Season Finales: The morning after

[Jimmy Todd]

I've seen threads discussing the best and worst season and series finales of the 1980's soaps. However, I haven't one regarding the best season premiere after a dramatic cliffhanger.
After the buildup to the finale and then the summer wait, sometimes the first episode is exciting for the first few minutes as we learn if characters will survive burning buildings, explosions, shocking revelations, etc., but the rest of the episode could be a bit of a let down.
Which season premieres in your opinion kept the tension and intrigue going for the entire episode?
I would say the ones after JR was shot and after Valene was force fed pills by Jill.

 

[Snarky Oracle!]

I also felt that the season premiere for DALLAS' Season 7 (per DVD count) was particularly effective... The ranch in post-conflagration resignation, the show at its peak of creative maturity, and a new naturalistic cameraman (Bradford May) --- at the time it felt almost breathtakingly biblical!

 

[Jimmy Todd]

Yes, after a seamlessly plotted season six, they did a good job with keeping the tension going.
Now that I think of it the season premiere after Bobby's " death by dream" did a very good of keeping the urgency going.

 

[DallasFanForever]

The season premier after Bobby’s death is one of my favorite episodes. Just to see the fallout of everyone mourning him, Pam’s guilt, JR’s depression, Jenna’s grief, the funeral, Ray and Donna reconciling, Sue Ellen’s alcoholism battle, etc. I think it’s an extremely well written episode.

 

[Toni]

A couple of years ago I made a Top 10 video about this subject, including the 4 major supersoaps:

 

[darkshadows38]

there have been some really damn good season Finales but out of anything that i hate the most beyond anything is cliff hangers and i blame Dallas and who shot JR ? true that was a huge hit and very impactful and rightly so but it seems since than all tv shows damn near have to have one even comedies and its' really annoying as hell that they do that now. i mean there are countless tv shows that i ended up falling in love with that have been cancelled and it had a huge cliff hanger and though we later got a Season 3 Twin Peaks is a good example but that's the exception to the norm.