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they did do some weird music when the show was on the air didn't they? and even off the air as well apparently
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PlutoTV finally got out of that 'loop' they were in (airing only episodes 220-525-ish) and started airing Quentin/1897. I was so happy when I dropped in and saw the Collinses being thrown out of the mansion by Quentin's ghost.
Man oh man, I had forgotten how hammy the over-acting became in 1897. It's alternately cringe-worthy and hilarious (often within the same scene). It's hard to tear myself away from it, and yet I feel I ought not enjoy the scenery-chewing that much. "Oh, Sandorrrr!"
Man oh man, I had forgotten how hammy the over-acting became in 1897. It's alternately cringe-worthy and hilarious (often within the same scene). It's hard to tear myself away from it, and yet I feel I ought not enjoy the scenery-chewing that much. "Oh, Sandorrrr!"
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yeah i've said this before on how Lela Swift i dunno about all the directors would grade them on how shit like that i dunno why it' s not like it improved the show it didn't good writing helps a show or a film not overacting and when it's not your strong point and out of your normal range it's not good for the show yet they didn't think like that. i love Grayson Hall but when she played scared she was simply awful and it was very painful to watch especially when she was kidnapped during one time in the show i forget when it was yeah it's a chore to sit through to listen to her whine and cry.
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So I'm full-on in the leviathian storyline and at first I didn't understand why it was so despised as it was very creepy and mysterious... but now I'm starting to wonder if they're just being mysterious for the sake of being mysterious and if the writers even know where they're going with this. Nice to be back in the current day though.
The one positive is that I was genuinely surprised at a pretty bog-standard soap twist...
The one positive is that I was genuinely surprised at a pretty bog-standard soap twist...
... Paul Stoddard being back! 
I thought the show had forgotten and moved on from that "era" so it was nice that they used him.
I thought the show had forgotten and moved on from that "era" so it was nice that they used him.
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Unfortunately I've experienced a Dark Shadows burn-out. The last episodes I've watched (Barnabas terrorizing Dr. Hoffman) weren't the most entertaining ones, and then when Vicky disappeared into the past I just couldn't muster up the strength anymore to continue.
I still think about it every now and then - especially the good parts - therefore a return to Collinsport isn't off the table yet.
I still think about it every now and then - especially the good parts - therefore a return to Collinsport isn't off the table yet.
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They likely did not know when or how to end the Leviathan arc because it all hinged on how quickly (or slowly) they filmed the first movie. If the shooting of the film was delayed, then the main actors would continue to not be available for the daytime soap, meaning they'd have to pad out that atrocity even further. The show was suffering from the absence of so many of the main cast, so the producers were likely counting the minutes until the stars could return to the show full-time.
Paul Stoddard and Jason McGuire were thick as thieves (literally) back in the day, so I guess it stands to reason that they ended up looking so alike...
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honestly i do not mind that arc the only thing i didn't like was Barnabas turning evil again but if i recall the fans hated it as well so they wrote a shit ton of letters complaining about it so the writers had to make him good again! the power of the fans i suppose
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I thought it was obvious from the start that Barnabas was under the influence of the Leviathans, however I've noticed a shift where they suddenly have Barnabas fighting back (before that it was only Julia who could see through them because she was genetically immune to their powers) and the opening voice-over constantly pointing out that Barnabas is only acting the way he does because they have Josette captive (except they don't really - Josette is so boring that when Barnabas stopped her from jumping off a cliff, she decided to drink some poison instead).
ETA: yeah, they just re-wrote a bunch of stuff with newly recorded flashbacks.
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yeah that was rushed to please fans since by than he was the hero rather than the Villain so they had no choice but to change that. that storyline is hated by so many but i kinda like it, it's not among my most hated the one that really pisses me off the most is the last story line arc of the show and that's because it starts off quite strong i think than you had the show get cancelled and yeah it does have an ending but it was i think rushed cause they wanted the show to end i think on a certain date. and you know what? you can really tell that's exactly what did happen. it's not a spoiler for the story but if you get there i think you will see the flaws in it as well or rather when you get there. i also think they spent way to much time in the past having him go to the past and than to PT time different timelines. to me they were i think trying to copy the (1897) storyline arcs that they had that was going to be 3 months but it was such a damn hit they made it 6 months! honestly some of them were better than others one Character i just do not care for and that's Roxanne i do not remember when she joins the show but to me she's kind of a bland character to say the least.
when Amy And Chris Jenning's do leave the show they are missed i think, and really the only reason he left the show at all was health he took some LSD the actor who played him and reacted really really bad to it so much so that he ended up quitting acting and had mental problems if my memory is right for the rest of his life. the drugs he was on by doctor made him put on a lot of weight as well so if you see later photos of him that's why. Denise Nickerson though my guess is when she left the show at some point that's when she went to Film Willy Wonka in Germany. but i'm not sure on the timeline.
by the way i didn't mention any spoilers at all, just that when certain actors/actress left the show,
when Amy And Chris Jenning's do leave the show they are missed i think, and really the only reason he left the show at all was health he took some LSD the actor who played him and reacted really really bad to it so much so that he ended up quitting acting and had mental problems if my memory is right for the rest of his life. the drugs he was on by doctor made him put on a lot of weight as well so if you see later photos of him that's why. Denise Nickerson though my guess is when she left the show at some point that's when she went to Film Willy Wonka in Germany. but i'm not sure on the timeline.
by the way i didn't mention any spoilers at all, just that when certain actors/actress left the show,
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as i've said really the only reason it was cancelled and why they ended it they've admitted they ran out of ideas since they by than did remakes of old storylines by the end of the show they even admitted doing that. they did let's see Frankenstein, The Lottery, wolfman, dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. dracula of of course Barnabas.
they even put zombies in there as well. and witch craft as well they even did the picture of Dorian Gray as well. and i think a few others i may have missed so they did quite a lot by the time the show ended and i can see how they did run out of ideas.
they even put zombies in there as well. and witch craft as well they even did the picture of Dorian Gray as well. and i think a few others i may have missed so they did quite a lot by the time the show ended and i can see how they did run out of ideas.
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I think they burned through too much material too quickly. Had they interspersed the more supernatural plotlines throughout more "typically soap" plotlines in the modern era, they could have rationed out the material and left the viewer wanting more. Instead, they felt they had to keep pushing the wackier stuff because (I guess) they were afraid that more typical soap fare would cause too many people to lose interest.
I was watching the lead-up to 1897 (Quentin being released from the West Wing and his possession story with the kids) this past week and was amazed at how many sub-plots they had going at once. The show typically only had one "major" story going at a time, with perhaps one or two minor sub-plots brewing quietly. In this period every single episode (every single scene) had so much action going on that there seemed no time to "stop and breathe". I mean, Joe Haskell basically went insane right in front of us (all bug-eyed and jumpy), but there was so much happening with the whole Collins family, Maggie, Dr. Hoffman, etc. that he didn't even get a proper send-off. He'd seen Chris turn into a werewolf and tried to kidnap Amy to get her away from that house of crazy, but then just sort of wandered away from Collinwood and barely mentioned afterwards. I read elsewhere that he ended up in Wyncliff, but I don't recall the mention onscreen.
The choice to put plot movement into hyperdrive led to the characters not having as much depth. The decision to give 1897 another few months meant bringing in a veritable boatload of new, narrowly-drawn characters that displaced a lot of the main cast. I would have preferred more Collins family drama over the likes of Evan Handley, Timothy Shaw, Amanda Harris, and yet another Reverend Trask. I mean, some of the actors ended up playing two different characters within the 1897 arc at different points....but characters like Edward and Judith were supporting players onscreen even when their portrayers had top billing. As I mentioned elsewhere in another thread, people tune into soaps to watch favorite characters, not necessarily to see plots, so if your characters are not root-able and lack depth, the plots will not be as involving to the viewer.
I was watching the lead-up to 1897 (Quentin being released from the West Wing and his possession story with the kids) this past week and was amazed at how many sub-plots they had going at once. The show typically only had one "major" story going at a time, with perhaps one or two minor sub-plots brewing quietly. In this period every single episode (every single scene) had so much action going on that there seemed no time to "stop and breathe". I mean, Joe Haskell basically went insane right in front of us (all bug-eyed and jumpy), but there was so much happening with the whole Collins family, Maggie, Dr. Hoffman, etc. that he didn't even get a proper send-off. He'd seen Chris turn into a werewolf and tried to kidnap Amy to get her away from that house of crazy, but then just sort of wandered away from Collinwood and barely mentioned afterwards. I read elsewhere that he ended up in Wyncliff, but I don't recall the mention onscreen.
The choice to put plot movement into hyperdrive led to the characters not having as much depth. The decision to give 1897 another few months meant bringing in a veritable boatload of new, narrowly-drawn characters that displaced a lot of the main cast. I would have preferred more Collins family drama over the likes of Evan Handley, Timothy Shaw, Amanda Harris, and yet another Reverend Trask. I mean, some of the actors ended up playing two different characters within the 1897 arc at different points....but characters like Edward and Judith were supporting players onscreen even when their portrayers had top billing. As I mentioned elsewhere in another thread, people tune into soaps to watch favorite characters, not necessarily to see plots, so if your characters are not root-able and lack depth, the plots will not be as involving to the viewer.
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I do enjoy it when they forget about a storyline temporarily and then suddenly wake up and remember they should do something with it - this time it's Chris's werewolf mess of a storyline where suddenly Sabrina (who now can walk and talk, but still is rocking that grey hair) is desperate to help him and has aquired a moon flower for him to eat. And also, the cult leader/monster is now terrified of werewolves something that just came out of nowhere so I guess that's how they'll try and wrap up this mess?
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Chris and Tom were probably seven to ten years older than Amy. If the parents were old enough to have kids, how did their werewolf daddy keep the secret from them? Did he just take off and hide every full moon, his wife saying something along the lines of it being his time of the month? The age gap between the twins and Amy points to their parents being together a long time relative to keeping and maintaining such a secret.
Magda's werewolf curse was on Quentin and all his male descendants. Did they ever mention whether Chris's twin brother Tom (better known as a vampire during his short run) was a part-time werewolf on weekends, or is this a case of poor continuity? I know, I'm shocked to even write such a thing.
They mentioned in passing that the Jennings siblings (Chris, Tom, and Amy) were 'distant cousins' of Joe Haskell's, which means the Haskells must not have been very observant of what went on with their dad. I like the way they made the Jennings siblings into Collins cousins via Quentin, but then by extension, I guess this makes Joe a distant relative of the Collinses as well, even though he did not know it whole he was on the show. Unless that was what drove him over the edge...
Magda's werewolf curse was on Quentin and all his male descendants. Did they ever mention whether Chris's twin brother Tom (better known as a vampire during his short run) was a part-time werewolf on weekends, or is this a case of poor continuity? I know, I'm shocked to even write such a thing.
They mentioned in passing that the Jennings siblings (Chris, Tom, and Amy) were 'distant cousins' of Joe Haskell's, which means the Haskells must not have been very observant of what went on with their dad. I like the way they made the Jennings siblings into Collins cousins via Quentin, but then by extension, I guess this makes Joe a distant relative of the Collinses as well, even though he did not know it whole he was on the show. Unless that was what drove him over the edge...
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I think it was mentioned that his mother was a Collins descendant ie not affected by the werewolf curse, just like the female twin was the only surviving one. I assume that Chris was the first male born in a generation or so in that line.
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I recall the female twin of Jenny's survived, but then we get into the whole situation with birth-dating. If the twins were born even in late 1896, then I assume the girl twin was the Jennings' grandmother, and that she only gave birth to girls, one of whom was mother to Amy and twins Chris and Tom. Still can't figure how Chris had the curse but Tom apparently did not (other than the obvious retcon excuse). I hope the female descendants didn't inherit Jenny's hair. Now THAT would be a curse!
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Obviously, Tom should have had the curse per the show's logic, but they've pretty much forgotten he's existed.
I don't think the werewolf story and it connecting to 1897, the Collins family and now apparently being the mortal enemy of the Leviathans were pre-planned to put it mildly. They're very clearly making this up as they go along (which isn't the best way to plan a daytime drama, even if they have to be flexible).
I don't think the werewolf story and it connecting to 1897, the Collins family and now apparently being the mortal enemy of the Leviathans were pre-planned to put it mildly. They're very clearly making this up as they go along (which isn't the best way to plan a daytime drama, even if they have to be flexible).
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i can't argue with that them having so many storylines at once i can see how they got burnt out now that you mention it i guess that's another thing that separate them from the soaps of the day well more dialog compared to the soaps of the day and having a slew of different storylines at once lol
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It's very obvious that at one point they stopped doing long-term story projections - while it's true that back in the day they would have to often re-write due to audience/network demands, I think it's all to clear they had no idea what to do with the werewolf storyline beyond going through the MGM monsters library. Ron Sproat seems to get a lot of dislike from the fans who are mainly fans because they like the horror elements, but he seemed like the traditional soap writer who held back Sam Hall quite a bit and made him pace the story.