Dallas - The Complete Eighth Season DVD Credits:

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Dallas - The Complete Eighth Season DVD Release Date: 12th February 2008

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Dallas - The Complete Eighth Season DVD Review:

The release of Dallas - The Complete Eighth Season illustrates what a well-constructed show Dallas was. After all, in its eighth season it still remained just as fresh as ever, with gripping stories and interesting characters. That’s no small feat, as many shows will stay strong for four or five seasons at which point their weakness will start to show, and they eventually die an inevitable death. But not Dallas. Dallas had a rock solid eighth season and would push on for another five years without showing many signs of age. Of course, fans will always have their favorite and least favorite seasons due to the addition or subtraction of primary characters, but in order to stay fresh a show has to change over time, and when taken on its own terms, Dallas - The Complete Eighth Season is a fine example of network television.

For those who don’t know the story, Dallas follows the lives of the Ewing family, who are wealthy thanks to their successful oil company. J.R. Ewing is the father of the family and the ambitious CEO of Ewing Oil, and he is accompanied by his wife Sue Ellen, his brother Bobby, the matriarch of the Ewing family Miss Ellie, and a host of other supporting characters.

In the case of Season 8 of the show, the new character introduced is cousin Jamie Ewing, a blonde-blue-eyed gal with a big, fat claim on the oil empire. Another change in Season 8 takes the form of a change in cast members. Academy Award winner Donna Reed had the thankless task of stepping into the role of Miss Ellie while an ailing Barbara Bel Geddes took time off for recovery. While the change in casting for that primary character does indeed take a little getting used to, Donna Reed ultimately makes for a good replacement.

One of Dallas’ strongest assets as a series (and Season 8 is no different), is that it has a little something for everyone. As the back of the DVD case so aptly states: Season 8 brings a gusher of high-tension, high-finance drama: three corpses, one murder trial, weddings, breakups, adultery, medical traumas, kidnapping, lies, long-forgotten secrets, sudden wealth, and the season ends with a trademark Dallas cliffhanger. Let’s not forget that this is the show that brought audiences one of the most famous season to season cliffhangers in television history: the “who shot J.R.” plotline of Season 4 that was ingeniously spoofed years later by The Simpsons in the episode “Who Shot Mr. Burns?”. All this is to say that Dallas is a consistently entertaining show that packs a lot of entertainment value into one series.

There’s only one featurette contained on the DVD set unfortunately, but at least it’s a pretty interesting one. It’s called Dallas Makeover – Travilla Style, and it explores the revolutionary new look brought to the show by Emmy-winning costume designer Travilla. It’s as myopic as it sounds in regards to the production of the show, but it provides an illuminating look at the evolving costume design process.

Dallas was one of the most popular shows of its kind during the 1980s. Certain elements may not have aged particularly well, but that’s to be expected when things are made during the 80s. Besides for a couple of cringe inducing hair styles, the show as a whole provides excellent entertainment value and is just as enjoyable today as it was 20 years ago. Season 8 is one of the many consistently strong seasons in the series’ run, so don’t hesitate to pick it up if you’re already an avid collector and fan of the show.

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Dallas - The Complete Eighth Season DVD review written by: Anthony Berk