Before the families of Wisteria Lane filled our evening soap opera requirements, the television programming was dominated by the world of Dallas, and then its spin-off Knots Landing. Now all thirteen episodes of the first season of the hit soap is out in a five disc set from Warner Bros. Home Video.
Although the acting is a bit stiff, the plots are now cliché and sometimes comical, and the fashion is outdated, the series is still entertaining and will appeal to diehard Dallas fans who have been waiting for its spin-off to come out. It will also appeal to fans of other evening soap opera television shows that have already made their way to DVD – like Dynasty.
Knots Landing had a pretty big cast of soap actors including James Houghton, Kim Lankford, Michele Lee, Constance McCashin, Don Murray, John Pleshette, Ted Shackelford and of course Joan Van Ark.
The series follows Gary (the good brother from Dallas or at least that is how my mother describes him) and Valene Ewing as they getaway from Southfork and move to the small California community of Knots Landing. The two, who have a long history on the Dallas series, want nothing to do with the rest of the Ewing family or the oil business. They simply want to start new lives and discover if they can make their marriage work this time. Once they arrive at Knots Landing, we quickly meet the rest of the families that will fill out the cast for the series. They include Sid and Karen Fairgate, the typical American couple; Richard and Laura Avery, a lawyer/yuppie couple; Kenny and Ginger Ward, a newlywed couple.
Gary and Val adjust to life at Knots Landing
I will say from the start that Knots Landing does not hold up well against the current evening dramas (such as Desperate Housewives) but it is easy to see how it helped pave the way for today’s programs. You can even see how some of the first season’s episodes (such as when a character is raped or one where a teacher is using drastic measures to reach students in the classroom) could have been somewhat controversial when they first aired in 1979.
The episodes just don’t hold up by today’s standard and that controversy turns almost comical- today’s teachers would be praised from bringing a convict to class to talk to students about being in prison.
Also, the series does come off as a bit cheesy and lacking compared to the plots and acting that we saw on Dallas. This fact is made even stronger in the couple of episodes where an actor for Dallas does a guest appearance on the new series. The show’s creators were smart not to try this trick very much in the first season and give the audience a chance to discover the new characters.
The season’s pilot, which includes a guest appearance from Patrick Duffy as Bobby Ewing, quickly sets up the characters, introduces us to the fact that Gary’s and Val’s daughter Lucy doesn’t know they are married, and that they are very uncomfortable about moving to Knots Landing. We also see that unlike Dallas, the people of Knots Landing are average people (well average for an evening soap opera), and not overly rich and powerful. The second episode is the best out of the entire season thanks to its guest appearance by Larry Hagman’s J. R. Ewing. His appearance also demonstrates what the new show is truly lacking – a center villain that we love to hate. You have to laugh when J.R. asks his recovering alcoholic brother Gary if he has any bourbon to put in his coffee.
The third and fourth episodes shows how the series was willing to push what must have been a bit controversial at the time by dealing with rape, sex education in school, and cheating spouses. Episodes 5 and 6 ties the series back to Dallas, and brings up some of Val’s past with an appearance by her mother, and Lucy’s discovery that her parents are married. Charlene Tilton guest stars as Lucy in episode 6 and once again we see how the series just doesn’t quite live up to Dallas. At the same time, by the sixth episode the characters are developing nicely and we are starting to care less and less about that city in Texas.
Knots Landing benefits from guest appearances from Dallas characters
Episodes 7-11 move the focus further away from Dallas and more on the lives of the families in Knots Landing. They also seem to get a bit more comical (although that is an example of them not holding up to today’s drama standards) as the group of families are terrorized by a motorcycle gang, potential stalkers, one of the neighbors goes broke and the introduction of Sid’s ex-wife.
The first season does end with a show of the promise of what was to come in future seasons. We are treated with a two-part conclusion that focuses on Gary falling off the wagon following a promotion at work. This leads him on a bender that ends him up in a detox ward. Way to celebrate Gary!
The DVD set is a little light on special features but does come with commentary on two episodes (the pilot and episode 6) with Joan Van Ark and Ted Shackelford. There is also an interview featurette with the two stars called Gary and Val: Together Again: The Stars Reminisce. This lack of special features may be a bit of a letdown for some fans of the series who will no doubt be wishing for more.
The set is presented in full screen mode and in Dolby Digital 1.0 sound. This is another problem with the set as it appears very little expense was put into cleaning up the audio or video of the series. It hurts the enjoyment of the set as the sound is sometimes more than lacking, and the picture makes it look even more dated.
The characters seem more normal than other evening soaps
Overall, Knots Landing is a series that would break away from Dallas’ shadow and one that helped pave the way for hit series today - like Desperate Housewives. Even if it is a bit dated, the first season still has some entertaining episodes, and will appeal to fans of 80’s dramas – like Dynasty. It will also be a must have for fans of the series or Dallas fans.
Knots Landing – The Complete First Season is now available at Amazon . As of yet, there is not a release date for the UK. Visit the DVD’s database for more information.
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