Dallas: Discussion Thread

[GLATWT88]

Honestly, Jenna and Ray just gives me the ick. I would have preferred Bobby awakens from a coma and learns that Jenna and Jack have gotten closer. 

Amazing! Will give it a watch.  

[Chris 2]

The season when Patrick Duffy returned had the smallest YOY rating drop (3%) since before Duffy left. And then Victoria Principal left the bottom really dropped out of the ratings.

The dream season producers blew it. The ratings were free falling in the second half of that season. It was only the strength of the ratings in the early part of that season that kept it in the top 10 overall. Most of the Dallas audience was not interested in emeralds, foreign intrigue, and the adoption of special needs children. So CBS and Lorimar panicked and brought Duffy back. They got one more season out of a setup that was already tiring before Duffy left.

What a shame. Had they successfully reinvented the show after Bobby died, they could have revitalized the show for years to come.

They also had an opportunity to reinvent the show when Pam disappeared. I would have done a time jump, with Bobby remarried and the new Mrs Ewing trying to figure out why no one wanted to talk about wife #1. And the show might have benefitted with an older John Ross and Christopher as well.

[SoapDope]

I felt PP as Jenna really stunk on the show. I had no interest in her or Charly. I hated they broke up Ray & Donna and have him marry Jenna, which was really stupid. Then we finally played out all that mess that Bobby is not the father of Charly yet again(this was clarified back in 1978) and then just as Bobby is free from Jenna, they have her be pregnant by him. Then Pam acts out of character wanting to adopt/buy the baby.....the show was a freaking mess. I think Dallas became such a success so early on, that it quickly burned itself out. 

[Soapsuds]

Dallas’ Iconic, Storyline-Erasing Bobby Ewing Twist Left Some Cast Members ‘Pissed’

https://tvline.com/news/dallas-stars-angry-reaction-bobby-ewing-shower-dream-season-9-1235001518/?fbclid=IwAR1_xE8_O1UgiSMD-VzXsHi_RnzLIF1-NpLRQzAxGh8DiqkTJ9ueGGm79WQ

[Paul Raven]

As discussed before they burned through a lot of story in the self contained episodes. A lot of those plots could have been multi ep arcs.

[te.]

To be fair, the show was mostly going well right up until Swan Song (or rather into the first 10-ish episodes or so on season 9 when it became apparent they didn't want to properly do a Pam vs JR plot). Sure, it had its ups and downs in those seasons, but mostly it was good - and that's a long time for a show to keep up being decent. Dynasty barely managed half of that.

As for Jenna; they clearly blew it by going with celebrity casting with Priscilla. I've been having season 7 running in the background while doing other things and it seems like early on they did write her more in line with Fairchild's version (see: confrontation with other Ewing ladies at the Oil Baron's Ball; telling Katherine that she'd just marry Bobby if she wanted money when Katherine tried to buy her off). The issue with it seems like Priscilla is just playing Jenna as an airhead with little machinations going on inside her head. Take the plot where Bobby offers to buy her a store - Jenna outright refuses to be a "kept woman", sulks for a bit at home, Bobby goes over and pleads and then suddenly she makes a u-turn and accepts the offer on her terms. Had Fairchild played the part, you know it would've come off as Jenna more being quietly manipulative when initially rejecting the offer and then setting up a plan of her own.

[GLATWT88]

I personally didn't mind Presley in the role. I actually thought she did a good job - season 9 and 10 were rough tho. 

[Chris 2]

Once Bobby and Pam reunited in Swan Song, Jenna had outlived her usefulness. Priscilla Presley has her finest moment as Jenna in the scene at Lucy’s wedding where she lets Bobby go (“I really would understand if things weren’t the same.”) The whole situation is soap opera at its best:

• Pam is willing to sacrifice her happiness for Jenna’s sake (she tells Bobby that he is obligated to marry Jenna after her release from prison).
• Jenna is willing to sacrifice her happiness for Bobby’s sake.
• Bobby sacrifices his life for Pam.

There was no reason for Jenna to hang around an additional three seasons after this. She had served her purpose. The Presley version of Jenna simply wasn’t built to be a character in her own right; she was merely a plot device to keep Pam and Bobby apart.

Edited June 17, 2023 by Chris 2

[Liberty City]

Same.  I liked her in the role; I couldn't have imagined Morgan Fairchild long-term in the role.  If anything, she would've been a limited pop-in every so often to stir things up for Bobby & Pam.

Edited June 17, 2023 by Liberty City

[GLATWT88]

I agree. I don't know if Morgan Fairchild's interpretation of Jenna would have meshed with the other characters as well as Presley's. Presley's came across as likeable whereas Fairchild's had a more self-serving and manipulative edge. 

I personally loved the direction of Jenna and Jack. Even if Bobby returned for season 10 (awaking from a coma) it would have been interesting to see him struggle with wanting to be with Pam, but not being able to see Jenna with someone else. Would have been an interesting dynamic to explore since Jack also had a stake in Ewing Oil. 

[Soapsuds]

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[te.]

I guess if I had written the Jenna character into the show again I would've taken a note from Knots Landing and what they did with Abby and Abby / Gary. Jenna wouldn't necessarily be malicious, but she'd be someone who likes money and fortune and clearly see Bobby as an opportunity to get back what she felt she lost, while also obviously being in love with him so it wouldn't be an entirely gold digger move. It also would've underlined the difference between Pam and Bobby's relationship - she'd actively push him to get more proactive in business and be just a slight bit manipulative about it. Bobby would be intrigued by Jenna because she'd challenge him more in a sense that Pam never did. 

 

As it was, Jenna did indeed only come across as an obstacle for Pam and Bobby to overcome and it was hard to take them seriously as a couple. She felt more like a place holder in every sense of the word.

[te.]

Mandy and JRs first time was very rapey.

 

We almost need a thread about the whole "Woman overtaken by passion" trope that Dallas and similar soaps often tried to present.

[GLATWT88]

When did Dallas officially switch over to multi-episode arcs? 

I've watched the earlier seasons but can't really place when it officially happened. 

I just watched it recently and my first thought was well that wouldn't fly on TV today. 

Edited June 18, 2023 by GLATWT88

[kalbir]

Watching the Dallas reunion videos from above. Linda Gray looks amazing and I cannot believe that she will be 83 in September. Joan Van Ark turned 80 on June 16. Holy difference in the looks.