TV Guide - October 19th, 1991

"Dynasty: The Reunion" - They're back ... at it

Don't expect as much greed and glitz - family comes first as Dynasty gets a face lift for the '90s

ABC is scheduled to present "Dynasty: The Reunion" on Sunday, Oct. 20, and Tues. Oct. 22, from 9-11 P.M. each night.

Joan Collins didn't complain when she was bruised filming a catfight rematch between her super-bich character, Alexis, and Linda Evans' sweet Krystle on "Dynasty: The Reunion." But on the final day of shooting, she did become a bit testy. Pointing to the ridiculous purple outfit she was given to wear for a scene, she groused: "I do not like this suit- it's too cheap. It doesn't fit properly!"

Then she delivered a perfect Alexis put-down: "They're trying to economize," she sniffed.

With its $9-million price tag, 42 new Nolan Miller costumes and the rental of a $39-million beux-arts mansion for the Carringtons to call home, it seemed a bit far-fetched for anyone to call this production chintzy. however, by definition, this scaled-down version of the opulent prime-time soap known for its campy excess and larger-than-life characters is an economy package. Fans of the show will get only four hours of glitz and glamour the year, compared with an average of 26 episodes per year telecast during its eight-year run. The three top stars, too, are taking home less pay than they made before.

It's no surprise that they producers are hedging their bets in bringing 'Dynasty' back to television. After all, given the circumstances of the show's demise in May 1989 - amid declining ratings and reports that the prime time soap was dead - no one is really sure whether viewers care a fig anymore about what happened to Krystle, Blake, Alexis and the rest of the Carrington clan.

Because the producers weren't given sufficient notice that the final episode of the '88-'89 season would in fact, be the show's last, it abounded with the usual end-of-the-season cliffhangers. When last we say Alexis, she'd just taken a tumble from a hotel balcony. Billionaire Blake Carrington [John Forsythe] lay shot and bleeding on the stairs of his mansion, and his wife, Krystle, lingered in a coma in Switzerland. While it's true that aggrieved fans wrote in by the thousands after that episode aired, complaining about the loose ends, the question remains: will those same fans attend the reunion this week?

Co-creators Esther and Richard Shapiro promise this movie will more than make up for the series' sloppy exit two years ago. All the loose ends will be neatly tied up - and, if the ratings justify it, a new Dynastic succession just might emerge. The Carrington saga could return as a two-hour sequel once or twice a year.

For the series to survive as a recurring movie, however, the Shapiros realized that It would have to change with the times. Once considered the perfect reflection of the greedy "Me" decade of the '80s, 'Dynasty' has been revamped to reflect the "Kinder, gentler." recession-plagued '90's.

For starters, oil baron Blake Carrington and his family are laid low with financial, political, legal, and health problems. "Blake's experiences parallel those of the tycoons who lost companies and tremendous amounts of money," says Shapiro. "Unlike the '80s, where the trappings were more important, bringing his family back together means more to him than getting his company back." That's not to say that he can't try for both. In the process, two love triangles (echoes of Donald and Marla in one) take shape, and a familiar character becomes a "Manchurian Candidate" of sorts.

More action is packed into these four hours - wilder car chases, great James Bond-style fights with agents of a foreign company that's buying up America - and more humor. Another major difference: the characters are older and, in some cases, wiser. "We catch up with them three years later," explains Shapiro.

"Alexis is more mellow," admits Collins. She actually forms her first real friendship with a woman. Her taste in men, however, is as bad as ever. She'll fall for the ruthless head of an international consortium (Jerome Krabbe, the villain in the 1987 Bond Film, "The Living Daylights"). In another '90s twist, Steven Carrington (Al Corley), now an environmental lobbyist, finally accepts his homosexuality. Sammy Jo, "Is the same old bad old Sammy Jo," explains Heather Locklear.

The more things change, the more they star the same, apparently. Shapiro guarantees that the appeal of the old 'Dynasty' - its campy characters - will not be lost. She is determined not to make the same mistake that her former rival, 'Dallas', did in its wrap-up show. "More than half the show focused on guest star Joel Grey." says Shapiro.

One big factor working against the success of this 'Dynasty' double-header is the World Series, which will be telecast opposite it. "I'm praying for rain," says executive producer Aaron Spelling. ABC executives are betting that the show's many female fans will opt for soap suds over sluggers, no matter what the weather report says.

Back to Archives Menu