‘Dallas’ Bids Farewell to J.R. Ewing Monday Night

Can second-year returning soap Dallas survive without the machinations of diabolical old J.R Ewing? Monday night should give us some answers. J.R. died last week under mysterious circumstances. Actor Larry Hagman died Nov.23, 2012 having filmed only a handful of episodes.

He was able to get this somewhat unlikely second act of Dallas going, but it’s hard to imagine Southfork without Hagman. Even with his death and the resulting publicity, the Season 2 premiere drew just under 3 million viewers. Its 2012 summer premiere pulled in 6.9 million viewers.

Tonight’s episode is the funeral, and the beginning of  “Who Shot J.R. – Again.” If numbers don’t spike for this episode, it probably does not bode well for the show’s long term prospects. Many series regulars will return to pay their final respects. Cliff Barnes, who doesn’t respect J.R. in the least, will appear also.