Rewatching Knots Landing

[Karin Schill]

I agree that Greg was much better suited with Laura or Abby than with Paige!




This photo is from "Merger Made In Heaven".
Abby and Greg get married and make a big splash PR wise with their wedding. Paige keeps chasing after Greg and is all broken hearted and having a hard time understand why he marries Abby rather than her. She is too young to see that Greg is right. He is too old for her and she can do better than him. But she is too blinded by love to realize it.

Meanwhile Karen and Mack are quite amused by that Abby and Greg are getting married as they match each other so well. Also Mack quits his job to take a case where he can help the homeless.

Tonight it was "Mrs Peacock in the library with the lead pipe".

Finally a Ewing centered episode. Jill's perfect alibi has some wholes in it as she hadn't counted on that the guy she supposedly slept with had syphilis.
So now Jill and Gary has to get tested and when their tests comes back negative Gary gets suspicous. He also finds out that Jill has a prescription for sleeping pills that she won't need renewed. Actually this is a goof on the writer's part as Jill used Val's prescription that she stole off her fridge in the last season to try to kill her. But oh well I guess they needed to come up with a reason to make Gary realize that Val was telling the truth and not Jill. So I'll buy it.

Val also finally gets the twins back.
But her aunt Virginia brings them home. Too bad they couldn't get Julie Harris to guest star as Lilimae.

Also Jill is stalking Gary and is going more and more crazy. She seems to actually believe that she and Gary are engaged even though it's over between them.

 

[Top Jimmy]

I could be wrong, but I think Jill had her own sleeping pills that she used to knock out her self-proclaimed one-night stand David Lamb, and she used other pills on Val. It's a little convoluted, so who knows? I love the episodes around this time, when Jill is nuttier than ever, but seemingly one step ahead of Gary, Val, Mac, Karen and the rest of the Knots Landing "detectives."

 

[Daniel Avery]

"Mrs. Peacock" is also the episode where they have that amusing cat-and-mouse game between Greg and Abby where he keeps trying (and failing) to catch Abby without her eye make-up.

 

[Karin Schill]

You are both right!
Yes that scene with Abby and Greg was hilarious. Oddly enough I don't think they were in tonight's episode at all...

But it was revealed that Jill had used her own sleeping pills to knock out David Lamb so yeah she's one step ahead of the "detectives" for now.

Also I enjoyed Gary and Val's talk about how everyone hoped they would get back together again...

 

[Daniel Avery]

Val: "They still say that?"
Karen: "Only at the mention of your name or his."

I love it when a soap can be self-reverential, as long as they do it sparingly.

 

[Karin Schill]

So tonight it was "Poor Jill"...

In this episode Gary has finally had enough of Jill and goes to her office and tells her to move back to where she came from. But it is Val's visit at the office that scares Jill. How she can go from being scared for her life to end up in Gary's trunk is a mystery...

But I seem to remember that Gary became accused of her murder...

If I remember it right it was crazy Jill that had locked herself into Garys trunk expecting to be rescued sooner...

Oh and the custody fight over Meg ends before it goes to court since Greg wants to do what is best for his daughter.

 

[Daniel Avery]

This was the last 'big' mystery I really enjoyed on KL, because the suspect list was so solid. Typically, a soap murder mystery features three or four major characters, plus one minor, expendable character that turns out to be the real killer. Not having that "easy out" made the mystery genuinely intriguing, and of course I had not considered the idea that Jill's own mental state could have been a factor in her death. We've been so conditioned by past murder mysteries that a break in tradition was refreshing, to say the least. From the kick-off of the mystery (the discovery of the body) to Mack's eventual solution, I honestly had no idea how it would play out.

 

[Karin Schill]

Oh I agree the first time I watched the show I totally couldn't figure out who had killed Jill. The evidence seemed to implicate Val or Gary. The fact that we never got to hear what they talked about when they went to the park added to the mystery and at the same time I didn't believe that either one of them would be capable of killing someone. So yes it was a mystery who had killed Jill.

In tonight's episode we got the resolution "Guilty until proven innocent"...

Jill closed the lid on herself as Mack and Karen figured out. I totally hadn't seen that one coming. But I agree with Karen. I don't believe Jill had planned to kill herself, I think she had planned to be rescued. Her mistake was putting that tape over her mouth, if she hadn't she probably wouldn't have died.

I loved the ending when Gary came home to the cul-de-sac and walked into the house with Val and their kids.

 

[tommie]

It wasn't a conclusion - Valene totally murdered Jill and I know it's true. Valene is such a skanky Jill-murderer!!!!!!111

 

[tommie]

Also - there's solutions... that Tommie might accept!

Valene not being a murderess is not one of them! HA!!!

 

[Karin Schill]

So tonight it was "Dial M for Modem"...

I think the title of the episode is probably meant to pay tribute to the movie "Dial M For Murder" with Grace Kelly...

Karen and Abby are in a competition to win the boards approval to champion their cause. Abby's motifs are of course selfish since she wants to drill for oil at Lotus Point. Karen tries to stop her without realizing that it's her that she's stopping. So Abby gets her revenge by releasing a computer virus at the University's computers!

Paige finds the actor Abby hired but she can't expose it because Ted has some info on her.

Karen tries to set up Gary with Paula and Mack objects "what about Val?"
Yeah what about Val in deed. I think they are dragging out their reconcilation way too long. Now Gary's starting to get the phone calls from the mystery wrong number caller with the dog. Oh well at least we know that they are bond to get back together sooner or later...

I sense that Danny's introduction is just around the corner too and I am not looking forward to that at all!

 

[Karin Schill]

Okay so tonight it was "Down Came The Rain and Washed the Spider Out..."

So Donna has left the show too. I will sure miss not having Abby around as she made Knots Landing fun to watch.
It's obvious that the writers are trying to get Paige to replace her but its not quite working since she's after all just a six on the Abby scale!

Love that confrontation by the way.

Also couldn't help but noticing how Abby and Brian were humming "Don't worry, be happy" when leaving the show. Brian Austin Green sure was on to better things as I think he went straight from Knots to Beverly Hills where he played a main character!
So I guess Abby's departure really worked out for him.

The most fun in part two was Mack and the skunk.

 

[Karin Schill]

Okay and since this was the last episode of season 10. Here's my thoughts about:

I loved:

- Abby and Greg getting married
Surely this must be a merger made in heaven.
"You are not a nice person, I'm not a nice person" - Greg when he's trying to persuade Abby into marrying him.
But yeah the two of them are compatible for sure and it was fun watching them cooking when he tried to charm her into accepting his proposal. The only downside was that the two of them didn't talk enough.

- The custody battle over Meg
It was great how Greg wanted his daughter back. It's a no win situation. Karen and Mack has raised her as theirs so it's better for her to stay where she is. But I think Karen was wrong to ask for his daughter to start with so I can see where Greg is coming from too. In the end he does the right thing and proves that he loves his daughter by letting her stay with Karen and Mack.

- Abby triumphing in the end
I loved how she screwed over Ted and got out of the Muracomy mess that she had created. She also stole the trade minister post in Japan that Greg wanted. So Abby got a sort of happy end.

- Frank, Pat and Julie
I like the characters and what they bring to the neighborhood. It was interesting how they were in the witness protection program. I felt so sorry for Julie when she had to lose her spelling bee competition since they couldn't risk getting her photo in the paper.

I liked:

- Mack starting his own practise
I like him striking it out on his own and standing up for what he believes in. The most fun part was when Karen tried to seduce him in his new office though and his clients arrived. lol

- Abby and Karen being on the same board
It's always enjoyable seeing them butt heads. Of course Abby has an ulterior motif and Karen just wants to protect the environment.

- Greg dumping Paige
She's too young to understand that he was doing the best thing for her. They don't have a future. But she hasn't realized that yet.

- Aunt Ginny
Val's aunt Ginny is in a way a replacement or Lilimae and although it will never be the same since after all Julie Harris left big shoes to fill. I still like Aunt Ginny. She's a sounding board for Val and it works.

- The alienation of Jill and who killed her
I enjoyed watching how Gary went from believing Jill to believing Val. It was nice seeing Gary, Val and Karen go look for clues in San Francisco. It was also intruging when Jill ended up dead who killed her. I couldn't guess it the first time I saw it.

- Paula
She was sort of a temptation for Mack. She could be a bit annoying but seemed likable enough except for how she came on to Mack when she knew that he was married. That was not ok in my book.

- Olivia and Harold
They made a cute couple but this time around I find myself rooting for Abby rather than Olivia. The first time around I didn't think Abby had any right to interfer with her daughter's life but this time around I do think Olivia is too young to get married and that she shouldn't give up on going to college. I guess this means that I must be getting older! lol

- The introduction of Danny
It was cute how all the bikes trippled over on their date. He seems like a nice guy. I remember liking him a bit originally. Of course now when I know what a psycho he turned out to be I just sigh and wait for their romance to turn sour so that Gary and Val can get back together again. It's been hinted at already and Danny is just an obstacle that's in the way.

I disliked:

- Ted Melcher.
Jeez the guy was annoying from the time when he used the same pick up lines on Abby and Paige. He was better suited for Paige in my opinion but of course he ends up having an affair with Abby. Also the guy seems to be guilty of murder if one is to believe the photos Abby showed him. Yet Paige doesn't know whether to trust him or Greg at the end of the season...

- Jill's murder attempt on Val never being resolved
It took way too long for them to realize that she did it and she never really got punished for it. It was just her words against Val's and Val was in the looney bin so nobody believed her. What's ironic though is that it was Jill who was in more need of a psychatrist than Val.

- Jill going all stalker
Her obsession with Gary was sick.

- Johnny screwing Michael over
It was annoying how he stole Michael and Ellen's anti-virus computer program. I felt bad for Michael.

- Gary and Val being sidelined
Except for the Jill plot it seems like they are not at the center of the plots. A lot of the drama revolves around Paige at the expense of regular characters like Val and Gary. I prefer to watch Gary and Val over Paige so sometimes it annoys me when they only have like one or two scenes in an episode.

Over all I think it was a good season. Especially since the show has already been on the air for ten years at this point so yeah I'd say it's still going strong.

 

[Daniel Avery]

- Ted Melcher.
Jeez the guy was annoying from the time when he used the same pick up lines on Abby and Paige. He was better suited for Paige in my opinion but of course he ends up having an affair with Abby. Also the guy seems to be guilty of murder if one is to believe the photos Abby showed him. Yet Paige doesn't know whether to trust him or Greg at the end of the season...

Yeah, he's got blood on his hands. I don't think Rick Hawkins was using that hair dryer as a tub toy!

Playing a sleaze like Ted seemed a breeze for Robert Desiderio, but I also didn't care for this character. Fun fact: his real-life wife is Judith Light, who played stone-cold evil Judith Ryland on nuDallas. They met while both working on daytime soap One Life to Live.

 

[Karin Schill]

Wow! I had no idea that the guy who portrayed Ted is married to Judith Light in real life. I can't really picture them as a couple but I think that's because I've seen him when he was young and her when she was older. I am guessing they are actually fairly close in age.

So tonight it was "Perfect Couples"...

I am wondering if that title might be a bit ironic though as most of the episode was about Val & Danny and Gary & Amanda and also Amanda & Danny and they are far from perfect matches.

In fact Danny once again shows his true colors when Amanda files the divorce papers. He doesn't want to get divorced even though he lies and tells Val that he does. He sleeps with Val and rapes Amanda. He also smashes Amanda's china that she got from her grandma. He is jealous and spiteful and controling and yeah Amanda is doing the right thing getting away from that guy. But unfortunately by watching his relationship with Amanda unravel we know what's in store for Val...

Tom and Paige also have problems and break it off. They are obviously right for each other but someone else is threatening Tom to break it off or they'll hurt Paige. Actually I really like the addition of Tom to the show and I remember I liked him and Paige as a couple the first time around. So far I still do.

Also Michael has fallen in love with his sister-in-law which makes his life complicated.

Then we have this season's big bad, the Oakman Industries that Mack is going after even though he's warned not to as one senior citizen that went against them flew out the window. Tom seems to be involved in this somehow...I can't remember the details though...

Anyway season 11 is off to an interesting start so far.

 

[TJames03]

KL was never any better than it was during Seasons 01-04. The Cul-De-Sac years rocked.

 

[Karin Schill]

I agree that the show had a strong start. But it was consistent in quality for many years.

So tonight it was "The devil on my shoulder..."

Finally Val has realized what a jerk Danny is. He tries to strangle her but Val fights back and stabs him in self defense. He would have died if Patricia hadn't saved his life. I bet her family wishes that she hadn't!

I love the Val and Gary moments in this episode, especially how Val told him she didn't wanna go back in time since she might not have met him. It reminds me of the last episode of original Dallas and how they wouldn't have met until later in life if JR hadn't been born...

Anne and Paula competes for Greg's attention. The funniest moment must be when Anne sent Greg a geisha...

But over all another great episode.

 

[Seaviewer]

He would have died if Patricia hadn't saved his life.

Irony.

 

[Karin Schill]

Yeah it is. I am sure it's no coincidence though. So it can be seen as a plantation for what will happen later on...

 

[Mustard]

Yeah it is. I am sure it's no coincidence though. So it can be seen as a plantation for what will happen later on...

Yes, that's why Patricia saving Danny's life was done.