630 — darkshadows

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Number	623
Timeline	1968
Narrator	Kathryn Leigh Scott
Writer	Sam Hall
Director	Sean Dhu Sullivan
Broadcast	November 22, 1968 (Friday)
Recorded	November 19, 1968 (Tuesday)
Video	Complete: Disc 66 Collection 11: Disc 2

We have 31 images of Dark Shadows 630

Barnabas attempts to convince Nicholas not to try the experiment again, but he is determined and begins his plot to use Maggie as the new life-force.

Synopsis

Teaser

Dusk on the great estate of Collinwood. An unseasonable storm besieges the towers, a fitting welcome for Barnabas Collins, who has returned from a sanctuary, forced back by one evil man's frantic efforts to reinstate himself with his master, the Devil.

Barnabas and Nicholas discuss the repeat of the experiment. Barnabas points out that Eve has been dead a long time (626) and getting a new life force may be a problem. Nicholas says he already has a new life force ready.

Act I

Barnabas says he will not continue the experiment if Nicholas is just planning on summoning up another Danielle Roget from Hell (594). Nicholas responds that this time he does not plan to use such a trick and that Barnabas' reward for doing his part will be his continued existence. Nicholas drones on and on about how powerful he is, but concedes that if he did not have his powers Barnabas would, indeed, be a formidable foe. At 8pm that evening, Maggie arrives just as Nicholas is pouring himself a brandy. Maggie admires his knick-knacks, in particular one old-looking cup. Nicholas tells her it is was once owned by Cleopatra's favorite seer who foretold her death and could be used to divine the future. He offers to show Maggie by filling the cup with brandy and having her add an opal (which she thought were known for bringing bad luck) and having her drink from the cup while reciting an incantation. He then tells her she will have a long, happy future, as long as she is with him. He tells her he is leaving Collinsport and does not plan on returning unless she agrees to marry him. He asks her to tell him she will marry him, but she hesitates.

Act II

In Victoria's bedroom, Maggie tells Victoria she is planning to marry Nicholas. Victoria tells her flat out that she does not like or trust Nicholas and he is an evil man. Maggie leaves in a huff and Victoria calls Nicholas on the telephone. Next we see Victoria arriving at Nicholas' house as Nicholas is pouring himself another brandy. He offers her a brandy, but she refuses. She tells Nicholas he cannot marry Maggie because "Maggie does not know what you are". Nicholas seems surprised, but Victoria tells him he is not human. She knows this because his sister, Cassandra was really the witch, Angelique who she met when she time-traveled to 1795 and she threatens to tell Maggie if he does not call off the engagement. Nicholas advances on her menacingly.

Act III

Nicholas tries to convince Victoria that she is wrong and he is a good guy. He reasons that if he were a warlock he would just wave his hands and she would disappear. He almost seems to have her convinced, but she tells him she will give him time to break off the engagement before she says anything to Maggie. He escorts her to the front door, trying to convince her to reconsider. She leaves without changing her mind. He goes back into the drawing room and throws the glass towards the fireplace, shattering it. He tries to think about what to do to convince Vicki of his sincerity. Then he realizes he can get someone else to help him. He goes to the basement, counts off some tiles, and begins to dig up the floor.

Act IV

Victoria returns to Collinwood and starts turning off the lights in the foyer when the front door bursts open, startling her. It turns out to be Barnabas. She tells Barnabas she has missed seeing him and asks if he will join her for dinner tomorrow night. Barnabas accepts, but looks concerned since he knows the repeat of the experiment is scheduled for tomorrow evening. Back at Nicholas' house, Nicholas removes a coffin from the floor with the remains of Tom Jennings. Nicholas pulls the stake from Tom's heart, telling Tom to wake up and that he is Tom's new master. Back in her bedroom, Victoria goes to bed and begins to drift off as Tom crawls through her window. Tom moves towards the bed, baring his fangs; Victoria wakes up, sees him, and starts screaming...

Memorable quotes

Maggie: (thinking this magic is just a game) Will I hear strange voices?

Nicholas: (seriously) I hope not.

Victoria: You cannot marry her.

Nicholas: Why?

Victoria: You're not human.

Nicholas: Maggie Evans makes me human.

Barnabas: I work best at night.

Nicholas: Don't tell me that you hate the idea of bringing another body alive. I would like to start our relationship without the embarrassment of your conscience.

Barnabas: Obviously you have none.

Nicholas: For which I am very thankful. Now, when do we start?

Nicholas: I have...a way of getting women to do what I want them to do, Mr. Collins.

Dramatis personae

← Jonathan Frid as Barnabas Collins →
← Kathryn Leigh Scott as Maggie Evans →
← Humbert Allen Astredo as Nicholas Blair →
← Don Briscoe as Tom Jennings →
Betsy Durkin → as ← Victoria Winters →

Background information and notes

Production

This episode was recorded out of broadcast sequence. The previous episode to be recorded was 631.
First appearance of Betsy Durkin, who takes over the role of Victoria Winters from Alexandra Moltke, who was suddenly forced to leave the series due to complications with her pregnancy. Alexandra Moltke's credit card always said "and Alexandra Moltke as Victoria Winters". Betsy Durkin's credit is more consistent with the other cast members, reading "Character name," then "Actor name".
During the opening credits, Humbert Allen Astredo announces, "The part of Victoria Winters will be played by Miss Betsy Durkin". Veteran soap opera watchers recognize that when the change is temporary, this announcement is usually proceeded by "today", for instance when Nancy Barrett had a stand-in (578), indicating that this is a permanent change.
Jonathan Frid returns to the cast after an absence of 9 episodes.
When we first see Nicholas pouring himself a brandy, there are four brandy snifters, two smaller ones and two larger ones. One of the larger ones has a frosted appearance. We have previously seen the same type of glass used in episode 1 when Roger crushes the glass in his hand. Nicholas does not fill this glass until just before Victoria arrives; he then throws it, and we hear it shatter.
Sam Hall and Mel Handelsman are the only credits in yellow lettering. The softer melody is played again for the first time in a long time. The theme ends with an often-heard clunk.
During this story line, the scripts refer to Nicholas' house as Blair House, as it is called in the GAF Viewmaster slides and story booklet. Only once during the story line is the term said on air when a character mentions "the Blair House." Note that it is frequently referred to as "a strange house by the sea" but never as "Seaview." [Addendum: This house is not called "Seaview" anyway. That is the house that Victoria Winters and Burke Devlin were planning to restore, which is different from Blair House.]
This is the first time a vampire is seen stepping out of a coffin. Previously, the camera always cuts away. This time, Tom Jennings steps right out, probably due to the positioning of the casket not being horizontal. In the horizontal position, it would likely be very awkward to step out of.
The Dark Shadows Almanac: Millennium Edition contains a summary of the preliminary script for an unproduced version of this episode. The original scheduled writer was Ron Sproat:
- Cast: Elizabeth, Angelique, Jeff, Nicholas, Adam, Eve
- Sets: Limbo woods, Jeff's Room, Blair House, Eve's Room
- Voiceover: In the dense, dark forest, not far from the great estate of Collinwood, the eerie light of a watchful moon slices down among the trees. It reveals the figure of a beautiful but unearthly woman, to whom the night alone can give protection and even life. She waits now for one whose mind she must win so she may instruct him in the ways of evil. If she prevails, this lonely night must end in death.
  - Adam has doubts over killing Eve; he argues with Angelique. (Omitted.)
  - Nicholas suspects something is wrong with Adam and then berates Eve for not keeping Adam happy. (Omitted.)
  - Elizabeth returns Victoria's engagement ring to Jeff. (Omitted.)
  - Nicholas receives a call from Maggie and agrees to drive her to Bangor. (Omitted.)
  - Eve goes to Jeff's apartment, finds out when he will be leaving, and returns to Blair House to pack and encounters Adam. They fight, and he strangles her to death. (A similar scene appears in 626, except Adam kills Eve at Jeff's apartment.)
  - Jeff, returning to his apartment, discovers Eve's corpse. (A similar scene appears in 626, except Victoria is also present.)

Story

The opening narration specifically identifies Nicholas's master as "the devil."
Driving a stake into a vampire's heart does not permanently destroy them as seen in this episode. Only sunlight and silver bullets can permanently destroy a vampire.
Nicholas can make Victoria forget the information about him but doesn't. He does not want to use his powers because Maggie has made him more human, but then he does something far worse: digs up Tom Jennings' body to send the vampire to terrorize Victoria.
Victoria does not tell Barnabas about Nicholas and Maggie, and she does not even ask about what his problem was and why he needed a cross to solve it.
Tom's coffin and body are revealed to be in Nicholas's basement, which he had moved there in 571.
INTERNAL MONOLOGUE: Nicholas: Maggie Evans makes me human.
TIMELINE: 7pm at the start of the episode. 7:10pm: Barnabas leaves Nicholas's house. 8pm: Maggie at Nicholas's house. Victoria hasn't seen Barnabas "in so long" (Vicki last saw Barnabas in 620 on-screen).
This episode is the first time anyone has turned the lights off in the foyer of Collinwood. [Not so sure about this - it seems there was a time early in the series when someone was shown turning off those lights before going upstairs to bed. Certainly people have been showing turning _on_ the lights after coming downstairs.]
This seems to be the first time that there is a phone in Vicki's room.

Bloopers and continuity errors

Jonathan Frid flubs a line in the teaser: When Nicholas says that they must bring Eve back to life, Barnabas says, “Why? Because Adam can kill her again?” He should have said, “So that Adam can kill her again?”
Barnabas claims that there is a problem with bringing Eve back to life through the experiment because she has been dead so long. However, Eve has been dead only two days at most, and with both Adam and Eve originally, the bodies were lying on their tables for days if not weeks.
Humbert Allen Astredo flubs, "...must disgust them...disgust you." Also, "I've heard...been described as a great many things by many people."
When Vicki leaves Nicholas Blair's house, her scarf has fallen on the floor, as Nicholas picks it up from there when he gets her her coat.
When his coffin is opened, Tom is wearing a dark multicolored shirt with large checks; when he was staked by Barnabas in 571, he had been wearing a dark green shirt.
Jonathan Frid clears his throat in mid-sentence while Barnabas is talking to Nicholas just before he leaves Nicholas's house.
Lazy writing: Sam Hall has Vicki call Nicholas from the phone on her nightstand. So now she conveniently (and suddenly) has her own bedroom phone, when even Elizabeth doesn’t have one? It’s already established that Collinwood residents always have to run downstairs to make a call, or answer a ringing telephone.