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Have you watched it all?
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Yes! I finished it in summer last year. I think you pretty much have to commit to watching at least one episode per day to finish it to be honest. Otherwise I'd just feel lost where I left off.
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I was binge watching it usually in the autumn and winter. When my mum passed away everything was put in storage and I don't think I have watched anything since maybe 2021. I don't think I was even that deep in it though. I remember Barnabas was living up at the old house and Dr Hoffman was supposedly working a cure for his vampirism. I would need to go back in this thread and see where exactly I left off.
However as of this year I have been pretty much devoting my time to vintage The Bold & The Beautiful and I am really enjoying it. So Dark Shadows is likely going to have to wait a while.
I come from a Dark Shadows family so I always knew about the show and the story. I saw the original movie way too young and then the 90s revival as it aired. I’d never seen the full series only random episodes here and there. It was my mom‘s favorite show growing up and I was missing her and thought it’d be a fun way to celebrate her. I started watching it late 2019 and finished in 2021 due to the pandemic.
It is a brilliant show. There were definitely some storylines I didn’t care for, the Leviathan of it all being a prime example. Like most soap operas I love, it was all about the women for me. The guys were fun and attractive (Don Briscoe is my DS boyfriend lol) but no where as exciting as Angelique, Dr. Julia Hoffman, Elizabeth, or Carolyn.
I tell anyone who is a fan of television history and acting to watch because it’s such a preserved in amber type of relic. It shows acting styles and storytelling styles that are no longer in use, it’s fascinating in that respect. Of course the technical mistakes and actor flubs only add to the camp of it all.
It is a brilliant show. There were definitely some storylines I didn’t care for, the Leviathan of it all being a prime example. Like most soap operas I love, it was all about the women for me. The guys were fun and attractive (Don Briscoe is my DS boyfriend lol) but no where as exciting as Angelique, Dr. Julia Hoffman, Elizabeth, or Carolyn.
I tell anyone who is a fan of television history and acting to watch because it’s such a preserved in amber type of relic. It shows acting styles and storytelling styles that are no longer in use, it’s fascinating in that respect. Of course the technical mistakes and actor flubs only add to the camp of it all.
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It's funny, but I so often see Dark Shadows fans point to the Leviathan storyline as being their least favourite, but to me it wasn't too bad. Sure there were plot holes in it you could drive a truck through and obviously got re-written as they went along, but it had good moments. I think my two least favourite times on the show is fall of 1968 (they tried to do too much at the same time) and then parallell times - mostly because they never felt connected to the Collins' as we knew them. They never really justified why it was so important for Barnabas to go to PT in the first place and if they can't come up with a reason for him to care, then why should we viewers? I'm slightly more forgiving about the 1840 PT as it kind of ends up feeling like a spin-off as they wrapped the main story of the Collinses up.
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Big drama at Collinwood: Barnabas shoots his wife Angelique.
That sounds more exciting than it looks, nevertheless, according to a DS fandom website (forgot which one) this is considered the most favourite episode of the entire series.
But how is that possible when Victoria Winters isn't even in it??
And is Josette really going to leave Collinsport? Isn't she going to jump off Widow's Hill?
That sounds more exciting than it looks, nevertheless, according to a DS fandom website (forgot which one) this is considered the most favourite episode of the entire series.
But how is that possible when Victoria Winters isn't even in it??
And is Josette really going to leave Collinsport? Isn't she going to jump off Widow's Hill?
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Oooh this is really fascinating, Josette and the Countess have discovered the book that describes their future history.
If they can change the history based on what they know from the book then it also changes everything in modern-day Collinsport. Everything Barnabas has told - and what has motivated him to do the things he did - would have to be retconned. And it's all Angelique's fault!
What a great show to watch on a rainy, windy dark evening.
If they can change the history based on what they know from the book then it also changes everything in modern-day Collinsport. Everything Barnabas has told - and what has motivated him to do the things he did - would have to be retconned. And it's all Angelique's fault!
What a great show to watch on a rainy, windy dark evening.
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To me, it's always the vampire stuff that is the least satisfying part of the story, and Barnabas and Ben have become the 18th century equivalent of Barnabas and Willie Loomis. Ugh!
But there are some nice surprises in the alternative characters.
I liked the scenes in which Josette (of all people) turns against Victoria, and sweet reliable Joe Haskell's Lt. Nathan Forbes turns out to be a two-timing opportunist.
And that's much soapier than those endless scenes in the cemetery.
But there are some nice surprises in the alternative characters.
I liked the scenes in which Josette (of all people) turns against Victoria, and sweet reliable Joe Haskell's Lt. Nathan Forbes turns out to be a two-timing opportunist.
And that's much soapier than those endless scenes in the cemetery.
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And for a moment I thought Vicky's helpful prison guard was played by a young Matthew Blaisdel!
Reverend Trask is awful, he speaks - well, shouts - every line in exactly the same way. "Wooden" doesn't even begin to describe it. Having said that, he looks kinda hot in an OTT gothic way, and appearance-wise he would have made a much more convincing Barnabas. As in, the Barnabas who is wanted by two gorgeous women.
Ideally, he would have been played by David Selby.
Reverend Trask is awful, he speaks - well, shouts - every line in exactly the same way. "Wooden" doesn't even begin to describe it. Having said that, he looks kinda hot in an OTT gothic way, and appearance-wise he would have made a much more convincing Barnabas. As in, the Barnabas who is wanted by two gorgeous women.
Ideally, he would have been played by David Selby.
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Like, forever?
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I would get comfy with him if I were you yes.
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Makes Lady Ashley Mitchell look like a Meryl Streep performance by comparison.
Damn you DARK SHADOWS!
Damn you DARK SHADOWS!
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Oh no! Suki has already been killed off!
I found it refreshing to see such a practical and confident character, and the leisurely bitchiness in her voice reminded me of Bernadette Peters.
I really wanted her and Nathan to become a super-scheming couple but that's not possible anymore. Dammit.
I found it refreshing to see such a practical and confident character, and the leisurely bitchiness in her voice reminded me of Bernadette Peters.
I really wanted her and Nathan to become a super-scheming couple but that's not possible anymore. Dammit.
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Joseette...Joseeeette.....Joseeeeette....come to meee....Joseeeette...whooooh....
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Like Mr. Fly did in that famous scene. Trask is off on one of his hellfire-and-brimstone monologues and that fly just will not go away! I fully expected him to fly right down Lacy's throat. I actually prefer Trask and his doppelgangers to Lacy's half-hearted Humphrey Bogart impersonation back in 1967 though.
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I admire daytime soap actors for putting so much energy in these relentless storylines, but Nancy Barrett really ups the ante, imo.
At long last, Vicky's witch trial. Within 10 seconds everybody's kicking and screaming. Peter Bradford, the prison guard/Vicky's romance friend is also the defence lawyer.
Is Ben going to tell the truth about Angelique? Will Nathan be able to convince Millicent? At this point almost everybody has seen Barnabas and yet they keep telling each other that it isn't possible.
If Joshua Collins mentions the "perfectly logical explanation" one more time I'll scream.
At long last, Vicky's witch trial. Within 10 seconds everybody's kicking and screaming. Peter Bradford, the prison guard/Vicky's romance friend is also the defence lawyer.
Is Ben going to tell the truth about Angelique? Will Nathan be able to convince Millicent? At this point almost everybody has seen Barnabas and yet they keep telling each other that it isn't possible.
If Joshua Collins mentions the "perfectly logical explanation" one more time I'll scream.