Dynasty: Discussion Thread

[te.]

Jeff. He's been marked for death for a while now.

 

Either that or they remembered that Steven still exists and they need to get rid of him.

[j swift]

My reasoning for Culhane was that we didn't see any of the rest of the family, and surely they would attend the funeral of either Jeff or Steven...

[te.]

I just assume they didn't want to reveal any other mourners.

 

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[j swift]

It's just so fun to feel the suspense about a soap again that I am going to ride the wave and try avoid spoilers

[soapfan770]

Hmm, hadn’t thought of Jeff yet but it does make sense given he’s pretty much never fully recovered from his car crash and poisoning in Season 2.  Jeff’s death would give Alexis a lot more power that’s for sure.

[Liberty City]

My thoughts are it might be Monica. Don't ask me why.

[te.]

I assume this would've been the original season finale (3x22), but I assume they made it more co-vid friendly by avoiding to have a big wedding. Either way it seems to be their take on OG's season 8 cliffhanger with Dex fighting with Sean to save Alexis and a gun going off.

 

I doubt either Kirby or Blake will bite the dust (it's too soon to reveal the coffin owner), so Evan will probably die.

 

Shame about Alexis and Jeff, but realistically it was never going to work out in the long run. I assume they might've felt everyone was getting too paired up. Though OG Alexis would've never admitted that children wasn't an option as it implies she might be *gasp* her child-bearing years.

 

I wonder if Blake will be hurt enough for Alexis to take pity on him and keep him in the mansion.

 

 

Edited May 15, 2021 by te.

[spike99]

liam's mother...

[j swift]

I admired Dominique's ability to wiggle even while standing still and discussing mineral rights.  Although, somebody needs to work on that lacefront, in 4k you could see her widowspeak and her hairline did not match.  I also thought the mineral rights thing was very Dallas.  No matter the size of the Carrington Manor,  one doubts the neighbors in Buckhead would allow drilling.  Which is how I predict Blake will rescue the house.   Alexis will overspend on excavation and be forced to sell it back to Blake.

 

They are doing an awful job of hiding Cristal's pregnancy.  However, given that the actress will likely need maternity leave, it made me wonder if she'll get killed off?  That feathered barrette certainly didn't do her any favors.

 

I was certain that when Culhane attended the wedding in the high school that was when he would be killed off, but it looks like he survived another episode, while only being given two lines of dialogue.  I'm guessing the next episode will rule out Evan as the potential killer of whomever is in the casket.

 

The costumes are once again remarkable.  Jeff and Alexis wore Versace to the wedding,  Kirby's dress was lovely, and Sam's tux was enviable.  Also, Lachlan Buchanan's hood, under his jacket, was so perfectly placed it could only have been put there by a costumer.  Anytime I try to layer I look like I am wearing a straight jacket while being strangled by my own hood.

 

The cliffhanger was not as engaging.  As @te. noted it is unlikely that Blake's wounds were fatal, and Kirby will have to exonerate Adam (especially because Evan left his handprint at the crime scene).  Those lighting rigs with the theatrically large switches seem to only be found on TV.  Why do Sam and Liam write everything in little notebooks rather than just use their phones?  And how was Fallon's ankle magically healed by the time she was taken hostage?

 

That being said, Elizabeth Gilles continues to amaze me.  Her singing and comedy were on point.  I love a character who wakes up in full eye makeup and she is truly the highlight of the whole series.

Edited May 15, 2021 by j swift

[Liberty City]

 

The wig is definitely more noticeable this season than last, and it's likely due to COVID. Michael Michele has been very vocal about her stance on COVID, etc. so she has probably chosen to spend less time in the hair department is what I am guessing. Especially since I'm pretty sure her actual hair was used during the second and majority of the third seasons.

 

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[j swift]

So, I still like it and I am willing to follow along but I have a few nitpics.

 

The primary issue may be true of soaps in general.  From Fallon's agoraphobia, to Alexis's faux cousin, and Blake's pursuit of Krystal, the character's motives are so obviously telegraphed to the audience that the others in the scenes just seem dumb.  How could Liam not tell that Fallon wasn't going on their honeymoon the second time she made an excuse to stay home?  He's written a book analyzing Fallon, so why would he suddenly be so oblivious?  Why would Jeff need face tracking software to tell that the cousin was lying when he was such a bad actor?  All of these scenes were amusing, but it was at the expense of the characters seeming to be too stupid to survive.

 

That being said, I enjoyed the psychological exploration of character motives.  OG Fallon's "breakdown" at her wedding to Jeff was so over the top and hysterical that one could never develop empathy for the character.  But, new Fallon has routing value because she seems more grounded.

 

The pace is also remarkable.  The entire cliffhanger was resolved before the first commercial.  And it was all done through exposition, we never saw Evan being arrested, there was no doctor attending to Kirby, and it seemed like there wasn't enough time for Blake to get an MRI.  Adam just stood there and told us what happened; which was not very satisfying.

 

Finally, and once again, I am going to call BS on the whole diamond thing.  While the name AC/DC is cute, why wouldn't she call herself Alexis Colby?  It still fits.  Is the diamond mine really going to be right next to the pool?  Because wouldn't they have found something while digging the pool originally?  And why does it seem like each season there is a new company (the soccer team, the publishing firm, etc..), rather than just focusing on Atlantic Carrington?

 

Any hoo, see you next week, when Jeff will probably leave the mansion within the first twelve minutes...

[j swift]

This week's episode defied logic.

 

The Carringtons live in a universe where J-Lo is still dating A-Rod, but there's no COVID?

 

How did Fallon buy the roads surrounding the mansion, can a private citizen buy access to state funded streets? 

 

A reporter cancelled her story on Fallon because her family was too crazy, then rescheduled a live interview, the day before it aired, because she thought Fallon was just crazy enough?

 

Why does Liam suddenly want to move out of the mansion, despite the fact that he has no viable means of support, which means they would go from her mother's house to his mother's house?

 

How is Sam's boyfriend not supposed to be rich but wears Louis Vuitton shirts for Zoom calls (admittedly I like the fashion on this show regardless of the logic of how they bought it)?

 

Why does Blake need a Moldavian war criminal to threaten a priest, when he could just out him for having an affair to his congregants?

 

Why wouldn't the press believe Culhane about the gambling ring if he has less to lose?

 

Why does all of the action take place in the last six minutes of the show?

 

 

Edited May 30, 2021 by j swift

[pdm1974]

Overall, still enjoying the show, but...

 

It's obvious they have no idea what to do with Culhane at this point. Although, I'm not sure what they could do, either. I do like the actor though.

 

I STILL miss Steven and his balance of "normalness" in contrast to the rest of the family. I wonder what the story is with not using the character/actor.

 

I want Sam to get a real storyline again.

[j swift]

I feel like Liam has usurped the role of "the normal one" in the drama.  But, why doesn't he have a job?  And why are his relationships with all of the other characters so underdeveloped? 

[j swift]

The pacing is definitely odd.

 

They burned through Alexis and Jeff's divorce, the sale of the soccer team, Fallon's ownership of the access roads, and Dom living in the house all in one episode.  I was certain that either Dom's mother was not really dead, or she had some other document that would save the Carringtons, but it looks like she's just dead.

 

On the other hand, Fallen had essentially the same story as last week, doubts about running the dynasty, then pulling out a win at the last moment.  Her future with Blake was telegraphed so obviously that only a person who never saw a soap opera would be unable to catch it.

 

But, where were Liam & Kirby the whole episode?  Does Adam work as a doctor in the hospital or is he just an administrator of MRI (great joke)?  And why did Culhane suddenly want to sell the team?

 

I'm still betting on either Culhane or Jeff in the coffin, although I read a theory on reddit that it might be Steven, which would be an alienating move for a large portion of the tiny audience (last week they got a 0.0 in the demo). 

Edited June 6, 2021 by j swift