Am I the only one who cannot tolerate the Mark Graison character?

[Rove]

Loved the Dallas times when Pam, Mark, Cliff and Afton were friends and did things together. That was like genuine friendship between those four, best years of the show.

So I'm not the only person who recognized this. It was a great period because the focus was drifting towards this awesome foursome. It was like two seats of power was being created; The House of Ewing and The House of Barnes/Graison.

When watching Dallas during its first run I didn't like Mark but that was the point wasn't it? We hated him from the moment he clapped eyes on Pam. He was wealthy and certainly not afraid of the Ewing boys.

It's a real pity Mark was let down by sloppy writing...but then that was happening to other characters as well.

 

[Kaleid]

Count me as one who really like the Graison character. I enjoyed the mentorship he had toward Cliff, and thought there was a wealth of potential to be mined from a Mark/Cliff alliance and the forthcoming battle with J.R. It was also far more believable that Mark could stand up to and even best J.R. than some of the afterthought plot devices that emerged in later seasons.

The one thing that really bothered me was how he reappeared after battling a near fatal disease and undergoing various experimental treatments; he looked stronger and healthier than ever. You'd never know he had been fighting for his life just a few weeks before.

 

[Luke_Krebbs_Ewing]

I'm rather fond of Mark Graison but then he is my step father.

I liked the character a lot. He ended up being manipulated by Katherine, Cliff and of course JR into taking Pam off of Bobby.

He was a good character but sadly he ended up by being one of the main casualties of the dream season. A shame, John Beck was a great actor.

 

[LMLDallas78]

It's interesting, Dusty also got involved with a married woman

Yes but he could see how unhappy Sue Ellen was and how badly she was treated by JR.
Pam was a unhappy, but wasn't the victim of an abusive husband.

Dusty didn't pursue her as such, he let her do the chasing at her own pace before ringing to make arrangements. He never pushed her to agree to meeting him.

I never see him and his morals being dragged over the coals on here.

I've questioned his morals in the past on other threads and I've been quite harsh especially about how he treated Sue Ellen later on.

We can forgive ourselves for liking Dusty hoping he was saving Sue Ellen from such an unhappy marriage.

 

[Lastkidpicked]

I'll upload this again, just in case you haven't seen it in other threads.

Mark Graison's baby picture.

He was a cutie!

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[DallasFanForever]

And he should have realized that Pam would never love him like she did Bobbie

I think he did realize it. Whether he would ever admit it or not might be another story but I got the feeling it was always in the back of his mind. Even in his suicide note he encourages Pam to go back with Bobby. Perhaps it was just because he wanted her to be happy again but I think he always knew deep down how she felt.

 

[Pammy P]

For me, Mark Graison was a creepy stalker in the beginning, pursuing Pamela when she was married. He turned her head for turning up with flowers and champagne albeit she said She was a married woman when her own husband was neglecting her over the fight for Ewing Oil. When Pamela was estranged from Bobby he was there at every whim offering support which, again Pamela loved secretly, but was also pulled to Bobby too.

Poor old Bob lost her even when he would give up the fight for Ewing Oil, leave Southfork and Dallas but she said she still wanted a Divorce. Katherine,Cliff and JR pushed her into that thinking trap of divorce and Mark.

So they divorced, Mark was very wealthy maybe more than Bobby, he gave Pam the lifestyle she wanted albeit she had millions of Dollars herself. As JR once said, that woman has a knack for earning unearned dollars lol.

Mark pushed to get married but her heart belonged to Bob…it was okay for her to date Mark through estrangement and divorce, but when she saw Bob with that woman having a photo opportunity and enter Jenna Wade oooohh did Pamela seeth.

Jenna was right you divorced him she said outside Dallas Memorial, you can’t have it all your way honey Pam,

Mark was good in the end when he got was what he wanted Pamela, I actually liked him.

One of the best scenes is Bobby congratulating Pam and Mark on their engagement, Mark smirking he got her, whilst Bobby found it hard to say the words and Pam’s heart was breaking, so sad. Pam was Marrying him out of pity not love,

For me Patrick and Victoria acted out as Bob and Pam brilliantly from separation through divorce and finally reconciliation their emotions for us the viewer knew they were meant to be.

Dallas ended for me ‘Fall of the house of Ewing’ as VP no longer there the connection of her character was the main theme of the show. Once she left that was gone,

if Duffy hadn’t returned I would have had Pam stay with Mark as he was good to her.

 

[Sarah Danner]

He needed to stay in his own lane until Pam & Bobby's divorce was final.

 

[Mustard]

Mark is great, in my opinion.

 

[DallasFanForever]

He needed to stay in his own lane until Pam & Bobby's divorce was final.

This was probably the smartest thing to do, and of course the right thing as well. Perhaps had Mark been written a little differently and been brought in at a later point then he’d be more popular with the fans. Maybe they should’ve waited for Bobby and Pam’s marriage to crumble before introducing him, although his presence was very important to their breakup storyline.

 

[Matthew Blaisdel]

And this is why in a nutshell! It's always Pam and Bobby shippers who basically just resent him for contributing to their break up and them staying apart and then start finding reasons to hate him

Exactly. But even those shippers can't deny that Dallas had it's best times, when Bobby and Pam were apart. Same over on Knots with Val and Gary. Keep them apart to keep the show interesting, that's how it works!

 

[Barbara Fan]

Loved Bobby and Pam together and my fav "young" couple on the show

BUT!

I loved Pam with Mark and thought he was actually better to her than Bobby - who often put Family and EO before her - Mark wanted to spoil her, whisk her off to far flung climes and he did love her. He may have set out to get her when still married to Bob, but the way Bob was behaving then, I can see why Pam ended up in his arms . he was romantic and treated her well I dont recall Bobby taking Pam on holiday apart to an Oil Junket in S1 to Las Vegas when they meet long lost brother Gary

I also liked his R/S with Cliff and Afton, they were a nice foursome and I liked their scenes together.

I loved their wedding and was rather sorry for Mark and John Beck when Pat Ds film career didnt materialise and he came back to the show

I liked Pam away from Bobby and she became more Independent

 

[Jock Ewing Fan]

Exactly. But even those shippers can't deny that Dallas had it's best times, when Bobby and Pam were apart. Same over on Knots with Val and Gary. Keep them apart to keep the show interesting, that's how it works!

I would say when Bobby and Pam were at odds as a result of their families, whether together or apart.

 

[Sarah Danner]

I loved their wedding and was rather sorry for Mark and John Beck when Pat Ds film career didnt materialise and he came back to the show

Wasn't the original idea, though, for Mark's dead body to be discovered in the shower instead of Bobby's live one?
So Mark/John would have been gone either way.

 

[Mustard]

Wasn't the original idea, though, for Mark's dead body to be discovered in the shower instead of Bobby's live one?
So Mark/John would have been gone either way.

Rumoured.

 

[captainarcher]

the character is lame, but I often rewatch his shirtless scenes lol

 

[Chris2]

I loved Pam with Mark and thought he was actually better to her than Bobby - who often put Family and EO before her - Mark wanted to spoil her, whisk her off to far flung climes and he did love her.

That’s because Mark had pretty much no life outside of Pam. And trust me, that would have gotten old for Pam after a while. In fact, I think it got old for her - outside of the dream - even before Mark went on his suicide mission. She knew he didn’t have much substance - he was all about pornstaches, polo ponies, and pimpmobiles.

 

[Taylor Bennett Jr.]

he was all about pornstaches, polo ponies, and pimpmobiles.

ah, so that explains why he fell so hard for Pam! Rumor has it that he briefly dated Priscilla Presley around the time when he was partying in Paris with Angelica Nero in the 70s.

 

[Ladies Of Southfork]

I liked how Mark appeared and at least he had no long lost nasty clichéd sister or brother or family members turning up. Infact we didn't know anything about his family, only a bit about his business reputation and offering an attorney to help Miss Ellie overturn Jock's will.

Mark had nothing to prove, he had his own wealth. He was perhaps a bit of a loner, but had no backstory of being a playboy with an endless list of conquests.

Mark's entire persona was his playboy image. Woman came up to Pam insulting her for taking him off the market. They didn't address that part of him in the 'Dream Season', but it was very much a part of his character prior to his 'death'.

 

[Ladies Of Southfork]

That’s because Mark had pretty much no life outside of Pam. And trust me, that would have gotten old for Pam after a while. In fact, I think it got old for her - outside of the dream - even before Mark went on his suicide mission. She knew he didn’t have much substance - he was all about pornstaches, polo ponies, and pimpmobiles.

Exactly! He was obsessed with her. She was pushed into the relationship with him, by him, the people around her and the need to get away from the Ewing battle.

I never cared for the Mark Graison character, no disrespect to John Beck as an actor.
He seemed like an opportunist, hovering around Pam when the marriage was having difficulties.
Couldn't stand that mustache.
And he should have realized that Pam would never love him like she did Bobbie

Agreed!!!

Dusty also got involved with a married woman but I never see him and his morals being dragged over the coals on here. Mark seems to get unfairly targeted when all he did was pursue the woman he loved.



It's always Pam and Bobby shippers who basically just resent him for contributing to their break up and them staying apart and then start finding reasons to hate him, when really he was for the most part a pretty decent, nice guy.

I just found this page, so I have yet to get into other characters. Mark is the number one character I can't stand. So, he is where I started. How was Mark' pursuing the woman he loved', when he just met her for the first time? I don't resent him for breaking up her and Bobby. I don't think his character would of been capable of that had it not been for Cliff, JR and Katherine manipulating her into staying away from Bobby. Basically forcing her to date Mark. Mark even acknowledge she would never love him like she did Bobby. As far as him being a pretty decent and nice guy, he came off to me as manipulating and sneaky. A man who would play the role, so to say, to get what he wants. Because in the end, he's just out to win. If it wasn't Pam it would have been someone else.