes. That tends to fade, at least until that equally tiresome Pollyana speech in the last season. 

2 hours ago, Khan said:

 

IA.  You're not alone in your thinking, @Reverend Ruthledge.  The first seasons of DALLAS, DYNASTY and FC were probably their best, if only because they adhered the most to their creators' intentions.  They weren't being forced to "glam up" yet, so more attention was paid to developing characters and so forth.

I think that's what it is. The shows were more about the artist's vision than about ratings so they felt more pure. I used to think I didn't like Dynasty at all until I watched the first season (which I had missed the first go-round). I was shocked at how good it was and how much I liked it. I never understood why people thought it was boring until Joan Collins entered the show. In my opinion, she just made it campy. Not that I'm against camp. It has its place. However, I thought the first season was thought-provoking and that's what I tend to prefer. What came later was pretty mindless. Same, to a lesser extent with Dallas and Falcon Crest. I will say that Knots Landing never veered into camp as far as I know. I'm not very knowledgable on the latter seasons. 

 

I liked the first season for its late 70's feel, but some of the storylines could be a bit cheesy. The Avery's marriage was most interesting to me to watch unfold. Richard was always trying to keep up with the Joneses with the house, furnishing etc...he could not afford. In the beginning you almost suspect that Richard would start beating Laura at some point the way he bullies her. 

Gary & Val being newlyweds did damage to the Ward's purpose of being on the show. They could have downplayed the remarriage and let Kenny & Ginger have more of those types of stories or they could have had Kenny & Ginger be married right out of high school and by 1979 be married for about 6 or 7 years. 

Sid & Karen and their kids could be boring at times. Michelle Lee loved to chew scenery, especially in that campy motorcycle gang episode. Diana grated on my nerves. 

22 hours ago, DRW50 said:

There's also a certain late '70s earnestness and cheese that can be tiresome in the first season, mainly in the Karen-heavy PSA episodes. 

In a way, I miss that era of television.  TV shows today don't tackle any issues, take any stands or challenge anyone's beliefs.  They're just...there, lol.

21 hours ago, Reverend Ruthledge said:

I used to think I didn't like Dynasty at all until I watched the first season (which I had missed the first go-round). I was shocked at how good it was and how much I liked it.

IA.  The Shapiros had built DYNASTY on a solid foundation with the wealthy Carringtons vs. the blue-collar Blaisdels, and Krystle caught in the middle.  ABC and Aaron Spelling just needed to exercise more patience and allow them to tweak the show a little bit (maybe recast Lindsay with Heather Locklear?).

21 hours ago, Reverend Ruthledge said:

I will say that Knots Landing never veered into camp as far as I know. I'm not very knowledgable on the latter seasons. 

Oh, it definitely veered into camp, lol!  To KL's credit, however, their camp wasn't as embarrassing, because they still included "everyday scenes" involving the residents of Seaview Circle.

Edited July 13Jul 13 by Khan

2 minutes ago, Khan said:

In a way, though, I sort of miss that era of television.  TV shows today don't tackle any issues, take any stands or challenge anyone's notions.  They're just...there, lol.

I agree. I do miss the "very special episodes" period compared to what a terrified blob TV is now. I just didn't ever vibe with these stories when they involved Karen, all the way up to that horrible season 12/13 story with the paintball road rage. Stories like Val teaching the young woman to read, even if it may have seemed dated in presentation by 1991, I appreciated more.

Joan Van Ark Betty Crocker frosting commercial circa 1972-73. I wonder if she really ate that frosting and if she jogged 5 miles to make up for it ?....LOL I wonder who the other actress is ?

 

And then they mentioned Gary and the twins, lol.

That's funny lol.

The numbers are small for a subreddit, but I like that Knots Landing is the first 80’s soap who has over a thousand subreddit subscribers. Poor Falcon Crest just has 96 subreddit subscribers.

 

On 7/11/2025 at 9:59 PM, GLATWT88 said:

I'm watching on Plex, but I noticed something odd in episode 8 of season 2. When Karl explains that Michael is hyperkinetic, he asks Karen if she knows what it means and whatever Karen original says is dubbed over with "neurological." It is quite obvious because the flow of conversation is interrupted and the mouth doesn't match what is said. Is there some antiquated term for "neurological" that can be perceived as offensive today? 

Probably “spastic”