All posts by TheLovelyAnomaly

A reply to TheLovelyAnomaly

TheLovelyAnomaly·2/1/2018

Karlcollins wrote:
When Barnabas first comes back from town in 1795 all bloodied up. You never see it again.
When Josettte and Angelique speak French. You never see it again.
When Angelique, as a vampire, sinks in and commits.
Maybe every Angie vampire scene.
Every Nancy Barrett scene.

All good observations! I do remember Barnabas with blood on his face one time during the 1795 story. It stood out to me too. I also remember quite a few scenes of Angelique as a vampire. (I think the one that I remember the most clearly is when Joe Haskell stabbed himself in front of her.) And yeah, that Nancy... she's a powerhouse. :)

(Edited by TheLovelyAnomaly)

A reply to TheLovelyAnomaly

TheLovelyAnomaly·2/1/2018

Prisonerofthenight wrote:
There's an episode from the Leviathan story where newly married Jeb Hawkes and Carolyn are entering a hotel room. Jeb enters first and switches on the light but is spooked to discover a quivering phantom in the room with him, so he switches off the light to escape it and then suggests to Carolyn that they leave.
In participating in the comments section of Danny Horn's Dark Shadows Every Day and seeing occasional comments here on Dark Shadows Wiki, I have found that this is almost universally one of the least favorite special effects among Dark Shadows fans; they tend to make fun of it, find it laughable, and think of it as cheap looking.
But I was three years old, watching during the original broadcast in 1970. For some reason, it really intrigued me and was one of the memories of the show I always kept with me, until I could finally view it again on DVD some 43 years later. In those days, like any three year old, I would wake in the night with strange, out of body "flying" dreams -- the equivalent of "the thing under the bed." To readjust, I'd have to go back to sleep with the light on.
But here in this Dark Shadows episode, it's exactly the opposite. Turning on the light does not help Jeb Hawkes get back to normal. In order to be free of the specter that haunts him, he has to switch off the light and be in the dark with it. At that young age, that scene just struck me in a certain way.
It also provided me with an additional childhood memory I otherwise wouldn't have had. Thanks to Dark Shadows, I know exactly where I was and what I was doing and thinking in the first half of the four o'clock hour of an afternoon that was four months and fourteen days before my fourth birthday.

Interesting! I can see how that scene would be intriguing to a small child. I got through the Leviathan storyline not too long ago and remember that scene pretty well. Truthfully, I didn't have a problem with the shadow figure. Sure, it wasn't a grade-A special effect, but that was irrelevent to me. I don't watch the show for the special effects, I watch it for the story and characters. :) The way I see it, it's not supposed to be the shadow itself that's frightening but what the shadow represents: impending doom. No matter where Jeb goes, he can't escape it. It's always there, waiting for him in the light (rather than the darkness, which is definitely different). Bad special effect or no, if I had a shadow chasing after me that I knew meant my death, I'd be pretty wigged out too.

Oh, wow! That's quite a few fours! Pretty neat that it did that. :)

(Edited by TheLovelyAnomaly)

TheLovelyAnomaly·1/30/2018 in General Discussion

Most memorable scenes from Dark Shadows -- what are some of yours?

Hi, folks! As a new fan of Dark Shadows who loves to discuss mutual interests with people, I decided to start my own discussion. :)

I'm curious as to what my fellow Dark Shadows fans consider to be their most memorable moments from the show. When I say "memorable moments," I'm referring to specific scenes that stood out and left a lasting impression. These scenes can be sad, funny, disturbing, exciting, you name it. They could have elicited any emotional response. I'm just looking for memorable.

So, fellow Dark Shadows fans, what say you? What scenes from the show have stuck with you?

(Edited by TheLovelyAnomaly)

A reply to

TheLovelyAnomaly·1/29/2018

Karlcollins wrote:
But imagine you're 13 with hair down there, and your costar is 17 and pretty, and you have to ride a rocking horsey in front of her on network TV. And play with dolls. And her character is as dumb as they come. And you are sole heir to this huge estate, know nothing about business, or social life, or the world we live in, and you don't even have a television, and the best you can do is go outside and play.
Might as well drop script, put on black leather gloves, and have some mineral water, for the digestion. At this point, you've already had a hot plate lunch making station in the building, so you might as well just drop out and start a restaurant. Because acting is for sissies. Chefs are real men who don't sit in a makeup chair. And they create.
That's how I see his mindset at the end.
Would you like to hear about our specials? They're really something, today.

I've never seen or read anything as to why he decided to leave the show, but if that was his reasoning, I can't say I really blame him. I'm a pretty forgiving viewer (I'm able to suspend disbelief fairly easily), but even I was like "Seriously? At his age?" when he was on the rocking horse. His character should have evolved more as he got older. And the whole Tad and Carrie possession thing was really just a rehash of the Quentin's ghost story. Thinking back on it, David's character did get possessed a lot. It got to the point where it was happening in every storyline. Henesy always handled it professionally, at least from what I could tell, but I understand how after a while it would get tiring.

Still a damn good child actor though, in my opinion.

(Edited by TheLovelyAnomaly)

A reply to

TheLovelyAnomaly·1/29/2018

He grew into a handsome boy over the course of the show, and he was a damn fine actor. His portrayal of Jamison possessed by Count Petofi was particularly impressive imo. He had to channel Thayer David, which I'm sure wasn't easy, and with the exception of Denise Nickerson--who showed up now and again--he was the only kid on the show. So basically here he was, a kid surrounded by adults, playing the main antagonist, and holding his own. I already knew he was talented, but he became one of my favorites after that.

(Edited by TheLovelyAnomaly)

A reply to Slocum

TheLovelyAnomaly·1/21/2018

DanSaba wrote:
Personally, I preferred the Leviathan storyline over 1970 parallel time. Although it wasn't as good as some of the other storylines, at least it contained characters we cared about. With the exception of Barnabas and later Julia, I couldn't get myself to care about 1970 parallel time. Also, I didn't really believe that the Angelique and Quentin of parallel time were really the alter egos of their regular time counterparts, which made it even further disconnected. As stated earlier, the 1995 storyline was brilliant, and the lead-up to 1840 wasn't bad either. 1840 had a huge build-up and then a very anticlimatic rush at the end. The 1841 parallel time plot should never have happened, given how soon the show was going to be cancelled, but I suppose they didn't know that. It's really a shame that the show ended in the most disconnected plot from the original storyline.

I know your comment is old, but I had to respond. I thought I was the only one who preferred the Leviathan storyline over the 1970 PT one! I wouldn't say that 1970 PT was a "jump the shark" storyline, I just couldn't get myself invested in it. I didn't like the characters I was used to being portrayed so differently, and the Quentin/Angelique/Maggie triangle grated on my nerves. I remember wanting it to hurry up and be over right after it had gotten started! It did grow on me a bit later, when it became a "who done it" mystery and felt almost like an Agatha Christie novel, but I still consider it the weakest plotline.

(Edited by TheLovelyAnomaly)

A reply to Karlcollins

TheLovelyAnomaly·1/21/2018

Karlcollins wrote:
When I was ten year old boy, I didn't like her for all of her crying.
Now....She is EASILY my favorite cast member.
In terms of raw talent, she outperforms everyone.
Her range is superb, from drama to comedy.

I know your post is over three years old, but nevertheless I wanted to drop in and say I completely agree with you. I love many of the cast members, but Nancy had a sincerity in her performances that was very evident, and she made each of her characters distinctive--that is, she portrayed them as individual people. Carolyn was Carolyn, Millicent was Millicent, Charity was Charity, Pansy was Pansy, etc.

(Edited by TheLovelyAnomaly)

A reply to AmethystTrask

TheLovelyAnomaly·1/21/2018

It's great to finally see someone else doing a list of the men! Nice balanced list altogether. My brother thinks Jonathan Frid has a really majestic quality too, but I just cannot see it myself. XD

Thanks, I'm glad you like it! Haha, to each his/her own. :D

(Edited by TheLovelyAnomaly)

A reply to AmethystTrask

TheLovelyAnomaly·1/20/2018

I'm going to limit my list to 10, my top 5 for the men and my top 5 for the women. :)

For the men:

1. David Selby

2. Don Briscoe

3. Christopher Pennock

4. Jonathan Frid (he's got a very majestic way about him that's incredibly appealing to me)

5. Joel Crothers

For the women:

1. Kate Jackson

2. Lara Parker

3. Kathryn Leigh Scott

4. Alexandra Moltke

5. Nancy Barrett

Okay, that proved harder than I thought it would be. XD Here are some honorable mentions (and by honorable mentions, I mean actors/actresses that don't make my top list but are still pretty damn hot in my opinion): for the men, John Karlen and Robert Rodan; for the women, Diana Davila, Terry Crawford, and Marie Wallace.

(Edited by TheLovelyAnomaly)