When Larry Hagman passed away while in the middle of production on Dallas‘ second season, fans were left to wonder how or even if the show could survive without its “Big Bad.” Hagman’s J.R. Ewing was certainly the villain we all loved to hate, but we knew that no matter who he was backstabbing and double crossing he was doing it to protect his family (not that that would condone that kind of behavior in real life, but his heart was in the right place). Hagman shot six episodes before he died, and you could tell that in the episode before J.R.’s shocking demise that the writers had to quickly tie up a whole lot of loose ends, most notably Anne’s arrest, trial and acquittal for shooting her ex-husband Harris Ryland, and the “poof, they’re gone” departure of Gary and Valene (back to Knots Landing to await their own reboot?).

When we learned J.R. had been shot — and for good this time — you could see the absolute anguish on the faces of the actors as they had to play those scenes of reacting to J.R.’s death, and having to react publicly for the cameras what they had already done privately with Hagman’s passing. It was painful to watch, but you knew you were seeing genuine emotion on the faces of those who had been working with him not only on this incarnation of the show but those who worked with him on the original series as well, particularly Patrick Duffy and Linda Gray.

Things are going to get a bit spoilery here, so turn back if you haven’t seen the finale yet. As the second half of the season unfolded, the brilliant writers managed to turn the tragedy into an exciting game of whodunit. Hagman’s passing allowed the writers to beef up Linda Gray’s role as Sue Ellen, putting what she learned from J.R. to good use, managing to twist and manipulate the governor of Dallas, who was working with Barnes and Ryland to steal Ewing Energies away from the family. We got to see John Ross come into his own, allowing Josh Henderson a chance to bloom outside of Hagman’s very long shadow. What the writer’s concocted as a way to deal with J.R.’s death will probably divide fans of the show, and I wasn’t sure if I was entirely pleased with the answer to the question, but seeing how the final minutes of the finale unfolded, I can’t think of a better way to have wrapped up the season.

I never for a minute thought that Cliff Barnes actually got his hands dirty in that Mexican hotel room, but J.R.’s master plan sure made it seem like Cliff was the one who finally took J.R. down. As it turns out, J.R. was dying of cancer, he knew Cliff was in Mexico, only had a few days left to live, so he had his right hand man Bum steal Cliff’s gun and shoot him as a way to cheat the death that was coming for him and to end the decades long Ewing/Barnes feud. Cliff was sitting pretty as he took ownership of Ewing Energies, but as Bobby set J.R.’s final plan into action, it wasn’t long before Cliff’s daughter was told her father knew she was on the drilling rig when he ordered the bomb set off which resulted in the deaths of her and Christopher’s unborn twins. It was easy at that point for John Ross to swoop in, marry her and gain control of her third of Barnes Global.

We also learned, after being teased that we might see Christopher’s mother, that Pam Ewing was indeed dead and Cliff had kept her death (also from cancer) a secret so Christopher wouldn’t inherit her third of the shares in the company. With two-thirds ownership of the Barnes and Ewing companies, and an elaborate ruse to get Cliff back to Mexico (thanks to his daughter) so that he could be arrested for the murder of J.R. with tons of evidence (which also resulted in the take-down of Harris Ryland and put the governor on a very short leash held by Sue Ellen), it seemed to everyone that Cliff Barnes was the killer, despite his passionate denial, but Christopher and John Ross still felt Bobby was hiding something from them.

Confronting Bobby at J.R.’s grave, they learned the truth that J.R. had set up Cliff, and Bobby, despite telling Cliff that he was not his brother, carried out the plan to have Cliff falsely arrested so they could end the long-standing feud. Bobby agreed to get Cliff out of the Mexican jail if he agreed to confess to his dealings with Ryland and the governor, but spending time in an American jail didn’t appeal to him either. Will the truth about what he had done cause Bobby to crack? Could this really be the end of the Barnes/Ewing feud? Is this the last we’ll see of Cliff Barnes? Will John Ross and Pamela live happily ever after?

Hardly! Dallas‘ last five minutes left our heads spinning as Cliff summoned Elena Ramos to Mexico to reveal to her that the land she and her brother had been trying and failing to drill for oil actually belonged to the Ewings and that the Ewing land was actually her father’s! J.R. had switched the deeds. The last we saw of Elena, she was paying a visit to someone named Joaquin, and it seems that Cliff has helped ignite a new feud with the Ewings (or are his deeds fakes?). J.R.’s plan, however brilliant on the surface, is sure to become unraveled in season three as Pamela find out that John Ross has been less than faithful, and that she helped frame her father — she planted (fake) evidence! — for a murder he did not commit. I think once she realizes how badly she’s been toyed with, the loss of her babies will become a distant memory as she and her father bring their feud back to a boil. It just wouldn’t be Dallas without a Barnes/Ewing feud!

Even with having to rejigger the second half of the season, the team behind Dallas has done a remarkable job retaining the spirit of the original show (and I love the cameos but I doubt we’ll have many more come the new season) while keeping it fresh and modern for new viewers. The second season proved the first season was not a fluke, and I am anxiously awaiting season three. Here’s hoping we’re in for a nice long ride.

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