Dynasty: Discussion Thread

[Liberty City]

Last week's episode and tonight's episode are fantastic.

[j swift]

Ryan the Stripper's motivations are suspicious, which is odd for a show where most things are so obvious to the viewer.  Does he really want to keep stripping?  Why wouldn't he accept money from Sam, then take a loan from Culhane who is a complete stranger?  I am willing to suspend disbelief about law schools that interview students one day, inform them of their acceptance and financial aid the next day, and then they start a week later, but I can't help but think this is all a con.

 

Adam being in contention as chief of staff with only one competitor was a little bit harder to accept.  The Dynasty clan is able to sneak into anyone's office every episode (in fact the doctor's office look suspiciously like last week's journalist's office).  And Adam's plan to take ownership over the "billions" in medical research seems only tenuously related to being Chief of Staff, considering that he was already in charge of the MRI (still a good joke), and they could only fund one research grant at a time.

 

Culhane's sudden wealth made him even more of a candidate for death in my book (I was sure the car would blow up in the final scene).  Although, I didn't get why he is wealthier now that he sold the team than he was as an owner (I guess his funds are more liquid now).  I enjoyed the scene with Anders,  Alan Dale is a real charming actor, and his presence brings the right kind of humor to every scene.

 

I though the Blake and Fallon business story was a bit of a missed opportunity.  When Fallon brought up team building, yoga, and wrongful termination lawsuits, I thought they were setting up an interesting dynamic between the rise of business in the 80s versus today.  It would have been fun to show how liability, leveraged costs, and diversity have changed the workplace, but Dynasty seems a little too superficial for that type of story.

 

I also really enjoy the variety of excuses to get most of them to live at La Mirage, which is larger than Culhane's apartment,but smaller than Cristal's closet.

 

Can we all agree that only in soaps do women find out that they're pregnant due to fainting rather than missing their period?

Edited June 13, 2021 by j swift

[Liberty City]

 

Do I suspect a time jump to a nine-month pregnant Cristal to show Daniella Alonso's real-life pregnant belly for at least once..? By episode eight, nine and/or ten, Alonso won't be pregnant (shooting-wise).

[pdm1974]

Am I crazy to think that they're slowly building something between Culhane and Sam??? Would they actually go there?

[Liberty City]

 

I don't see it happening. I just see a genuine friendship established between two characters that interact with the other Carrington family members.

If I am being honest, I'm sad Culhane and Kirby didn't go further than it did.

[Liberty City]

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[te.]

Culhane is probably the most expandable cast member at this moment to the point I'm wondering if he's even on the same show.

[te.]

I'm not sure that'll happen tbh. They normally start filming in August, but had to start in October (for obvious reasons); Daniela was due to give birth in December and said she'd miss two episodes due to maternity leave, so we may have hit the point where she's off to give birth since she wasn't in this episode and normally they film 13 episodes between August-December, which would've been about halved due to the late start.

[j swift]

What if it is

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My only quibble is the sitcom-like solutions at the end of every episode.  It is inevitable that Liam and Fallon would squash their issue, but they will continue next week, so why write a resolve every week where suddenly they understand each others motives?

 

Once again a shout out to the costume department.  I laughed my ass off when Fallon responded to Blake's 911 call by changing her outfit to meet him at La Mirage, only to be repeated when Blake changed two minutes later to meet with Dominique.  This is one Dynasty that has their fashion priorities in check.

Edited June 19, 2021 by j swift

[te.]

I agree that Fallon-Liam seems stuck in one episode plot hell; I wouldn't have minded if the Nash situation had lasted around 3 episodes - not too long to become tedious but also long enough to provide some variety to the one-episode-and-solved thing they're doing. Laura Leighton will guest star in two weeks from now; I kind of hope she does more than one episode a la Kelly Rutherford ended up doing.

 

I guess if Culhane marries Alexis in an unexpected move we might count on him dying - remember that Alexis was supposed to become rich after someone she marries dies. Though maybe they've forgotten about that lol.

Edited June 20, 2021 by te.

[Liberty City]

 

Alonso did not miss shooting any episodes, according to her. She said she filmed up until their winter break, took a one-week maternity leave, and was back on set with everyone. By February, Liz Gillies said they had shot about ten episodes of the series, and some scenes were being shot out of succession.

 

 

[pdm1974]

I agree that this plot should have been drawn out a bit more. It could've been used to create some genuine conflict with Fallon and Liam.

[j swift]

The guy really had nothing to blackmail Fallon with, I mean what’s so wrong with paying for your husband’s best friend to come and visit?  I thought he would have some information on the expansion, but it seems like that is a totally separate thread.  I hope Blake isn’t doing anything to mess up Fallon’s company. 

[j swift]

I continue to be entertained and I'm glad that I've committed to watching this season as it gives me something to look forward to watching (usually Saturday morning, but I caught it live this week).  Random thought: I get there are tax breaks to filming in Atlanta, but it is a shame that they don't refer to the city more often.  They never show any establishing shots of the city or give any context for where the fictional places around town are supposed to be.  They're inside so often that they might as well be shooting in Vancouver.

 

My scene of the week was Adam's response to Cristal's diagnosis. I appreciate that these characters are somehow predestined to relive the lives of the originals, right down to their diseases (although only in a soap could a brain tumor be diagnosed by a blood test by an OB-GYN). But, Adam's response was really touching.

 

I was as shocked that Fallon graduated from Wharton as I was to learn that the writers think that graduate business programs have a capella groups (although I guess she could've gone there for undergrad and claimed the honor; like a certain former president).  

 

How did Blake afford to buy back the Manor, but he can't maintain Carrington Atlantic?  He seems to not have his priorities in order.  One would think he would want to re-establish his company before caring about not having to live in a hotel with his butler.  That being said, I covet his leisure wear, that outfit in his final scene was stunning.

 

Again, pacing is my major quibble.  I was filled with suspects about who was behind Fallon's Scottish deal.  My bets were either on her new assistant or Blake causing the destabilization of her company.  However, with no mystery what so ever, we found out it was some guy who despite living in 2021, with huge family wealth, still went to drive-in movies?  The whole plan was sketchy considering that if he bought the land, his family's company still couldn't develop the property.  It continues to mystify me why they feel the need to tie up each story every week rather than allowing plots to develop over time.  I am sure Alexis will escape the mine, and Cristal will have brain surgery, before the opening credits next week.  

Edited June 26, 2021 by j swift

[Liberty City]

 

I think it's also due to COVID-19 this season, because in previous seasons, they did plenty more outdoor-type filming. But, I'm guessing due to restrictions, they had to re-think how they shot the season this year.