TNT’s ‘Dallas’ is a solid update of the original

New York Daily News ^ | 6/13/12 | David Hinckley

[JennysCool]

When you aim to remake “Dallas,” partner, you’re putting on a big hat.

But TNT and the producers of Dallas 2.0, which launches with back-to-back episodes Wednesday night, have the cattle to do it.

They start with the smart move of bringing back the original Ewing brothers, Larry Hagman’s J.R. and Patrick Duffy's Bobby.

Then they make the smarter move of not pretending this old guard would still be dominating the world of Southfork Ranch, as if no descendant of this screwed-up family had ambitions of his or her own, good or evil.

Instead, the producers simply let the gene pool do the work.

J.R.’s son John Ross (Josh Henderson) shares J.R.’s obsession with money, power and domination. Bobby’s adopted son Christopher (Jesse Metcalfe) envisions a future where clean energy will replace fossil fuel and make the world a better place.

Fossil fuel, of course, by which we mean oil, has been the Ewing family ticket to vast, unapologetic wealth.

So there are those in the family who see this alternative energy foolishness as a direct personal insult.

-Snip!-

So we’ve got love and money both in play here, and soon they swirl together into a tale that’s got more kick than Texas chili made with live rattlesnakes.

It’s also soapy, of course, not to mention campy. Hagman in particular hasn’t lost an ounce of his villainous sleaze.

No one expects “Dallas” to have the kind of reach now that it had three decades ago. But between old fans who will enjoy a revisit and young folks who never even heard of Miss Ellie, TNT is placing a sound bet.

[nutmeg]

ROTFL!

[GOPsterinMA]

:)
Thanks!

[GOPsterinMA]

:)

[GOPsterinMA]

:)

[Impy]

I don’t know if George Kennedy is gonna be on this but he would win it for Team Dallas!

I hope Ole JR wins and gets back Ewing Oil somehow, it’s all he ever wanted and he only got full control during the dream season.

Actually he’s a lot like GW Bush and Mitt Romney, he wanted his father’s love and respect, made impossible after he died. His dad loved Bobby best and Miss Ellie loved Gary, which explains why he is evil.

[nutmeg]

Back in the 1980s, I was a fairly die-hard Dallas fan, although I did miss an episode here and there, so I'm not as knowledgeable as some other Dallas fan FReepers. I remember back then being very sympathetic with Bobby.

However, after watching the new shows (which I liked, for the most part) - and maturing some 30+ years - I really want J.R. and John Ross to get back into power. Geez, drill baby drill on South Fork! (I would)

Bobby and his son Christopher appear squishy and liberal to me... ugh! That doesn't fit in Texas, IMO. "Alternative energy? Leaving South Fork to a conservancy?" Bah humbug!

A couple of stupid questions: Didn't Bobby die back in the original series, or was that a dream (can't remember)?

When did Bobby marry his current wife, Ann?

I see by the Ewing Family Tree that Kristin Shepard (the girl who shot J.R.) is "deceased" - what what the story with that again (can't remember)?

Thanks in advance.... :o)

[nutmeg]

I meant to ping you to #66

[Impy]

I understand Bobby’s actions cause he did promise his momma that he would never allow drilling which I guess could ruin the land or something, I know nothing about drilling or ranching.

I usually remember the political stuff on shows, Bobby started out as a democrat running against Cliff Barnes in a democrat primary for State Senate (Bobby won but later resigned for some reason) early in Dallas’s run. Later on allusions were made to him being a Republican (and Ray’s wife Donna too even though she seemed like a liberal bitch). I guess they changed parties with the rest of Texas except for Perry who waited till 1989.

The season where Bobby was dead was Pam’s dream, that’s what they decided when Duffy came to back to the show. Too bad cause there were some interesting plot developments that season like Jock being alive (with plastic surgery played by a different actor), when the show started back the new Jock was changed to a con artist pretending to be Jock. And it was the only season where JR got full control of Ewing oil after Pam sold him dead Bobby’s shares.

The famous Bobby is alive scene

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IMR5setaS7I

Kristin Shepard fell in the Southfork pool and drowned in one the season finales, with the end scene being Cliff Banres (who the found the body, her death not actually being shown) accusing JR of killing her.

[Impy]

Oh, and Bobby’s new wife is a new character, in the last TV movie (in 1998) he was dating a younger woman. It’s wasn’t said in the premiere how long they’ve been married but it didn’t seem like long.

[Bender2]

Was not a diehard fan of the first-run original “Dallas” yet I saw many of the episodes. Bobby did die but the powers that be made the entire season of his death all a dream Pam had while he was in the shower.

IMHO the character of Bobby always was and still is a pansy liberal fantasy of how we Texans should really be in the ‘real’ East/West Coast elites’ world that only flies over us unwashed, political incorrect common folk—

Believe Bobby's new wife, Ann, is only new to the reboot and BTW while she says she never misses with her shotgun, she sure did, letting the perp get away when she had the dead drop on him.

And finally, by Googling to Wikipedia ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kristin_Shepard ) to refresh my memory, I found “Kristin... was found drowned in the Southfork Ranch swimming pool, after having overdosed on drugs and hitting her head after losing consciousness and falling over the railing of the upper balcony. After Kristin's death, it was learned that her husband, Jeff Faraday, and not J.R., was the father of her child, who had become Bobby and Pam's adopted son, Christopher Ewing. Kristin had miscarried the child she had conceived with JR.”

Now that I have done my early morning chore, I can get on to today's... heavy drinking--

Well, Bendy, it is the only way to start... or end a day!

[blackie]

I emailed Barb your contribution...she’s a watcher. ;);)

[big'ol_freeper]

But Miss Ellie is still dead

[GOPsterinMA]

Bobby Ewing: I remember the whole season was written off as a dream.

The chick that shot J.R.? I have no idea.

I was very young when Dallas came out and at best was a casual viewer later in the series run.

[GOPsterinMA]

I saw George Kennedy in an infomercial a few months back...not looking well at all...:(

[fieldmarshaldj]

George Kennedy was in a Christmas episode of “The Young & The Restless” (as Victor Newman’s deceased father) either in 2010 or 2011, but what was notable was that aside from a snowy tv image, they didn’t actually show him, he only did voice-work for it (which was rather telling).

I didn’t feel him terribly effective as a villain on “Dallas”, anyhow, in the waning last seasons. I thought William Smithers, the actor who played the cold and asexual Jeremy Wendell, the Westar executive, was much better, creepier and menacing and he didn’t need the histrionics that so many folks playing villains seem to want to do.

[fatnotlazy]

George Kennedy is close to 90, so I guess he can be excused if he isn’t well enough to do a tv series.

Of course, Larry Hagman isn’t too far behind. He probably has too much fun playing an evil SOB

[Impy]

It appears that Ray Krebbs and Lucy Ewing showed up at Christopher’s wedding together.

Well they were standing together which is hardly meaningful. Ray ran off with Bobby's ex Jenna Wade (Priscilla Pressley) and raised Bobby's biological son. While Donna left to raise Ray's daughter with a democrat US Senator. Very odd plot developments that were the result of the characters leaving the show. More lost Ewing children are JR's first son that showed up as an adult toward the end of the series and the baby he had with his white trash second wife who ran off.

Going back to your allusion, here's a fun fact. Did you know that BEFORE Ray was made Jock's son he and Lucy were having sex, usually in the barn? This was never mentioned in the future once he was revealed to be her half uncle!

I didn’t feel him terribly effective as a villain on “Dallas”, anyhow, in the waning last seasons. I thought William Smithers, the actor who played the cold and asexual Jeremy Wendell, the Westar executive, was much better, creepier and menacing and he didn’t need the histrionics that so many folks playing villains seem to want to do.

Wendell was a GREAT villian. Evilest person ever on the show, he made JR look like a prince. He had the look of a man that liked little boys to me. He clearly felt nothing for women, I remember him trying to date Sue Ellen for some reason, his interest was super fake. He should be out of prison by now for whatever it was he went away for (he might have tried to have the one of the Ewing kids murdered or something to go along with the shady business stuff, I don't remember). I wonder how the actor is doing.

Too bad about George Kennedy.

[fatnotlazy]

I found this Wikipedia info on William Smithers:

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Smithers

[GOPsterinMA]

Best wishes to George Kennedy.

I’m not the biggest Dallas fan...more of a casual observer.

[nutmeg]

Wow, you really know your "Dallas" stuff! Thank you for all of your interesting info on the show's history. I do remember now that Kristin Shepard drowned in South Fork's pool. I needed to be filled in on the other info though...

Oh yeah... I remember the famous "Bobby is Alive" scene as well! (Thanks for that lik) Yikes... that sure was a long time ago.