Dallas on TNT: J.R.'s Masterpiece

On Monday, March 11, 2013, Dallas on TNT aired the episode focusing on the death of J.R. Ewing (Larry Hagman). This episode not only continued the plot, but was also a tribute to Mr. Hagman who passed away after a long battle with cancer in late 2012.

J.R. was in Mexico and was shot to death, while on the phone with his son John Ross (Josh Henderson). Everyone went south of the border to discover what J.R. was doing, but it was only revealed at the end of the episode. He was looking for what happened to Bobby's (Patrick Duffy) late wife Pam, for his nephew Christopher (Jesse Metcalfe).  As part of the festivities J.R. and Bobby's brother Gary (Ted Shackleford) came back to Southfork and was greeted kindly by Sue Ellen (Linda Gray). On Knots Landing, Bobby remained dead (the Dallas dream season wasn't a dream), so this was the first time we saw Gary interact with Bobby in over 25 years. Mandy (Deborah Shelton) and Cally (Cathy Podewell) appeared as they both had been involved with or married to J.R. respectively. Cliff Barnes (Ken Kercheval) didn't come to bury J.R., but to disrespect him. Ray Krebbs (Steve Kanaly) also spoke about his half-brother and Lucy (Charlene Tilton) mentioned how J.R. was telling the truth even if it was brutal. The real life mayor of Dallas Mike Rawlings, Mark Cuban (owner of the Dallas Mavericks and Jerry Jones (owner of the Dallas Cowboys) had cameos. Since this show is produced in Texas, I felt this was an appropriate gesture.

My favorite parts of the episode were seeing how Sue Ellen and Bobby reacted to J.R.'s death. Sue Ellen imploded, drank again and admitted it while giving a speech. Bobby became proactive and now as head of the family, he seemed to be stronger. The real life relationships that Larry Hagman shared with Patrick Duffy and Linda Gray seemed to peak out giving the scenes even a larger emotional backbone.

The ratings for this episode were higher than the rest of the season. I wonder if people will continue to watch Dallas on TNT, or if they will stop watching because they feel Dallas without J.R. isn't Dallas.