Picking Apart Cliff

[Frankie]

Cliff Barnes was, and still is, known as the "loser" of Dallas. But in the end was he the loser? I mean think about it, though he did get swindled out of Ewing Oil, he gained back his wife and daughter he's never known.
I think that in the end, Cliff did win.

Now to pick Cliff apart, Cliff was stubborn all through the entire run of Dallas. The times when Pamela and Bobby both told him that the more he fueled the fight between the Barnes and the Ewings, the more he'd get hurt, they both turned out to be right.

Cliff's passion and drive to bring down JR eventually caused him to live in lonliness and pain for many years. I think that in "JR Returns" when he sold Ewing Oil to Bobby that that was the symbol that he was finally finished with the Ewing/Barnes feud. It was time for him to get his life together.

I think that Cliff's passion to bring down the Ewings was just a way for Cliff to do right in his Daddy's eyes. I think that the reason the JR and Cliff never got along was probably that they had too much in common. They both had a passion to destroy the other and become more powerful and successful. I think that and Cliff's stubborness was what made him a very sad character.

[Pam Ewing]

I don't think Digger fully approved of Cliff's battle against the Ewings. Digger may have been bitter and a drunk, but he didn't spend his life trying to get revenge against the Ewings.

Cliff's battle against the Ewings came from his feelings of inferiority and his resentment at growing up poor watching the Ewings with all their money. Also, I think Pam marrying Bobby made Cliff even madder. A Ewing stole Cliff's sister. The Ewings got everything which should have been Cliff's also, in the end.

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Cliff:"You used to plot revenge against the Ewings"
Pam:"I think marrying one is the best revenge"

[Sanoahwolf]

Cliff Barnes was the epitith of the weaker species. He was stubborn right up to the end. He was bitter and he let his insecurties suffocate him. He was taught growing up that you hate your enemy. He was determined to ruin the Ewings for his and Digger's sake. He didn't have the money or the clout behind him and that just fueled his anger towards a family he despised. Bobby was right. His hatred of the Ewing's was a cancer eating away at him.

Cliff was abusive with the women he dated. Not physical but verbally. He treated his own sister with disrespect-the one who truly knew him inside and out and he trashed her time and time again. I guess that was his way of giving himself solace over what she did when she married a Ewing.

Cliff didn't have the street smarts it takes to be a high powered executive. He made way too many dumb mistakes. I can't believe that he wouldn't of had his team of geologists check out that that Oklahoma deal that J.R. set up for him. What kind of fool goes into a business deal with their eyes closed? CLIFF BARNE'S does!

There were some moments when Cliff seemed like a level headed person but unfortunately that was short lived. I'm glad for Cliff in the end that he realized that he was no match for a dinosaur like J.R.

Afton was the best thing to ever happen to Cliff and Mark Graison for that matter. Those two other than Pam saw Cliff and noticed the potential he had and tried to steer him down the right path.