Dynasty: In defence of Emma Samms
DC
I was huge fan of Dynasty. British soaps are generally working class
accounts of life on the breadline (for some reason). Dynasty offered pure
escapism fantasy, by comparison, making even Dallas look realistic...
Pamela Sue Martin is a terrific actress, very sexy, and she played
flirtatious Fallon to perfection. Leaving the show may not have been a
terrific career move, but after re-watching the series, I can see she did:
Fallon had become dull. People often remember Fallon as dull, only after
Emma Samms to took over the role, but actually Pamela's Fallon lost much of
her sharp witty dialogue and major storylines Joan's Alexis - you might say
the mother bitch replaced her brat in the pecking order.
In 1985 Fallon was reintroduced to audiences in the form of Emma Samms, in
order to boost interest in 'the Colbys'. Now Pamela is a very attractive
woman, but Emma looked like she had been personally handcrafted by God, to
show the true beauty of womanhood - she complelely took my breath away (and
I'm an asthmatic) - and as an actress her rich personality injects a lot
charm in everything she does. The only problem was, her scripts in the
Colbys firstly dealt her with amnesia, then as woman constantly in turmoil
over Jeff and Miles fighting over her. It seemed every other episode Samms
would have to breakdown crying, or pack her bags to Denver. Unless Emma was
overseeing scriptwriting duties, she couldn't possibly be blamed for this
admittedly fun-less and lifeless version of Fallon.
Once Fallon came back down to Earth (literally) and returned to live inside
her Daddy's Dynasty, the character slowly began to get more plucky again.
However it wasn't until the last series of Dynasty that I can honestly say
Emma Samms was as good as Pamela Sue Martin in the role, even at Pamela's
best (the first season). Strangely enough, the last season of Dynasty was
one of the best. Linda Evans left half way through it, and Joan Collins was
only in every other episode, this meant the younger cast members got a
chance to shine. Apart from Fallon having haunted by her Mother's dead
ex-lover (where did they get those stories), the scriptwriters returned
Fallon to being joyful, sexy, witty, immature but charming. Emma Samms
portrayed Fallon in her own unique style, less aggressive than Martin, but
much more elegant. Emma's Fallon was delightful to watch in the last
season, but by then it was all too late...
Really long post, but I hope that readdresses the balance.
BTW Gordon Thomson who brilliantly played evil Adam, was also given some bum
scripts in later years, until the last season, when he too enjoyed some
cracking dialogue.
DC
Seth Bookey
Interesting post. I think Dynasty was a case of too much success, to some
degree. While I watched every single episode, I think the show quickly
fell into a rut. Linda Evans, now that I am watching the episodes all over
again, is rather... dull. Alexis's lines are the funniest lines of the
second season of the show. Unfortunately, the departure of Al Corley as
Steven precipitated the creation of Adam, I think. A lot of PSM's Fallon's
best work came into play when she was caught between Steven and her
father. I think a lot of cast changes made things difficult for the show.
For example, Fallon had this whole thing going with Nick, and it came and
went pretty quickly. JF's departure seemed sudden. Bochner and Bellwood
stuck around for the three episodes in Season Three to wrap up their
storylines, but JF was gone as of the cliffhanger of Season Two, leaving
Fallon in a vacuum almost filled by Adam.
I also think the creation of Amanda was a bit forced as well.
--Seth
>DC
--
DC
> again, is rather... dull.
Oh god, yes.. I was always half hoping Alexis would win, or at least have
an affair with Blake. Blake became too *good* in the later seasons; in the
first series he had a darkside, which they attempted to bring back to a
degree in the last season.
>Alexis's lines are the funniest lines of the
> second season of the show. Unfortunately, the departure of Al Corley as
> Steven precipitated the creation of Adam, I think. A lot of PSM's Fallon's
> best work came into play when she was caught between Steven and her
> father.
Al Corley was easily the better Steven; he had such a neurotic acting style
that was perfect for the part. Was Corley sacked for saying the show was
rubbish on some quiz? Jack Coleman was acceptable, but one couldn't help
think that he'd prefer to be surfing than reading in a study. I think Adam
was meant be in place of Steven, at first, but brought they Steven back
probably because he was an interesting character. However, I think Adam,
played by Gordon Thomson, was great an asset to show, but after his first
season the character seemed to get suppressed. Amanda on the other hand,
was a complete waste of time. Catherine Oxenberg was lovely yet dull, but
Karen Cellini was terrible in the part, and I think she got the sack halfway
through the first season.. This led to one of Dynasty's biggest gaffs (and
there was quite a few of them); Blake said Amanda had gone back to Europe;
and from then on she was never mentioned again, as if she had never
existed... Caring family, those Carringtons...
DC
Tante Joan
wrote:
>> Linda Evans, now that I am watching the episodes all over
>> again, is rather... dull.
>
>Oh god, yes.. I was always half hoping Alexis would win, or at least have
>an affair with Blake. Blake became too *good* in the later seasons; in the
>first series he had a darkside, which they attempted to bring back to a
>degree in the last season.
>
The first time around, I think I was mesmerized by Linda Evans' beauty
and the incredible span of her shoulders -- I think she outdid the
average linebacker, and that BEFORE Mr. Miller added those supersized
shoulder pads. Now I agree, she is soooo genteel, and soooo soft
spoken and soooo nice. But eve so, those characteristics are typical
of her secretary-turned-trophy wife background. Alexis and Fallon, to
the manor born, didn't need good manners. (Although I don't think
Alexis was all that top-drawer, in fact. Just British.)
Blake, though, was definitely dark that first year. He and Joseph
were close to diabolical at times, egging each other on. There was a
streak of sadism in Blake, I think -- that business of the necklace,
for example. And Joseph was more snobbish than the family, torturing
Krystal until he decided he despised Alexis more.
>
>
>Al Corley was easily the better Steven; he had such a neurotic acting style
>that was perfect for the part. Was Corley sacked for saying the show was
>rubbish on some quiz? Jack Coleman was acceptable, but one couldn't help
>think that he'd prefer to be surfing than reading in a study.
I think the Shapiros, or perhaps Spelling, didn't really understand
the concept of homosexuality or didn't trust the public enough to deal
with it. It was clear from the first that Steven, as portrayed,
wasn't homosexual at all -- he was bisexual. There is a case to be
made, of course, that there is no such animal as a bisexual, that
there is always a preference and that preference is the true sexual
identity of the person. But if behavior dictates preference, then
Steven was really heterosexual, because he had more female bed
partners than anything else. Either he should have been gay and,
after Ted Dinard, partner-less (because God forbid there would have
been actual same-sex nookie on network tv back then), or he should
have been a closet case overcompensating with too many women.
Anything instead of an out guy who constantly boinks babes.
TJ
posting to all and Sundry
[Who he? He helps me shave my legs with Occam's Razor]
kaci
"Tante Joan" <tant...@SoftHome.net> wrote in message
news:lsuj1v0adlfgs4us0...@4ax.com...
> The first time around, I think I was mesmerized by Linda Evans'
beauty
> and the incredible span of her shoulders -- I think she outdid the
> average linebacker,
Yeah, she and Alicia Willis (Courtney, GH).
kaci
Seth Bookey
Well, there are, in fact, bisexuals. The "problem" with monogamy is that
if you're truly bisexual, and monogamous, you automatically become
"straight" or "gay." If you're promiscious and practicing regularly, a
pattern is sure to develop. According to the Kinsey report, you can be gay
up to your ankle or even up to your right knee!
I don't think America was ready for an all-gay character in 1981.
According to the show's pre-history, Steven was partnered with Ted, and
possibly had other lovers. In the show's own history, it was pretty clear
that he felt pressure to conform to his father's heterosexual wishes.
Lankershim sent him to a hooker. He found real comfort with Claudia--I
think her appeal had more to do with emotion and intellect than just sex,
actually. And Sammy Jo tossed herself onto him, so it's hard to say he
really gave that choice a whole lot of thought.
Meanwhile, when he returned as Jack Coleman, he married Claudia mainly as
a tactic to keep his son from Sammy Jo's clutches. Once he was married to
Claudia, though, it didn't take long for him to find Luke. After Luke was
killed, Steven was never, ever with a woman again. He winds up with
Falmont, and was still with him in the 1991 TV movie wrap-up. Here's the
scorecard:
Ted Dinard
Claudia Blaisdell
Sammy Jo Dean
Luke Fuller
Bart Falmont
I think that's it. So... more men than women.
Meanwhile, I found Fallon and Alexis's discussions of Steven's
homosexuality quite backward as well. Certainly Alexis knew gay folks
while jetsetting. It shows that there's "tolerance," but not acceptance.
Fallon didn't really accept it until that big finale scene of Al Corley's,
when Fallon said, "Steven is gay." Even Krystle seems unhappy with the
word "gay."
--Seth
--
Seth Bookey
>Great points all around. You are right that Fallon fell short before PSM
>left, and that Alexis took over the role as Krystle's nemesis and overall
>main villianess. I guess I just could not get used to Emma Samm's portrayal
>and that English accent (agreed, that she is so beautiful!) Perhaps she
>would have been better cast as Amanda!
>Regarding Adam, I thought he served well as the rival of Jeff. What would
>Jeff done all those years except pine away for Fallon?
Also, Jeff and Adam were rivals for Kirby (a name much better suited to a
pickle than a woman). Remember when Adam painted Jeff's office at Colby
Oil with poisonous content?
>I don't think I watched much that last year...barely remember Linda Evans
>leaving. Hopefully I will catch it on SoapNet.
In the final analysis, Krystle was merely there to be the beseiged
heroine. She first had the triangle with Blake and Matthew. Then she
sparred with Alexis. Then, Mark Jennings returned, making her a bigamist.
In the 1984-6 season, she and Blake had (irrespective) temptations in the
forms of Ali McJaw as Lady Ashley and Rock Hudson as Daniel Reese. Then
there was the horrifyingly bad storyline where Sammy Jo had Rita act as
Krystle while they kept her imprisoned by George Hamilton.
After that, her main role was to deliver a healthy girl child for Blake,
and then worry about said child, as she had a bad heart, a heart
transplant, and a crazy grieving mother of the donor to deal with.
They really could've done better by that character.
--Seth
--
Tante Joan
<seth...@panix.com> wrote:
>Well, there are, in fact, bisexuals. The "problem" with monogamy is that
>if you're truly bisexual, and monogamous, you automatically become
>"straight" or "gay." If you're promiscious and practicing regularly, a
>pattern is sure to develop. According to the Kinsey report, you can be gay
>up to your ankle or even up to your right knee!
>
Oh, yes, but I was speaking in the context of the early years with
Steven. I have to confess that there were big gaps in my viewing in
the later years, but now that you mention it, there were more guys.
I've just blocked them out, probably to suit my flawed theory <vbg>.
>I don't think America was ready for an all-gay character in 1981.
>According to the show's pre-history, Steven was partnered with Ted, and
>possibly had other lovers. In the show's own history, it was pretty clear
>that he felt pressure to conform to his father's heterosexual wishes.
>Lankershim sent him to a hooker. He found real comfort with Claudia--I
>think her appeal had more to do with emotion and intellect than just sex,
>actually. And Sammy Jo tossed herself onto him, so it's hard to say he
>really gave that choice a whole lot of thought.
>
What upsets me on this second go-round of viewing is how unrelentingly
anti-gay most of the language is. It is only Al Corley's appealing
performance that allows us to root for him (and sometimes that fails,
because he had an unfortunate tendency to look merely sulky, not
beleaguered). During the trial the rhetoric ran the gamut from
insulting to vicious to bitchy and back again. Claudia was often
passive aggressive in regard to Steven's sexuality, primarily because
she was shoring up her severely damaged self-image by taking a gay
lover, thus setting herself up for a fall while allowing herself the
opportunity to trade agenda-laden barbs with Ted Dinard. The way
their bookstore encounter was written it could be viewed as ground
breaking on one hand but folie a deux on the other -- both of them
telling themselves what each wanted to hear on the pretext of having a
conversation with the other person. Fallon's attacks are even worse,
because except in this area and the role of Krystle in their father's
life, the siblings are clearly supposed to be united.
DC
> >left, and that Alexis took over the role as Krystle's nemesis and overall
> >main villianess. I guess I just could not get used to Emma Samm's
portrayal
> >and that English accent (agreed, that she is so beautiful!) Perhaps she
> >would have been better cast as Amanda!
Yes, I think she would have been a more natural choice for Amanda, than
Fallon, or though Catherine Oxenberg was essentially right for the demeanour
of the character. Perhaps Emma's biggest flaw in the part of Fallon was the
fact that she was *supposedly* doing an American accent, but often sounded
English Nevertheless, her transatlantic portrayal was perhaps appropriate
for somebody of Fallon's wealth and breeding... What is rather funny when
looking back on Dynasty, is how Fallon #2 was meant to be American but
played by an English actress, yet at the same time, Amanda #2 was played by
an American actress, but meant to be English!
> >Regarding Adam, I thought he served well as the rival of Jeff. What
would
> >Jeff done all those years except pine away for Fallon?
>
> Also, Jeff and Adam were rivals for Kirby (a name much better suited to a
> pickle than a woman). Remember when Adam painted Jeff's office at Colby
> Oil with poisonous content?
Yes, I do: that was his first and best season. Adam was a good creation all
round. Not least because he had experimented with drugs when he was young,
and this had messed up his head, and accounted for much of his evil
behaviour - such as attempting to kill Jeff. I personally think Adam's
character and the whole *paint* story was nothing short of brilliant
writing, but his later storylines turned him into a sort of minor JR, when
he should have been so much more unpredictable than that.
I think Krystle needed to have an affair with somebody. Your accurate
account of her time, in the series, shows how desperate the writers were to
fill her void, because they couldn't or wouldn't let temptation go all the
way...
DC
Peter J.
>
>I think Krystle needed to have an affair with somebody. Your accurate
>account of her time, in the series, shows how desperate the writers were to
>fill her void, because they couldn't or wouldn't let temptation go all the
>way...
>
The Jump the Shark board for Dynasty has a fascinating commentary on what
happened with the producers' attitude backstage after the first few seasons and
how this killed the show. It makes a lot of sense to me, because although I
never really cared for the show and have bashed it somewhat frequently, I do
remember thinking the first few seasons were at least good for entertainment,
and some of the later stuff...not as good.
http://www.jumptheshark.com/d/dynasty.htm
<<"Dynasty" jumped the shark long before the Moldavian Massacre in 1985, five
years into the show. The show was actually quite good in its first 2 seasons--
the first year established Krystle as the melancholy outsider, the soul of the
show. The 2nd year Joan Collins entered the scene as the show's Wicked Witch
and "Dynasty" took-off from there. But as early as Year 3 (1982/83) the
pretentious producers went nuts realizing they had a potential classic on their
hands...so what did they do about it ??? Beginning with that season they
actually began INSTRUCTING the actors to not move the hands, bodies, heads, in
a misguided attempt to make the show seem poised and poetic and classical---
SERIOUSLY, the producers really DID this, making the actors actually just look
stupid, since no actor can act under those conditions. (Best example: remember
how good Linda Evans actually was when the show was pretty new... but by a few
years later she was barking her lines neurotically like she needed to be on
medication and just wanted get the hell home ???) Although the actors
reportedly complained about this odd statuary demand being placed upon them,
and also complained that the plotlines were becoming increasingly unfocused
while the dialogue just got more florid (ie: a lot of melodramatic talk over
story-lines the show was barely doing), their complaints were dismissed. All
this gave the show a shrill, stiffness that RUINED what it had started-out to
be, but because ratings were still high (based largely on the hype and the
stars' appeal) producers ignored internal gripings..... This was LONG before
Moldavia in 1985; afterwards, the overt crash of the show was only a result of
problems that had been brewing for years unacknowledged finally climaxing. But
now that the "Dynasty" bosses HAD to admit there were problems (never admitting
the writing and execution had actually stunk for several seasons) they began
mounting a Come-back-to-Dynasty public relations campaign, re-mounting this
campaign every 6 months for the next three years or so -- but all their efforts
went into the PR campaign because the show itself never showed any sign of
being fixed AT ALL.... Finally, Aaron Spelling hired a new line-producer to
take over the show in 1988-- and that new producer finally fixed "Dynasty" for
the first time in years, but it was all too late because the network pushed the
show into a dead-end timeslot to kill it, which succeeded immediately... After
that, the nutty, original producers who had been correctly shoved-out went
around blaming that new producer who took over "Dynasty" in its last season, as
if all the problems supposedly started with him...! (Using the series'
inevitable cancellation as evidence.) The 1991 Reunion was equally stupid
because the original producers controlled it... So when people swoon over
memories of how great "Dynasty" was, they're really remembering the show it
almost was, not really the true show itself...
>>
JTS has some fascinating nuggets of knowledge, along with the usual
mind-boggling inanities (my favorite for the Dynasty section is the person who
insists the show was ruined when "macho" "girl-chasing" Steven came out).