Playing Chicken Recap: Dallas (TNT)

Boy Howdy! That Ann Ewing is a quick study, ain’t she? “Playing Chicken” (Dallas S3 E3) opens with Bobby and Ann going back to their car after learning that her ex-hubby, Harris Ryland, is working for the CIA and their daughter Emma has been threatened. Ann tells Bobby that’s what druglords do — go after family members. Bobby is just too nice to say “no shit, sugar.”

At Southfork, John Ross rustled up some Texas pancakes for Pamela. Not in the huge sense — one looked like the map of Texas. John Ross said pancakes don’t have to be round to be good and slathered some whipped cream on them, offering her “sweets for my sweet.” He pretended to accidentally spray some whipped cream on Pamela’s chest so he could lick it off, when who comes wandering by but little ol’ Emma. She flashes her red hot barely there swimsuit when Pamela’s back is turned and tells them to enjoy their breakfast. Sue Ellen peeks out from behind a nearby wall with a foreboding look.

After Bobby and ranch hand Nate check on the security of Southfork’s perimeter, they find out other workers are throwing a mutiny against John Ross. Bo and John Ross are throwing fists. Bobby tells John Ross this is what you get when you threaten a man’s livelihood, while promising the workers he will stop John Ross just like he stopped J.R.

While Sue Ellen and Ann discuss seating arrangements for the upcoming wedding reception for John Ross and Pamela), Sue Ellen just can’t keep her eyes off Emma pool-side. Ann tells Sue Ellen she’ll be sitting next to Afton at the reception and Sue Ellen doesn’t even notice. Sue Ellen admits she is distracted and confides her fear that Emma and John Ross are knocking boots. Ann isn’t as quick to get all huffy like she did when Sue Ellen warned her about Emma and the drugs.

South of the border down Mexico way, Christopher is paying a visit to Cliff Barnes, who is cool as a cucumber, enjoying the special privileges that money can buy crafty old codgers sitting in jail. Chris tells Cliff that he knows Nicolas Trevino’s cover story is bullshit and he’s going to find out what the real deal is. Cliff says he will be exonerated and be sprung. Chris reminds Cliff that he caused the deaths of his babies so he is right where he belongs. When he leaves, a young boy runs straight into him and apologizes, saying his friend is chasing him. The kid leaves with Christopher’s wallet and delivers it to a big dude in a car.

Nicolas Trevino pays a visit to Rhonda, the witness who helped implicate Cliff in J.R.’s murder. He offers Miss Rhonda $25 grand to recant. Even though he knows about the $20 grand she got off the Ewings, Rhonda doesn’t jump all over his offer so he gives her his card and a day to think it over.

As Ann stops by the pool to talk to Emma, John Ross strolls by and the looks that pass between those two while Emma vamps are not lost on momma. She comments on the skimpy suit and suggests Emma tone it down because, after all, John Ross is a man. She also wants Emma to stick close to home now that Harris is on the loose, but Emma doesn’t want to hear it. She’s 22 and in control of herself, not Harris, not Judith and damn sure not Ann. Well, that was rude. Emma stalks off and runs into Pamela who dumbly invites her to join her honeymoon shopping trip. Emma jumps at the chance to help with Operation Lingerie. Sigh. The wife is always the last to know!

Bobby and John Ross continue tactical maneuvers. Bobby buys lunch for the commissioner who has to approve John Ross’s permit to frack on Southfork. He tells Bobby he can’t deny it, the only good reason would be if there was some rare species the drilling might endanger. John Ross had a little chat with Bo who thought he was going to get fired. No, but he will get ratted out for drug dealing if he doesn’t convince the workers they will make a better living fracking.

Ann runs to Harris with her Emma worries, wanting him to tell Emma he’s on the right side of the law. Then, she reasons, Emma will trust him and stop acting out. Harris reminds Ann that he can’t trust Emma worth a damn. She had him put in jail, ‘member? Ann tells him Emma is sleeping with the enemy. After she leaves, Harris informs the dragon lady — uh, Judith — what’s going down and what it means. John Ross has the files Emma stole and he had some dirt on Judith in there, too, as his insurance policy, knowing she would turn on him. Judith sneers that he’s lucky her instinct for self-preservation is stronger than her instinct for revenge. She says we’ll find a way to compromise John Ross, “and by we, I mean me.”

Emma played Pamela like a fiddle while they shopped, asking how she knew John Ross was the one. Emma confides she has recently met someone, but it’s mostly great sex. Pamela says John Ross is epic in that department. Emma talks Pamela into getting something to try out on John Ross right away because she loves a good kiss and tell. Well, you just knew this spawn of Satan was going to sneak back an get the same thing and get to John Ross first in it, didn’t you?

Sue Ellen took Bum to lunch, trying to make him feel guilty because in her heart she knows Bum lied to her about John Ross and Emma. She says he knows he is a good man who regrets all the heartache he caused her when he kept his mouth shut about J.R.’s many extramarital flings. She says Pamela is a good woman who doesn’t deserve to go through that and offers a toast to John Ross and Pamela living happily and faithfully ever after. Bum was visibly uncomfortable, but he made the toast.

Later, while Bum talked business with John Ross, Emma breezed in. Bum expressed his disapproval but John Ross said Bum should work on getting Harris back in jail so he can stop sexing Emma up. Bum says it’s Judith John Ross should be worried about. “She wears the pants.” He questions Emma about it but Emma says she’s grandma’s little angel and John Ross brings out the devil in her. Undressing to reveal her sexy lingerie, she asks John Ross if he thinks green is her color. He says it is and it’s quickly becoming his favorite. Bum, in the meantime, hightailed it to Sue Ellen’s to admit that he lied and she was right about John Ross and Emma. Now did he do that because Sue Ellen made him feel guilty, or is he genuinely worried about John Ross.

Later, when John Ross went home, Pamela was setting things up for romance. Unpeeling her robe, she reveals the very same teddy in the very same color that Emma had on. John Ross begins to have flashbacks of Emma in it and can’t perform. He says he doesn’t feel well and heads to the shower. Now did he do that because he felt guilty or was he afraid Pamela would want to keep it on while they had sex, too?

Christopher’s search leads him to Eduardo Vega, a man who was partners with Nicolas Trevino, until Nicolas stole his drug patent and made his first $100 million. Steal isn’t quite the right word, because it turned out Nicolas’ actions were all legal, but underhanded all the same. Nicolas always wins, Vega says, but Nicolas isn’t really Nicolas. He gives Christopher a file that proves Nicolas didn’t even exist until 1997, and advises Christopher to find out who he really is.

At the gun range, Elena has no trouble getting an employee to let her look at the security footage with a bogus story of her man cheating on her at their place. A waste of her time since all the footage from the dates she needs is gone with the wind. She relates this to Nicolas while they still wait for Rhonda’s call. Nicolas tries to relieve Elena’s stress with a shoulder rub that would have turned into more but Rhonda calls. The triumph Nicolas feels soon turns sour when Bobby Ewing steps out of the car Rhonda is standing by. Bobby tells Rhonda to tell Nicolas the truth and she repeats her initial story. Bobby crows that sometimes the truth hurts. Ruefully, Nicolas gives Rhonda the money and agrees, but allows that it will be interesting to see who it hurts worse.

Back at Southfork, Bobby drives up while John Ross gives a pep talk to the workers Bo has persuaded to join Team John Ross. Bobby has a rare Lesser Prairie Chicken in a cage and thoroughly enjoys explaining how that is going to affect the fracking. Checkmate — for now, anyhow.

The car with the baddies that the little boy gave Christopher’s wallet to pulls up just as our boy is leaving the hotel. They know he has been asking around about Nicolas and want him to get in the car. Why, Christopher wonders, would he do that? To get some answers, they say, and he gets in the car, no doubt realizing they weren’t going to take no for an answer anyway.

When Nicolas informs Elena that Rhonda ran to Bobby, she frets. Perhaps she should accept that the Ewings always win. But Nicolas has something else up his sleeve — his passion. He has never wanted a woman more than he wants her and he wants a chance to make her happy, if she’ll allow it. And why wouldn’t she? She will not only allow it, she will love it — for now, anyhow.

The scene cuts to Christopher being brought to the same compound that Elena went to when she wanted Joaquin. There he is introduced to Nicolas’ wife, Lucia, and their two ninos, where they all and live in fear under guard in the compound. Ay, caramba!