- Awards
- 25
This time we're going to focus on our favourite Soapland mother and son relationships. Which ones did you enjoy the most? Stepsons will not be included but adopted sons are fine.
SoapLand - The Battle Of The Mothers and Sons - The Result
- Thread starter Richard Channing
- Start date
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- Awards
- 6
1. Pam and Christopher
2. Stephanie and Dennis RTE
3. Alexis and Steven
4. Miss Ellie and Gary
5. Sue Ellen and John Ross from around 1984 or so on because I don’t think she was too brilliant a mum before then ;-)
Highly commended to Donna and Tony in Dallas but sadly that didn’t happen and was all too brief
2. Stephanie and Dennis RTE
3. Alexis and Steven
4. Miss Ellie and Gary
5. Sue Ellen and John Ross from around 1984 or so on because I don’t think she was too brilliant a mum before then ;-)
Highly commended to Donna and Tony in Dallas but sadly that didn’t happen and was all too brief
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- Awards
- 27
I'll vote for my favourite dysfunctional mother & son couples.
1. Sue Ellen & John Ross - DALLAS
2. Judith & Harris - DALLAS
3. Lilimae & Joshua - KNOTS LANDING
4. Julia & Lance - FALCON CREST
5. Abby & Brian - KNOTS LANDING
Because he looked like something that came with the wardrobe. I'm pretty sure he lived in a suitcase.
1. Sue Ellen & John Ross - DALLAS
2. Judith & Harris - DALLAS
3. Lilimae & Joshua - KNOTS LANDING
4. Julia & Lance - FALCON CREST
5. Abby & Brian - KNOTS LANDING
Because he looked like something that came with the wardrobe. I'm pretty sure he lived in a suitcase.
- Awards
- 24
Ah, the dysfunction! [/breathes deeply]
1. Ruth and Greg, Knots Landing
2. Lilimae and Joshua, KL
3. Angela and Richard, Falcon Crest
4. Sable and Miles, The Colbys
5. Miss Ellie and Gary, Dallas
1. Ruth and Greg, Knots Landing
2. Lilimae and Joshua, KL
3. Angela and Richard, Falcon Crest
4. Sable and Miles, The Colbys
5. Miss Ellie and Gary, Dallas
- Awards
- 11
1. Angela and Richard- Falcon Crest
2.Miss Ellie and JR- Dallas
3. Julia and Lance- Falcon Crest
4. Alexis and Steven- Dynasty
5. Sue Ellen and John Ross- NuDallas
2.Miss Ellie and JR- Dallas
3. Julia and Lance- Falcon Crest
4. Alexis and Steven- Dynasty
5. Sue Ellen and John Ross- NuDallas
- Awards
- 27
Honourable mention:
NuAlexis & NuAdam (NuDynasty)
It's coming back!
NuAlexis & NuAdam (NuDynasty)
It's coming back!
- Awards
- 52
1. Angela and Richard - FALCON CREST - Richard always longed for a family and it was fascinating to see how his relationship with Angela developed after the revelation that she was his mother.
2. Karen and Eric - KNOTS LANDING - I always felt that Eric was her favourite and they had such a great on screen relationship.
3. Miss Ellie and Gary - DALLAS - her favourite son.
4. Julia and Lance - FALCON CREST - There was often a coldness from Lance towards his mother but there was always a underlying deep love between them.
5. Alexis and Steven - DYNASTY - she always was on his side, especially when Blake wasn't.
2. Karen and Eric - KNOTS LANDING - I always felt that Eric was her favourite and they had such a great on screen relationship.
3. Miss Ellie and Gary - DALLAS - her favourite son.
4. Julia and Lance - FALCON CREST - There was often a coldness from Lance towards his mother but there was always a underlying deep love between them.
5. Alexis and Steven - DYNASTY - she always was on his side, especially when Blake wasn't.
- Awards
- 27
And also because Blake wasn't
- Awards
- 16
1. Pamela & Christopher (Dallas)
2. Miss Ellie & Gary (Dallas)
3. Judith & Harris (TNT Dallas)
4. Alexis & Adam (Dynasty)
5. Miss Ellie & J.R. (Dallas)
I love Angela's and Richard's dysfunctional relationship on FC, but I prefered them as it was first - him being her ex-husband's bastard son.
2. Miss Ellie & Gary (Dallas)
3. Judith & Harris (TNT Dallas)
4. Alexis & Adam (Dynasty)
5. Miss Ellie & J.R. (Dallas)
I love Angela's and Richard's dysfunctional relationship on FC, but I prefered them as it was first - him being her ex-husband's bastard son.
- Awards
- 27
Me too.
And I think they did it so he could partially replace the role of that other, very important family member: Chase Gioberti.
In case there's a big change they usually rearrange the set up which allows them to continue to write-from-template.
Even in season 9 they created a new Richard because, without Maggie and Angela, Richard couldn't be "Richard" anymore.
The soap merry-go-round must be preserved at all costs.
- Awards
- 7
1 - Alexis and Adam in Dynasty: after coming back into the lives of the two children that she hadn't seen in 14 years, Alexis had a rocky time trying to play mother again as Fallon fought against her and she couldn't help but meddle in Steven's life. So when Adam entered the fray, Alexis had a fresh start with a son who only knew her as she was in the present rather than being haunted like Fallon and Steven by her abandonment in the past. And what a relationship they forged. Poison paint and murder trials are not the usual facets upon which a mother son bond is built but it helped their relationship along as they battled and schemed together, climaxing in their season nine dynamic duo act as they fought to outfox Sable.
2 - Angela and Richard in Falcon Crest: the reveal of their true connection was a great twist involving two great characters played by two great actors and added more conflict to the already multilayered relationship between the pair.
3 - Sable and Miles in The Colbys: Sable was the classic meddling mother who in her quest to do her best by her children, always overstepped the mark. As her only son, she seemed to take a special interest in sticking her nose into Miles' affairs and was often as much a presence in his marriages as his wives were.
4 - Lilimae and Joshua in Knots Landing: this scene alone is some of the most Shakespearean high drama of any of the mother and son relationships on any of the soaps. After seeking out the mother who abandoned him, their relationship is eventually poisoned until one of them dies in a final confrontation.
5 - Ruth and Greg in Knots Landing: I wish she'd been around for longer but Ruth was the perfect guest star, showing up in a cloak of mystery (and cigarette smoke), meddling in her son's personal and business affairs and setting time bombs before jetting back off to her exotic life in Africa. I always thought William Devane was one of the strongest performers on the show so watching him bounce off Ava Gardner was a joy.
5 - Ruth and Greg in Knots Landing: I wish she'd been around for longer but Ruth was the perfect guest star, showing up in a cloak of mystery (and cigarette smoke), meddling in her son's personal and business affairs and setting time bombs before jetting back off to her exotic life in Africa. I always thought William Devane was one of the strongest performers on the show so watching him bounce off Ava Gardner was a joy.
- Awards
- 24
1- Jessica Montford and Dusty ("Dallas") Because she would´ve done ANYTHING for her son...
"Oh Mr. Tomato, how do you want the Ellies, cut or sliced?"
2- Melissa and Joseph ("Falcon Crest") Because she took the consequences of her acts and carried on...
"Please forgive me son..."
"Shut up beech! When I´m older I´ll come back
with an axe and will kill ye!"
3- Lil Trotter and Mickey ("Dallas") Because after all, she was the only mother who killed her son on "Dallas" (though not physically...)
"Don´t worry Norman, you´ll get used to it..."
4- Rebecca Wentworth and Cliff ("Dallas")
5- Julia Cumson and Father Christopher (their scenes were A LOT more intense and deeper than her ones with Lance, I wonder why...
)
"Oh Christopher darling, I got a new hairdo from one of the sisters,
Sister Sophia, formerly known as Brother Marcus..."
"Oh Mr. Tomato, how do you want the Ellies, cut or sliced?"
"Please forgive me son..."
"Shut up beech! When I´m older I´ll come back
with an axe and will kill ye!"
"Don´t worry Norman, you´ll get used to it..."
"Have you seen Katherine...?"
"Don´t worry Mama, she must be giving a shot at someone..."
"Don´t worry Mama, she must be giving a shot at someone..."
5- Julia Cumson and Father Christopher (their scenes were A LOT more intense and deeper than her ones with Lance, I wonder why...
)"Oh Christopher darling, I got a new hairdo from one of the sisters,
Sister Sophia, formerly known as Brother Marcus..."
- Awards
- 36
1) Ellie and Gary: The son who never made it in Dallas, yet made a fortune in Knots Landing. You just gotta give Barbara Bel Geddes and David Ackroyd / Ted Shackleford an applause, for their chemistry. Gary was Ellie's favourite son full stop, so much so a favourite 80's mama bought her middle son a house; in a cul-de-sac, away from all the family's back stabbing and bickering. She done just right and so KNOTS LANDING was born, from a viewer's perspective - DALLAS.
2) Angela and Richard: Who would have thought about the twist at the end of season 6? The 45 year old man who longed for a family and believed that cartel boss Jacqueline Perrault was his mother actually wasn't. The next three seasons thereafter had plenty of ups and downs, between the newfound mother and son. They actually had some of the most meaningfully touching scenes towards the latter part of season 7 I had ever watched in any show - FALCON CREST.
3) Alexis and Steven: Al Corley / Jack Coleman's character was the ba of the ex Mrs. Blake Carrington, at least until Amanda showed up. They gelled well together, in comparison to the early friction between Steven and Blake. Adam was a Johnny come lately, if you were to weigh the scenario up. His mother and him were still as thick as thieves though - DYNASTY.
4) Sable and Miles: Ever the over protective mother, Miles was definitely the blue eyed boy. Maxwell Caulfield's character could have went with a female elephant and she wouldn't have thought any less of him - THE COLBYS.
5) Melissa and Joseph: Despite her dangling the paternity of her child, to the two prospective fathers Melissa always had Carlo's grandchild best interests at heart. Who could forget her feeding Joseph the grapes from the one and only vine her deceased mother planted, while reading about Angela's 'Hit & Run', in Richard's newspaper. Melissa to the core - FALCON CREST.
Another verbal ding dong between Maggie and Angela gets going, over the bole Richard, (a scene from season 7, 1987 - '88):
Maggie: "Okay, you wanna know the real reason Richard agreed to marry me?"
Angela: "Of course."
Maggie: "He wanted to give me the pleasure of having you, for a mother in-law. Uh, I can't figure that boy out!"
2) Angela and Richard: Who would have thought about the twist at the end of season 6? The 45 year old man who longed for a family and believed that cartel boss Jacqueline Perrault was his mother actually wasn't. The next three seasons thereafter had plenty of ups and downs, between the newfound mother and son. They actually had some of the most meaningfully touching scenes towards the latter part of season 7 I had ever watched in any show - FALCON CREST.
3) Alexis and Steven: Al Corley / Jack Coleman's character was the ba of the ex Mrs. Blake Carrington, at least until Amanda showed up. They gelled well together, in comparison to the early friction between Steven and Blake. Adam was a Johnny come lately, if you were to weigh the scenario up. His mother and him were still as thick as thieves though - DYNASTY.
4) Sable and Miles: Ever the over protective mother, Miles was definitely the blue eyed boy. Maxwell Caulfield's character could have went with a female elephant and she wouldn't have thought any less of him - THE COLBYS.
5) Melissa and Joseph: Despite her dangling the paternity of her child, to the two prospective fathers Melissa always had Carlo's grandchild best interests at heart. Who could forget her feeding Joseph the grapes from the one and only vine her deceased mother planted, while reading about Angela's 'Hit & Run', in Richard's newspaper. Melissa to the core - FALCON CREST.
Another verbal ding dong between Maggie and Angela gets going, over the bole Richard, (a scene from season 7, 1987 - '88):
Maggie: "Okay, you wanna know the real reason Richard agreed to marry me?"
Angela: "Of course."
Maggie: "He wanted to give me the pleasure of having you, for a mother in-law. Uh, I can't figure that boy out!"
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- Awards
- 8
1 - Angela and Richard - FC
2 - Pam and Christopher - Dallas
3 - Ellie and Gary - Dallas
4 - Alexis and Steven - Dynasty
5 - Lillimae and Joshua - KL
2 - Pam and Christopher - Dallas
3 - Ellie and Gary - Dallas
4 - Alexis and Steven - Dynasty
5 - Lillimae and Joshua - KL
- Awards
- 13
1. Lillimae and Joshua from Knots
2. Angela and Richard from Falcon Crest
3. Miss Ellie and Gary from Dallas
4. Sue Ellen and John Ross from original Dallas
5. Alexis and Steven from original Dynasty
2. Angela and Richard from Falcon Crest
3. Miss Ellie and Gary from Dallas
4. Sue Ellen and John Ross from original Dallas
5. Alexis and Steven from original Dynasty
- Awards
- 14
1. DYNASTY - Alexis and Steven. Dynasty isn't a show known for it's reflection of real world situations. However I always found something realistic about the relationship between Alexis and Steven. Something I have often noticed about mothers and their gay sons. There are a few things at work there, a favouritism but also a fierce protectiveness and a mutual admiration. I think it was as honest as it could get at the time. And I think it worked regardless of which head Steven was sporting.
2. DALLAS - Miss Ellie and Gary. They didn't have that much screen time on Dallas but Gary was always there, his ghost lingering at Southfork while he was off doing whatever in California. He was part of the backstory and the history of Dallas. He made things make sense. Ellie was also fiercely loyal to Gary and seemed to understand him more so than her two other sons. She knew he was different and she respected that, and took steps to ensure his happiness. Even if that meant having him thousands of miles away.
3. DYNASTY - Alexis and Adam. The dastardly duo, and what a pair. Adam was clearly Alexis's son. The most like her of all the Carrington siblings. Joan and Gordon had a sizzling chemistry in their scenes that sometimes took things away from usual mother and son soap schtick. There was an Oedipus undercurrent there, or can that even be? Since Adam never knew Alexis as a child. Anyways there was just that vibe.
4. THE COLBYS - Sable and Miles. The lioness and her cub. A woman driven almost insane by her desire to see right by her son. To ensure his birth-right and usurp the interloper Jeff. Beacham's and Caulfield's scenes sometimes also bordered on the Oedipus.
5. KNOTS LANDING - Karen and Eric. Perhaps this one is overlooked by most but I always liked Karen and Eric's dynamic. Growing up in a home where our father had passed away when we were kids there was something similar there. Knots Landing did it well, even when Karen moved on with Mack. There was also something very real about Karen's relationship with Eric. Plus, he's an absolute legend for stepping up and slapping the shit out of Diana for disrespecting Karen. Even after Karen had previously bawled at Eric for trying to stop her from giving aunty Abby a piece of her mind. Eric we salute you! You legend!
2. DALLAS - Miss Ellie and Gary. They didn't have that much screen time on Dallas but Gary was always there, his ghost lingering at Southfork while he was off doing whatever in California. He was part of the backstory and the history of Dallas. He made things make sense. Ellie was also fiercely loyal to Gary and seemed to understand him more so than her two other sons. She knew he was different and she respected that, and took steps to ensure his happiness. Even if that meant having him thousands of miles away.
3. DYNASTY - Alexis and Adam. The dastardly duo, and what a pair. Adam was clearly Alexis's son. The most like her of all the Carrington siblings. Joan and Gordon had a sizzling chemistry in their scenes that sometimes took things away from usual mother and son soap schtick. There was an Oedipus undercurrent there, or can that even be? Since Adam never knew Alexis as a child. Anyways there was just that vibe.
4. THE COLBYS - Sable and Miles. The lioness and her cub. A woman driven almost insane by her desire to see right by her son. To ensure his birth-right and usurp the interloper Jeff. Beacham's and Caulfield's scenes sometimes also bordered on the Oedipus.
5. KNOTS LANDING - Karen and Eric. Perhaps this one is overlooked by most but I always liked Karen and Eric's dynamic. Growing up in a home where our father had passed away when we were kids there was something similar there. Knots Landing did it well, even when Karen moved on with Mack. There was also something very real about Karen's relationship with Eric. Plus, he's an absolute legend for stepping up and slapping the shit out of Diana for disrespecting Karen. Even after Karen had previously bawled at Eric for trying to stop her from giving aunty Abby a piece of her mind. Eric we salute you! You legend!
- Awards
- 44
1. Lilimae and Joshua
Knots Landing
I enjoyed how fragile their relationship was and how this informed Lilimae's responses to her son's faults.
2. Miss Ellie and Gary
Dallas
The toxicity of their relationship was fascinating. His wellbeing depended on him doing the one thing she couldn't accept.
3. Karen and Eric
Knots Landing
They had some beautiful, understated scenes and were very convincing as mother and son.
4. Ruth and Greg
Knots Landing
Their interactions were like a performance. A whole lot of hurt hiding behind a barrage of quips and put-downs.
5. Sable and Miles
The Colbys
That fierce, overprotective willingness to go to any lengths made Sable particularly dangerous. And it didn't do Miles any favours either.
Knots Landing
I enjoyed how fragile their relationship was and how this informed Lilimae's responses to her son's faults.
2. Miss Ellie and Gary
Dallas
The toxicity of their relationship was fascinating. His wellbeing depended on him doing the one thing she couldn't accept.
3. Karen and Eric
Knots Landing
They had some beautiful, understated scenes and were very convincing as mother and son.
4. Ruth and Greg
Knots Landing
Their interactions were like a performance. A whole lot of hurt hiding behind a barrage of quips and put-downs.
5. Sable and Miles
The Colbys
That fierce, overprotective willingness to go to any lengths made Sable particularly dangerous. And it didn't do Miles any favours either.
- Awards
- 25
1. Alexis and Adam
2. Angela and Richard
3. Rebecca and Cliff
4. Sue Ellen and John Ross
5. Sable and Miles
2. Angela and Richard
3. Rebecca and Cliff
4. Sue Ellen and John Ross
5. Sable and Miles
K
Karin Schill
Guest
1. Sue Ellen & John Ross (Dallas)
What a journey they've taken us on. We've seen their relationship since John Ross was a baby until a grown man with some gap years in between.
2. Joshua & Lilimae (Knots Landing)
Such a complicated relationship. Also the superb acting made this duo extra memorable.
3. Alexis & Steven (Dynasty)
Steven was always her favorite of the kids.
4. Rebecca & Cliff (Dallas)
Her showing up in her kids life again changed the show completely and made Cliff wealthy. Also who could forget that touching licorice scene.
5. Miss Ellie & JR (Dallas)
The only one who could put him in his place.
What a journey they've taken us on. We've seen their relationship since John Ross was a baby until a grown man with some gap years in between.
2. Joshua & Lilimae (Knots Landing)
Such a complicated relationship. Also the superb acting made this duo extra memorable.
3. Alexis & Steven (Dynasty)
Steven was always her favorite of the kids.
4. Rebecca & Cliff (Dallas)
Her showing up in her kids life again changed the show completely and made Cliff wealthy. Also who could forget that touching licorice scene.
5. Miss Ellie & JR (Dallas)
The only one who could put him in his place.
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