Watching Capricorn Crude

[Werewillie Oleson]

Jock talks about grandchildren, well mostly the absence of, and Sue Ellen takes that as an order.
But after 7 years of marriage she still hasn't been able to conceive and she thinks JR should see a doctor.
It's still not very clear what JR wants from this marriage, whenever Sue Ellen offers to help he refuses it or he treats her like she doesn't exist.
I'd expect JR to be anxious to give his daddy his precious heir, but he approaches the subject quite indifferently.
He mentions that having a child changes everything...oh, like, a marriage, for example? It's just not very convincing and I have to fanfic the possible reason behind it.
Is it rebellion, is it the only thing JR doesn't want to do for his father?

Time for a story, and Miss Ellie gives Sue Ellen some bad advice.

"Trust me, I'm the good cop".

Sue Ellen visits the Woodfield Adoption Service, but she's being informed that it will take at least 3 years to adopt a newborn child.
Barbara Walsh proves to be a resourceful Dallas girl, and she contacts Buzz Connors.


B.J. Buzz Connors turns out to be a typical mover and shaker, not a big one but more like the grease that keeps the wheels turning - every city needs a man like Buzz.
He decides to help Mrs, Ewing which means he's going to sell her a baby.
Cliff Barnes meets the wife of his enemy, and it must be very interesting to see his enemy's domestic side.

When things are going well Cliff has a joie de vivre that JR never has, so it's not hard to imagine that Sue Ellen and Cliff would become romantically involved.


Sue Ellen finds a better place for Rita, the mother of the future Ewing baby, and I'm intrigued by the structure of these buildings.
The hall/living room has a high ceiling, and the other living areas (kitchen, bedroom, bathroom) are on the first floor and (presumably) look out on the other side of the building.
The living room part doesn't continue to the other side of the building, there's nothing underneath the kitchen etc, and that wouldn't be possible because the levels aren't the same as the standard ground floor vs first floor. The stairs is really only half a stairs.
A complex structure just for the heck of it, how fascinating!

JR sabotages Sue Ellen's plans and I'm glad he did because it could have destroyed the future of TNT Dallas.

"You can have Ewing Oil...and you can have this whole damn ranch...cause I have had it!"
I can hear the tear in her voice, it's such a convincing performance.
Pam is very surprised and upset.

Good Cop & Bad Cop pretend to know nothing about anything.

JR and Sue Ellen have argument-sex, but it's just a consolation prize.

She knows that nothing's going to change, but leaving the ranch is no longer an option.
She also never mentions that she wants a baby for herself.

Matthew tells Krystle that he doesn't care for her anymore, which is obviously a lie.

But that happens on the Big Rival Show so I really can't say anything about it.
(it's awesome!)

 

[James from London]

It's still not very clear what JR wants from this marriage, whenever Sue Ellen offers to help he refuses it or he treats her like she doesn't exist.
I'd expect JR to be anxious to give his daddy his precious heir, but he approaches the subject quite indifferently.
He mentions that having a child changes everything...oh, like, a marriage, for example? It's just not very convincing and I have to fanfic the possible reason behind it.
Is it rebellion, is it the only thing JR doesn't want to do for his father?

I think the two key scenes that help explain this are the ones with Julie in 'Spy in the House' where JR tells her she's the only one who knows what he likes. "You taught me what you like," she replies. "Why don't you teach Sue Ellen? Why don't you tell her?", and the one in this episode where Sue Ellen asks him, "Is that what you want - somebody who doesn't want you?"

For JR, sex and all the fun dirty things are something to be done away from the family home. They're not what a wife is for (especially when Daddy and Mama are virtually in the next room. "You best go see your wife, Junior," Jock tells him in the first ep -- what kind of a turn-on is that?). And after seven years of (mostly) not doing it, Sue Ellen is probably more like a sister to him. So when she starts coming onto him, it's not that he simply doesn't want her; the idea repulses him. And the more she tries, the worse it gets. So then of course when she says she doesn't want him, it's unexpectedly exciting.

It's funny, I realise none of these things are spelt out, but they always just intuitively made sense to me, even though I'd have been quite young when I first watched these eps. Maybe it's because I read the Lee Raintree novel around the same time, which makes "what JR likes" explicitly clear, and that that isn't something you could ever ask a wife to do. The book also establishes Sue Ellen as being utterly clueless in bed, which makes sense given how controlling her mother was over every aspect of her life, i.e., it's all about appearances. It's all very infantile behaviour on JR's part, of course, but maybe that's another reason why it made sense to me when I was a kid. Before Bobby married Pam, he never had to think about growing up -- he could just wheel and deal and whore around. But now that that Barnes woman is here, he's being forced to face his responsibilities for the first time and it's not very sexy.

 

[Werewillie Oleson]

So when she starts coming onto him, it's not that he simply doesn't want her; the idea repulses him. And the more she tries, the worse it gets

I guess that explains why he tries to avoid her as much as possible. Having a normal conversation (or just acknowledge her existence) could trigger Sue Ellen's domestic desires since she would be eager to misinterpret it as a positive signal - and then it takes more effort to brush her off.

But now that that Barnes woman is here, he's being forced to face his responsibilities for the first time and it's not very sexy

And Sue Ellen could hear Bobby and Pam's fun sex in the mini-season, how frustrating that must be.

 

[James from London]

And Sue Ellen could hear Bobby and Pam's fun sex in the mini-season, how frustrating that must be.

She has a nice speech to Dusty later on where she says that, until Bobby brought Pam home and she saw how happy they were, she accepted the way things were with JR because she didn't know any different. Pam really screwed up everything for JR.

 

[Guzzler’s Frightening Hair]

a couple of other tidbits I like from Black Market Baby are Sue Ellen's never-again-mentioned steamy encounter with Ray (who's still my darkhorse candidate for being John Ross's father) and the fact that the plucky young Rita Briggs married George Clooney a decade later (and later married Mad Men's John Slattery both on and off screen!) It turns out JR sending her on a bus to California might have been the best thing that ever happened to her!

 

[James from London]

the plucky young Rita Briggs married George Clooney a decade later

Rita's private eye father, meanwhile, had already met an unfortunate end in Psycho.

 

[Richard Channing]

"You can have Ewing Oil...and you can have this whole damn ranch...cause I have had it!"
I can hear the tear in her voice, it's such a convincing performance.
Pam is very surprised and upset.

I thought Linda was fantastic in this scene. Perhaps it was scenes like this that encouraged the writers to beef up the role of Sue Ellen and give Linda more to do.

 

[Karin]

I agree, Linda was fabulous in this episode.
I think Black Market Baby is an interesting episode since it adds character depth to Sue Ellen's character and we get a better understanding of how dysfunctional her marriage to JR is and how unhappy they both are.

 

[Piggyrella Sanderson]

I agree, Linda was fabulous in this episode.
I think Black Market Baby is an interesting episode since it adds character depth to Sue Ellen's character and we get a better understanding of how dysfunctional her marriage to JR is and how unhappy they both are.

I agree with you. It´s the first time, I think, that Linda really steals the episode to everyone else and makes the story its own, despite the fact that even back then, the black market baby was a very clichéd plot! And we´re talking the late 70´s! But Linda and also Talia Balsam as Rita did a great job. Of course Larry proved he and Linda already had that chemistry that partly made "Dallas" the legend it is now.

Why was Linda always smiling in the promos but crying in the show?​

 

[Richard Channing]

I notice you're not getting through this first season too fast @Willie Oleson and I kinda don't blame you. I find it kind of slow going myself. In fact I often think if I was trying to sell someone on Dallas, or was to sit down to watch the entire series with a partner or a friend, I would be half tempted to skip this one and start on the next season. Of course it's not that this season is bad, it's still pretty good, but I would worry that someone new to it could easily lose interest and not get to all the good stuff coming up. When you already love the show and the characters this season is essential viewing, and of course it's essential viewing to know what the hell is going on the next season etc! but for someone new to it I'd feel I'd have to be reassuring them that once the stand along episodes gave way to the more serialized format it gets so much better. Maybe I'm just not a fan of the stand alone episode format for a soap, although I didn't mind it in Falcon Crest's first season. Anyway, as a huge fan of the show of course I appreciate the season and getting to know the characters, I just wonder if someone who is not a fan would appreciate it quite as much.

 

[Werewillie Oleson]

I notice you're not getting through this first season too fast @Willie Oleson and I kinda don't blame you. I find it kind of slow going myself

Don't worry, it has nothing to do with being too slow or unexciting. It's just that I'm watching a little bit of everything right now, rather than focus on one series like I used to do.
The episodes look beautiful, the picture quality is awesome and I get the chance to observe the characters because it's not in full-on-soap-mode yet.
Unfortunately I had to skip an episode (I think it was about Pam's first husband) because it refused to play with English audio no matter how many times I adjusted the language.
This has also tempered my eagerness to watch the DVDs because I have no idea how many more episodes I'll have to skip.

But I don't think I'll post more reviews, it's just too time-consuming and it'll take me forever to watch the whole series.

 

[Richard Channing]

But I don't think I'll post more reviews, it's just too time-consuming and it'll take me forever to watch the whole series.

Well, that would be a shame, but understandable. Maybe you could do something more like what you did with Knots Landing? And either do a review now and again or just your post thoughts on each season.

 

[Werewillie Oleson]

Oh gosh, those Knots Landing reviews are so hysterical, but I was so extremely happy when I got the complete series.

 

[Karin]

I know what you mean about Knots Landing @Willie Oleson
Since it's not out officially on DVD it is harder to get hold of. I think it took me about 13 years to watch the entire series.

 

[Werewillie Oleson]

But I don't think I'll post more reviews

Wait wait wait, let's talk about this first!

Long story short, I returned the cheque to Mrs Abby Ewing and here on soapchat it's business as usual.

There's a stranger in town and it looks like he's looking for something, or someone.

I think he should have played Gary in Knots Landing's pilot episode, just to make it extra obscure.

He's looking for Pam, and she almost doesn't recognize him. Ed? Ed? It has that typical before-and-after-commercials editing.
Ed tells her that they are married, well that certainly rings a bell - and now she must inform Bobby a.s.a.p. (to no avail, of course).

Another yellow phone? Do the Ewings have their own exclusive telephone network? Dial 1 for Southfork stables, dial 2 for Ewing Oil, dial 3 for Rita.

Ed takes his issue to the current but not legal Mr. Pamela Barnes. I just love these unfortunate mix-ups.

But I want to assure you I will help you to see that justice is done. The Ewings would never turn their backs on a veteran.
That remains to be seen.

It so happens that Bobby, through one of Sue Ellen's connections, has started a construction project for a church organization and now he's waiting for their approval.
These people are very concerned with virtue and good family name, and Pam's unintentional bigamy puts a damper on everything.
I declare, the story just writes itself. Ha-ha.
Jock wasn't a fan of Bobby's new venture to begin with, after being confronted with his own mortality he wants to know what everything looks like when he's gone.
Well at least that's my interpretation of it.

The Ewings may treat Pam a little better than they used to, but it's still a trial and it doesn't take much to convince the in-crowd that she's doing something wrong.
I'm afraid you're married to a bigamist, J.R. blurts out. And to make sure that everyone gets the whole picture he describes Ed as a young man who's had a horrible experience in Vietnam, thus making Pam look like a heartless, deceiving villainess.
Both Pam and Bobby have their backs against the wall, she knows she's in the wrong (but it wasn't her fault), and he can't use the "she's my wife, dammit!" argument - not this time.
It's almost sadistically funny.

There's more semi-funny stuff going at Digger's place. Everyone's dying to find Pam's annulment papers and it reminded me of the CLUE movie (I know who dunit, and I shall reveal the culprit in the library).
They go to the Bureau Of Vital Statistics, but it appears that the file doesn't exist anymore.

A picture of Bobby in a very large and very American building.
The fun thing about these early episodes is that it shows the viewer all kinds of places, I guess scenes like these will get more restricted as the series progresses.
The soaps become bigger but the places become smaller.

Bobby is not afraid to use the family name, do you know who I am?
I know we all love our happy TV families, but there's something unkind about this self-imposed authority and supremacy.

Now you are causing me and my family a great deal of trouble mister Haynes, and I want you out of Dallas.
Not just "stay away", no, these characters have to be exiled.
At this point in the story he doesn't know yet that Ed is in cahoots with Harry-behind-the-big-computer.
Bobby's actions are justified, but only with the benefit of hindsight.

And then Digger Barnes saves the day and it all ends with some chuckles around the dining table.
There's nothing wrong with these stand-alone adventures, the story of the Ewings and the Barnses continues in the background, but the conclusions can be a little cheesy sometimes.
And that was not the case with the mini-season episodes.

 

[Karin]

Great review @Willie Oleson . I remember really liking that episode the first time I watched it.

 

[Werewillie Oleson]

It's going to be Lucy's birthday (naturally, since she's the only Ewing who's still growing up) but she's devastated when she finds out that they're planning a formal event in order to make some political/business decisions.
It shows what a fluctuating character Lucy is because in other episodes she seems to understand the pros and cons of being a Ewing.
Sometimes she's spoilt and blasé like Fallon Carrington, but now she goes full-on Lindsay Blaisdel.

She could accept the lawn party for what it is and spend the night in town with her friends but then the story wouldn't unfold the way it was planned.
And an emotional Lucy is always entertaining to watch. There's a rawness about Charlene's acting that I really like, but it doesn't always work.

Pam has decided what she's going to wear - the woman's such a knockout!

Just look at all that gorgeous hair!

Sue Ellen has hired an appropriate band, it's not Supertramp but I think they're OK.


To say that yellow is a "recurring theme" on DALLAS would be the understatement of the year.

Even the lemon in her glass is perfectly yellow!

However, the birthday girl is nowhere to be found. She ran off at dawn to visit her mother since Valene has become persona non grata at Southfork.
For a moment I thought this was going to be the Knots Landing cross-over episode but it appears that the Other Ewings haven't been spun off yet.
She actually never meets with her mother that day because she gets involved with loose cannon Willie.
The first robbery seems improvised, but Willie thinks they can use the same tactic over and over again - they'd make a great modern Bonnie and Clyde, or at least that's what he thinks.
It's interesting that Lucy got her instinct back, it's safer to admit theft (of a Ewing car) than telling a stranger that she is a Ewing.

Willie's car, now that's something else!

I guess it's a typical 60s/70s trend, but the carpeting and fur makes it look disturbingly organic, as if everything inside the car is alive.
Also because he doesn't strike me as a person who would hoover his car every now and then.

It's getting a bit nuttier when Willie decides that Lucy should perform in bar ("but I can't sing!"/"of course you can!") which will give him the opportunity to quietly rob the bartender while the entire audience is completely mesmerized by Lucy (who may or may not be talented enough to perform, or who may or may not be strong enough to perform under such stressful circumstances).
But Lucy's show turns out to be the opposite of Sue Ellen's acoustic bathing suit solo, it's almost as if she doesn't remember why she's doing it.

But then again, who would deny Lucy her 5 minutes of fame? It's her birthday for crying out loud, and eventhough she's not Supertramp, she's far more entertaining than Sue Ellen's trumpet combo.

Received the UK import DVDs (yep, that ghastly box set), at least that'll take care of the audio problems. Keine Deutsche Sprache anymore, hurray!

 

[Werewillie Oleson]

It's election time and the Ewings are looking for the perfect candidate, well, as long as he can beat Cliff Barnes.
Jock has the money and resources to support his candidate's campaign whereas Cliff is scraping by. Although that's not entirely true because he's being approached by a representative of the Big Oil Companies, Mr. Livingstone, who's willing to contribute a fortune (probably more than the money Jock's spending) if that helps Cliff to fight the independent oil industry, a thorn in the side of the conglomerates.

Cliff recognizes the strings attached and refuses their help. His stance on ecological issues appears to be genuine, unlike what we saw in the mini-season when he was so determined to bring down Ewing Oil no-matter-what or how. It's just a (slightly) fluctuating narrative in order to support the upcoming events.

Which is his sister Pamela, of course.

Despite her protests (keeping a low profile) he asks her to organize a fundraising fashion show. "How novel", as Sue Ellen put it.
In the meantime, the Ewings are prepping their candidate for State Senate, Martin Cole, a dull guy who needs a better speech writer and he also needs to "stop dressing in those tired old man's clothes".


But Jock isn't satisfied yet and he orders JR to find dirt on Cliff Barnes.

"If I can't find it, I'll put it there".
"Whatever".
It doesn't concern him how it's done, and that's what makes the boss The Boss. He can create a situation and bring out the best or worst in his employees.

The body in Cliff's closet- literally and figuratively - surfaces at Southfork, no less. The plotting is so convenient I couldn't help laughing out loud.
It starts with JR questioning the nature of the friendship between Cliff and his old pal (now media expert) Peter Larson. He's from New York, which -as per SoapLand rules - means anything's possible.
The very idea of this obscenity causes a lot of commotion at the dinner table, Lucy thinks Cliff's too handsome to be gay (oh, gurrrl!) and Pam feels obliged to defend her brother.
He's heterosexual because he was engaged but she died! Oh...oops.
Cue Kristin Carlson and her film crew as they ambush an unsuspecting Cliff during the rehearsal of the fundraising fashion show.


Pam finds out that her in-laws are using Cliff's tragedy against him and she storms into Jock's office, the Batmobile serves as a dramatic intro.

And there's plenty of drama but it feels a little one-sided and heavy-handed.
Neither Jock nor JR seem particularly impressed and Jock raises his hand to express something like "hysterical woman, what can you do?"

which is then immediately and subconsciously mimicked by his son.

It's almost cute.

Sue Ellen is getting increasingly interested in Cliff Barnes, actually she's no longer coy about it.

The upcoming affair seems like a soap no-brainer, but to me it looks more than just an affair or physical attraction.
I'm not sure if I'd call it revenge either, I think - but maybe I'm reading too much into it - her husband's nemesis connects her with JR.
He's important to JR, more important than his wife, and to be part of that…

Anyway, Cliff loses the election and he calls Livingstone. Imagine if he had accepted his initial offer, would that have been the beginning of the end of the Dallas saga?
Sometimes, a writer just needs to interfere.

 

[Piggyrella Sanderson]

Despite her protests (keeping a low profile) he asks her to organize a fundraising fashion show. "How novel", as Sue Ellen put it.

Sue Ellen was such a beech back then...And the whole Cliff-is-gay scenario at least tries gayness as a free option though not good enough for a politician. Which is so much more than "Dienasty" did in 9 years...

 

[Werewillie Oleson]

Why are Dallas fans so obsessed with Dynasty?