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Message: <blockquote data-quote="James from London" data-source="post: 247294" data-attributes="member: 22">Deception  (DALLAS, 06 Jan 89) v The Decline and Fall of the Ewing Empire (DALLAS, 26 Apr 91)There are some interesting firsts and lasts in Deception. Detective Rattigan makes his debut appearance as New Harry McSween. Carter Mackay and Bobby meet for the first time. Initially, Bobby assumes Mack to be Tracey’s ex-husband, while Mack only realises halfway through their conversation that his daughter’s new boyfriend is the son of the family he’s at war with.During their final conversation of the series, Sue Ellen comes as close to accusing Miss Ellie of enabling JR as she ever has: “That man has been cheating, lying and double-crossing everyone for years now, including you and Clayton, but you’re willing to just sit there and side with him no matter what.” (Indeed, it’s notable that as the range war at Southfork escalates, Miss Ellie and JR are of the same mind. She backs his decisions to send John Ross and Christopher to stay with Cliff rather than Sue Ellen and, despite objections from Bobby and Clayton, to hire mercenaries to guard the ranch.) During their last scene together for twenty-four years, Sue Ellen asks Cliff asks why he’s never had kids — each of them unaware he already has a daughter who’ll end up marrying both of the prepubescent boys currently playing tennis in the background. Sue Ellen’s more on the money in a later scene when she says to her ex, “I’m sure you have any number of children out there, JR, since you were so faithful to me during our marriage.”Then comes the end-of-episode discovery that Mackay has secretly been working for Jeremy Wendell all along. “I want that oil under Section 40 on Southfork and whatever you have to do to the Ewings to get it, that’s what you do.” The rest of the storyline may not quite live up to this moment, but it’s still a great reveal.The Decline and Fall of the Ewing Empire is the last “proper” episode of '80s DALLAS before the pointless series finale. Cliff, who inherited 5% of Ewing Oil from his first wife Jamie in A Death in the Family, now does his best to wrest control of the remainder of it from his second wife Michelle, presently in jail for murdering Sheila Hilary Foley Taylor. The first two-thirds of the ep is light, twisty-turny fun with Michelle managing to outwit both Cliff and JR from behind bars, with occasional scenes of Bobby consoling dweeby Jory Taylor over her stepmother's death. The final third is JR losing stuff: Sly quits, John Ross and Phyllis tell him to get lost and he’s tricked out of Ewing Oil and West Star by Carter Mackay and Dusty. For such a significant episode, it’s largely devoid of sentiment and must be one of very few where no-one mentions Jock or Daddy. The only reference comes at the very end of ep when JR takes a pistol out of a case that has Jock’s name on it.JR contemplates shooting himself following a phone call from John Ross in England. It’s sort of the reverse of the scenario in 2013 when he calls John Ross from Nuevo Laredo just before he has himself shot.And the winner is ... DeceptionBONUS BEATS:[MEDIA=youtube]t4X7W4FYCSg[/MEDIA]</blockquote>

Verification: What month follows July?