Season 8 was not bad but it wasn’t that great either. At least the writers found a way to have Blake and Alexis at each other’s throats (not literally this time) by having Blake running for governor and then having Alexis join the race just to make sure he loses. There was greater focus on the younger characters this season although some of the storylines were either predictable or disappointing (in that they could have done more with it). Finally, there was Sean Rowan who was too prominent in the season.
The season was more streamlined than the few before that - fewer characters and episodes. That formula did work as the season did not feel to drag on and on like Season 7. Storylines moved quickly and you did not get the feel that the writers made a hard shift change halfway through the season (as they did in Seasons 6 and 7).
The season finale was just okay. I did like Fallon seducing Jeff just before Sammy Jo arrived to accept Jeff’s marriage proposal. You just knew that Steven was going to leave again - you could see it coming from mid-Season 7. Dana turning on Adam guaranteed Karen getting custody of their child. It was obvious that Sean would be the one killed when the gun went off between he and Dex. The writers were not willing to have Blake win the governor’s race but did leave a bit of room to have Blake win a recount if the writers of Season 9 so chose. Finally, you have Krystle just leaving with Blake exasperated that he thought they had more time. Oh, I forgot poor Leslie - left in that cabin never to be heard of again.
I will end on one positive - the more recently I watch this season, the more I actually liked it. If you would have had me rank the season 5 years ago, Season 8 would be last, but now it has moved up a spot.
The season was not that bad
Highlights
The return of Fallon and Jeff to Denver. I also liked that Jeff and Fallon’s marriage fell apart over the UFO thingy and pairing Jeff with Sammy Jo. Meanwhile, Emma Samms finally came into her own as Fallon near the end of the season (and more so in Season 9).
The governor’s race - as noted before this actually allowed conflict again between Blake and Alexis. It was only natural that Blake would eventually run for office though I did find it interesting that the oil baron chose the environment as his main issue. Meanwhile, it is only natural that Alexis would challenge him and have the horror of wearing pastels as here main issue.
I did like how Steven was treated this season as he tried something new (running the football team) but continued to feel isolated in Denver (from his odd relationship with Sammy Jo to his running of Denver Carrington). Along with this, Josh Harris was an entertaining character - it was a shame they killed him off though an overdose.
Lowlights
Sean Rowan - I can never complain enough about this. I mean what are the odds that Alexis would happen to drive her car off a bridge right where Joseph’s son (that we did not know about) happened to be to rescue her. Alexis was so grateful that she pursued him, married him and gave him control of Colby Co. But, Sean was not satisfied with that. He blackmailed Dana and convinced Karen’s husband to reenter her life (all as a way to get even with Adam). But, Sean was not done - he had to get involved with Leslie and tried to destroy Denver Carrington. He was quite busy.
Ruining Leslie - with the return of Fallon, there really was no need for a second young female character (sorry Sammy Jo), but did they have to make Leslie so ambitious. First, she goes after Jeff. Then, she ditches working for Dex (a pairing of those two would work) to become Alexis’s clone. When Alexis runs for governor, she becomes involved with Sean and ends up getting caught up in the kidnapping of Adam and Karen’s baby. It all ends with Sean viciously beating her and Steven promising to get her help.
The surrogacy - this storyline was ripped directly from headlines of the day (Baby M) so it was obvious what was going to happen when Adam and Dana decide to hire Karen to have their child. It may have worked better had Adam and Karen had some sort of spark (there did seem to be some chemistry). It also did not help that Dana was pretty much suffering the entire season (waste of her character).