Knots Landing

[SoapDope]

Yes. Lots of celebs in this reel of ads. Cheryl Ladd, Kim Basinger, Steve Guttenberg, Connie Sellecca. The chick in the screen shot in the heart looks like Shari Shattuck......LOL

[SoapDope]

Kim Lankford (Ginger) with Greg Evigan (Dallas, GH) in a 1976 Coke ad.

 

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[juppiter]

Ugh... the apolune vaults channel got taken off YouTube. I had just finished season 5 and was 3 episodes into season 6 and super addicted.

 

please PM me if you know where else I can watch this show. I’m so pissed. 

[YRBB]

EPISODE 20: WRONG FOR EACH OTHER

 

God, that title could apply to almost everyone in this episode!

 

Anne coming back is such a wonderful little twist – too bad you pretty much figure out this will happen because the ‘Previously On’ heavily features her all of a sudden. Still, her visits every season are always fun and welcome (and this may be a longer one than usual). Anne continuously surprises characters on the show throughout the episode: First Paige and Tom, interrupting their sexy time, then Mack, and finally Greg.

 

It’s a great episode for Nicollette Sheridan. Anne's return elicits a lot of fun, creative acting from Sheridan, and Paige is never funnier than when she makes digs at her mother’s expense: "He’s too young for you mother," she says about Tom, apropos of nothing. "Is this a PTA meeting?" she asks when she comes home to find Mack and Anne together.

 

Sheridan’s cold beauty is never more on display than it is here. The episode somehow captures it really well – she’s an ice queen, but a very beautiful one. The interesting part, of course, being when we see cracks on that veneer: After Mack tells Anne all about dirty, filthy, stinking cop Tom, Anne gives Paige her full support in continuing to date him. Disgusted, Paige decides to leave Tom. Whether Anne meant her advice sincerely, or she very deftly reverse-psychologized her daughter, it is left up to our interpretation.

 

This mother-daughter relationship is written with a lot of complexity – I particularly liked that little line of Anne's about Greg, "You used to date him, didn’t you?", knowing full-well that she did. If only this complexity was also given to, you know, people like Val.

 

Danny just announces to Val that he’s talked to a lawyer about adopting the kids. Thankfully, Val isn’t all dewy-eyed about it (with these writers, you never know). Furious when Val wants to think about it, Danny takes the kids out, knowing Gary is on his way to spend time with them. Gary finding out about Danny's adoption plans prompts a wonderfully acted Gary/Val scene: Gary follows Val at the library, where she’s doing research, and you can just tell Val is shaken by the mere sight of him. Gary touchingly pleads that they finally tell the twins that he’s their father and set things right. For once, Val doesn’t defend Danny and finally, finally, Danny begins to crack. Hearing Gary brought up again, Danny loses it – he yells at Val, throws a magazine at her, and scares her. Seeing Danny freak out, and the horrified realization on Val's face, is so utterly satisfying. I never wanted to see Val in this situation, but the story has been so incredibly frustrating, it’s a relief that it’s all finally coming to light. The question is, how bad will things get before they’re resolved?

 

Linda starts working at Sumner Group with a new outfit and a new personality. No, seriously, it’s like the writers finally figured out the direction they want to go with her and couldn’t make it more obvious. She is dismissive towards Eric and, when Michael rejects her, she loses it. Eric decides it’s time for him to go back to work and shares a goodbye scene with Karen. It’s really touching as he chalks it all up to experience and Karen pulls him in for a hug. I hope we get to see him again.

 

Speaking of Karen, her talk show shenanigans continue: She’s getting great ratings and is starting to get recognized when out. A new associate producer, Jeff Cameron, is brought in, and there’s a lot of fun back and forth as he seems to manipulate both Karen and producer-from-hell Dianne. Later, we are shown Dianne and Jeff sleeping together and it almost sounds like all of this was cooked up by both of them, but earlier it was clearly Jeff that was pulling both of their strings. OK, I guess.

 

I love Mack's dismissive attitude towards Greg: Following last week’s batshit insane ending (Robert, suddenly looking scrumptious and sexy, climbing into Greg's hospital room and injecting him with cameride), Mack tells Paula he doesn’t care if Greg suffers. Paula questions how those two were ever friends. Karen insists on taking Paula out so she can have a change of scenery. There’s a very interesting vibe in this scene: There’s something very … 90s about it. It’s also an amusing scene: Paula spills her guts out about being in love with Greg, while Karen is continuously interrupted with complimentary champagne, adoring fans, and requests for autographs. By highlighting the unusualness of Karen's situation so obviously, they manage to make it more palatable, more real. I could do without the silly, self-aware “Oprah better watch out!” lines, though.

 

Paula soon returns to Greg's side, who still can’t speak. Well, no worries, Anne arrives with flowers and shocks the poor geezer into speaking once more! Poor Paula.

 

Winner of the episode: Frank, who stops Tom and Mack's fight, and tells Tom: "You’re leaving. Bye!" with such sass. Oh, Frank. So funny. So succinct.

 

Loser of the episode: Danny. Always. Always.

[juppiter]

 

Luckily this is now back online. Can I just say it’s disgusting that I have to stream this illegally? This is absolutely one of the best TV shows of all time.

 

i have caught lazy writing in it. Gary was ready to divorce Abby and changed his mind in five seconds. But this cast and these writers just sell everything so well. I forgive them. For now I forgive them: onward with season 6. There will come a time when I won’t forgive them (I know, because I’ve watched the series before, but not in at least ten years) but I won’t think about that yet.

Edited April 28, 2018 by juppiter

[Chris B]

Could you PM me the link? I’d love to rewatch. 

[SoapDope]

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[DRW50]

Thanks for finding that @SoapDope as I watch that channel but didn't see this one. Constance is so wonderful - how rare to see her interviewed.

 

I wonder if Constance was joking about calling Ciji Laura's "possible lover" or if the show really did want people to see them as being that way. I wonder if viewers ever thought they were? To me that was just Richard being paranoid, although Constance and Lisa Hartman had a lot of chemistry (Lisa generally did not with most of the men on the show).

 

This doesn't mention Knots but it's a Millie Perkins interview from around the time she was first on the show.

 

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[YRBB]

EPISODE 21: GOOD NEWS, BAD NEWS

 

Good news: Val finally realizes who Danny really is. Bad news: The way we get there once again elicits eye rolls and requires a lot of patience.

 

Val continues to be patient with Danny and, briefly, it looks like we’ll be stuck in this merry go round for a few more episodes. Thanks to an incredible array of coincidences (Danny happens to take the slide away from the kids, he drops his wallet and Val happens to find the pictures in them, Val happens to knock down just the right boxes so she can discover Danny's yearbook), Val learns Danny beat and raped a woman named Christine.

 

In the meantime, we’ve got some fun C-story stuff with Karen and her talk show exploits, as well as Linda proving how fantastic she is at her new job and sticking it to Michael. Greg is out of the hospital and rudely flirting openly with Anne right in front of Paula, while there’s some fun stuff with Karen and Paige attempting to get a cease fire between Mack and Tom.

 

Val does all she can to get out of the house and away from Danny, but she doesn’t play it convincingly enough. While she waits for Mack in his office, Danny shows up (and Gary happens to call her back right at that time) and realizes he’s been made. The mask finally drops and he attacks her. Despite it all, it’s a thrilling scene, and even more shocking when it’s revealed that she stabbed him. In a totally iconic moment, Danny falls to his knees. Val looks down, bloodied hands, in horror. Danny looks up… "you bitch," he spits out.

 

[juppiter]

I watched season 4, season 5, and then I was so into season 6... and then it got deleted. And then MOST of it was re-uploaded, so I went back to it after a brief thirtysomething excursion...

 

And I saw Abby launch a giant floppy disk into a computer, only to find out that Valene's babies were Gary's, her perfectly made up, beautiful face reflecting in the freeze frame of the episode, beckoning me to go further into Knots' most-watched season.

 

And then the next episode was deleted by YouTube. Even though most of the season was there, I already knew how the season turned out. I wanted to watch the beats of it, which had thus far been fantastic. But knowing that would be impossible, I turned back.

 

Back to season 2 Knots.

 

And how fabulous season 2 Knots is.

 

This show is absolutely quaint, in the most possibly charming way. Everybody gets good moments. Don Murray gets good moments of being that impossibly good, moral guy. You root for him. He always wants the best in people and is just so kind to everyone. Karen is almost too pro-active for Knots Landing. This is a woman who knows what she wants and won't be denied. Valene grows so much in this season. She wants to be a good spouse for Gary, but also doesn't want to be a fly on the wall. We see a little bit of Lilimae when she tells J.R. how awful he is and to stay away from Gary. Laura is trying to make her marriage with Richard work for her son's sake, even though her husband is not offering much. Richard is tragically emasculated by Laura and lashing out at her. Kim Lankford is beautiful and talented as the doomed Ginger. Donna Mills is writing Abby's backstory before our eyes, stealing every scene she is in. Her chemistry with Larry Hagman is off the charts. Her feud with Michele Lee's Karen is bubbling under the radar. She relishes in getting called "such a slut" by Constance McCashin's Laura. Ted Shackleford's Gary is completely stupid, but understandably so. James Houghton is just there.

 

This season is just so well put together. You would not have Michael being learning disabled as a major storyline in today's shows. And in season 2 Knots, it is a major story, and it is so well done. You would not get Gary falling for Judy Trent over multiple episodes. You would not get Val getting her degree over multiple episodes. You would not get Abby clearly pining over Gary, but not actually making her move until the next season.

 

Knots Landing season 2 is a slowly plotted gem. Watching this, one wonders what could have been had this show remained Scenes From Four Marriages. They did it expertly in season 2. They nailed the nuts and bolts that most shows would ignore. 

[juppiter]

Watching season 2 of Knots is just fascinating. I love what this show became, but watching season 2 I wonder what it could have been. 

 

I love the episodes that show show multiple couples in the same position. I just watched one where Valene is involved with Earl Trent, and Laura is involved with Scooter Warren, and Richard and Gary react in interesting ways. 

 

This is Show was great because The couples’ storylines have matching themes but they don’t beat you over the head with it.

 

I love all these characters. I adore the Karen/Sid dynamic and I think it works better than the Karen/Mack dynamic ever did. I am going to be devastated when Sid dies... he really is a loveable character.

 

Donna Mills steals every scene she is in. In the episode I just watched, with Laura and Val not cheating after their husbands cheated, she is a bit much with Gary. It is interesting that this show decided not to do the Gary/Abby affair before it did. 

[YRBB]

EPISODES 22-24: DEVIL ON MY SHOULDER/HOME SWEET HOME/ONLY JUST BEGUN

 

Danny is a horrible, nasty human being, so naturally he doesn’t die from his collapsed lung after Val mercifully stabs him. Instead, he nearly gets her into big trouble and then returns to their house as if nothing happened. Thankfully, Val does the only sensible thing and takes the kids and runs to Gary. It looks like the show is done trying to keep them apart.

 

Because Danny is a horrible, nasty human being, he tells Bobby that he is Gary's son. It’s too much for the tyke to take, so he packs his things and leaves. Val and Gary decide to finally be straight with the twins and it’s so satisfying to watch: The decision to make Val pregnant all the way back in season 5 has yielded so much story, and it’s great to see it come to an unexpected conclusion 6 seasons later. It doesn’t hurt that Danny's plan to hurt them by revealing this failed. "Can we have a baby brother?" the twins wonder, naturally.

 

Greg's reactions to the cattiness between Paul and Anne are hilarious, but one has to wonder how long will Paula put up with it. (Anne keeps calling her 'Paulette,' which I can’t help but find amusing). It’s another satisfying moment when Paula finally snaps, reads Greg for filth in front of all his employees, and leaves in a huff. At some point, Paige calls Anne out for the caricature she seems to be. Very nice.

 

Olivia is conning Gary once more. I love that he’s aware of what she’s doing and going along with it in the hopes that she’ll grow a conscience. When Harold calls to apologize to Olivia, she turns to Val for advice. "I can’t believe you’d ask me for advice!" Val disgustingly says. Lechowicks, when will you be done sh*tting on Val?!! Ultimately, in what suddenly feels like Olivia and Harold's swan song, Olivia returns Gary's check and reunites happily with Harold in Miami. Wow, they got a happy ending after all?

 

Tom and Anne are surprisingly hot together. Paige is upset about this, but Tom proposes. There’s a fun montage of scenes during which Paige and Tom discuss her refusal to marry him, and it’s rather sweet when Paige changes her mind and accepts (I can’t see it working out).

 

Dianne is an annoying thorn on Karen's side but I really loved her frustrated speech about how she’s trying to climb the ladder but keeps getting shot down. It was a nice, different side to her (we can afford those moments for all characters but Val). Suddenly, Karen acquires a stalker. The show has fun making us think it’s someone else at first, plays it for laughs, but it turns out this ain’t no joke – you can tell because the stalker has a wall of horniness.

 

I like Danny much more as a drunk. At least the pretenses are gone. It’s also nice to see him suffer. How devastating when this, and Pat’s desire to become a doctor again, collide in a most Knotsian way! Danny running over Pat while "You are so beautiful to me" is playing is a classic scene. Never expected it! I knew Pat died at some point, but always assumed it would be related to her past. As the song keeps playing, you can see Danny screaming at Pat for being in front of his car, a nice detail. What a superb (if sad) twist. Too bad we’re losing Pat (I think, don’t tell me!).

[AmandainNC28655]

I have recently downloaded all the seasons of Dallas (the original and the reboot) and the original Dynasty on my ipad through Amazon Prime Video and have watched them numerous times. As a child who grew up in the 80's and 90's, I LOVED all these old soapy primetime shows.  Where can I watch full episodes of Knots Landing for Free online??? 

 

Also any one know where I can watch seasons 5-10 of Falcon crest online as well??  We are leaving for vacation next week and I would love to have some of these old faves to watch on the drive to Florida 

[juppiter]

I really love your recaps YRBB. Keep them coming. No comment because I really hate this season and these storylines, but I’m looking forward to you getting to season 12.

[amybrickwallace]

 

Richard being paranoid was what made the character fun to watch! John Pleshette was perfect in the role...I can't imagine anyone else playing Richard Avery.