And I've waited so long, Willie......

[Raineypark]

Am I the only one here who HATED the return of Willie Loomis?

Didn't any one else throw something at the TV?

Never saw this stuff before.  Wish I still hadn't.

The nature of Willie's relationship to Barnabas Collins ALWAYS makes me want to shriek.....but this was beyond endurance.

That Willie would even for an instant consider staying and helping the man who: enslaved him, beat him, tormented him, threatened him, framed him, belittled him, betrayed him......isn't just stupid.  It's sickening.

If they had wanted to, they could have written Willie's return in much different terms.  He could have come back older and wiser, angry and vengeful, with something of his original personality, determined to let Barnabas and Julia know he was no longer afraid.  He could have demanded admissions of guilt and apologies all round,  and only when Barnabas had admitted to both contrition and helplessness, should Willie have thought about remaining to help.  In one conversation (this IS a soap opera, after all) they could have changed the nature of the entire relationship in a way that would have resolved past issues and opened up new possibilities for the interactions of all three characters.  Instead of being needed merely to babysit the contents of a casket, he could have brought some of the original hoodlum's talents to the fight against the Leviathans.  They could have made REAL use of one of the most talented actors in the studio.

But no.  They brought him back the same simpering, pathetic child...still hoping to please his abusive parent....even to the point of destroying the first chance at happiness he's ever had.  One can only  assume the mail indicated this was the way the fans  liked Willie.  Or maybe TPTB were just too damned lazy.

Better he had stayed away¢â‚¬¦

How much longer to William Hollingshead Loomis?

[Luciaphile]

He was doing that selective memory thing too. Going on about how much he owed Julia and Barnabas.

Ha.

Barnabas beat him, tormented him, did all sorts of nasty things to him. And then he and the good doctor (who needs a slap upside the head and how) colluded and had him committed to a mental institution for a crime of which he was innocent. And Willie owes them?

[Gerard]

That Willie would even for an instant consider staying and helping the man who: enslaved him, beat him, tormented him, threatened him, framed him, belittled him, betrayed him......isn't just stupid.  It's sickening.

I just pictured Willie taking all that into account when he returned, shrugging, and then thinking:  "Eh, it's a living."

Gerard

[Mysterious Benefactor]

But no.  They brought him back the same simpering, pathetic child...still hoping to please his abusive parent....even to the point of destroying the first chance at happiness he's ever had.

Willie remains the devoted servant to the bitter end, so it's just as well that you get used to the idea.

But actually, from a psychological POV, I think it's quite fascinating that it is that way. For instance, from the very beginning of all that we know of him, Willie latched onto more powerful older men who abused him in one way or another. Granted, he seemed to be with Jason of his own free will (which most certainly wasn't the case with Barn in the beginning). But I suspect there's a deeper reason there as well as here - one that allows, if not compels Willie to devote himself to Barn, completely in spite of how abusive Barn had been to him in the past...

[onyx_treasure]

     The way Willie was going on about Roxanne(refined and genteel) he reminded me of Carl.  Carl described his low class gal with the same words.  It makes me wonder what Roxanne was really like.  [spoiler]It is too bad that she never shows up.  It would have been classic to have her come on to Barnabas.  I love it when he registers discomfort in inappropriate social situations.[/spoiler]

[Julian]

Maybe Willie suffers from Stockholm Syndrome.

[Cassandra Blair]

Maybe Willie suffers from Stockholm Syndrome.

That's the only way the whole scenario makes sense, something like that.  But as MB says, maybe that makes sense psychologically for this character: he's been beaten down and abused for so long that he actually feels an affinity with his former tormentor.

Plus, there's the whole blood slave thing.  Since Barnabas is once again a member of the undead, does that 'reactivate' Willie's enslavement?

[Annie]

Hello Raineypark I'm just glad that The
Q-man is back !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 
           Love Anne

[Dr. Eric Lang]

I was certainly yelling "Run, Willie, Run!!!"

But as MB suggests, it makes a rather fascinating psychological study. I got the impression that after Willie was released from Wyndcliff he was never completely restored to sanity, and even seemed to forget what Barnabas had done prior to that. Until Barnabas came along, Willie had been a drifter, and not terribly bright it must be admitted.

Willie may see Barnabas as his benefactor or even savior. He gave him a respectable job, a place to live, and turned his life around. Eventually Willie had the wherewithall to embark out on his own and find true love for the first time in his life.

[jennifer]

Hey what about Maggie !was Julia really that good that she could make Maggie forget what was done to her by Barnabas?
just a case of changing a charactor from evil to good
when the fans want it!
on the Luke and Laura thing it was stated on the show that it wasn't really rape when luke became popular and then they changed it back years later so their son could have a real issue with Luke!

jennifer
don't be too mad at willie it's the writer's fault LOL!

[Patti Feinberg]

Hey what about Maggie !was Julia really that good that she could make Maggie forget what was done to her by Barnabas?

That I know...Barn made sure Julia would hypnotise (more than once, just to be safe) Maggie, to make sure she forgot.

Patti

[Raineypark]

Julia had nothing to do with the final erradication of Maggie's memories about her kidnapping and imprisonment in the Old House cell.  That was Nicky Blair's doing.  Julia tried to hypnotize Maggie and it didn't work.

After she escaped from Willie and the mausoleum they thought she'd go straight to the police.  But in one of the more idiotic plot twists, Nicky waves his magic wand and suddenly Maggie's inviting Barnabas over for coffee and etchings instead. 

[Mysterious Benefactor]

But in one of the more idiotic plot twists, Nicky waves his magic wand and suddenly Maggie's inviting Barnabas over for coffee and etchings instead. 

Well, only idiotic in a sense if one expects that Barn would ever pay for any of his past crimes - but with Barn the titular hero of the show, THAT was NEVER going to happen. The prevailing notion, which is reinforced repeatedly throughout all storylines subsequent to Barn's 1967 introduction, is that every transgression, no matter how heinous, that he committed prior to Vicki's trip to 1795/96 was merely due to the fact that Barn was a vampire and couldn't help/stop himself. The audience must, therefore, accept that premise blindly and forgive all - an undertaking most find quite easy to do, chiefly because the subsequent storylines paint Barn as sympathetically as possible (sometimes going so far as to cast him as victim) while still maintaining his anti-hero status. That premise is an integral part, if not indeed a tenet of the show from 1968 onward, and actually one most fans would probably consider one of DS' more fascinating aspects. (However, it's also one that completely flies out the window when it comes to the way every other vampire on the show is portrayed/treated - a prime example of which we'll be seeing shortly...)

[Raineypark]

Well, only idiotic in a sense if one expects that Barn would ever pay for any of his past crimes - but with Barn the titular hero of the show, THAT was NEVER going to happen......every transgression, no matter how heinous, that he committed prior to Vicki's trip to 1795/96 was merely due to the fact that Barn was a vampire and couldn't help/stop himself. The audience must, therefore, accept that premise blindly and forgive all......

Well, excuse the hell out of me for failing to recognize and sign on to the prevailing wisdom.  I never accepted the premise, and never forgave a damned thing.

I detested, loathed and despised the character of Barnabas Collins the entire time I watched what I saw of  the first run, and I never gave up anticipating the day when he would pay for his transgressions.  Did I know deep down that the chances of that happening were virtually nil?  Yes.  But hope springs eternal.

  The show was just as fascinating to watch from THAT point of view as any other.....perhaps more so because I never saw all the other characters as mere supporting players to The Star.

[Julia99]

Well B did get his cumeuppance in the film ..take that and let the rest of it go. .  :-   Honestly, not one person on this show is an ethical, honorific character, they all have faults galore!  I know Lucia went on about Julia's fallings the other day -- she was pretty despicable at times but weren't they all and isn't that why we're still here debating a show that's been off the air for 30 years???