When did Dallas end for you?

[Pammy P]

For me, Dallas 2.0 TNT version was not Dallas, all characters were written wrongly, either that or I could not move on from the original.

For me Dallas ended with the episode:

"Fall of the House of Ewing" - the end of 1987 when Pam crashed into the tanker!

Pam was the glue along with Bobby that held the show together as this was about Ewing v Barnes and their marriage. As Victoria said the first 5 years was brilliant writing ands she jumped ship early on when the show was already in decline in her own words. Had she stayed wonder what storylines they could have took the character down.

For me, Cally, April (yuk), Tracey, Vanessa, JR's other son James etc was not Dallas. I watched till it limped on to 1991!

Dallas was and still is my ultimate favourite soap opera, no other hold a candle to this show especially in the 1980s,

The casting Director Barbara Miller made such good choices for all the original actors to play the 9 characters with the addition of Susan Howard and Howard Keel in later years.

For me the cringiest actor was that woman who chased Clayton (Annnabel somebody) and Barbara Stock character who chased Cliff and Angelica Neo and Grace in the dream season.

 

[the-lost-son]

The series ended for me as well with Pam's exit. The structure changed significantly afterwards and besides that after 9 years the story was told. I was sitting once through the last 4 seasons in a 90s rerun. I was hoping for things to improve till the end, it didn't. I won't rewatch it ever again.

I own the DVDs till Pam's crash. I hardly watch the 1st year and the two years prior Pam's crash. If I do a rewatch it's mostly a storyline (eg. Jock's death) which drags me back into it.

It's the best TV in my opinion, unrivaled to this day.

I watched TNT Dallas once, enjoyed season 1+2 , became ambivalent during season 3 and was ready to let go. I won't rewatch it either.

I don't get it though when somebody is claiming that the memory of Dallas has been tarnished by TNT Dallas or the last seasons of Lorimar Dallas. I try to watch only the things I like. I can't think of a series/franchise which ended on top.
(I don't like Godfather 3 but that doesn't tarnish the first two either.)

Maybe I'm not loyal enough, but today I hardly watch a series till its bitter end.

 

[Snarky Oracle!]

I don't pretend that the later seasons -- or nuDALLAS -- don't exist; I just pretend they were better than they were, and I maintain that delusion by simply not watching them (again)... Whenever I've tried to give them another chance and look at them afresh, it doesn't last for long. I just can't do it. It's just crap. Post-Paulsenian crap.

The last season I bought was S10 (per DVD count), although I still view S11 as the last year DALLAS felt like DALLAS even remotely, but I never bought it.

 

[Grangehill1]

Blast from
The past

 

[Jock Ewing Fan]

The season 11 finale was epic. I thought everything that followed, except for the Range War story was not Dallas, Not JR.
The writing took a seriously bad turn afterward.
The JR I know, would have have pursued regaining Ewing Oil with extreme determination, and would have driven the new co-owner of
Southfork, that fraud Clayton, out of the property one way or another. He just wasn't the same JR anymore.
What he would have done about Sue Ellen? Interesting to speculate

 

[Crimson]

I consider anything after this to be apocrypha.

 

[Barbara Fan]

The end of S12 original when Miss Ellie and Clayton left for Europe and she was never seen again

The final season sucked big time - never watched it again nd never want to

S11 and 12 were pretty poor with hindsight and Dallas was never the same again when Pam crashed into the tanker

That was the beginning of the end and Dallas couldnt afford to lose Pam, the newbies who replaced her (and the rest of the cast as they disappeared) were awful, most couldnt act and dreadful storylines
Haileyville
The Range War
Amnything with Cally - how did she get an actors card???????????????
Anything with April
Her awful sister
James
Laurel Ellis
Tommy and Tracey, Rose
The Mafia plot
Sue Ellens boring movie
zzzzzzzzzzzzzz

By the end it was Dallas in name only, no heart in the show or characters you cared about, i watched out of loyalty - in the hope it would get better - it didnt.

Larry and Patrick werent Dallas

and with the reunion movies - Larry, Linda and Patrick werent Dallas, it was an ensemble show and everyone played a part in making it Number 1

And TNT- wish it hadnt never been made, simply dreadful in every way - and it had a clueless Cidre at the helm who didnt understand the show, never watched the original and hadnt a clue = i really do hold her responsible for the mess that was TNT Dallas
but it did let Larry pass with his boots on - he was the only reason to watch it
Patrick and Lindas acting was ropey to say the least, and a cast of newbies and characters we had never even heard off, I didnt give a stuff for and total charater changes like Cliff or totally changing Dallas back history

I went from loving Bobby to thinking he was insufferable and as for blandie Anne, Elena, Chris and some maid we never heard off - yawn fest
It was Hagman who stole the show - when he died, so should have Dallas - well it did as the ratings bombed

 

[Mustard]

Not much reason to continue beyond the oil tanker bit.

 

[Snowcat]

Season 10 for sure. I could get through Season 11. After that is painful. I fast forwarded all the Halleyville scenes where JR was a slave & all the Paris scenes of Bobby walking alone & his fantasy scenes with April. I was very young when Dallas was on. There was a lot I didn’t remember or understand. I just made myself watch through the end. Until season 10 I was hooked & could watch several episodes at a time. The last 2 seasons I couldn’t even watch 1 a night. The movies were better than the last 2 seasons but not great. Bobby became nothing but a playboy. I’ve seen parts of the reboot. Now that I’ve seen the whole series, I HATE what they did to Cliff. I also hate that his daughter left him in jail. He didn’t deserve that. In my mind the only episode worth watching was JR’s funeral. I thought the beginning was beautifully done. Going back to the original, it really bugged me how so many people blamed everything on JR. Don’t get me wrong, he was not innocent. But he was a good scapegoat for people, rather than taking responsibility for their own choices. It also bugs me that Bobby sold Ewing Oil because of Aprils death. Talk about an over reaction. He deserved every word JR said to him about dishonoring Jock & the family. Also, in the movie Bobby brought Jocks pic back to SF. He said it should have never left. But it was his idea to take it down in the first place. Bobby is treated like a saint but honestly he was far from it. He could be just as deceptive as JR.

 

[Luke_Krebbs_Ewing]

I watched Dallas to the bitter end on its original terrestrial run back in the 1980's.

These days with my DVD boxset's I stop at season ten.

Occasionally I will watch DVD season thirteen as I love the tanker collision in the gulf storyline.

I don't tend to start at the beginning and work through them any more, I just pick a season and watch it randomly.

I watched the final season last year just to see how bad it was and while it stands up pretty well storyline wise, I just kept getting pangs of where was Miss Ellie and Clayton and all the other departed stars.

I'm very excited for the Blu-ray release and really can't wait to get it. The photo's on the Dallas remastered thread make the show look as if it was filmed this year and all the actor's look so young. Roll on 2023 so I can own the show on Blu-ray.

It's also nice to see how much love all the TellyTalk members have for Dallas because this show broke the mould and means so much to all of us.

The only show I watch these days is Doctor Who which of course was running when Dallas aired back in the 1980's. Kudos to Doctor Who to evolve with the times but I will never stop loving Dallas even though it went off the air in 1991. I quite liked the TNT Cyntax Dallas in its first two seasons but once I heard that Christopher was going to die that was it. I was finished with it. I will always prefer the Lorimar hit TV series Dallas over the lame 2010 revival.

 

[Snowcat]

I watched Dallas to the bitter end on its original terrestrial run back in the 1980's.

These days with my DVD boxset's I stop at season ten.

Occasionally I will watch DVD season thirteen as I love the tanker collision in the gulf storyline.

I don't tend to start at the beginning and work through them any more, I just pick a season and watch it randomly.

I watched the final season last year just to see how bad it was and while it stands up pretty well storyline wise, I just kept getting pangs of where was Miss Ellie and Clayton and all the other departed stars.

I'm very excited for the Blu-ray release and really can't wait to get it. The photo's on the Dallas remastered thread make the show look as if it was filmed this year and all the actor's look so young. Roll on 2023 so I can own the show on Blu-ray.

It's also nice to see how much love all the TellyTalk members have for Dallas because this show broke the mould and means so much to all of us.

The only show I watch these days is Doctor Who which of course was running when Dallas aired back in the 1980's. Kudos to Doctor Who to evolve with the times but I will never stop loving Dallas even though it went off the air in 1991. I quite liked the TNT Cyntax Dallas in its first two seasons but once I heard that Christopher was going to die that was it. I was finished with it. I will always prefer the Lorimar hit TV series Dallas over the lame 2010 revival.

Me too about Clayton & Miss Ellie

 

[Laurie!]

On the original run, I watched until the bitter end: which I now regret....but mostly because I wouldn't go to parties/sleepovers at friends' houses Friday nights because I'd miss DALLAS.

At the end of episode 1, every season on CBS, there was a "this season on DALLAS" clip that always hooked me into watching. Even though Pam was gone after season 10, they'd always throw in something to make the viewer think she was coming back. One season it was Bobby seeing "Pam" which turned out to be a look-a-like. Another it was Bobby saying, "Pam" on the phone which just turned out to be him repeating the name of Cliff's daughter.

The powers that were definitely weren't clueless to the importance of Victoria's Pam to the show and viewers...even though they destroyed the credibility of the character as though they hated VP.

Now, it ends when Bobby is leaving Pam's house after proposing for me. I never watch the dream season either...nor did I purchase it or the final 4 seasons

 

[Jimmy Todd]

Dallas ended for me with the Pamela's fiery crash. I would have liked there have been a season long story in which resulted in her crash the way Sue Ellen's car accident was in season 6. At least there was a bit of tragic irony with Pamela being in a car in the very first scene and in the last. They could have had her caught up in the fall of Ewing Oil, she had some way of saving it, decided to do so for the sake of Bobby, was in a rush and crashed.
That being said, after that crash, Dallas never felt like Dallas to me.

 

[Snowcat]

Dallas ended for me with the Pamela's fiery crash. I would have liked there have been a season long story in which resulted in her crash the way Sue Ellen's car accident was in season 6. At least there was a bit of tragic irony with Pamela being in a car in the very first scene and in the last. They could have had her caught up in the fall of Ewing Oil, she had some way of saving it, decided to do so for the sake of Bobby, was in a rush and crashed.
That being said, after that crash, Dallas never felt like Dallas to me.

Had they given more weight to Pam’s crash & actually had Bobby go after her, it could have lasted longer. Bobby was sad about Pam leaving for 1 or 2 episodes & that was it. The family didn’t seem to care either. Pam should have been given a more believable exit.

 

[Snarky Oracle!]

I never watch the dream season either...nor did I purchase it or the final 4 seasons

Same here.

What made Katzman decide to go for lightweight melodrama and camp in the series' final years, I wonder.

 

[Snowcat]

Same here.

What made Katzman decide to go for lightweight melodrama and camp in the series' final years, I wonder.

I read somewhere else that it was cheaper to hire younger unknowns than keep the veterans. James, Michelle, Cally was so cringey. Rewatching the end as an adult, I can’t stand James. He’s an arrogant prick. I also agree with every piece of advice JR gave him. The nightclub idea with Michelle was not a smart investment. He should not have interfered & undercut them, but we are talking about JR. I also found Michelle, April & Cally extremely immature. Cally was sweet, so it is hard to hate her. But she was extremely foolish and in denial of reality.

 

[Snarky Oracle!]

I read somewhere else that it was cheaper to hire younger unknowns than keep the veterans. James, Michelle, Cally was so cringey. Rewatching the end as an adult, I can’t stand James. He’s an arrogant prick. I also agree with every piece of advice JR gave him. The nightclub idea with Michelle was not a smart investment. He should not have interfered & undercut them, but we are talking about JR. I also found Michelle, April & Cally extremely immature. Cally was sweet, so it is hard to hate her. But she was extremely foolish and in denial of reality.

Well, they kept Barbara Bel Geddes until the penultimate season, and barely used her.

 

[the-lost-son]

One has to keep in mind that Dallas was an international success till the (bitter) end which was probably a major factor in renewing it for the last two seasons combined. I'm pretty sure the behind the scenes politics and the restrictions and demands put on the producers are more interesting than the last seasons themselves.

All these travels to Europe were so out of the blue, but I assume it generated necessarybuzz and press if this series came to Vienna, Paris or Moscow. Selling Dallas to distributors probably was easier then. It says a lot that they claimed budget reasons to stop shooting on Southfork but still got enough money to travel abroad.
Furthermore after so many years the cast got saturated. According to Curran's book Hagman, Duffy etc. weren't thrilled anymore to give up their lifes in California to spend months in Dallas during the summer heat.

Again - it all comes down to the writing. After so many years, if you build conflict on conflict, things tend to increasingly more outrageous. JR throwing SE's suitcases over the balcony after SE entering WestStar board room meetings were too much for me already. The camp was taking over.
Despite longterm characters leaving it was getting stale to have JR and Bobby in the center of more or less every storyline of the show in the last years. Of course the new characters couldn't keep up. But the problem was the changed structure of the show.
It's Capulet vs. Montague. In Dallas it's Ewing vs. Barnes. With only one Barnes left, what's the point? Families have blood feuds with one other family only.

CBS was in a very bad shape back then, having no real hit show anymore. They were too late in creating one if these sitcoms which dominated the late 80s. They probably tried to benefit of this trend resulting in this sitcom like, campy, soapy mixture we ended up with.

It's a lot of guessing, but I can't imagine Katzman (with or without Capice or Paulsen) lost his mojo to such an extent without interference.

 

[Bobby Southworth]

For me, it really ends with the 1990 season. I realize it wasn't great quite a while before this, but it still kind of felt like Dallas for me, until almost everyone was gone the next season, or in less episodes. I had never seen the early April episodes of season 10 when Dallas was still actually on the air, so I didn't realize what a transition she went through. In other words, I didn't mind them as a couple, and still think it was a waste to have all that buildup, only to have her killed.

I saw another member on here post and say a while back that the last season they really thought felt like Dallas was season 11. On that note, I remember when TNN was airing reruns back in the late '90s, my grandmother and I would watch, and she started somewhere in season 7, and stayed with it through the end of season 11, and with the start of 12, she exclaimed, "they are going to cancel this show soon". lol.

 

[Mustard]

Well, the kept Barbara Bel Geddes until the penultimate season, and barely used her.

The last 2 seasons that she was there in particular (post-Ranch war, and post-meeting Cally), they barely used Miss Ellie and Clayton. I believe Barbara wanted to complain more, but Howard Keel thought it unwise. Keel eventually accepted the 4 episode contract in the last season, while Bel Geddes didn't. Isn't it just staggering that Miss Ellie and James never got a scene together?!

For me, it really ends with the 1990 season.

A lot of British viewers who were still there in 1990 didn't even bother with Season 14 in 1991, or might not have even known that it was on during Sunday afternoons. Season 14 got very poor ratings. Previous seasons had always aired in the evenings, even Seasons 11-13 DVD episodes. I can remember the original broadcast of Season 14, and my mother still watching and lamenting that nobody else was interested in it anymore and saying how great a show it once was. And I remember her saying some time after that the next episode would be the last one and that it wasn't coming back.