Ann Ewing -- a key symptom of nuDALLAS' problems?

[Spooky Owl!]

Perhaps more than the bizarre new Southfork interiors, if there was one, single issue with the 2012-2014 reboot which was metaphoric for nuDALLAS' issues, it was Ann Ewing -- and the character's casting.

Introducing Bobby's new wife with the smug, entitled victim Ann (and Brenda Strong's hiring for the role) seemed to encapsulate everything that was wrong-headed about the new show... Did Bobby really need a DESPERATE HOUSEWIFE (in attitude or in actual fact) marital partner?

You never believed them together. And for a Bobby who'd become too smuggy even by mid-series of the oldDALLAS to have tolerated the more predatory version of Jenna Wade played initially by Morgan Fairchild (which is why, limited thespianic skills notwithstanding, Priscilla Presley's more docile Jenna probably worked better by the point she arrived on Southfork by 1983) he would surely never have picked up Ann thirty years later and put a ring on it.

But I just hate Amm Ewing. I'm sure Brenda Strong is a lovely person, but her version of Ann is exactly the kind of woman most men detest. She's the type of casting a woman producer in the 2010s (and probably now) would cast -- thinking her "strong and independent and yet palpitatingly vulnerable" when she's really just utterly contemptible... I mean, she's almost smugger than Bobby!

If such a thing is possible.

I hate her. I just hate her. She has no reason to be there and functions as a de facto feministic gargoyle hovering over the ranch, her ever-watchful eye ensuring everything is All About Her (and most of the plots indeed were) and sinking the show with her privileged soccer mom smarminess.

And it's not just the scripts but Ms. Strong's countenance.

I hope Ann Ewing actually died in that car bomb intended for Christopher.

I just hate her.

 

[Rove]

One of these days I hope I have the opportunity to watch Dallas from inception to conclusion and see how it all pans out. The problem will arise however as the Showrunner for TNT Dallas was informed to ignore the reunion movies which allowed her to come up with the ridiculous concept of Rebecca Sutter.. For the most part I didn't mind Ann. What I didn't like was her back story regarding her daughter, her ex and the ex mother-in-law. This kept the focus off the Ewing family. But perhaps my memory is beginning to fade as TNT Dallas finished 10 years ago.

 

[Monzo]

I didn't dislike Anne nor did I like her and maybe that was my problem with her. I think the character could have been good, but they never found the right storyline for her. It's always annoying when characters don't reach their potential. Anne was just there, like Elena, who could have been a great character, but they never found the perfect storyline for Elena either.

 

[DallasFanForever]

I didn’t like Ann much at all. My problem wasn’t Brenda’s portrayal. It was the character itself. There was nothing exciting about it. I found her very bland and she certainly didn’t seem to fit the mold of what I had come to envision a Ewing wife being. Making her Bobby’s wife just didn’t seem to work. Perhaps if the character had been written differently and been given a better backstory then a lot of us would feel differently about her.

 

[Piggyrella Sanderson]

It was as if Val had married Bobby and they had tried to raise Lucy there. No brain virus apparently.

 

[Spooky Owl!]

One of these days I hope I have the opportunity to watch Dallas from inception to conclusion and see how it all pans out. The problem will arise however as the Showrunner for TNT Dallas was informed to ignore the reunion movies which allowed her to come up with the ridiculous concept of Rebecca Sutter.. For the most part I didn't mind Ann. What I didn't like was her back story regarding her daughter, her ex and the ex mother-in-law. This kept the focus off the Ewing family. But perhaps my memory is beginning to fade as TNT Dallas finished 10 years ago.

Yes, nuDALLAS' producer was more interested in Bobby's new horrible wife's in-laws and the cook's family.

She had little interest in the original characters.

Anybody who didn't despise Ann (and her casting) have simply been so inundated for years with that kind of character that they're numb to it. So they think it's just fine.

 

[Piggyrella Sanderson]

The problem is that we compare Ann with April, and Ann always wins... I loved her in season 1 though as Sue's pal... rang truer than Sue's alleged friendship with Pam, whenever Pam went on a trip.

 

[Spooky Owl!]

The problem is that we compare Ann with April, and Ann always wins... I loved her in season 1 though as Sue's pal... rang truer than Sue's alleged friendship with Pam, whenever Pam went on a trip.

No, that's not the problem. Objectively, Ann must die!!!!!!!

And, I presume, she did so in Christopher's car.

 

[Soaplover]

I think had the show written Ann as someone that Bobby married for companionship instead of actual love... I could have bought the character... since Bobby had lost two wives (Pam and April) through death. .. I could see him just marrying for companionship/friendship instead of love.

However, the show went out of their way to write as though Bobby was in love with Ann.. when the writing and acting didn't support that. Perhaps it would have worked better if Ann worked at the ranch and was more like Ellie... someone that loves the life of a rancher.

 

[Piggyrella Sanderson]

Maybe the Bobster knew that Ann could still talk after her death a la Mary Alice....

 

[Werewillie Oleson]

Let's see....she shot her bastard ex-husband (Sue Ellen - check), was traumatised by a dark family secret from the past (Pam -check), has a hateful ex-mother-in-law who thinks the Ewings are trash (Rebecca - check) and also has to deal with a troublesome daughter (Lucy - check).

And you tell me she wasn't suitable for DALLAS?

 

[Piggyrella Sanderson]

Let's see....she shot her bastard ex-husband (Sue Ellen - check), was traumatised by a dark family secret from the past (Pam -check), has a hateful ex-mother-in-law who thinks the Ewings are trash (Rebecca - check) and also has to deal with a troublesome daughter (Lucy - check).

And you tell me she wasn't suitable for DALLAS?

You forgot that there was time Ann used to go gallivanting around time like our very dear Swellin...

And it looks like she had a lot in common with Lucy and Pam too!!​

 

[Spooky Owl!]

Let's see....she shot her bastard ex-husband (Sue Ellen - check), was traumatised by a dark family secret from the past (Pam -check), has a hateful ex-mother-in-law who thinks the Ewings are trash (Rebecca - check) and also has to deal with a troublesome daughter (Lucy - check).

And you tell me she wasn't suitable for DALLAS?

Her activities were totally suitable for DALLAS. It's her personality and casting that were a problem, not her homicidal sluttery, which is fine.

 

[Werewillie Oleson]

It's her personality and casting that were a problem

She's a DALLAS character, she's supposed to be difficult and biased and have double standards. That's why she and Bobby were such a perfect couple.

 

[Spooky Owl!]

She's a DALLAS character, she's supposed to be difficult and biased and have double standards. That's why she and Bobby were such a perfect couple.

Madness! Madness!! :scream:

 

[Frankenstein Underworld]

But I just hate Amm Ewing. I'm sure Brenda Strong is a lovely person, but her version of Ann is exactly the kind of woman most men detest. She's the type of casting a woman producer in the 2010s (and probably now) would cast -- thinking her "strong and independent and yet palpitatingly vulnerable" when she's really just utterly contemptible... I mean, she's almost smugger than Bobby!

Ugh. A "strong, independent woman" who has to tell you she's a strong, independent woman gives off the same vibe as a man who talks about how well-endowed he is.

I remember seeing an interview with Brenda, Julie Gonzalo, and Jordana Brewster. I can't remember which, but one of the three said Ann wears the pants in the relationship.

That certainly seemed to be the case, as Southfork felt like it was her house. I imagine she's also responsible for the hideous renovations.

If Miss Ellie were still alive, Ray would be fetching the shotgun from the hall closet yet again.

 

[Spooky Owl!]

Ugh. A "strong, independent woman" who has to tell you she's a strong, independent woman gives off the same vibe as a man who talks about how well-endowed he is.

I remember seeing an interview with Brenda, Julie Gonzalo, and Jordana Brewster. I can't remember which, but one of the three said Ann wears the pants in the relationship.

That certainly seemed to be the case, as Southfork felt like it was her house. I imagine she's also responsible for the hideous renovations.

If Miss Ellie were still alive, Ray would be fetching the shotgun from the hall closet yet again.

Misogyny..!

 

[lbf522]

I agree they could have written better for the character of Ann. The idea that she and Bobby had been married for almost a decade and she never mentioned to him of having a daughter who went missing and was presumed dead was dumb.

 

[Jock Ewing Fan]

I don't think Anne Ewing was the issue with NuDallas
The writing seemed inconsistent with the strengths of the original series.
Some of the original characters were not well-written (ie Cliff)
Some of the new characters just were not interesting

It might have been interesting if some of the supporting characters were expanded
or new characters

IE Katherine Wentworth and Michelle Stevens back to battle the Ewings
Morgan Fairchild as Jenna Wade
A son or daughter of Jock and Amanda
Jack Ewing as a darker character
A son or daughter of Garrison



Brenda Strong is a good actress, with a lot of credits.
I even thought her and Patrick Duffy were good together
I liked that she wasn't at odds with JR, like Pam,
with Mitch Pileggi and Judith Light as the adversaries.

NuDallas didn't work, especially after Larry Hagman passed, but there were
issues other than Anne Ewing that impaired the show

 

[Spooky Owl!]

I don't think Anne Ewing was the issue with NuDallas
The writing seemed inconsistent with the strengths of the original series.
Some of the original characters were not well-written (ie Cliff)
Some of the new characters just were not interesting

It might have been interesting if some of the supporting characters were expanded
or new characters

IE Katherine Wentworth and Michelle Stevens back to battle the Ewings
Morgan Fairchild as Jenna Wade
A son or daughter of Jock and Amanda
Jack Ewing as a darker character
A son or daughter of Garrison



Brenda Strong is a good actress, with a lot of credits.
I even thought her and Patrick Duffy were good together
I liked that she wasn't at odds with JR, like Pam,
with Mitch Pileggi and Judith Light as the adversaries.

NuDallas didn't work, especially after Larry Hagman passed, but there were
issues other than Anne Ewing that impaired the show

Yes, Ann was a symptom.