Seaviewer
Telly Talk Warrior
Or was he?
Recast Pam with Margaret Michaels or April for Bobby?
Mustard
Telly Talk TV Fanatic
I wouldn't have minded Margaret Michaels playing Pam regularly from Season 11 DVD onwards, say after taking off the bandages. It would have worked to some extent, because she has a strong resemblance to Victoria Principal, and it would have maintained the big positive of keeping the dynamics properly intact in the Dallas storylines. I'm watching the late seasons now (currently on Season 13 DVD, with the Jeanne O'Brien episodes), and while there are some feel good character moments by this stage in Dallas history, the wider narrative of the show by this point is a mess. Southfork feels very bare at this stage of Dallas history, and it will get even worse when Lucy, Miss Ellie and Clayton go. Miss Ellie and Clayton are rarely at Southfork anymore, anyway.
Donna Reed replacing Barbara Bel Geddes was different to the Michaels/Principal situation, because Reed played Miss Ellie very differently.
Yes. How do they explain Wes Parmalee having the same injuries on his body as Jock Ewing? Wyatt Haines wouldn't have the same injuries as Jock, would he? The Wes Parmalee storyline may have pulled a few emotional strings, but it was a bit of a mess when looked at properly.
Donna Reed replacing Barbara Bel Geddes was different to the Michaels/Principal situation, because Reed played Miss Ellie very differently.
Or was he?
Yes. How do they explain Wes Parmalee having the same injuries on his body as Jock Ewing? Wyatt Haines wouldn't have the same injuries as Jock, would he? The Wes Parmalee storyline may have pulled a few emotional strings, but it was a bit of a mess when looked at properly.
Taylor Bennett Jr.
Telly Talk Winner
identical x-rays are one thing, but would Jock in a trillion years enunciate the first 's' in 'business' like Wes did at the Oil Barons' Ball? He was Wyatt Haynes!
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Frank Underwood
Telly Talk Champion
It wasn't that cut and dried. Wes didn't look like either Jock or Wyatt because of his extensive injuries and resulting surgeries. Yet the family eagerly chose to believe he was Wyatt because it was less complicated than having him possibly be Jock. They had mourned and moved on, and Wes was simply too different for them to accept. Miss Ellie said Wes told her he wasn't Jock, but he also told her he would see her again someday. That would have been strange to say if he wasn't Jock. He also had the same injuries Jock had. I choose to believe he was Jock and left because the family was obviously never going to accept him. The ambiguity of Wes Parmalee's true identity allows the audience to decide who he really was.
ArchieLucasCarringtonEwing1989
Telly Talk TV Fanatic
I could accept MM as Pam since there would be a valid reason as to why she looked a bit different, Pam had just survived being blown up in a massive car crash after all, she's bound to look a bit different!
MM played her so well at the season 12 (DVD) premier and since Pam was such a major part of DALLAS to begin with I think other viewers in time would accept MM, it would have been a lot better than what we would end up with in the later years of the show.
MM played her so well at the season 12 (DVD) premier and since Pam was such a major part of DALLAS to begin with I think other viewers in time would accept MM, it would have been a lot better than what we would end up with in the later years of the show.
retrosonic
Telly Talk Member
Ahhhh......I cant agree. I've never been one for recasting, I just dont think it works. People fall in love with certain characters, and by extension, the actors that play those characters. When they are recast, I think it greatly diminishes the association we have with the characters. Donna Reed, who was a fine actress, should never have been cast as Miss Ellie. It cheapens the character. And on Dynasty, they seemed to recast half the cast!! It just doesnt work for me.
Rove
Telly Talk Warrior
I've never liked them and that goes for any series. Just the other day I was visiting my elderly aunt for afternoon tea. I had not seen her for ages but she was always a fan of The Bold & The Beautiful. As that afternoon episode was being played I hardly recognised anyone and asked, "Who are these people?" She then explained that's the new Ridge, Thorne and some other character I cannot recall. I thought for a moment I'd stumbled into some alternative universe soap. Interestingly even my aunt said she no longer watches the series religiously because of the change in actors.
And that's where I agree with most about recasts. It upsets the rhythm of viewing a much loved series. It's why to this day I never liked the recast of Miss Ellie and why watching that particular season frustrates me because when Bobby died in "Swan Song" I keep thinking how powerful this episode could have been with Barbara Bel Geddes there.
Lastkidpicked
Telly Talk Dream Maker
That sums it up very nicely, Rove.
Monzo
Telly Talk Star
Let's say Margaret Michael's Pam returned in time to break up Bobby and Tracey and she and Bobby would be reunited, what about April?
James was going to show up in season 13 anyway and he needed a woman. Would April have struck up a romance with James and therefore Michelle would have never existed? Or would April have been written out at the end of season 12? Or would the plot between James and Michelle have been the same and the writers would have come up with a different storyline for April in season 13?
If April would have been gone after season 12, but Michelle should still have joined the show, would she have been related to someone else? For example she could have been Marilee Stone's niece. We saw Marilee early in season 13 (was it the last we saw her?) and when JR visited her she could have introduced Michelle as her niece who was visiting. That way we could have seen more of Marilee for the rest of the run.
James was going to show up in season 13 anyway and he needed a woman. Would April have struck up a romance with James and therefore Michelle would have never existed? Or would April have been written out at the end of season 12? Or would the plot between James and Michelle have been the same and the writers would have come up with a different storyline for April in season 13?
If April would have been gone after season 12, but Michelle should still have joined the show, would she have been related to someone else? For example she could have been Marilee Stone's niece. We saw Marilee early in season 13 (was it the last we saw her?) and when JR visited her she could have introduced Michelle as her niece who was visiting. That way we could have seen more of Marilee for the rest of the run.
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DallasFanForever
Telly Talk Supreme
If Pam is recast then I’m honestly not sure what happens to April. I guess April and James is one possibility but then where does that leave Michelle? Perhaps the sisters get out the claws and fight over him? I think I like that idea better than Michelle being a relative of someone else but that’s also another possibility.
I’ve always said April had her best chemistry and scenes with Nicholas. I would’ve preferred them together over him and Sue Ellen in season 11. Of course Nick’s season ending death was inevitable but had he stayed on the show hypothetically I would’ve paired him with April.
Luke_Krebbs_Ewing
Telly Talk Champion
They should've recast April with Victoria Principal, that would've reinvigorated the show!
I’m not sure I buy that. Especially since Miss Ellie never did relay the final
conversation to anyone. I think they should have brought Wes/Jock back when JR lost Ewing Oil. Wes planted the story when he heard Bobby went to S America from Punk. I think it could have been a powerful scene to have him tell the boys story’s from their childhood. Things only their daddy not the public would know. In true Jock fashion yell, “dman it boys. Look in my eyes, tell me I’m not your daddy“. Then they finally come to terms with it. Much better than the season we got
I vote for the recast. But I would have had Pam die, spending her last days with Bobby & Christopher, allowing for proper closure. A recast would never be fully accepted. however, MM would have worked better than Reed. she still emulated Pam. Reed was too glamorized to be Miss Ellie. Had they kept the clothes and mannerisms the same maybe it would not have been so
difficult to accept. Re: Wes Parmalee, I have mixed feelings about him being Jock. I would have wanted to see Clayton die first so that Miss Ellie wouldn’t be in such a difficult decision
difficult to accept. Re: Wes Parmalee, I have mixed feelings about him being Jock. I would have wanted to see Clayton die first so that Miss Ellie wouldn’t be in such a difficult decision