If this forum permitted it, the "caps-lock" key would have been in force in titling this review -- it only seems fitting. For a series that so revolutionized television to be this badly given artificial respiration is a TV tragedy.
"Dallas: JR Returns" is everything that was horrid about the original show, with none of what made it so special. While the original was, at its best, a character-driven drama with a solid back story, the sequel is an overly-plotted morass of mediocrity.
Not only has the cast aged -- frighteningly, for the most part -- but so has television continued to grow. "JR Returns" is a throwback to the worst of 1970s television ... meaningless and ultimately unsatisfying.
Kudos only to Linda Gray (of the original cast) and newcomer Chris Demetral (as the grown Christopher, adopted son of Bobby and Pam). No one else displays any passion or vitality.
Some things are better left untouched. The legacy of "Dallas" is one.
"Dallas: JR Returns" is everything that was horrid about the original show, with none of what made it so special. While the original was, at its best, a character-driven drama with a solid back story, the sequel is an overly-plotted morass of mediocrity.
Not only has the cast aged -- frighteningly, for the most part -- but so has television continued to grow. "JR Returns" is a throwback to the worst of 1970s television ... meaningless and ultimately unsatisfying.
Kudos only to Linda Gray (of the original cast) and newcomer Chris Demetral (as the grown Christopher, adopted son of Bobby and Pam). No one else displays any passion or vitality.
Some things are better left untouched. The legacy of "Dallas" is one.