Watch your back, honey
Here are the questions we’re pondering as we await tonight’s telecast of “Sins of the Father,” TNT’s latest “Dallas” episode.
• John Ross and Pamela: What’s next? At the end of “Venomous Creatures,” the second half of last week’s two-hour season premiere, Pamela (Julie Gonzalo) agreed to give John Ross (Josh Henderson) 70 percent of her share of Ewing Energies, once she wins a piece of the company during her divorce from Christopher. John Ross and Pamela then sealed their deal by having sex. So will these two remain enemies with benefits – or are they going to develop real feelings for each other?
• Will Christopher learn the truth? Frank (Faran Tahir), Pamela’s rival at Barnes Global, secretly sent Tommy’s cell phone to Christopher (Jesse Metcalfe), who played its voice mail messages and discovered: a) Pamela threatened Tommy for pushing her too hard, and b) Tommy’s sister Becky (Alex McKenna) was part of the con against Christopher. Will Christopher discover Pamela killed Tommy and had her father’s henchmen dispose of the body?
• Is there more to Ann’s story? When Ann (Brenda Strong) was married to Harris (Mitch Pileggi), they had a daughter named Emma, who was kidnapped from her stroller at the Texas State Fair. After Harris told Ann he found Emma, Ann went to see the young woman, who coldly rejected her. Bobby (Patrick Duffy) did some digging and discovered Harris himself snatched Emma and sent her to Europe to live with his mother Judith (Judith Light). Clearly, there’s more to this story. Clue No. 1: After Emma (Emma Bell) rejected Ann, Ann began receiving injections from the Ewings’ family physician. Later, when Bobby met with Harris, Harris asked, “Did Ann ask you for a shot yet? Something to help take the edge off? That’s a slippery slope. Trust me, I’ve witnessed it firsthand.” Clue No. 2: When Bobby met Emma, he told her Harris “kidnapped you from your mother.” Emma’s cryptic response: “He saved me from my mother.” What’s really going on here?
• Should Elena be worried? After Elena (Jordana Brewster) scored a big deal for Ewing Energies, Bobby, Christopher and John Ross made her an equal partner in the company. Later, John Ross reminded J.R. (Larry Hagman) that all of Elena’s assets – including her Ewing Energies shares – are vulnerable until she repays Sue Ellen (Linda Gray) the money she borrowed from her for an earlier deal. Are J.R. and John Ross going to use Sue Ellen and Elena in their plot to take over the company?
• Are J.R. and Sue Ellen getting back together? Speaking of J.R. and Sue Ellen: After he got her off the hook with the prosecutor, J.R. showed up on her doorstep and received a sweet peck on the cheek. “If you can behave yourself, would you like to come in for some tea?” Sue Ellen asked. “I thought you’d never ask,” he said as he stepped inside. Did J.R. keep up his end of the bargain?
What “Dallas Burning Questions” are on your mind? Share your comments below and watch TNT’s “Dallas” tonight.
Dallas Decoder 
Re: JR and Sue Ellen….we can only hope that JR still hasn’t learned that lesson and goes for the gold…but. I think that we won’t get that. If Larry was still around,,,,yes, I think we would have eventually. So sad.
I hope that John Ross does involve Sue Ellen and gets her to get at least some of those shares. But I don’t want her to give them to him.. I would rather her get involved more. I want Sue Ellen involved in the family business. I want more of her and to have that they need to have her get in the mix.
I am looking forward to JR and Frank…hopefully, they were working that angle before JR leaves ;(. JR spent so much time digging on Frank and Cliff last season …I want something to co e out of it. By the way, when discussing the premier with several friends at work…one of the ladies favorite line in the whole 2 hours was JR’s line about Frank being a poodle! That did make me laugh as well.
Pamela and John Ross hookup. You know if they actually did fall for,
Sorry..hit enter before finishing..lol
If they did fall for one another…it would be a twist we never saw before. I can’t think of a time when two characters who are so equally devious being a real couple. While we certainly saw lots of physical hookups between our baddies…no real love between them. Could be interesting….lol.you know, it kind of makes sense that they would find each other attractive. Their parents certainly bedhopped with each other.
The Ann storyline has a ton of burning questions….add two more…what did Aaron mean in your interview about Judith’s and Harris’ relationship…AND if I am correct when I go straight to the gutter when I read into that…would they dare say that or even imply? After thinking about it, it would certainly be pushing the boundary and would make for a lot of OMG conversations among fans!!!!! And next…what kind of person is Emma? Being raised by Judith and Harris surely would have corrupted her, or did it?
Hel, I love your idea of Sue Ellen taking a role in the family business. That’s a great idea. It would be a good way to get her involved in the main storyline. Let’s hope the writers hear you.
I also like the idea of John Ross and Pamela, two “baddies,” developing real feelings for each other, and like you, I’m curious to see what kind of character Emma will turn out to be.
Thanks for this great feedback!
Chris
I think the John Ross/Pamela Rebecca “relationship” will depend on how the writers plan to resolved her connection to Christopher. If they’re going to have her carry the twins to term and give birth, I can’t see anything really serious developing with her and John Ross. If they have her miscarry the twins (which is one rumor I’ve heard), I could see her and John Ross continue a relationship that is @ first strictly sexual, with the two of them constantly trying to get get the better of each other in business (& to mess with Christopher and Elena), that could possibly develop into a real relationship, over time.
I’m curious to see where the Ann storyline goes (although there are several gaps in logic, so far), but I just hope they don’t make her a prescription drug addict, like it was implied.
Ugh. I hear you on the prescription drug addiction storyline. Feels a little been there, done that.
I’ll be curious to see what happens with Pamela’s twins. I’ve heard that rumor too. It does feel a little early to have her tied down with children, doesn’t it?
Elena — pay Sue Ellen back quickly!!!
Something tells me she’s not going to be taking our advice, James.
lol That would make too much sense.
JR and Rebecca are hot and hope we see more of them together.
Ann and Sue Ellen should have made a copy of the tape
Elena scoring a deal is not believable. Ewing Energies is a new company so it would be some doing to score a deal like that. Also, I would think that the business community would prefer dealing with Bobby Ewing, the son of Jock Ewing and the brother of JR Ewing.
Elena scoring a big deal probably isn’t believable yet. But I have no problem with this purchase they just made. Clearly she had history with the guy she bought the used up gulf platforms from and she this friend wasn’t in the methane research business, she really was doing him a favor from his perspective.
Good points, Dan. Thank you!
Good points, Lloyd. Although I wonder how many members of Bobby’s generations are still around?
Add to the Questions list (though not necessarily burning questions):
Where did John Ross’ PI resurface from? We haven’t seen him since episode two.
Where did Bum go?
How do you feel about John Ross’s private eye? He made an impression during Season 2, but he hasn’t had much to do this go around. And what do you think of Bum? He seems to have a lot of fans out there. I always liked the idea of J.R. associating with folks like Harry McSween, who had a kind of gentlemanly suaveness to him.
McSween was the best and when his health forced him to retire from acting that was a loss to Dallas. (And I never cared for his replacement Ratagan.)
I like Bum. He’s not outstanding but he contributes his supporting character role fine and he certainly seems to be JR’s kind of guy. But now season two’s third episode had come and gone and Bum is still MIA.
I also think the guy playing John Ross’ PI is good. The fact that I still can’t remember his name (real or character name) tells me he is under utilized.
It also makes sense that JR and John Ross both have their own guy. After all they are still willing to undercut each other.
I really think these characters need to be stabalized in their usage.
Dan, I couldn’t agree more. I loved McSween, didn’t care much for Ratagan and appreciate the fact that J.R. and John Ross have separate private eyes on the new show. John Ross’s detective, by the way, is Clyde Marshall, portrayed by Brett Brock. He’s slated to be in the next episode. Wonder what that means?!
What is going to drive Sue Ellen over the edge? It is clear Sue Ellen is teetering. Anne is going to learn how insane and difficult it is to be a friend of hers. Sue Ellen was hours away from being Governor of Texas and her life just went downhill from there.
Please don’t push Sue Ellen over the edge. Again. Been there, done that several times over. I didn’t mind the brief flirtation with that glass of wine. After all she had a rough day. But with that crisis averted by JR getting her off and giving her that inspired pep talk she should be fine. I love the strong Sue Ellen we’ve known ever since she bought Valentine Lingerie and don’t want to see here go back.
I hear you, Dan. I’m torn: Seeing Sue Ellen have a relapse could yield a lot of dramatic tension, but it wouldn’t necessarily be original. We have seen her go over the edge many times before.
I’m hopeful Sue Ellen will keep it together, although I secretly wouldn’t mind if she fell apart. It’s been a long time since we’ve seen Sue Ellen go over the edge!
Thanks for commenting, Jump!
personally, i wish theyd kill off Pamela Rebecca, the character is uninteresting and they didnt do her any favors by giving her such a convoluted storyline to start with.i would rather have known who she was from the beginning and John Ross been smitten by her. they should Kill off Frank also..hes another bore.Ann’s daughter is a toss up,depending on how they deal with it.Ryland is an awesome villain though.So far, Ann still feels like a fish out of water at Southfork.Brenda Strong is a great actress but her storylines havent been very fulfilling.Sue Ellen is underused and seriously needs to be back at Southfork somehow so she doesnt seem so isolated from the other characters.I think John Ross is as good as it gets for the next generation,he stands out. i do think that Christopher could use a vice,maybe he should follow in his aunts footsteps as a drunk…since Linda Gray doesnt wanna revisit that storyline.imagine the acting possibilities for Metcalfe as Christopher loses Ewing Energies to John Ross and spirals into the bottom of a bottle…itd be certainly more interesting than selling his methane crap..
Oh no! I love Pamela! I agree with you that her storyline is very convoluted. Like you, I’d also love to see Sue Ellen back at Southfork. I also love your suggestion of giving Christopher a vice. His biological mother (Kristin) was a drug user and his biological aunt (Sue Ellen) was an alcoholic. Addiction runs in his family, so this would seem like a good way to give the character a challenging storyline.
Thanks for commenting, Todd. I appreciate hearing your ideas!
Chris
I like PR too. Definitely need to keep her around. I like Frank as well …very intense guy…love his stare downs!
Plus, if I remember correctly Chris ‘ grandfather was an alcoholic as well. And since Kristen got hooked on drugs while involved with his sperm donor we might be safe in assuming his SD was an addict of some type as well. So yes, addiction is certainly in his genes. That could be a good story for Chis.
You know I loved that scene we got last year in front of the main house at SF with John Ross and Sue Ellen. Love, love,love that shot of them standing there with her holding his arm and with that big smile on her face. I was very happy with that!
Good memory, Hel! I think you’re right: Sue Ellen and Kristin’s father was an alcoholic too. And I love that shot of Sue Ellen and John Ross in front of Southfork too. She should come back and reclaim her role as lady of the manor!
I would add that Sue Ellen wasn’t all that interesting at the beginning of the original series. It took a long time for her to have things going for her. How many seasons was she the perpetual victim? To be fair, I believe An has a bit more going for her so far than did SE at the beginning.
Ryland has become a fun villain to watch for me, too.
Good points about the differences between Sue Ellen and Ann. You’re right: Ann has a lot more backbone than Sue Ellen did at this point during the original show’s run.
Thanks James!
CB
If I recall, J.R. never seemed to respect Sue Ellen at all until she bought Valentine Lingerie and controlled Mandy. It took SE a long time to get there. What a reward to see it happen!
Indeed, James!
ok last nights episode was AWESOME! it really came together and kept me on edge all episode.i hated to see it go off. i still think PR isnt a standout but maybe she’ll grow on me..i know we need a Barnes present to keep that feud going and since we never see Cliff i guess she will have to do..maybe they will make her more palatable in time.I loved every scene with Ann which is the first time i really cared about her storylines.Judith Light was fantastic for the short amount of time we saw her. Sue Ellen was finally able to sharpen her claws and i enjoyed that alot,shes always at her best when shes strong.of course,JR & John Ross are brilliant together or separate. i will say, im not that big on the addition of Elena’s brother but we will see how that goes.His story, of drilling on the land his daddy used to own and that now belongs to the Ewings,reminded me of Cliff..which was a good thing i suppose. i hope that the ratings pick up so TNT will renew it again!! i wonder why TNT hasnt been marketing it more?
I feel the same way, Todd. I was really sorry to see last night’s episode end. And I had the same feeling about Ann’s storyline too. This was the first time I really cared about the Ann/Harris/Emma subplot. Brenda Strong was really, really good.
I’m not sure what’s going on with TNT’s marketing effort. I’m hopeful the audience will pick up, but the show faces much tougher competition now than it did last summer.
Thanks for commenting! I appreciate it.
CB
I am wondering if they are saving the ‘real’ marketing money for the JR death and burial episode and the after math. They are certainly not promoting it at a level I would expect. My friends who are big fans would have had no idea when the show aired last week if I had been constantly reminding them. It is not a good thing when fans who LOVE your show aren’t getting the message of when your show is airing. That worries me.