I didn't really start watching "Dynasty" until season two. Let's face it, was there anything great in season one!!?? Season two introduced us to the iconic character/superbitch Alexis. As she entered the courtroom in her black & white ensemble with matching over the top hat, we knew this woman would change the show forever! Alexis knew how to deal with any situation and could wear fur, big shoulder pads, skirts, and big hair like nobody's business! And not to even mention that cigarette lighter?? The lighter was like a huge crystal cube that she would pick up effortlessly to light her extra long cigarettes! The woman knew how to smoke!! Alexis knew how to bring the drama whether she was firing a shotgun to cause Krystle's miscarriage, or trying to slap her already dead husband Cecil Colby back to life on his hospital bed, or the classic Krystle/Alexis catfights!! Alexis was just a force of nature and she brought a life to the show! I have been compared to Alexis many times and take it with great reverence! No one else could be called a viper and be slapped so many times and still come out smelling like success.
Aside from Alexis, there are so many other iconic characters in the "Dynasty" world. Krystle Carrington (Linda Evans) always brought class with big shoulder pads and her fabulous hairstyle with the winged bangs. Sammy Jo (Heather Locklear) always brought the trashy side to the show with her clothes and her sliding down the stair railing at the Carrington mansion only to run literally into Alexis! Then there was the classy lounge singer Dominique Deveraux (Dihan Caroll) who borught her voice and also some catfights! The gay son Stephen (Jack Coleman) always struggled with his father Blake (John Forsythe) and finally found love. Fallon Carrington (Pamela Sue Martin/Emma Sams) brought glamour and some insane plotlines like her alien abduction? and her alter ego Randall Adams. Crazy son Adam (Gordon Thomson) always brought drama as he was rather shady and the final Carrington child Amanda (Catherine Oxenburg) brought royal flair as she married a prince in a fake country called Moldavia. Then there are other family members such as Alexis' sister Caress and her cousin Sable Colby. The list goes on and on, but these characters brought many memorable storylines to the show!
Part of the glamour of "Dynasty" was the list of stars on the show. Aside from the regular characters, the show brought old Hollywood glamour in its guest stars. Such faces as Rock Hudson, Ali MacGraw, and George Hamilton came onto the show, and let's not forget the "Dynasty" spin-off series "Dynasty II: The Colbys" with such Hollywood favorites as Barbara Stanwyck, Charlton Heston, and Ricardo Montalban. The Colbys only lasted two seasons before being cancelled, but the Colbys were equally fabulous!
So now to the catfights. "Dynasty" brought the art of the catfight to a new level. Krystle and Alexis had their first catfight in the studio where Alexis lived. The fight was complete with broken furniture, slapping, and stunt doubles. The second catfight took place when Krystle shoved Alexis into the lily pond at the Carrington mansion. Blake arrived to break up the fight and Alexis left with a very wet hat! Then we come to the mud slide catfight where the ladies slide down a literal mudslide and end up in a valley mud puddle. Alexis cursed the mud on her new couture and left without a shoe! Alexis also had a catfight with Dominique that included slapping, kicking, a dog, broken furniture, and of course stunt doubles. Fallon and Sammy Jo also had a great catfight in a vat of water and Alexis and Sable had a memorable catfight in a hotel lobby. Then we come to the Krystle/Alexis catfight in the reunion special. The fight starts over a broach and soon escalates into a brawl in a fashion warehouse including broken furniture, a mannequin arm, sequins, a feather boa, ripped clothes, and of course stunt doubles! The catfights really were a highlight of the show! Episodes without catfights got lower ratings I know it!
Aside from the catfights, "Dynasty" brought the fashion. With costumes designed by Nolan Miller, each week brought fabulous ensembles. Alexis was famous for her large hats, fur, and shoulder pads. Krystle would bring festive capes, gowns, and shoulder pads. Dominique would rock the turban, fur, and shoulder pads (is there a theme here?). Other "Dynasty" staples were Daisy Dukes (Sammy Jo), fur hats (Alexis), leg warmers (Sammy Jo), hand bags (everyone), and of course GLITZ!!
"Dynasty" brought some classic storylines to the small screen so let's revisit some of them. My favorite storyline of the whole series was the Moldavian Massacre when the entire cast was gunned down by terrorists at the royal wedding of Amanda Carrington and Prince Michael of Moldavia. First of all, the country was made up and the cliffhanger ended with the cast laying in a bloody pile of bodies so we had to wait and see who survived!! It was a nailbiter!! Then there was the famous Rita plot where Krystle was kidnapped by her niece Sammy Jo and replaced with a doppleganger named Rita. The whole storyline ended in a Krystle vs. Krystle catfight in the attic of the horse ranch. Then there was the story where Fallon drove away on her wedding night and later made her way to California as Randall Adams and fell in love with Jeff Colby's cousin Miles Colby. Only later would Fallon return to Denver with Miles and start to regain her memory!! Then there is the classic character Claudia Blaisdale who starting going cuckoo crackers hearing voices of dead people and later burning down a building!! Dear Claudia. And let's not forget Caress who got out of a South American prison and travelled to Denver to write a book about her sister Alexis. So many dramatic stories that played out every week!
I grew up with "Dynasty" and was actually called Alexis in junior high. The show brought the drama and glam to the small screen every week and left us waiting for more! The Carringtons were people who were rich and glitzy, but still had to deal with life's problems. I enjoyed every week of the drama and loved to see what would happen next on the show. I will have to write another blog for this show as there is just too much to cover! And we haven't even talked about the theme song! The theme song! And the trumpets! Thanks for strolling down this memory lane with me! In the words of Dominique Deveraux, "I don't care what you say to my face, you viper. Retract this or I'll cram it down your throat!"
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