Sunday, March 21, 2010

The story is over

This story is now over. It WILL remain up though so you can read it at your leisure. Thanks for coming by, and thanks to Charles Delaware Troll for originally writing it. His AOL site that originally had this was removed. Luckily, I saved it and am preserving it here with his permission.

The original title for this was Dark Shadows Returns: Episode 1246 & Beyond. I just changed it to a more fitting title.

Saturday, March 20, 2010

Dark Shadows: Resurrection - Afterword 4

Yay! You reached the end of my story! I hope you enjoyed it, and felt like you were reading some transcripts of a long lost year of Dark Shadows that sadly never made it into syndication!

Julia or Angelique?
Ah yes, the eternal quesion that faces all DS fans: "Who should Barnabas wind up with?" It seems that the answer tends to fall down gender lines - a majority of men say "Angelique" and a majority of women say "Julia." Well, your burly all he-man Troll must admit that I, too, see Barnabas more with Angelique. Now before you dismiss me as just another guy chasing a pretty young thing instead of a more mature yet totally devoted woman, I will make the argument that Angelique is NOT a pretty young thing in the vein (pardon the expression!) of Josette, who turns out to be quite a bland character when we finally meet her in 1795 despite the "great lady" build up - or Roxanne, who really has no personality when Barnabas falls for her - she's just laying there nearly dead! Angelique, on the other hand, might be a megababe and all, but she's very smart and challenges Barnabas constantly. In fact, perhaps the character that comes closest to her is the Julia we first meet who tries to control Barnabas through her science, keeping Vicky away from him while she jealously administers her treatments. But yes, men are all looking at Angelique and thinking "Yeah, but she'd never be that evil to ME since I'm just so wonderful and I'd know how to handle her! And I'd let her do all the witchcraft she wanted and get all the fun stuff that idiot Darren Stevens passed on!" What can I say? Men are saps.

But I think as far as the show was concerned, Barnabas was destined to wind up with Julia. (Ladies may cheer). By the end of the 1840 story arc, Josette was only a memory, and since they knew they weren't going to return to the "regular" DS plotline once Frid ruled out playing Barnabas anymore, they went ahead and resolved the Barnabas/Angelique story by killing her off, leaving Barnabas with Julia in the present. If we assume that Frid had NOT decided to give up playing Barnabas, I for one think that the 1840 plotline would have unfolded quite differently, perhaps more along the 1897 story lines of Angelique as helper to Barnabas, but without any romantic resolution.

So, I gave in and found a way for Barnabas to finally realize it's been Julia all along. But don't expect me to write any love scenes between Barnabas and Julia because in all honesty, the prospect makes me nauseous. (Ladies may throw rotten fruit at yours truly).

What else might have happened?
Assuming the show really did continue back in 1971, we can agree that many of my casting choices would not have been made. Obviously, Sharon Smythe would be too old to play Sarah and perhaps another little girl would've been cast in the role had they decided to bring the character back (though this was clearly not in their plans). I always regretted that that Sarah story was dropped, since she plays such an important role in the first Barnabas story and her affect on Barnabas' character is so strong that there's all sorts of possibilities there. I also don't think Mitch Ryan and Joel Crothers would come back for such brief roles as I gave them. And even though here in my little virtual world, I gave into Alexandra Moltke's desires (and there's a straight line) to make Vicky more intelligent, as well as give her the chance to play a villain in the 1897PT story, she was done with acting in 1971. BUT - if the show really did decide to bring back the character of Vicky Winters, the blatantly obvious casting choice is Kate Jackson, who had no 1971 character to play, had already been established as a love interest of characters played both by Selby and Frid, looks right for the part, and also played a governess! And if they brought Vicky back played by Jackson, a likely plot would have had Barnabas and Quentin fighting over her, no doubt with Angelique involved as well. Something tells me that Vicky's parentage, forgotten since 1966, would surface again. I inserted it (as well as lots of other stuff) to satisfy fans.

I also think that they would've pulled a "Ned Stuart" casting wise and given Chris Pennock a different character to play in 1971, had they returned to the present. Sebastian was too strange a character to keep around once the Roxanne story was over with, and most likely after his performance as Gabriel in 1840, they would have found some way to give him a more substantial role in the plot. The one thing I did (twice) that I think would've happened is casting James Storm as whoever the modern day villain of the plotline would be. He's got a great voice for evil, doesn't he?

If I Ran The Zoo....
If I could go back and alter elements of the show as it exists, there are a few things I'd do. Obviously there's the ironing out of conflicts in story definitions - think how many different versions of the Jeremiah/Josette story we hear before we actually see it in 1795! Imagine how much more interesting the whole introduction to Barnabas would be if there were little mentions of his origins as we know them... the character would have been even more fascinating, and his behavior towards Julia, another intelligent strong women with a power over him, would have had a lot more depth to it. There was also the problem of what to do with 1897 Quentin once he got back to 1969, but hopefully I made up for that with this story. But you have to wonder if he was so close to Jamison, why he doesn't return to Collinwood sometime earlier, to check on his favorite nephew...

... but why waste time nitpicking? I'll start to sound like the Comic Book Guy on "The Simpsons," unless of course I already do!

Thanks for reading! It's a wonderful thing to write for an appreciative audience.

Friday, March 19, 2010

Episode 1510

Aired: Friday April 6, 1972

Alexandra Moltke's voiceover: "My name is Victoria Winters. While my own life has been filled with strange adventures and journeys through time itself, it seems that my wandering and search for love have ended, leading to a new beginning and a new life for myself. But for another, a much stranger journey continues, as a man who even after the timespan of many lifetimes learns to finally understand his own heart is about to face his destiny, a destiny that will affect the Collins family for generations to come...."

After a replay of Thursday's close and the titles, Barnabas says "You think I will cause a room to appear where my true wishes will be reality?" Harrison says yes. Barnabas grows fascinated. "I'll know... then I'll finally know what I should have done." Harrison says "Should have done? When?" Barnabas answers "A long time ago.... I made a fateful decision without even realizing it." Harrison says "That's usually the way." Barnabas replies "Yes, but now... if you're right, I can actually see what should be.... you really think that will somehow cause the doorways in time to close, if I enter that world?" Harrison answers "It's not quite like that, you'll understand better when we get to the west wing." Barnabas nods. "Yes. Let's go." They start to walk there as Barnabas again thinks back to kissing Angelique's hand at her servant's quarters in Martinique. "I'm sorry...I just need time," he says to her before we dissolve back to the present and Barnabas thinks. "How much time? Would that time really stretch across the centuries?" Again we dissolve into Barnabas' memory, where now he's in Josette's room after reading her note. "And how do you feel?" she asks him. "Like a man in love," he says before kissing her. We dissolve back to the present and hear Barnabas thinking "I loved her so deeply... but I also loved Angelique.... what awaits me in that room?" We cut to the foyer of Collinwood as Harrison and Barnabas enter. They go upstairs without noticing that Julia was in the drawing room. She comes out to see, but only catches a glimpse of the two men as they disappear through the upstairs door. In the west wing, Barnabas and Harrison come to a hallway filled with doors. "And now what must we do?" Barnabas asks. "We wait," Harrison says. "We wait for a light to appear in room that you see first." Barnabas says "My feelings are so confused... I don't know what it will be. It could be Martinique in 1795... it could be Collinwood in 1840 with Valery .... it could even be Collinwood in 1897 with Kitty.... or now, with Angelique.....so many different possibilities...." He looks at Harrison, who waits with a determined look. "Somehow... I think you know what I'll see, don't you?" Harrison nods. "Tell me!" Harrison says "I can't, you've got to feel it for yourself, or it won't work!" Barnabas shouts "But I must know! I must!" Suddenly, he sees a light come on under one of the doors. He looks past Harrison and says "There! That room! It's lit up!" He walks to the door and begins to turn the knob. "Behind this door is the world in which I truly wish to be..." He opens the door, and gasps at what he sees.

Barnabas looks inside the room. The furniture is modern, and inside, Barnabas sits reading with music playing. He's dressed in 1972 clothes. The door at the far end of the room opens - and Julia walks in! She brings him a cup of wine and asks him what he's reading. "Poe, again," Barnabas says. Julia puts her arms around him. "And Tchaikovsky again too...you're a hopeless romantic." Barnabas stands and says "There is always hope, my dear," and the two of them kiss. Outside, Barnabas is agape. "Julia.... Julia! In that world, Julia and I are...." Harrison says "Yes. You are Julia are together." Barnabas watches in fascination as the other Barnabas and Julia continue to kiss and flirt. "I don't understand...." he says. Harrison says "Deep inside you do. You must. Or else that room would not appear the way it does." Barnabas looks at Harrison and says "You're right.... somehow, I did always know. Just the same as I've done before, so many times, denying it to myself.... but all along... Julia. Julia!" From behind them, Julia says "Yes? Barnabas? Are you calling me?" Barnabas turns to see Julia. "Julia!" he says with a smile. She asks what's going on, and then sees the lit-up room. "Barnabas!" she says. "That's us in there!" She watches a moment, and then gets visibly embarrassed at what she sees (Relax, they're only just kissing). She turns away "Another....another strange parallel world..." she mutters. Barnabas turns her around. "Julia," he says. "Perhaps it's not so strange after all." Suddenly, Julia sees another light come on in a room directly across the hall from the other. "A light!" she says. Harrison says "Another room. This one was opened by Julia's subconscious." Julia opens the door - and she and Barnabas both gasp at seeing the exact same thing as in Barnabas' room! They look at both one after the other, and see that the exact same thing is going on in each room - other Barnabases and Julias as romantic couples in 1972. Harrison says "Your subconscious desires cannot lie... you both want the exact same thing." Barnabas and Julia look at each other.

Barnabas says "I don't understand... we both opened doors to the same world..." Harrison says "That's not all. If I'm right, those worlds will also help to close the doorways. I've taken care of the source of the problem in Quentin's old laboratory. All that needs to be done is to seal the loose ends up here." Julia says "How? If we enter those worlds, we'll be alongside our own counterparts." Harrison says "No, you won't be entering those worlds. But think about it.... your subconscious mind produced windows to that possibility....but you can consciously create that possibility here, which will merge the worlds and seal the doorways. You were saying it yourself, Barnabas... our decisions are what decide our fate. This time, your decision can decide the balance of time itself. And if that balance is restored here, I should simultaneously return to my own time." Barnabas looks at Julia and says "He's right... somehow, in my heart, I've know it all along and denied it... all the times I was so cruel and cold, yet you stuck by me. You've saved me so many times. I know from the world that Vicky visited in one of these rooms that if not for you.... I'd've been destroyed and destroyed more of those I loved." He takes Julia's hand, and she whimpers "Oh, Barnabas...." Barnabas says (because it's the last episode) "You... you're the one I love, Julia." He kisses her, and as they kiss, the lights from both rooms grow brighter and begin to envelop the hallway. Julia and Barnabas look up for a moment to see Harrison waving. "You've done it..." he says. "Farewell!" As they continue to embrace, the light grows brighter and brighter until suddenly..... they find themselves standing, embraced, in the hallway. Harrison is gone and the rooms are all dark and back to normal. "He's gone!" Julia says. "And the rooms... they're all dark again!" Barnabas says "We did it... we merged our desired reality into our own... Maggie! When Maggie touched me... she healed my heart so that I could finally see the truth." Julia takes Barnabas hands and says "Harrison knew... because he knew his own past." They kiss again.

Julia and Barnabas come downstairs, Julia wondering aloud "I wonder if we've caused other changes..." Barnabas says "I doubt it. What else would our subconscious want to alter about any of the people we know here?" Julia says "Perhaps you're right." Liz comes out of the drawing room and says "Oh, there you are, you two. Inseparable as always... we must all hurry to get Carolyn to the train station, and I want no excuses for not seeing her off!" Roger comes out of the study with Alan and says they'd better hurry since Alan also needs to drive to Boston later. Carolyn comes downstairs carrying some bags, and there is knock at the door. Stokes enters, asking her if she has everything. "I've packed everything I think I'll need," she says. "And everything she won't need," Roger says. Stokes adds "You know, it is possible to shop in Europe," when he sees the size of her trunk. Carolyn says "If you two are through, at least be gentlemen and carry this to the car." Roger salutes and says "Oh, of course, my future professor." He and Stokes pick up either end of the trunk and carry it outside. Burke and Vicky come downstairs and say not to go without them. "Barnabas, Julia!" Burke says. "How about you two ride with us, sort of a double date?" Julia says "That'd be nice, thank you." Vicky says "Don't forget Sarah! She's waiting for you at the old house. David and her got back from town a little earlier." David and Quentin come downstairs as Quentin says "Okay, okay, I'm coming. I promised I wouldn't miss this." Carolyn looks at Quentin with her arms crossed. "Well, something has to get you out of the west wing and breathe some life into you. I'm glad this could do it." Alan takes Liz aside and says softly "Don't tell Quentin, but my daughter Joanna is waiting for him at the train station as a surprise. She has tickets to a Broadway show in New York and wants to invite him on a train ride there." Liz smiles and says "I hope surprises like that run in your family." Barnabas says "Please excuse me, I must get to the old house to get Sarah. I'll meet you all at the end of the driveway, if that's okay." Burke says "Sounds fine to me. Just hold your thumb out and you can hitch a ride." Barnabas doesn't understand the slang, but only says "Of course," and exits, leading Julia by the hand. Alan and David help Carolyn outside with the last of her bags. Burke and Vicky also leave the house, leaving Liz and Quentin standing in the foyer as Liz starts to turn the lights out. "Funny how empty this house may seem with Carolyn gone," Liz says. "It's time she got out and saw more of the world," Quentin answers. "I agree," Liz says. "She's looking at a very exciting future." Quentin nods. "I'd like to think all of us have exciting futures." Liz says "You never know. The Collins family has certainly had an interesting past. I suppose that means we ought to also have an interesting future." Quentin leads Liz out the door as we pan to the old portrait of Barnabas - which fades into a shot of the new portrait of Barnabas at the old house. We pull back to see Sarah sitting on the floor playing with her doll as Barnabas and Julia walk in. "Sarah!" Barnabas says. "It's time to go to the station and see your cousin Carolyn off." Sarah says "Now?" Barnabas answers "Yes, now. Come on, come on, you'll have to hurry." There is a car horn heard outside. Julia says she'll go "tell them it'll be just a minute." Liz suddenly appears at the door and says "I knew we'd have to come after you both again! Let's go, Barnabas! Burke is waiting for you! You won't get a second chance!" Liz leaves and Sarah looks at Barnabas. "Why won't we get a second chance?" she asks innocently. Barnabas looks at Julia a long moment and the two smile at each other. He takes Sarah by the hand and looks at her lovingly. "Because we've already been given our second chance," he says. He leads her out and joins Julia by the hand before closing the door. We pan back to the burning candles on the candlestick....and an invisible draft blows them out as we fade to black.

Thursday, March 18, 2010

Episode 1509

Aired: Thursday April 5, 1972

Barnabas walks through a hallway in the old house carrying a candle. He looks very sad as he turns a corner and opens a door that leads to a stairway. He walks up the stairway, and puts the candle down in a small room with a large bay window. He puts the candle down on a table and blows it out before looking out the window. He's high up in the old house - and the view extends to the sea. At the horizon, the first morning rays of the sun begin to break through the clouds. Barnabas watches emotionless as the sun begins to rise - the sky changes colors, black to purple to reds and oranges.... it's just as beautiful as he had always described it to others, but he watches it without batting an eye. The rays of the sun begin to shine into the window and onto him. He takes a deep breath and only says "I'm all alone...."

After the titles, Barnabas is still sitting in the small room, only now the sun is high and some time has gone by. He hears footsteps coming up the stairs, and then sees Sarah leading Vicky into the room. "I thought he was up here," Sarah says. "He likes to come up here in the morning." Vicky says "Yes, I know. You can see a beautiful sunrise out that window." Sarah asks Barnabas if she can go into town with David, and he says yes. She stops a moment and says "Don't be sad, Barnabas. I don't like when you're sad." He tells her that she always makes him happy, and she smiles before running off. Vicky tells Barnabas "You'll never really be alone while you have her." Barnabas says "Yes, you're right. But... I've felt very odd since my return from Widow's Hill the other night." Vicky tells Barnabas that everyone feels odd during a period of mourning and that "I didn't feel like myself when I'd lost Burke years ago." Barnabas smiles and says "Burke is just as I remember him." Vicky smiles and says "Well, if that's the case, it might not be a good thing, considering how you once felt about him." Barnabas says "Things are very different now. Though I must admit, I can confuse a man's strong self confidence with arrogance. It's a good thing that a lovely woman like yourself provides a civilizing effect on the souls of men." Vicky looks out the window and says "I think he was suspicious of you when he came over here... he was expecting the Barnabas he remembered. He was surprised, to say the least. His attitude towards you will be very different than it was in the past, I think." Barnabas answers "You're inviting him to become a part of our family. We will get along, we must." Vicky says "He and Quentin seem to have taken to each other quite well. I think it's because they're both so fond of David and both so bristly around Roger." Barnabas smiles and replies "Well, I suppose that's something." Vicky tells Barnabas he should come over to Collinwood for dinner after they all see Carolyn off at the station and "stop cocooning yourself. You need people around you at a time like this." Barnabas gets a bit shy at the prospect, but Vicky takes his hands and says "Barnabas, you're a wonderful and fascinating man. You have so much to offer, please don't deny yourself to people." He kisses her hand and smiles. "I'd be delighted to come to dinner," he says.

Barnabas is downstairs getting his cape to go out when Julia enters. She tells Barnabas she came by to see how he was, and he says "I'm coping with the circumstances." Julia says "If there's anything I can do...." but before she can finish, he says "You've already done so much... saving me from Brian at the laboratory before he got hold of his powers again... I always owe you so much, Julia." She turns away and says "What are friends for?" Barnabas says "Of course." There's an awkward pause (and it's not cue-card related but intentional) before Barnabas says "Vicky was here earlier. She made me feel a little better." Julia says "That's good. You shouldn't lose hope, Barnabas...." Barnabas replies "Hope... so many times in my life, I had no hope. I wonder if it was fate or my own decisions that caused all the complexities of things." Julia answers "I'm not sure if I believe in fate. I think our own decisions are what create our destinies." Barnabas says "I'm not sure if that should make me happy or miserable." Julia says "Back when I was in medical school, there was enormous pressure on me to give up my ambitions and find a husband... but I told myself that I would only accept a man who accepted me for what I am. I couldn't repress my ambitions. I was married to my work." Barnabas says "That doesn't mean it would always be so." Julia says "I know, that's what I'm trying to tell you." Julia tells Barnabas that he must "let go of the past" if he is to go on. "You found yourself in this time, with these people. In a way, in this house, you've preserved a part of your own time, as a sanctuary of sorts... but it can't be a fortress, Barnabas. You've got to move forward and think of your future." Barnabas answers "My future...." Julia says "You'll find...someone, I'm sure..." Barnabas replies "Someone..... yes, perhaps. Then again, perhaps not. I...." Julia turns to him and says "Yes?" He stammers a bit and says "I need to take a walk and think..." He's halfway out the door before he turns and says "Thank you for your concern, Julia. It.... you mean a lot to me." He leaves as Julia sighs and wonders.

Barnabas walks through the woods. We hear him think "Perhaps I should've brought Julia with me on my walk... I'm not sure. So much is going through my mind now.... if only I had done things differently in my life.... I may have avoided the strange destiny that has been my fate..." He reaches Widow's Hill and looks over the horizon. "A viewpoint on an enormous world... a world of so many places and possibilities.... here and also in the past..." he thinks as we dissolve to a memory in Barnabas' mind..... In a small room, Angelique finishes getting dressed in 18th century clothes. She brushes her hair in the mirror with a smile when Barnabas, also dressed in his 18th century garb, moves behind her and kisses her. "I hope that's not a good bye kiss," she says. "No," Barnabas answers. "I'm sure we will see each other again before my father and I depart for Boston." He walks to a window and looks outside. "I can never understand how people can live in such a climate as Martinique... where's it's summer all year round." Angelique answers that you get used to it. "Why are you in such a rush to return to Boston?" she asks. "I would think you'd want to stay here..... now." Barnabas stammers a bit, and says that "It's beyond my control. I simply cannot." Angelique grows a little angry and says "It seems many of your passions are out of your control as well." Barnabas takes her hand. "I'm sorry. I just.... I just need time. Please don't ask me anymore. This moment is difficult as it is." Angelique holds back her hurt and says "Indeed." Barnabas hurriedly leaves and Angelique grumbles. "You will be mine, Barnabas....I swear it..." she mutters. Outside, Barnabas sighs a deep sigh. "Why did I do that..." we hear him think. "What am I doing here? Only because Josette finds me invisible did I even notice her handmaiden.... a lovely woman, but..... a handmaiden.... my father would surely disown me if he knew. He must never know. Gentlemanly discretion must apply." Barnabas walks away a little and thinks "Why should I live for my father and not for myself?" He starts to turn back towards Angelique's servants' quarters when a messenger boy gives him a note. Barnabas reads it and his eyes open wide. We cut to Josette (Kathryn Leigh Scott) standing on the balcony of a large house. She walks back inside, and there is a knock at her door. The room looks very much like what will be her room in the old house, but larger. "Come in," she says, and Barnabas enters. "I got your note," he says. "Please tell me you mean it." Josette smiles at him. "Did you really think I could play hard to get for the rest of your life? All the time you tutored me in English, all I did was watch your eyes...." Barnabas smiles, and takes her hand. "My eyes were fixed upon you, as they are now," he says, kissing her hand. She leans towards him, and he kisses her passionately. "Finally!" he says. "I finally know how you really feel!" Josette says "And how do you feel?" Barnabas smiles and says "Like a man in love," before kissing her again. We dissolve back to Barnabas sitting alone, looking out over the waves on Widow's Hill. "A man in love..." we hear him think. "But with whom? Did I really love them both that day? What if I had turned back and gotten that note after I damned my father's snobbery and told Angelique what was in my heart... everything would be different.... " He stands up and thinks a moment. "Though in an odd way, I wonder what would have happened to Quentin and Vicky and David and all the others if I hadn't been here now.... if I hadn't made that choice...." His thoughts are interrupted by Harrison's shouts of "Barnabas! Is that you?" Barnabas looks up and says "Harrison? I'm over here!" Harrison walks up and says "There you are! Somehow I thought I'd find you here when you weren't at the old house." Barnabas says "I was just sitting and thinking." Harrison answers "I need your help with something." Barnabas wonders what.

Harrison tells Barnabas that he successfully closed the time portals in Quentin's old laboratory, "but the problem persists in the West Wing. You must come with me there." Barnabas is confused, and asks "What can I do? I thought perhaps Stokes would be the one to..." Harrison says "No, it has to be you. I can't really explain it all now, only that you must come with me to the West Wing." Barnabas tells Harrison that "When I passed into the strange world of parallel time almost two years ago, it didn't have any affect on the structure of the doorway. I don't understand how you think I can help." Harrison answers "Barnabas, the doorways are created by the subconscious desires of the different people who come within the temporal field left over from the laboratory, the same field that opened the original passageway in the east wing." Barnabas says "You want me to create a doorway?" Harrison answers "Yes, Barnabas. Because I know the doorway that you'll create, the one that leads to the time and place where you'd want to live, is the key to everything." Barnabas gasps.

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

Episode 1508

Aired: Wednesday April 4, 1972

David Selby's voiceover: "A new day has dawned at Collinwood, and for the residents of the great house, an enemy is dead and a danger to them all has passed. But what remains is the very safety of time itself... for if Harrison Collins, the mysterious visitor from the future, cannot find a way to close the holes in time that have opened, that future may be doomed. Harrison knows that in order to save his own time, he must find a way to alter the destinies of those who live now.... but he also knows that the slightest error could lead to disaster...."

Julia enters the foyer of Collinwood and finds David and Vicky in the drawing room. They ask her what happened to Maggie, and Julia tells them "I left Maggie at Windcliff." Vicky asks if Maggie will be all right, and Julia says "You don't understand, Maggie isn't a patient there. I hired her to work with the patients." David and Vicky are surprised.

After the titles, David asks Julia why she hired Maggie, and Julia explains how Brian had left her with healing powers when he tried to "use her to save himself and destroy Barnabas." David sighs and says he should have "made sure Brian was dead after I fixed it so Chris would attack him." Julia tells David he shouldn't be angry with himself, since he saved Quentin and Lori, "as well as finding a cure for Chris... that was something that Barnabas and I spent a lot of time searching in vain for." Vicky tells Julia that "Barnabas was okay physically after everything that happened, but I'm not sure about him." Julia nods. "I know. I've never seen him the way he was out on Widow's Hill after Angelique made her sacrifice." Vicky tells Julia how Burke and she went to see him. Julia asks how Burke felt about seeing Barnabas. "Well, at first he was suspicious," Vicky says. "He was expecting the Barnabas he knew from his own world. He was genuinely surprised by what he found, but nonetheless felt sorry for him. I've never seen him that sad." Harrison enters and hangs his coat up. He starts to head for the cellar door, but instead hears the voices and enters the drawing room. "Oh, I'm sorry, I hope I'm not intruding," he says. Vicky tells him "No, of course not. How was your talk with Professor Stokes?" Harrison says he thinks Stokes is "brilliant" but that he must solve this problem on his own. David asks him what problem, and Harrison says "You may as well know that I came back here to seal up the holes in time opening in the west wing. If they continue to grow, all of the present time could be threatened." David says "But Burke came back here through one of those holes. I couldn't help wondering if..." Harrison says "If other people could too? People who are gone?" David nods, and Harrison says "Like your mother?" David, surprised, asks "How did you know that was who I was thinking of?" Harrison looks at Julia and Vicky a moment before telling David "David, you should know that I came through one of those doorways myself. Your mother cannot come back through time, I'm sorry. I cannot tell you any more than that, except to say that even after I go away, you will see me again. I promise you." David thinks a moment and says "I believe you. I was just wondering...." Harrison says "I know. But I'm glad you trust me. That means a lot to me." Vicky takes David upstairs as Harrison asks Julia how Barnabas is doing. Julia tells him about how sad he is, and Harrison nods. "That's what I had thought... perhaps if I talk to him...." Julia says "If there's anything you can do, anything that you know about the future, please tell him, or point him in the right direction. It really wasn't until now that I realized that even after everything she'd done... Angelique truly loved him. And me.....I.....care about him a great deal." Harrison looks at Julia for a moment and says "Yes, I know."

In the basement lab, Harrison looks around at how part of the room has been restored to new while the rest is old and dusty. "So odd..." we hear him thinking. "Some of this room reverting to its original state while the rest....." He walks over to the desk and examines it. "What could've caused this.... when I left, it was from over there.... yet when I originally arrived, it was upstairs in a...." Harrison suddenly realizes. "Upstairs.... along the line that led to the room in the east wing that was originally opened to parallel time by the things left in this laboratory.... that might be part of the answer...." He walks to the pile of old wooden planks he had used before. "The remains of the stairway through time...still here...." he thinks. He picks up a dusty book. "What's this... " he thinks. "Journal of Quentin Collins, 1839... April 4... My father in his delirium cried out for Morgan. Despite how many times I reminded him that my older brother died before he was 4 of consumption, father insisted he was alive... father's mind is getting worse...." Harrison puts the journal down. "Morgan... interesting... Grandmother Catherine in parallel time called me Morgan..." He scoffs and says "This is getting me nowhere. I need to try something." He spreads the planks around the perimeter of the desk and then stands back. He raises his ring to his face and says "Open..." and a swirling cloud begins to appear. The desk begins to fade and look blurry, and Harrison begins to smile. He says "Close..." and the swirling cloud shrinks into nothing. "It worked!" Harrison says as he looks over the desk - which is now totally old and dusty. He begins to spread the planks around the entire laboratory. "I can close the holes in this room.... but will that affect the west wing?" he thinks as he spreads the planks out. "I'll have to check later... in the meantime, at least this will solve one part of this riddle..." He continues to spread out the staircase planks.

In the drawing room, Liz is going over some papers when Burke comes in. Burke pours himself a drink and offers Liz one, but she says that she doesn't want anything to distract her while she's going over the books. "Anything I can help with? I'm pretty good with that stuff, you know," he says. Liz says "Actually, there was something I wanted to talk to you about that relates to the Collins family business." Burke starts to talk about "avoiding the cut throat competition" he felt before he was marrying into the family, and Liz cuts him off saying "Of course, Burke, I understand all that. I'm sure we can easily work together on all sorts of things. But that's not my concern. My concern is Vicky." Burke asks "Vicky?" Liz says "Yes, Vicky. With Carolyn going away and with David heading back to school soon, Vicky will be all I have here. She's very different than the Vicky you might remember from five years ago." Burke thinks that over, but answers "She's not too different... though I have noticed a little more assertiveness." Liz says "There's a lot more. She's older now, much more sure of herself. And now that she knows she's a Collins, I think she's been given more direction. And I was thinking that Vicky ought to be the one who helps me in my business affairs." Burke is surprised. "Vicky? Liz, it's your decision, but I don't think she'll be interested. And what do you think Roger will have to say about it?" Liz answers "Roger will understand. Vicky's a smart young woman, and she's already given me good advice. Now that I'm married, I don't want to devote all my time to the Collins enterprises, and while David is still too young, Vicky is the logical choice." Burke says "And you're asking me how I feel about that...." Liz says "I don't want to ask your permission, but I didn't want my suggestion to lead to an argument between you and Vicky. You see, I know she'll say yes to my offer." Burke nods. "I think I agree. And....." He takes a drink. "I have to admit that your idea makes sense. I don't think I'd want a wife to feel that her husband stifled her ambitions, especially when they're so close to his own. She's went through a lot to get me here, I can't say no to her for anything, I think." He laughs a little. "Liz, don't tell her I said that, or I'm doomed!" Liz smiles and thanks Burke for being so understanding.

Harrison walks through the west wing looking into some of the empty rooms. Suddenly behind him, a light appears under one of the doors. He opens the doors, and sees the same room from his own time that Vicky had landed in. Quentin comes up behind him and sees the room. "What, or should I say, where and when is that?" Quentin asks. "I recognize it," Harrison answers. "My own time. I could step into that room right now and be home. But I don't think I can just yet." Quentin asks why not, and Harrison answers "Because I didn't consciously open that doorway into my own time. It simply happened, which means that I have not solved the problem of these doorways opening... there may only be one way to do it, though it's taking a big chance." Quentin asks what the consequences of "failing at that big chance" would be. Harrison says he's not sure, since "it only involves guiding people towards the past I remember." Quentin asks Harrison if he can be "so sure of yourself in altering the present." Harrison says he can't be, but "there's no other choice." Quentin says "Why don't you do me a favor, and tell me what I'm supposed to do now? Lori has gone with Chris to Boston. Now that my curse is over, she has no scientific interest in me. My portrait won't change with moon anymore, it'll only appear as a bizarre sick joke to those who don't know its true meaning. But I thought you were giving me clues that Lori Slater was somehow my destiny..." Harrison is surprised. "No, I didn't mean to do that, and if I did, I'm sorry. You know, with your curse ended, you can have children again without passing on a curse." Quentin humphs and says "To have a son, I'd need a wife first, and that's only if I decide to be traditional about it!" Harrison takes a deep breath. "I don't want to tell you too much since doing so might alter what is meant to happen, from my point of view. But I can tell you this - when the next opportunity arises, go to the Collinsport train station." Quentin says "The train station? What kind of opportunity?" Harrison says "When Carolyn leaves with Stokes, I can't make it any plainer than that. Just make sure you're there.... and make sure you have enough money on hand to buy a train ticket. That's all I can tell you." Quentin grows curious. "A train ticket? Where am I going?' Harrison says "You'll know when you get there."

Tuesday, March 16, 2010

Episode 1507

Aired: Tuesday April 3, 1972

After a repeat of Monday's close and the titles, Julia reminds Maggie that Joe has "been in a comatose state for years since his breakdown." Maggie says she never could get him to recognize her "during my last stay here... but that will change." She reaches out and caresses his face, and he begins to blink. She takes his hand, and he slowly turns towards her and his face goes from a blank to recognizing her. "Maggie..." he says weakly. Julia gasps. "It's true... what Brian said is true... you can heal...." Maggie says "Yes... I can feel it...but it seems to come and go, I don't know how long it will last now that Brian is dead. That's why I made you rush me up here... if there was anything I could do with this, it was to get Joe back." Joe starts to smile as he looks at Maggie more. "Maggie! Maggie Evans! You're Maggie Evans!" he says, excitedly before turning towards Julia. "I know you too... you're a doctor..." Julia asks Joe if he knows her name, and after a few tries, he gets it. Julia tells Maggie that Joe will need a full examination, "and most likely some other treatments to return his mind completely to normal... especially to adjust to the time he's lost." Maggie tells Julia that "I want to stay here and help him. Maybe I can help other people here too, people who were once the way I was." Julia says "That might be possible, but I'd have to make sure that...." Maggie suddenly looks very seriously at Julia and sternly says "I think you'll arrange to allow me anything I wish, Dr. Hoffman. Especially with my memory completely restored. Completely." Julia shudders a bit, and answers "Of course... anything...." Maggie sighs, and says "I'm sorry... I shouldn't have used that tone." She looks back at Joe a moment and says "I can understand what your motives were....how you felt about Barnabas... it wasn't really his true nature anyway." Julia tells Maggie that she'll "get right to work" on her certification. Maggie and Joe hold hands and a smiling Maggie says "I think I'll like this... helping people. It beats serving them coffee." Her and Joe kiss. (awwwww!)

Barnabas sits alone in the old house reading a small book when there is knock at the door. He answers it, and finds Burke and Vicky have come to visit him. "Burke!" Barnabas says. "I'd heard all about your strange journey here... I'm so sorry I couldn't have been available earlier..." Burke says "It's okay, Barnabas. I'd heard about your strange journey recently as well." Barnabas says "Well, we needn't discuss that, it's all in the past. Nevertheless, I hope to avoid such misadventure in the future. Won't you both come in?" Vicky thanks him as Burke looks around. Barnabas notices this and says "It's been a while since you've been here, hasn't it? Yet somehow, this house never really changes that much." Burke says "No, I guess it doesn't. I wonder how different things really are." Vicky notices the book Barnabas has been reading. "An old volume of Poe?" she asks. Barnabas says "Yes... I find some of the poems comforting when I'm in a melancholy mood... please forgive me." Vicky sees where the book is open to "Annabell Lee" and begins to read a little before stopping. "I'm so sorry...." she says. "A poem about a lost love when..." Barnabas tells her it's all right. "Somehow, I'm still not quite convinced she's really gone." Burke says "I'm sorry I never got to meet her. She sounded like quite an interesting lady." Barnabas says "Yes... certainly the most unique women I've ever known. I... I don't know what I'll do without her." Barnabas winces a bit, and Vicky tells him that "you'll go on and you'll be all right. Remember how I thought I had lost Burke, and then I found him again. Perhaps one day, you'll find her again." Barnabas says "Perhaps." He smiles at Vicky and then tells Burke "You see that my lovely cousin who you're about to marry is an eternal optimist." Burke says "Yes, she certainly is. Always sees the good in people, although that can sometimes be a weakness." Vicky says "Oh, Burke!" Barnabas says "I suppose we all have some good in us." Burke counters with "Then you can also assume that all of us also have some evil." Barnabas thinks it over. "I suppose so, but it must be human nature to suppress such feelings. Otherwise, we wouldn't live in a civilized world." Burke says "Not much civilization here, with no electricity! I still don't understand how you can live like this." Barnabas says "I find it more comfortable." Burke says "Well, I'm sure Angelique found it comfortable as well... but I wonder what other modern women would accept living without modern conveniences." Barnabas says "I'm not sure. Perhaps it doesn't matter. Perhaps my destiny is to be alone." Vicky says "Barnabas, you're not alone, you have all your family and friends." Barnabas says he knows, and that he's "eternally grateful" for that. He apologizes for his "rudeness" and offers both Vicky and Burke a drink. As he goes to mix them (perhaps a claret cup?) Burke takes Vicky aside and quietly says "I think I owe you an apology." Vicky (of course) says "I don't understand." Burke tells Vicky "I came here thinking I'd see the same Barnabas I hated in my world, despite what you said. But you were right about him. There are some similarities, but that man couldn't ever harm anyone I care about." Vicky smiles at Burke, and Barnabas hands them both drinks.

Harrison sits down to tea with Stokes in Stokes' house. Stokes admits to having an "endless curiosity for the knowledge in your head, Harrison." Harrison tells Stokes that he can only interfere with 1972 in order to protect his own time many years in the future, and that revealing too much might alter that. "Have you ever considered the possibility of revealing too little?" Stokes asks him. Harrison says he hasn't, though "it's been very tempting to give people advice on some critical decisions of their lives, knowing what the probable outcomes would be." Stokes says "Yes... I can see where one would be so tempted, around one's own ancestors. For myself, I think I must resist the Pandora's Box of knowledge in your mind." Harrison takes a sip of tea and replies "Yes, but that doesn't mean I don't need your help to some degree." Stokes says he was wondering when they'd get around to that, since "I know you didn't only come over here to tempt me with your knowledge of the future." Harrison tells Stokes that the future "must be protected" by "sealing the holes in time appearing in the West Wing of Collinwood." Stokes answers that "I'm not sure how I can help you. From what I understand, your psychic link to that crystal in your ring should give you enough power to solve the problem." Harrison runs his hand over his ring and answers "Yes... I can close the doorways that have been opening, but I must be sure that the one remaining is the true path to my own world. And to do that.... I might have to interfere with some events here in the present. I was hoping to get some words of encouragement from you, that I would be doing the right thing." Stokes answers that without knowing the future, he'd be "very hard pressed to know whether or not you are doing the right thing." Harrison nods and says he knows. Stokes suggests that "your idea of sealing the source of the problem in the laboratory of Quentin Collins from 1840 is a good beginning. It's the second part of your plan I'm not so sure about." Harrison steps away for a moment and says "I know... it's a risky thing, but I think it will work." He adds with a smile "I think I know my ancestors well enough."

Carolyn is packing her things in her room while Vicky helps her. Vicky tells her how envious she is that Carolyn will be going to study in Europe. Carolyn laughs a little and says "You're about to get married, and you're envious of me?" Vicky goes on about all the "wonderful opportunities" that await Carolyn when Liz and Alan enter. Liz asks Carolyn if she's sure she needs to pack that much since "after all, you're not leaving here forever. At least I hope not." Carolyn tells her mother that she could "never leave permanently." Alan says he's not sure, since "Stokes was telling me how other graduates of the program have traveled all over the world. I wonder if you'd want to come back to a little New England seaport after seeing all that... after all, nothing too exciting ever happens here." Vicky tells Carolyn that "I feel so traditional... getting married while you're going off and pursuing a career... you might wind up being as distinguished as Professor Stokes!" Liz tells Vicky that there's a lot to be said for being married as well, to which Alan says "Hear, hear!" Carolyn smiles and says "Mother, I'm not ruling out marriage. I'm just putting it off for a while." Vicky says that she'd thought about going back to school as well, but "now that I'm getting married, there's really no need. I used to have dreams of becoming someone very important, I guess every little girl does. But if I'm important to Burke, that will be enough to keep me happy." Liz thinks about what Vicky has said.

Monday, March 15, 2010

Episode 1506

Aired: Monday April 2, 1972

In a repeat of Friday's close, Brian begins to move closer to Maggie as Barnabas realizes why. "Your wounds... you need to heal your wounds before you can evoke Josette and complete your unholy bargain!" Brian answers "Exactly. And now, Miss Evans can perform that simple service, once I command her to." Maggie says "I won't! I won't help you!" Brian struggles to take a step closer and says "You have no choice, Miss Evans!" Maggie suddenly frees one of her hands, and Brian moves closer to her as she can't help but move it towards him. He's about to get close enough when Angelique shouts "Brian Miller! Get away from her!" Brian turns to see Angelique and Julia standing only a few feet away from him in the howling wind. Angelique scowls a hateful scowl as she walks towards him. "And get away from my husband....." Brian tries to move closer to Maggie's outstretched hand as Barnabas gasps....

After the titles, Angelique sneers at Brian. "Your powers are much weaker now than they ever were... without the healing hand you gave Maggie, you are no match for me." Brian struggles to reach Maggie, but finds he cannot move. He looks over to Angelique desperately. "You!" he shouts over the wind. "You've....taken control....but you do not hold all the trumps my dear..." Brian turns his glare towards Barnabas and commands "You know what you must do now, Barnabas. You are still under my control." Barnabas gasps and begins to step towards the edge of the cliff. "No..." he wails. "Don't let it end this way..." Angelique waves her hand and Brian screams in pain as he grabs the bloody wound in his side. Barnabas stumbles a bit, but Julia is right there to grab him - she pulls him away from the edge of the cliff and down to the ground. "Julia..." he says. "You saved me... you saved me again." Julia answers "What else could I do?" Brian shouts angrily "No!" and makes a desperate lunge towards Barnabas. Before he can get there, Angelique has stepped in between them and grabs Brian by the throat. "You wanted to send them over the edge to be impaled on the rocks below to keep your bargain and attain immortality..." Brian chokes under Angelique's grip and cannot get free. "Perhaps I'll drain the very life from you that you find so precious..." she says. Brian takes a small knife out of his pocket, but Julia shouts "Angelique! Look out!" Brian swings the knife, but Angelique pushes him forward to get out of the way of the blow - and sends a screaming Brian over the edge of the cliff. Julia runs to the edge and grimaces. "He's....dead," she says.

Julia repeats that Brian is dead, and then turns to Barnabas. "You're free!" she says. Barnabas, out of breath, nods. "Maggie..." he says. "Make sure Maggie is all right... she was also under his power." Maggie stands and looks at her hands for a moment. Julia tells Barnabas that Maggie seems fine, but Maggie doesn't answer to her name. Julia turns back to a satisfied Angelique. "It's hard to believe he's finally dead," she says. Angelique replies "What happened to his body on the jagged rocks below is nothing compared to the agony his soul suffers now." Julia asks Angelique how she can be sure, and Angelique replies "He tried to cheat his master. It's one thing to outwit him, but quite another to attempt a theft." Suddenly in the howling wind, flames burst next to some nearby rocks. As he did before, Diablos steps from the circle of flame. "How true your words are, Angelique. And how timely, now that I have come to complete our own bargain." Julia says "You got what you wanted! Brian Miller is dead and his soul is yours." Diablos answers "Indeed Brian Miller is mine forever, and will learn the price of attempting to cheat me. But there is another bargain, one for a much more precious soul." Julia looks at Maggie and then back at Angelique. "No..." Julia says. "Angelique! You didn't!" Angelique snaps "Quiet, Julia! This is none of your concern!" Julia yells "You can't let him take Maggie! Have you lost your mind? Barnabas would never..." Angelique shouts "That's enough!" Diablos laughs. "Maggie Evans was the vessel of Josette but is no longer.... the spirit of Josette was freed when Brian Miller was destroyed," he says. "So you too have broken your promise, my Angelique. Unless you are prepared to offer the innocence of Maggie Evans in exchange for the love of Josette Du Pres.... a meager substitute but an innocent soul nonetheless... Or perhaps instead as your punishment I shall claim what you desire yourself... I shall take Barnabas Collins to join Brian Miller in my realm." Barnabas shouts "No! You cannot!" Angelique says "I have not broken my bargain with you.... it is true Josette Du Pres has been freed and her spirit has returned to the land of the dead when I destroyed Brian. But you shall not claim Barnabas. I have not broken my bargain with you. I promised you the soul of Barnabas' beloved." Diablos says "And Josette DuPres is gone." Angelique answers "But I am here... and I am Barnabas' beloved. You will not harm Maggie at all, because you have me to complete our bargain." Barnabas shouts "Angelique! No! You cannot sacrifice yourself like this!" He begins to stand up and approach them, but Angelique waves him back. "If Maggie were destroyed, you'd never forgive yourself or me... it would be poisonous to our love forever. I cannot let it go on any longer. This is the only way." Barnabas says "But what will this bring? You'll be destroyed! I cannot bear to lose you again... not after all this time." Angelique sighs and smiles at Barnabas' innocence. "Barnabas... after all these years and everything we've been through....you should know more than anyone that my death can never keep me away from you." She suddenly turns to Diablos and announces "I am ready." Barnabas leaps towards her, but is stopped by a blinding flash of fire that consumes both Angelique and Diablos. There is a scream from Angelique that fades into the whistling of the howling wind as she vanishes in front of Barnabas' teary eyes. Barnabas fruitlessly scratches the ground where Angelique stood and lets the handful of ashy dust run from his hands, scattering it into the wind. "She's gone...she's gone..." he says tearfully as Julia looks on.

Barnabas runs his hands through the ashy dust where Angelique stood, crying and moaning. Julia asks Maggie if she's all right, and Maggie says she is "now that I know everything." Julia looks concerned and says "You remember.... everything?" Maggie says "Yes. I know all about Barnabas.... and I've forgiven him." Julia sighs with relief, but Maggie looks at Barnabas grasping with futility at the dust and looking over the cliff at the waves crashing on the rocks. "Fate hasn't forgiven him yet though, Julia," she adds. Julia says "I'll... I'll see to him. I'll look after him." Maggie says "You always do, don't you Julia? Always look after him...." Julia replies "Maggie, are you sure you're feeling all right? You've just been through a terrifying ordeal... you might need some medical treatment." Maggie looks at her hands for a moment, and answers "I'm fine. I feel absolutely fine. I want you to take me to Windcliff. You must take me to Windcliff immediately." Julia is confused, and asks "Maggie, if you're feeling fine, why do you want to go to Windcliff?" Maggie snaps "Julia, don't argue with me, just get your car. You're taking me to Windcliff." Julia watches Barnabas, who is still somber as he looks over the waves. "Gone..." he says. "Every time... with or without the curse.... my love only means destruction...." Maggie walks by Julia straight to Barnabas. As he continues to sob, she caresses his hair gently. He looks up, and Maggie offers her hand to him. Barnabas takes her hand and stands, and Maggie puts both her hands onto his chest. "Don't say that, Barnabas. You will go on and find the happiness that has eluded you throughout the years." She smiles at him, and he looks at her wondering before she turns back to Julia and demands once again to be taken to Windcliff. Julia asks Barnabas if he'll be all right, and he touches where Maggie had touched him. "Yes..." he says. "I don't understand it, but somehow I know I will..." Julia looks at Maggie.

At the old house, Julia leads Barnabas inside, where he says he'll wait for her after she takes Maggie to Windcliff. "I have...a lot to think about," he says. Julia leaves and asks Maggie "What did you do?" Maggie only repeats her demand to be taken to Windcliff. Julia asks why when there's nothing wrong, and Maggie tells Julia not to give her an argument. We cut to Windcliff, where we find Willie sweeping up the main lobby. Julia enters and Willie runs to her. Julia says "Willie! You're up and about... the last time I checked, you were still....." Willie says "Yeah, I know...I was in bad shape, but it'll take more than that to keep old Willie down, you know? I been doin' better." Julia says that's good to hear, and Willie asks her what she's doing there and if everything is still okay back at Collinwood. Julia answers that "There was a crisis...but it seems to have passed." Willie asks Julia if she'll be spending more time at Windcliff since "I kinda like workin' around here. They let me rebuild some of the steps out back, and I was thinking that this place could use a groundskeeper of sorts, I was meanin' to talk to ya about that..." Julia tells Willie that "It would be possible for you to keep working here, while your treatment progressed. I see no harm in it." Willie thanks her, and adds that he'd like to continue "even after I'm all better. I could use the money... I met this other patient, and she...well...." Julia smiles and says she understands, when Maggie comes in, in a rush. Willie sees her and gasps "Maggie! What are you doing here? You're all right, aren't you, you're all right?" Maggie says "Yes, Willie, I'm fine. What about you, are you doing better?" Willie gives her a quick recap of his recovery, and Maggie tells him "That's good, Willie. You were once very kind to me... I haven't forgotten." She turns to Julia and says "But I didn't come here to see Willie. There's someone else." Julia wonders who as we cut to a room where we see a patient from the back looking out a window, motionless. The door opens. Maggie and Julia enter, and Julia says "He's been like this since we admitted him years ago... I don't know what you think..." Maggie snaps "It doesn't matter what you know. It only matters what I feel." She walks over to the patient, and as we see him, it's a catatonic Joe Haskell (Joel Crothers), sitting and staring out the window blankly. "Joe..." Maggie says tearfully.