Dark Shadows Episode 222: Portrait of a Vampire

"The past and the present have intermingled at Collinwood." Victoria Winters goes to the Old House to find Barnabas, but finds Willie Loomis there. He says get out of this house right now. She says why should I. 

Victoria's response to learning that Willie is working for Barnabas fixing the old place up is sort of unusual. She is pleased how he has helped fix the old place up. Fearing perhaps for her safety Willie asks her to leave. 

As soon as she is gone Barnabas appears. 

Barnabas then visits Maggie Evans, who seems in a state of distress. She cannot shake the feeling that she is being followed. Barnabas tries to put her at ease and says he has come to commission a portrait of himself by Maggie's father, who is an artist. He arrives with the news that another local woman has been attacked. 

Barnabas offers Sam Evans $1000 to paint his portrait, but insists the work must only be done at the Old House, and at night. 

Sam Evans sets up his easel at the old house, and begins working. This is the first time Barnabas Collins has been in two consecutive episodes, or is it now three? I just was overtaken with the curiosity to know if that portrait of Barnabas Collins was on the wall in episodes of the show before he appeared as a character. 

At dawn Sam Evans says he has one more line to finish, but Barnabas says they are finished. He finishes the brush stroke and discovers Barnabas is gone, replaced by Willie Loomis who says he must return the following night to continue working. 

I think I will now go watch an episode previous to 210 to answer my previous question.  Pin It

Dark Shadows Episode 221: Barnabas Starts To Mingle

"Nightime in itself can be lonely. But then one gets used to loneliness. It's part of existence" says Barnabas Collins to Maggie Evans after he has surprised her at the cafe as she is closing. She invites him in to have a cup of coffee. She is quite surprised to learn he is a Collins. That is big news in Collinsport. 

Maggie Evans comments that Barnabas' cane is very unique, and probably valuable. He says it is his prized possession, and quite valuable. Then dogs, not wolves begin to howl, and Maggie Evans wonders why they are baying so much lately. Barnabas says he wonders, too, slyly.

After Barnabas leaves Joe Haskell shows up and says he and Maggie should go to the Blue Whale, but as he says it Maggie discovers Barnabas has left his cane at the cafe. Maggie says they should return it to Barnabas that night, and Joe agrees. Joe wonder why the dogs are kicking up such a fuss.

Sidenote: Think I might watch Mannix and ride my Schwinn Airdyne after this.

The door to the Old House opens, and Maggie and Joe enter. No one appears to be home. They notice the candles are burning and conclude someone must be there. Barnabas startles Maggie again, and Barnabas is surprised to learn Joe Haskell is with Maggie. They leave quickly, and Willie appears and questions Barnabas while they were there and what he plans to do with Maggie.

The episode concludes with Barnabas forcing Willie out to feed again, and Maggie Evans telling Joe Haskell she has the feeling that someone is staring at her, someone she can't see. 

At two episodes a night my rudimentary math skills tell me I have two years of this still to go.







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Dark Shadows Episode 220: Willie's Strong Now

Willie Loomis seems to be feeling a lot better. He no longer looks ghoulish.

Willie seems to have made a miraculous recovery, and agrees to leave Collinwood. First he tries to apologize to Victoria Winters and Elizabeth Stoddard, but his words fall on deaf ears. Jason gives Willie the $500 and tells him to go to town.

After Willie departs Barnabas arrives to ask Elizabeth Stoddard has given any more thought to allowing him to stay at the Old House. She says she has decided to allow him to stay there, and gives him the keys. They are old and rusty. Barnabas says he has plans to restore the house. Victoria is very interested in this possibility, and Barnabas says she can come by any time she feels like it.

Barnabas returns to the Old House to find he has a visitor. You'll never guess who it is. "This will be our home from now on.There will be much for you to do." 

A wolf howls. 



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Dark Shadows Episode 219: I'm Not a Doctor, But I Play One On TV

"A dawn obscured by mists from the sea slowly creeps towards Collinwood. Through the morning mist a man emerges from the darkest pit a man can know." Victoria narrates the introduction of episodes she's not in. I wonder if she will be the narrator for many future episodes. So begins episode 219 of Dark Shadows.

Willie appears at dawn. Through the front door. It makes me wonder why for such a large estate, why there aren't any other entrances one might sneak into. Jason McGuire is waiting to confront him. He wants to know one thing, and one thing only: why he went to the cemetery. Will he get an answer?

"You were looking for the jewels, Willie." Contrary to my hunch that Jason McGuire had caught on to the fact that Willie is a vampire, he believes he is simply in it to rob the jewels that are supposedly buried in Barnabas Collins' coffin.

Personal feeling: I am happy to be watching these episodes, but saddened to think I will very quickly remember almost nothing of what I have seen. I will use this blog as an external hard drive. Perhaps the experience of typing these blogs will help me remember. I went to Cub Scouts with Jack tonight and we built a birdhouse. I was completely unprepared for the experience, but I remained calm, and we managed to finish it. I was proud of us. Back to Dark Shadows.

Willie sees a way to deflect suspicion from his real malady and agrees he was looking for the jewels. Jason insists he will now leave town on the next bus. Willie insists he is sick and returns to bed.

Roger Collins confronts Willie in the early afternoon and demands he leave. He applauds Willie's "performance." He does not believe Willie is sick. Jason McGuire tries to convince Roger Willie is suffering from a strange illness, and they agree to bring in a doctor.

The sheriff calls wanting to see Roger Collins. But he will not mention why he wants to see Roger.

Jason calls the doctor.

What I learned: There IS a phone at Collinwood.

Roger's meeting with the Sheriff does not go as expected. He is told the animals from many local farms have been drained of blood. The reason Roger would be consulted is because the Collins family owns many of those farms. 

Meanwhile, the doctor gives his diagnosis of Willie. He is not sick. He is suffering from a loss of blood. An enormous loss of blood. Why the doctor doesn't consider this an illness makes no sense, but what am I, a doctor? 

The episodes without Barnabas Collins seem more like they exist more to move the story forward and provide details than anything else. This one was slightly dull. 








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Dark Shadows Episode 217: Willie's Mysterious "Illness"

Episode 217 of Dark Shadows begins with Willie Loomis writing in bed. Jason McGuire examines him, and the removes the bandage on his wrist. The wound appears to be no more than a scratch, but his arm has turned gray. It is as if the blood had been drained from his arm.

Carolyn tells Vicky that Willie looks like a different person, a person who doesn't want to hurt anyone, and doesn't want to be hurt by anyone.

"Don't let it get dark again. I'm scared."

Victoria brings Willie a tray of food, which he shows no interest in, and Jason McGuire witnesses him fall into a deep sleep. As he leaves the room Willie awakens. It is now dark. He goes to the window and seems to answer the call of some master who beckons him. Could it be?

Jason catches Willie trying to leave the new house and confronts him. Willie says he just has to leave this house. Jason tries to coax him back upstairs, but Willie bolts from the house.

Interestingly, we hear the sound of a car being started and driving off, but no car is seen. We then hear the sound of a car slowing down and someone getting out at the cemetery, but once again, no car is seen. 

Jason follows Willie to the cemetery and witnesses him entering the Collins family crypt. Willie trips the mechanism that open the door to the secret crypt where he first found Barnabas Collins' coffin. Jason follows.

Unable to find Willie in the small, enclosed crypt, Jason seems to become bewildered and frightened. He leaves the crypt and we hear the sound of heartbeats. 

This is two consecutive episode with no appearance from Barnabas Collins, instead focusing almost entirely on the "sickness" of Willie Loomis. I got an answer to my query about cars. Maybe they will be shown later in the series, and they're certainly in the two movies, but so far the action is confined to four locations. On to episode 218. 

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Dark Shadows 215: Is Willie Loomis a Vampire?

Episode 215 of Dark Shadows opens at the Blue Whale, where we learn that Burke Devlin has previously thrown Willie Loomis out of the place. Willie has disappeared again, however, and Burke and Jason McGuire find themselves wondering where he has gone.

Then Joe Haskell arrives with some startling news. A young calf on his uncle's farm has been found dead with its blood drained.

Well, that's probably nothing.

Jason eventually confronts Willie at the Blue Whale and offers him the $500 Elizabeth Stoddard gave him to leave Collinsport. Willie refuses. Whatever has happened to him, he no longer wants to leave. Considering how desperate everyone previously was to get Willie Loomis out of town, his sudden determination to remain in Collinsport probably isn't going to improve anybody's situation.

Maggie Evans also appears in this episode. I'm still not entirely sure how she fits into the larger story, although I know she appears in the movie House of Dark Shadows as one of Barnabas Collins' victims. Since I'm watching the television series without knowing exactly how all these characters and storylines eventually fit together, I'm trying not to get too far ahead of myself.

What I learned from Episode 215: Willie may be a vampire.

At this point, I officially have no idea who half these people ultimately turn out to be, what their relationships will become, or why Josette figures so prominently in both of the Dark Shadows movies and apparently in this storyline as well. I don't even know when Josette is going to appear in the television series.

That's actually becoming part of the fun of watching Dark Shadows this way. I know fragments of the mythology from the movies and from popular culture, but not enough to know how the television series gets from where I am now to the story I vaguely recognize. Barnabas has arrived, Willie is acting very strangely, livestock is turning up without blood, and everybody else is still trying to conduct their ordinary Collinsport business as though nothing supernatural is happening.

Dark Shadows 215 Willie Why Are There Specks of Blood On Your Sleeve?

“Willie, why are there specks of blood on your sleeve?”

That's probably nothing, too.

On to the next episode.

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