tommie
Telly Talk Hero
Knots did have a fair amount of weak links though, especially in the younger cast (don't get me wrong, the adult cast was mostly good, but it wasn't Shakespeare or anything).
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If Gary and Valene had been main characters on Dallas
- Thread starter RandallAdams
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Taylor Bennett Jr.
Telly Talk Winner
Gary and Val would have slept in a folding bed that pulls out from one of the living room walls, and Baby (and teenage) Lucy would have had a mini-crib that slid out of the side of the piano like a drawer
(that, or they would have stayed in what became one of the 14 guest bedrooms in the deceptively large upstairs portion of the house)
LMLDallas78
Telly Talk Enthusiast
Yes I remember.
I was thinking more of Southfork 2, which was a magical ranch and could instantly conjure up rooms from nowhere.
RandallAdams
Telly Talk Active Member
It occurs to me, Dallas could have done without Bobby and Pam entirely if Gary and Val had been there instead.
Mustard
Telly Talk TV Fanatic
Like I said, Gary and Valene were much more volatile than Bobby and Pamela. Gary and Val's relationship problems would have likely torn the Ewing family apart. Their love was deep, but they also had issues related to Gary's dislike of responsibility and his addictions, and Val loving him so much that she would often go over the top in her emotional responses. Bobby embraces what is expected of him as Jock Ewing's son, and the dynamic in his marriage with Pam, and their relationship's effect on the Ewings, and the Barneses, is what makes Dallas tick.
Mustard
Telly Talk TV Fanatic
It's a TARDIS, bigger on the inside than on the outside
LMLDallas78
Telly Talk Enthusiast
Maybe not entirely, but definitely not SO much about them and that's what happened anyway!
the-lost-son
Telly Talk Well-Known Member
Had Dallas not been the great success it was, we sure would have got Gary&Val on a full-term basis from S2/S3(original) onwards.
I loved how they introduced characters on Dallas at that time. Showw them once for 1-2 episodes and bring them on later full-term (see Clayton or Rebecca).
In my head the ideal moment to bring them back would hace been after Bobby's death. The show's structure could have heen kept intact. Another brother for JR to fight with and another sister-in-law he hates.
With Gary&Val on board early on I think the following consequences would have been:
- writing off Ray, the foreman who slept with the rancher's granddaughter in TEXAS. Without making him the fourth son, the character seemed limited.
- as Gary's alcoholism had been established early on and therefor seemed likely to be revisited in soapland, I don't know if SueEllen would have become a drunk, too. But dynamics might have changed as JR became the rising star of the show and SueEllen's role needed to be expanded (no more brunette on the couch).
- there would have been a rift between Jock&Miss Ellie. She blamed Jock for his absence.
- Gary would have taken care of the ranch.
I somehow see him and Valene as the stable couple who take a backseat to JR&SueEllen
- the elephant in the room is Lucy, their relationship with her parents, the conflicts being risen by their grandparents.
I loved how they introduced characters on Dallas at that time. Showw them once for 1-2 episodes and bring them on later full-term (see Clayton or Rebecca).
In my head the ideal moment to bring them back would hace been after Bobby's death. The show's structure could have heen kept intact. Another brother for JR to fight with and another sister-in-law he hates.
With Gary&Val on board early on I think the following consequences would have been:
- writing off Ray, the foreman who slept with the rancher's granddaughter in TEXAS. Without making him the fourth son, the character seemed limited.
- as Gary's alcoholism had been established early on and therefor seemed likely to be revisited in soapland, I don't know if SueEllen would have become a drunk, too. But dynamics might have changed as JR became the rising star of the show and SueEllen's role needed to be expanded (no more brunette on the couch).
- there would have been a rift between Jock&Miss Ellie. She blamed Jock for his absence.
- Gary would have taken care of the ranch.
I somehow see him and Valene as the stable couple who take a backseat to JR&SueEllen
- the elephant in the room is Lucy, their relationship with her parents, the conflicts being risen by their grandparents.
Gary Ewing in Dallas
I always liked Gary back in Dallas. It was realistic that some offspring of the Ewing family lived further away and when he arrived it was always for a major reason (reading of Jock's will, Lucy's wedding, Bobby's funeral) I have watched only a few episodes of Knots Landing, but I really liked...
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LMLDallas78
Telly Talk Enthusiast
You raise some really great points.
I imagine Sue Ellen would've always been a drunk though. It was indicated as early as Barbecue episode in the pilot then later coincided with the Betty Ford clinic being in the news so made it a very current story at the time. But it may've been too much having Gary a drunk too if he had more of a major role.
Can't imagine Dallas without drunk Sue Ellen!
Mustard
Telly Talk TV Fanatic
Gary was a very different type of drunk to Sue Ellen and Digger. Gary wouldn't function when he's drinking, i.e. he'd likely be on the streets almost immediately. Sue Ellen could function to some extent, and Digger was an alcoholic who could go on big benders, sober up to work, see family and get more money, and go on more benders.