"Dallas" is without question one of the most compulsively enjoyable television programs of all time. I watched it when it was first telecast and still watch the reruns.
Along with "Dynasty", "Dallas" defined '80s excess, Republican values, big hair and everything else. But "Dallas" was also a smartly written program, unlike "Dynasty", which was basically a cartoon (albeit a fun one). The miracle of "Dallas" was how it managed to retain it's major characters for nearly a decade, keep strong storyline pumping for them, unlike most soap operas, which drop characters left and right. But "Dallas" had some of the strongest-written characters in television history: ambitious J.R., dependant Sue Ellen, good-guy Bobby, prim-and-proper Pam, envious Cliff, unassuming Ray, and so many others, whose memory I cherish--Miss Ellie, Donna, Katherine, Mickey Trotter, etc....
Additionally, with the "Who Shot J.R.?" cliffhanger in 1980, "Dallas" created a new marketing tool the television continues to use to this day to retain audiences. Not just soap operas use the season ending cliffhanger; it's been effectively used by such shows as "Friends" and "Will & Grace" recently.
"Dallas" was for many years the most watched program on TV, and continues to be watched by devoted fans, many of them discovering its greatness thru reruns. One episode, and you'll be hooked, too.
