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Watching Capricorn Crude

Werewillie Oleson

Telly Talk Schemer
Do you think the fact you already know whodunnit has any effect on that?
I've watched Twin Peaks twice and early Falcon Crest three times and it didn't became less exciting because I already knew.
Same goes for the Agatha Christie films I have watched more than once.
But let's not forget that nobody has actually died in this Dallas story, so it's a little different anyway.

But WSJR? isn't the most important thing, I just want it to be good drama.
 

Spooky Owl!

Telly Talk Supreme
As uncredited John Scott scores go, we didn't hear enough of ~1:45 to ~3:15 ...


In fact, I think I'd have JR's freeze frame at the end of "Whodunit?" accompanied by the apocalyptically hysterical musical cue from ~2:45 above.
 
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Werewillie Oleson

Telly Talk Schemer
The beginning of the new episode confused me a little bit.
Sue Ellen has been taken into custody and there's nobody with her - not to support or to gloat or to satisfy the curiosity.
Regardless of what she's done, it looks strange that Jock Ewing would allow the mother of his grandson to rot in jail.
What happened to that "we don't want any scandal" from Winds Of Vengeance ?
And it's not just that they are completely done with her, it even goes as far as sabotaging her legal defence.
Of course it's understandable that they consider her to be a serious threat, but the various circumstances seem to undermine that particular urgency.
As JR said "she could have done it any time".

The whodunnit reveal, with a little detective work from Dr. Elby, backfires fabulously when Kristin reveals the pregnancy.
For some reason she is not considered a serious threat, the crime is swept under the carpet and sister dearest is shipped off to a faraway state.
Lucy thinks it's the best thing she's heard in a long time, apparently forgetting that her parents had also been sort of exiled to California.
Either way, it's exactly what I had expected them to do with Sue Ellen. Avoid the public prosecution and send her back to the sanitarium.
"She's not feeling well" sounds so much better in conversations, doesn't it?

Sue Ellen does express her frustration regarding the way things have been handled, but interestingly it's about something else.
JR didn't question Kristin's claim that she was pregnant with his child, but it had taken a lot of drama before he accepted the fact that he had fathered John Ross.
Linda Gray is always spectacular when she explodes.

Cliff Barnes approaches politician Dave Culver but stepmother Donna smells trouble. Nevertheless he makes her reconsider which results in a dinner date in an obscure restaurant with great food.
I don't remember anything about their storylines together but the scenes are very enjoyable.
Well of course it's not as exhilarating as a shouting match on top of the family staircase but I really love all the detailed talk and how it could intertwine with the oil business. It's the other side of characters being very "Dallasy".
And Susan Howard is a treat to watch so that's not going to hurt any storyline (unless it happens in the dream).

This is about the 3 episodes of disc 2 so forgive me if my comments aren't in perfectly chronological order.
Lucy invites Mitch for a barbecue party but it's mostly to introduce him as her new boyfriend.
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Doesn't he look adorable in his long tennis socks and high-waist shorts?
Btw, where's Mitch from? There's something about his accent, it almost sounds slightly British or European.

Bobby finally manages to finance the acquisition of a refinery, somethin Jock's always wanted for himself.
JR is absolutely furious and I think the story needs the occasional villain's defeat in order to maintain the motives, otherwise it's just a feud for the heck of it.
It even gets maniacally machiavellian when he vows to destroy Bobby even if Ewing Oil has to be destroyed in the process. That's just so "Falcon Crest".
We get the impression that Bobby is setting himself up for failure, and to make sure that the disappointment is going to be felt by Bobby and the viewers, the writers have created sort of a bipolar atmosphere.
It's soaring heights and rock-bottom lows and nothing in between. It's "let's celebrate!" or "I'm leaving Dallas!". It's soap urgency at its most unsophisticated.
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Jock is sulking about the way Bobby handles the business, or actually it's more about Bobby's attitude to do everything without consulting his father.
It looks a bit childish and counterproductive if he wants his son to be The Man. It's not as if JR kept running back to his daddy.
On the other hand it must be said that Bobby can't stop telling everyone who wants to hear it or not how much he enjoys the life of oil tycoon.
He also tells Pam - currently the most reasonable character - that he doesn't want to worry about her now that he's got so much on his mind.
So patronizing.
You could say that everybody's kinda hating Bobby now, which seems to be made fun of by an unusually carefree and jolly scene between JR and Sue Ellen.
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Sue Ellen's sessions with Dr. Elby are becoming more about the material matters of life and one wonders why she's still seeing him if everything is "perfectly fine".
To me it looks as if Sue Ellen wants her position in the status quo to be confirmed and approved of - which is the position of the elegant and supporting oil tycoon's wife, as she had been instructed by Patricia.
I think Sue Ellen has never really known for herself what she wanted out of life, and then when it did happen with Dusty, he died. She could actually believe that that kind of happiness doesn't make sense which makes it easier to get over it and re-assume the role of Mrs. JR Ewing has if nothing had happened.
She usually takes her cues from whatever is going on at the moment, rather than personal motives or desires - and that's what makes her such a delightfully unreliable character.
That being said, the fact that she is in Dr. Elby's office could also suggests that, deep down, she suspects there is something strange about her logic. Maybe she wants to challenge him to confront her with the truth: she has no personality. She's still that same person in the Miss Texas outfit who hasn't moved forward one bit.

Because Bobby's business scheme largely depends on promises that involves Eugene Bullock's tanker that hasn't arrived yet, it's not very surprising to find out that that ship will never come in, as it were.
Naturally, if Bobby needs to step down and stay in Dallas as Miss Ellie wants it, it can only happen when he's only got himself to blame.
Let's see what happens on disc 3. Will Pam find her mother, and who's the man who is intrigued by Ray Krebbs?

Sorry, I didn't feel like checking for spelling mistakes or grammarants.
 

James from London

International Treasure
where's Mitch from?
Something called Biloxi.
It's soaring heights and rock-bottom lows and nothing in between. It's "let's celebrate!" or "I'm leaving Dallas!". It's soap urgency at its most unsophisticated.
Yes, it feels very crude and primitive and I really like it.
Maybe she wants to challenge him to confront her with the truth: she has no personality. She's still that same person in the Miss Texas outfit who hasn't moved forward one bit.
Ooh, interesting.
 

Werewillie Oleson

Telly Talk Schemer
I was ready to continue with the next three episodes on disc 3, but The Fourth Son has enough for one review.

The vagabond type who had spotted Ray and Jock with much interest turns out to be Amos Krebbs, Ray's daddy, entertainingly portrayed by Cabot Cove's resident doctor Seth Hazlitt aka William Windom.
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The father-son relationship here is practically non-existent and the only few memories are sour.
Amos' optimism about rekindling that poor excuse for a relationship because of Ray's prosperity on Jock's ranch couldn't be more irrational.
Only the lowest of lowlifes, people who don't give a damn about anything or anyone, would have the knucklehead audacity to do it in such a transparent way.
Ray wisely sends him away (although he could have been disproportionately generous and forgiving if the story required it) and after that Amos goes straight for the golden goose and drops the paternity bombshell.
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Interestingly, Amos Krebbs is not as stupid as he looks, and his unsuccessful tête-à-tête with Ray - apart from introducing the character - seems partially misleading in hindsight because we never thought it would lead to something as big as this.

Bobby's working hard to replace the crude that had gone down with the tanker while the vultures are looking lustfully at his business carcass.
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If there was any need to prove what an absolute horror show this is.
No matter what Bobby tries, it's just not possible to supply all the distributors who all happened to be in exactly the same spot.
On top of everthing he's told that the Bullocks had only insured the tanker, not Bobby's crude.
It seems unlikely that no one at Ewing Oil had looked at those papers but that's how it happened anyway.
I guess the point of all of this is to decide if good nature and trust are great assets in the oil industry - regardless of a scheming brother.

The trouble does not go unnoticed in downtown Dallas as we see in the next "Cliff &Donna in a restaurant" scene.
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And it is additional scenes like these that makes it extra juicy and exciting.
Incidentally, another thing that doesn't go unnoticed is Cliff's alarming interest in the misfortune of the Ewings, and I wonder how long it will take before Donna walks away from the toxicity that is Cliff Barnes (which she already knew about in the first place).
Eventually it is Mr. Eugene (one the many Dallas gems) who clears up the situation in a surprisingly amicable way. Perhaps it is this last part that gives the episode a bit of stand-alone-adventure quality and personally I would have liked to see Bobby dangling for one or two more episodes. It was so close to getting seriously sweaty.

Amos Krebbs, looking decidedly upscaled, leaves the scenery and I feel I'm going to miss him.
Meanwhile, Jock has shared Amos' information with Ray, who responds to the situation as emotional as he allows himself to be.
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But perhaps it's also a clever decision to ask Jock to leave things as they are. Ray is content with what he has, once he becomes a Ewing it may become expected of him to want more.
And it is in the last scene when Ray is welcomed into the family (ha!) that makes me think that Jock has selfishly ignored Ray's request.
Everybody including Ray himself is being ambushed, and to hell with the consequences. Miss Ellie is obviously seething so that's a good start.
It's a very Tudor-esque episode with lots of cackling villains and Sally Bullock as the deceitful enchantress.
 

Werewillie Oleson

Telly Talk Schemer
Miss Ellie is obviously seething so that's a good start.
There aren't many details that I remember from my previous watch (when the old double-sided DVDs came out) but I thought there were going to be angry words and that Miss Ellie stormed out of the room. Now I have no idea where I got that from, maybe it has already happened.
Anyway, the next episode is also the next day and not only is Miss Ellie not upset, she tells Ray that she felt it was always meant to be. Again, welcome to the family.
JR doesn't like it, obviously, but he behaves very poker-faced.
Sue Ellen doesn't really understand that and she thinks she has to inform and encourage her husband about his position in the family.
All in all, it's a bit of anti-climax.

When Pam with her early 70s glam-rock hair is being trolled by JR she mentions that Cliff is seeing someone important, and then she immediately regrets it.
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Later that night she tells Bobby that she expects JR to tell Ray about Cliff and Donna's relationship, and because now that she's already mentioned it it would be kinda lame if he'd actually do it.
I don't know if Donna sensed any of this but either way she's the first one to tell Ray, in person.
It's a very beautiful scene, very dignified and kind with just enough hints about the love that wasn't meant to be. Donna doesn't have to apologise for her relationship with Cliff, just like she didn't have to apologise for marrying old Sam Culver.
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Even though they are about to say goodbye it still feels as if the scene is somewhat annoyingly interrupted by Bobby Tycoon.
The rest of the episode is about the extortion and bomb threads made by a person we had never seen before and who isn't tied to any of the previous storylines, but at least it's getting seriously sweaty.
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JR gets involved, almost accidentally because they can't find Jock, and it's no surprise that he plays a big part in the outcome.
I don't think we're supposed to believe that he handled based on the principle of "never give in to terrorists" - he just wanted Ewing 23 gone - but I'd still support his decision. If only to protect the strength and reputation of the company.

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And there's that cliffhangery moment of "wil he or won't he" but I was sure the police would fire again.
But no! BOOM! Lots of booms.
And JR can have his cake and eat it.
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In the next episode, Pam is about the see her mother for the first time.
Bobby tells her to calm down, oh, and be back in time for Dave Culver's fund-raising gala. Jock expects everybody to attend.
He isn't even aware of the double standards but Pam plays it super cool.
I wondered if Mr. Wentworth was one of those characters we'd never see, like Karen Walker's husband, but he's on screen in this episode.
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There was something dismissive about the way Bobby informed Pam "Your detective on the phone" as if it were some kind of hobby.
Detective Mackey is a real gentleman and support to Pam.
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Lucy and Mitch are still in their on/off relationship, and it's all fine with me as long as I can enjoy Mitch's cognac-and-cigars-in-the-library-voice that contradicts his youth and innocence. So fascinating and sexy.
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Herbert and Rebecca Wentworth also attend the glamorous fund-raising gala and everybody's in full couture and bling.
What a funny coincidence that Pam found her on the day Rebecca went to Dallas.
The next day Pam and Rebecca meet again and this time it looks as if Rebecca has reconsidered the situation, only to reject Pam again, albeit for different reasons.
In that regard it's very similar to the chaos at Ewing 23 - a bad situation has been prevented but in the last minute twist it happens anyway.

And that's the end of disc 3.
 

James from London

International Treasure
The Fourth Son has enough for one review.
It's one of DALLAS's best-looking episodes as well. (That might have something to do with the clarity of the image on the DVD.)

All in all, it's a bit of anti-climax.
Or a slow burn, maybe.
I don't know if Donna sensed any of this but either way she's the first one to tell Ray, in person.
It's a very beautiful scene, very dignified and kind with just enough hints about the love that wasn't meant to be. Donna doesn't have to apologise for her relationship with Cliff, just like she didn't have to apologise for marrying old Sam Culver.
Yes, it feels like a scene between two proper adults, while everyone else is feverishly rushing round like they're in a ... well, a soap opera. (Not that there's anything wrong with that.)
There was something dismissive about the way Bobby informed Pam "Your detective on the phone" as if it were some kind of hobby.
Detective Mackey is a real gentleman and support to Pam.
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The scenes of Pam and Mr Mackey staking out her missing mama's house take on an extra dimension after seeing Christopher do the same thing outside his missing mama's house thirty-something years later.
Herbert and Rebecca Wentworth also attend the glamorous fund-raising gala and everybody's in full couture and bling.
Pre-DYNASTY, this is Soap Land's swankiest party to date. It feels like a dry run for the Oil Baron's Balls to come. In fact, I think it might even take place in the same venue.
 
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DallasFanForever

Telly Talk Supreme
There aren't many details that I remember from my previous watch (when the old double-sided DVDs came out) but I thought there were going to be angry words and that Miss Ellie stormed out of the room. Now I have no idea where I got that from, maybe it has already happened.
Yes, she wasn’t angry at first. She actually welcomed Ray with open arms. The hostility begins a few weeks later at Lucy’s wedding when Gary tells her that he doesn’t have to feel bad about not being around anymore because Southfork is in good hands with Ray. That’s when Miss Ellie starts looking at things differently.
 

Werewillie Oleson

Telly Talk Schemer
That might have something to do with the clarity of the image on the DVD
You mean this particular episode? Overall, the DVDs look great although it can vary from scene to scene.
Maybe it's a funny thing to say but I love the grainy look of the opening credits.
Or a slow burn, maybe.
OGC.d64657c6ec2f495c2b3086d5ec2ddad5

Pre-DYNASTY, this is Soap Land's swankiest party to date
Yeah, it made me think of Cecil Colby's birthday party in Dynasty's first season.
That’s when Miss Ellie starts looking at things differently.
Thanks, that proves I'm not crazy.
it looks as if Rebecca has reconsidered the situation, only to reject Pam again, albeit for different reasons.
It's funny to think that Rebecca's contribution to future Dallas stories is not carved in stone at this point.
They could have decided to end it here, and perhaps that's how it would have been in season 2. Just like we didn't expect Jenna to return.
 

CryptCreeper72

Telly Talk Star
Yes, she wasn’t angry at first. She actually welcomed Ray with open arms. The hostility begins a few weeks later at Lucy’s wedding when Gary tells her that he doesn’t have to feel bad about not being around anymore because Southfork is in good hands with Ray. That’s when Miss Ellie starts looking at things differently.
I had forgotten about that. I remembered her being okay until Jock announced he added Ray to the family trust without discussing it with her first.
 

DallasFanForever

Telly Talk Supreme
I had forgotten about that. I remembered her being okay until Jock announced he added Ray to the family trust without discussing it with her first.
I’m trying to remember when that part happened now. Was the trust after the wedding or before? I haven’t watched that season in awhile now so it’s a little fuzzy. Either way that and Gary’s comments was what ended up changing her mind at some point.
 

CryptCreeper72

Telly Talk Star
I’m trying to remember when that part happened now. Was the trust after the wedding or before? I haven’t watched that season in awhile now so it’s a little fuzzy. Either way that and Gary’s comments was what ended up changing her mind at some point.
I can't remember either. I probably will try to go back and watch those episodes tomorrow because not remembering is driving me crazy.
 

DallasFanForever

Telly Talk Supreme
I can't remember either. I probably will try to go back and watch those episodes tomorrow because not remembering is driving me crazy.
It was never really one of my favorite seasons to be honest but it does have its moments. I always felt it was a bit of a letdown from the previous one and not as good as what was to come soon.
 

LMLDallas78

Telly Talk Enthusiast
@CeeCee72
@DallasFanForever

Jock adding Ray to the Son's trust fund happened in Lover come back, some 4 episodes after Lucy's wedding, which Jock announced at drinks for Ray and Donna's engagement news I think.

At the wedding when Gary says to Miss Ellie about him not having to feel bad about not being at Southfork as it's in Ray's hands, is a great scene.

Valene's face is a picture and a mixture of relief and embarrassment. Val is obviously far more tuned in to Miss Ellie's feelings or her feelings just haven't occurred to Gary.

Got to feel for Miss Ellie here, as well as having to face the reality of Gary never being at Southfork again permanently, she has to deal with her husband's betrayal of him not talking to her first and there's still the Takapa bombshell yet to come! (I think that's the next episode The new Mrs Ewing, when Ray and Donna marry).

Bobby has pleaded with Jock to tell Miss Ellie about Takapa but Jock's response was something along the lines of telling Bobby to stick to politics or whatever his thing is at that moment, words to that effect anyway.
 

Werewillie Oleson

Telly Talk Schemer
It's shameful that it takes me so long to watch a season of Dallas but I was repeatedly sidetracked by something else: New Doctor Who, Dark Shadows, the greatest movies of all time. Not that I regret any of that but it's frustrating that it has to happen at expense of something I was already enjoying very much.
Hopefully I will manage my new schedule better this time, and if there's something new and exciting going (like, a remake of Blood & Oil or something) don't tell me about it. Put me on ignore, if that's what it takes.

Last night I watched disc 4 of the fourth box set which is episodes 10, 11 and 12 of series 4.
These episodes are, for better or worse, the most serialized ones I have watched so far. The topics of making promises they can't keep and Bobby (once again) being torn between two dilemmas play out without any significant interruption.

Bobby's working very very hard and that's why he and Pam keep missing their luncheon and dinner appointments.
"I promise it will never happen again" means it will happen again 15 minutes later.
There's also a lot of teasing about what-coulda-happen even though I never believed for a moment that it would happen.
Pam receives romantic interest from a publishing tycoon played by Dynasty's King Galen, but even if she and Bobby had divorced in one of these episodes does that automatically mean she wants to spend the rest of her life with Alex Ward?

What is going to happen is Mitch and Lucy's wedding, regardless of the obvious incompatibility. The Ewings are shocked because they think they're not ready to marry yet - and for once they're right.
Pam is the only one who congratulates the young couple and of course she isn't such a phoney that she doesn't mean it, but she does it so demonstratively that it looks more like an insult to everyone else in the room.
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Lucy explains that she will lower her lifestyle standards and then Sue Ellen cheerfully comments "can't wait to see it!".
It's all so claustrophobic and cringey and hateful it just makes me want to scream. How in the world did we ever believe in this madness?

Jock's new business venture with Punk Anderson and the gang creates a cash flow problem for Bobby (much to JR's delight) and this results in an exciting confrontation between father and son.
Bobby is right of course, company money is for the company and it's also kinda weird that Jock wouldn't have enough money in his personal bank account.
Furthermore, Bobby is very busy cleaning up JR's mess and restore the image of the company.
I kinda wish that Jock had done it on purpose and make it as difficult for Bobby as possible, just to see if he had made the right choice.
It's an interesting thought that he has been stringing along both his sons. Alas, the episode itself doesn't give any indication of such patriarchal scheme whatsoever.
Nevertheless, I'm very interesting to see how or if this Tapaka storyline develops. The good stuff starts right away: the opportunity for Cliff and Donna to weasel their way back into the lives of the Ewings.

DALLAS doesn't shy away from repetition and so we meet troublesome vixen sister #2.
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Here she impresses JR with her sweet magnolia talk but, oh my god, she's even worse than Kristin, and Arliss is sort of bargain bin Patricia Shepard.
It's a return to the provocative sexiness of the first series, and now we all want to know what Afton's biggest talent is.
Kristin had her reasons even if it was just to spite her sister, but Mitch's sister is an out-and-out slut. This could be fun.
Sue Ellen, who was currently in one of her delusional states in order to suppress her true feelings (Dusty who?) soon finds out that her marriage hasn't changed at all.
But...her bed, in her bedroom....that's dirty, even by Dallas standards.

Another part of the couples-drifting-apart-theme happens in the Ewing office. I don't know if this is new information or something I failed to notice in the previous episodes, but secretary Connie is a secret admirer of Bobby. Unlike her co-worker, Louella the company whore, she tries to hide her emotions.
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But, you know, she could have become the first Katherine Wentworth (I'd suggest a trip to the hair salon first, it makes such a difference).

The Ewings decide what Mitch's life is going to be like, it's a perfectly (badly) contrived way to make Mitch storm off in disgust.
There wasn't any other outcome possible in this situation, and after Mitch has cooled off and agreed to compromise the wedding happens anyway.
The next wedding guests are none other than Gary and Valene from Knots Landing. Welcome, welcome.
Miss Ellie immediately sinks her teeth in bad feelings from the past and this gets worse when Jock informs Gary that his other son will take excellent care of the ranch.
Miss Ellie also said to Jock "do you think I care who runs Ewing Oil?" and yet the only reason for Gary's return (according to her logic) is to run the Southfork business.
Not because he would like to be closer to Lucy, just to name someone.
No, it has to be business related, and in that regard I think she talks in double standards.

It all ends with Bobby's decision to step down as president of Ewing Oil. It was fun to see JR on the sidelines because it gave him the opportunity to comment on everything that was going on, but I think the time is right to change the situation.
 
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