“There are two things you’ve got to know. One is that I think he’s slightly mad.”
And we’re back! Yesterday’s Dark Shadows episode was recorded three weeks out of sequence, and slotted into place in order to signal an upcoming storyline course correction. This is a situation that does not occur in nature.
They had this idea, you see, where Barnabas Collins, the main character of this daytime creeps machine, would suddenly swear allegiance to some kind of interplanetary invasion force of shapeless pre-prehistoric essence, which is plotting to replace the human race with a population of quick-growing four-headed snake monsters. Or something. It’s hard to explain, which I guess is the problem.
The kids who hang around outside the studio door after school said that a) they didn’t understand the storyline, and b) they wouldn’t like it even if they did, so the producers said I know what let’s do, let’s make a special episode where we explain that Barnabas doesn’t really want to be doing all the things that he’s been doing lately, and stick it in three weeks early, to signal to the audience that we’re aware that our story doesn’t make any sense, and we’ll change it as soon as we can. And then they went ahead and did it.
What I’m saying is, that’s a really not-normal way to run a television show, especially a high-rated show like Dark Shadows. Yes, the ratings have been slipping a bit since they started the Leviathan story, but that’s coming down from an all-time ratings peak that they hit only two months ago. There’s still a lot of people watching this show.
So what just happened was that the main character of a television show went to sleep, had a dream where the show apologized for the current storyline, and then woke back up and continued on as usual. I can’t think of anything to compare that to. That’s an approach that begins and ends with Dark Shadows.
And now, back to our show. Barnabas’ former bestie, Dr. Julia Hoffman, is suspicious, and getting suspiciouser. She’s that most valuable of players, the smart character, who sees through everybody’s transparent lies, and forces the story to move forward another step. We love her for that, and for so many things, and that’s why yesterday’s apology tour hinged on the idea that the Leviathans wanted her dead. Barnabas refused, of course, because that would be televisual suicide. Julia Hoffman must live.
Still, the Leviathans can’t just ignore the problem, because it would make them look even less competent than they already do, so they’ve got one of their best people monitoring the situation — Elizabeth Collins Stoddard, wealthy matron and secret Leviathan sympathizer.
“Elizabeth, there is definitely a connection between the three children,” Julia announces. “I’m sure of that now, because of that birthmark! If it didn’t completely defy logic — I would say that all three children were one and the same!”
And obviously, that’s exactly correct. Julia doesn’t worry about defying logic; that’s what she does for a living.
One nice thing about this storyline is that it gives the actors a lot of latitude to express what it’s like to be forcibly inducted into the Leviathan conspiracy. Some of them act like they’re hypnotized, while others are just in a bad mood. Some alternate between barely-controlled hysteria and an icy raised eyebrow. Elizabeth has decided to stand around and look like a stuffed frog. These are all valid acting choices.
“There is only one course of action!” Barnabas says, as Liz goes into her frog routine. “Julia Hoffman must become one of us!”
“Yes, she must,” Liz agrees. The Leviathans are always breaking off into dyads like this.
Barnabas says, “I’ll meet you in Collinwood, and give you the necessary instructions.” It’s not clear why he doesn’t just give her the instructions right now, since they’re alone and Collinwood is only a ten-minute walk away. He just doesn’t, that’s all.
Now, it’s all very well to say, “Julia Hoffman must become one of us,” but the show’s been struggling lately to define a consistent onboarding system.
David became a Leviathan by opening a book; just one look at a picture of the four-headed snake altered his entire outlook. On the other end of the scale, Barnabas got the four-star deluxe gold elite package, which involved beverage service, and means that he can get on the airplane ahead of people with premier gold star member select. But Barnabas and David both ended up in leadership roles, so I’m not sure what the procedure is supposed to be.
With Julia, Barnabas tries a mix of the Amy approach — a light stroke of the cheek — with the Liz approach — a hypno-suggested dream sequence. It’s not clear whether any of these mind-domination abilities are related to his old vampire powers, or if they just come with being the head of the conspiracy. But I suppose I could fill up every blog post for the next several weeks just with sentences that start, “It’s not clear”. It might come to that.
So it’s off to bed for another crazy dream sequence, which begins with an introductory voiceover as the lightning flashes in Julia’s braincase. And you know what lightning and thunder means, right? Somewhere in New York, a vampire is counting.
Barnabas: You will believe, Julia! Someday soon, you will believe! Then you and I shall be close once more, as we were long ago. We need you, Julia — we need the resources of your mind! Come to us!
Which is actually kind of sweet, as hypnotic brainwashing techniques go. He wants them to be friends again, and he values her skills. He’s not just trying to shut down the oppo research that she’s been doing; he knows that the Leviathans will be better off with Julia on board. This might be one of the nicest things he’s ever said to her.
In the dream, Julia and Barnabas meet up in the drawing room, and he offers her his spooky mystery box with all the subtlety of Donald Trump’s late-campaign outreach to minority voters.
You were fascinated with this box the first time that you saw it. Year after year, failure after failure, worse numbers after worse numbers. You’re living in poverty, your schools are no good, you have no jobs. Crime at levels that nobody has seen. Go on, Julia! Open it, and look inside!
Look, it’s a disaster the way you’re living, in many cases, and I say it with such a deep-felt feeling: Just turn the key, and open it!
We’ll bring jobs back. We’ll bring spirit back. We’ll get rid of the crime. You’ll be able to walk down the street without getting shot. Right now, you walk down the street, you get shot. Look at the statistics. We’ll straighten it out. It’s too late to run now, Julia! What do you have to lose? Seriously, I’m asking. What the hell do you have to lose?
Well, naturally, Julia’s too smart to fall for that; all those resources of her mind have to be good for something.
When she wakes up, and Liz offers her the box irl, Julia hesitates — and then there’s a knock at the door, and she rushes off to answer it, sorry, wrong number. You can keep your weird conspiracy theories and your crummy old box. No sale.
For some live on-the-scene analysis, here’s Barnabas Collins and a stuffed frog. “There are certain people,” he explains, “whom we are unable to absorb. It has to do with their genetic structure — and Julia Hoffman is one of them!”
Yeah, it’s called being smart. I know you Leviathan types think that the world used to be better the way it was, back when it was just darkness and essence, and you want us all to follow that obnoxious child that calls himself your leader. You think that your kind of people are the best, and it’s natural for you to rule over everybody else. And when something happens that you didn’t expect — like people being smart enough to figure out how deranged and repulsive you are — you invent new excuses about how everything is rigged against you.
Well, Leviathans, I don’t know what to tell you, but Julia Hoffman is not going to become “one of us.” She’s her own person. And you know what? I’m with her.
Tomorrow: The Spoon.
Dark Shadows bloopers to watch out for:
There are several faint coughs from the studio during Liz and Julia’s last few lines in act 1.
Chris says that there’s a full moon tonight, and Julia says, “Well, I’ll drive you back to Windcliff,” as if the problem is that he doesn’t have a car. How do they keep his transformations a secret in a presumably fully staffed sanitarium?
Chris and Julia both short-circuit in the middle of a scene. Adorably, Julia covers her fluffed line by messing with Chris’ coat.
Chris: I still don’t see what it has to — what good it can possibly do me.
Julia: Oh, Chris, I have – I have – I have no reason, I have no real control over — over time, I can only do what I can.
There’s a remarkable camera move near the beginning of act 2, which I can’t really describe. It happens during Barnabas’ line, “You’re really determined to solve his problem, aren’t you?”
Footnote:
When Amanda enters the hotel suite, Quentin says, “Well, there she is — our own little Jenny Lind! Come on now, Jenny, sing me a song!” The reference is to Jenny Lind, a Swedish opera singer who went on a very popular American concert tour from 1850 to 1852. I know, you can look things up on Wikipedia too; I just figured I’d save you some time.
Tomorrow: The Spoon.
— Danny Horn
Dark Shadows Every Day 
But is Elizabeth Collins Stoddard a “wealthy widow” at this point? Richard Garner oversaw her divorce proceedings during the Jason McGuire story line, but they haven’t killed off Paul Stoddard yet, have they?
It’s ironic how Sam Hall, the writer credited with saving Dark Shadows at one time, considered on more than one occasion having the Julia character killed off.
The Jenny Lind Polka sounds traditional enough a period piece with an accordion…
…but personally I’ve always favored the mandolin renditions.
You’re right, I jumped the gun on wealthy widow a few weeks early…
Hang on I’ve heard this before!
They play it Vincent Price’s The Wax museum- period appropriate I guess.
I’m with her too.
American Gothic by way of Collinsport:
“And you know what lightning and thunder means, right? Somewhere in New York, a vampire is counting.”
I swear, one of these days, I’m going to be minding my own business, casually reading this blog, and I’m just going to burst out laughing and have a heart attack and die. There are worse ways to go, I suppose.
And then I get to Prisonerofthenight’s wonderful graphic and start up all over again.
“Stuffed frog”…hoo boy. Exactly.
Vun! Vun Leviathan! Ah hah hah haaaa!
Two! Two Leviathans! Ah hah hah haaaa!
Three! Three Leviathans! Ah hah hah haaaa!
Four! Four Leviathans! Ah hah hah haaaa!
🙂
code to the Coda.
I loved that blooper where Grayson Hall forgets what she is saying and fiddles with Don Briscoe’s coat too. She actually looks really frustrated or annoyed with herself or something. As though persecuting the coat will make the lines come back.
“These are all valid acting choices.”
Well who’s going to argue with Grayson Hall? Not me. I bet Don Briscoe wasn’t either. He probably just offered her a toke of his joint.
Chris says that there’s a full moon tonight, and Julia says, “Well, I’ll drive you back to Windcliff,” as if the problem is that he doesn’t have a car. How do they keep his transformations a secret in a presumably fully staffed sanitarium?
…he /bores/ ’em all to sleep before he makes the change…
Sorry, Danny – I know you like Don Briscoe. Matter of taste…
Maybe people screaming in locked rooms is the norm at the Windcliff insane Asylum?
And here I was, thinking ‘Il Duce’ Trump was the only one who looked like a stuffed frog.
Guess Julia asked herself, “What will I have to gain?” Then ran for the door.
Jenny Lind was also mistress to P.T. Barnum(founder of the circus) as popularized in the stage musical Barnum. Fitting in that she was the careless fling of an imfamous and arrogant trickster.
I always think of this as such a sad period because of Julia trying to help Chris all by herself.
Hey, what’s Professor Stokes doing that HE can’t help Chris? Do-it-yourself plastic surgery on Adam? Stokes seemed helpful enough with the whole painting story…
Well, now you’ve ramped up my anxiety level even further: come the November election, we may all wake up and discover we are Leviathans!
Want some SCARY?
I was visiting my mother in hospital, heard a woman in the hall outside chatting with a nurse. The woman (a Dallas native, 86 years young) made this terrifying statement.
“I’m going to vote for Trump. He’s a jackass, but maybe…that’s what we need.”
I wanted to go and ask when it’s ever been an advantage to have a jackass as leader of a nation.
She’s 86!!!!
What the Hell has she got to LOSE?????
Wow. Gives me chills reading this in 2017.
Same here. Now, at this perspective in time, we HAVE all proven to have lost our respect as a nation due to such a jackass-in-charge. And the chills keep on coming.
Try it in 2020. Approaching 200,000 dead and the administration is fine with it because hey, most of them were brown people anyway.
2022 says we can keep this going until the indictments roll in.
2023 here. No indictments yet, but there’s hope. To all the 2016ers, it’s going to suck for a long time, but hang in there…
Later in 2023, here. Finally some indictments.
That gear change episode reminds me of how they brought Bobby Ewing back to Dallas after he’d been dead a whole year. In the season opener, Pam woke up from dreaming he was dead and found him alive and smiling in the shower.
And we fans were just expected to accept that the entire previous season never happened.
One of the biggest disappointments that I had with the L-story was how Chris was backburnered. Even Quentin didn’t get a lot of airtime. It was all Michael and (Spoiler) and Liz acting faux-evil.
Chortling, as I hear an eighteenth century ex-vampire talking about somebody’s “genetic structure”. Has Barnabas been reading Julia’s medical journals?
Yes, when he wasn’t studying for his driving test.
“Yes, it’s called being smart…”
Really? Julia has been acting like an idiot for the past month. She tried to conduct a seance with Quention using David as bait, then later snuck Quentin into Collinwood. She knows there is some sort of conspiracy, but has managed to tipp off her suspicions to Barnabas, Elizabeth, and Alexander/Michael. She knows something is wrong with Barnabas, but instead of tying to get close to him, she rather be the pouty ex-girlfriend. Yeah, great – she didn’t open the box this time. What about all of the other times that she desperately tried to open the box without a thought as to the consequences? How smart was that? At this point in the Leviathon storyline, Julia has been brave and resourceful. But, she has not been smart…not even close.
One other thing. With Quentin/Grant – so far she has argued with him, hypnotized him, snuck him into Collinwood and played a record for him, searched for a dead man, and played with her painting. The one thing she has not done is get in her car, drive an hour to Grant’s KNOWN address in Portland, ME and see what’s there. Now, how smart is that?
Why, oh why, did Julia think it was a good idea to confide in Elizabeth?
Liz is wearing a green and purple dress. Julia should recognise super villain colour schemes when she sees them!
The coiled snake broach that Elizabeth wears in some scenes (not sure about her scene with Julia here) should be a dead give away.
Liz’s snake broach from episode 918.
Exactly! As soon as I saw that dress I thought, uh oh. Danger, danger, warning, warning!
Hey, what about when Julia takes a swig of brandy in the teaser–has Grayson Hall ever gone through that many acting faces in one second?
More bloopers: During Julia’s dream when Barnabas brings the Leviathan box to her, after the front doors of Collinwood spring open, a creaking sound effect occurs after they are open. The same thing happens after the drawing room doors swing open to let Julia enter.
When Julia answers the front door at Collinwood and Chris is there, Chris says, “Well, you asked me to meet you here at three [in the afternoon], remember?” But outside it is pitch dark.
Grayson Hall flubs a line when talking to Olivia: “I discovered this under my landscape. You knew it was there, didn’t it?”
Although this is broadcast at the end of December–and it has generally been established in the show that the broadcast date is the date being portrayed–Julia leaves Collinwood with Chris and arrives at the Collinsport Inn to see Olivia and Grant with no coat on. (And, as usual, the leaves are green.)
It’s always pitch dark outside the main doors, though. My husband and I call it The Woods of Eternal Night.
The unstated but important implication of Grant’s drunken reference to Jenny Lind is that when he gets liquored up, Grant definitely becomes Quentin who would be more likely to come up with a reference to 19th century celebrity Jenny Lind than your average mid-20th century man would.
Plus, his dead wife is named Jenny who could also warble a nice lullaby.
Why does no one talk about the full-on view of the plywood back of the set we get as we leave Olivia’s room?
It’s kind of a letdown when Barnabas explains that Julia’s resistance is due to genetics. Give credit where credit is due: it’s WILLPOWER, baby! (Cue “Lady Willpower” by Gary Puckett & the Union Gap)
I see you’ve apparently decided not to recap Julia’s visit to Charles Delaware Megaphone. I can’t say I blame you but I thought Davis’s absurd “diabolical” laughter near the end might merit a line or two. The set where the encounter took place looked like a redress of Evan Hanley’s living room.
I agree with the comment above that Julia’s Will should’ve been what broke the spell, not that she’s genetically disposed to do so.
The Leviathans must not be allowed to indoctrinate Julia, unless of course she is to become their supreme ruler and queen, in which case where do I sign?