Moments that made you go "WHAT?!!!!"

[stefan]

My take on Barnabas is that initially, as a young man before he became a vampire, he was a haughty, emotional, immature yet relatively gentle guy. AFTER he became the vamp his personality changed. But, in between he became human again and then kinda semi-vampire. Throughout his adult vampire life he alternates between complete evil to semi-evil to good and then he does something sneaky - like kill someone and one doesn't know what to think of Barnabas except that he can't be completely trusted. Not sure if this was just writer fluctuations due to story requirements or that the writers were genuinely trying to convey a complex and permanently traumatized individual. Maybe Barnabas never recovered from being a vampire or to what happened to his family.

[CastleBee]

Maybe Barnabas never recovered from being a vampire or to what happened to his family.

Nice insites into the complexity of Barnabas' personality - pre and post vampire.  I would imagine beging cursed, losing your family and dying only to return to find out that you can only exist by killing WOULD score pretty high on the life stress list.  I know it would scar my personality beyond recognition. 

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[stefan]

Maybe Barnabas never recovered from being a vampire or to what happened to his family.

I would imagine beging cursed, losing your family and dying only to return to find out that you can only exist by killing WOULD score pretty high on the life stress list.  I know it would scar my personality beyond recognition. 

... not to mention waking up in a coffin 175 years in the future after you've been dead (sort of). I'm amazed he showed traces of sanity at all.

[BuzzH]

They could have did what they did with David Ford in 1795 and simply not have the character return at all.

Coud have done, not could have did.  Sorry, it's the English major in me!   

[BuzzH]

My aversion is the fact that Barnabas killed a family member, HIS family member, that could effect the outcome of the future he was trying to protect in the first place.  Barnabas had NO idea if Carl played an important role in the future of the Collins.

That's what pissed me off, that it was a family member, not who the actor playing him was.  And also the fact that he didnt' HAVE to kill him to keep his secret safe, as I mentioned earlier w/the others who also knew his secret. 

[BuzzH]

... not to mention waking up in a coffin 175 years in the future after you've been dead (sort of). I'm amazed he showed traces of sanity at all.

He didn't initially!  He was nuttier than a fruitcake when first released from the coffin.

[Nancy]

Coud have done, not could have did.  Sorry, it's the English major in me!  

I think you meant to type "Could" above and not "Coud." No such word, right?

Nancy

[CastleBee]

... not to mention waking up in a coffin 175 years in the future after you've been dead (sort of). I'm amazed he showed traces of sanity at all.

He didn't initially!  He was nuttier than a fruitcake when first released from the coffin.

Initally nuts - true but not for long which, I think is one of the biggies that really made me go WHAT?!!!!.  He may have been in a bit of shock at first - not to mention extremely hungry, thirsty and no doubt pretty grumpy.  But, look how quickly he recovered.  His ability to kind of pick right up and zip into the 20th century without much delay was actually pretty amazing. Look how fast he mastered the "horseless carriage"! (Okay, I think he had a wreck but, he gave it a shot.)  Even telephones didn't throw him for a loop...which to me would have seemed like a pretty wicked little instrument from a distance of 175 years. That Collins family - the definition of hearty New England stock I'd say!

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[IluvBarnabas]

Even before Carl, Barnabas showed that he was capable of harming a member of his own family. [spoiler]When he found David's knife in the mausoleum secret room, Barnabas foolishly jumped to the conclusion that David knew his secret and wanted to kill him. Had Sarah not intervened, David might have been a dead kid[/spoiler] and I know I could never forgive anyone, real or fictional, for harming a child.

[CastleBee]

I know I could never forgive anyone, real or fictional, for harming a child.

Even David during his "bad seed" phase?  He was a pretty spooky little mansion rat and potential little murderer himself ya know.

[MagnusTrask]

He'd have already developed strategies for getting through that stretch in the coffin.    When you're trapped in a box, with no way out, for a long long time, you gave to kill off the urge to vent, and claw desperately at the lid.   You have to learn discipline or it's disaster.   He could then find other applications for that discipline and adaptability when he got out.

I've thought about this a lot, since it's a very good analogy in a lot of ways for my own situation.  I usually think of a cage rather than a coffin.

[BuzzH]

He'd have already developed strategies for getting through that stretch in the coffin.    When you're trapped in a box, with no way out, for a long long time, you gave to kill off the urge to vent, and claw desperately at the lid. 

Correct me if I'm wrong as it's been a while since I watched 1795, but [spoiler]didn't Joshua tell Ben to put a cross INSIDE the coffin?  If so, ol' Barny wouldn't really be able to move at all, right?[/spoiler]

[IluvBarnabas]

EvenDavid during his "bad seed" phase?  He was a pretty spooky little mansion rat and potential little murderer himself ya know.

David was a messed up kid at the beginning no doubt, Roger hadn't been the loving father that he grew to be.

Come to think of it most of the Collinses seemed to be capable of violence:

[spoiler]Roger killed a man in a drunken state (letting Burke take the blame), Elizabeth attacked Paul with a poker (believing she killed him which she did not), Judith walled up Trask in revenge for his trying to drive her insane and committing her, Quentin was physically abusive in the beginning (particularly Magda) and wounded up strangling Jenny,
Millicent tried to kill Nathan with a knife after learning Suki was his wife rather than his sister, Gabriel murdered Randall Drew and wife Edith in cold blood, etc.[/spoiler]

If I went into ALL of Barnabas' murders or violence (whether he was good or evil) I'd be here non-stop for a few days!

[BuzzH]

Come to think of it most of the Collinses seemed to be capable of violence:  [spoiler]Roger killed a man in a drunken state (letting Burke take the blame)[/spoiler]

But, in all fairness, [spoiler]Roger killing that man was an accident, he didn't DELIBERATELY mow him down.  Now, PT Roger DID kill Angelique, Carolyn and Liz.[/spoiler]

And let's not forget [spoiler]Gabriel also killed his father Daniel, PT Gabriel tried to kill Daphne and only Bramwell's fortunate arrival saved her, Melanie tried to kill Catherine w/a knife when she was under the influence of the cursed room and Bramwell was all set to kill Morgan in that dual until Catherine told him she'd kill herself if he did.  He for sure kicked Morgan's ass the first time he tried to marry Catherine, going so far as to knock him into unconsciousness.  Oh, and PT Quentin (1841) went to prison for seven years for killing a man in a brawl at The Eagle[/spoiler]

[IluvBarnabas]

Oh I know that [spoiler]the regular time Roger wouldn't intentionally harm anyone (that's why I said he was drunk). But there is one time I really wish he had.....after it's revealed Jason lied to Elizabeth about her killing Paul, an angry Roger retorts to Jason "You make a mockery out of everything you say, after what you put my sister through!" I really, really, REALLY would have loved to have seen Roger deck Jason.[/spoiler]