you can change light bulbs without a ladder

Have a great time!

running away and warmth

As Julia & Cass return from a visit with Stokes they meet Roger on the phone in the foyer reporting the Adam incident to the police. A concerned Julia leaves for the Old House and Cassandra feigns concern, sympathy & guilt. Roger relates the Adam/Barnabas connection piquing her ‘sincere’ interest. Julia meets Barn on the Old House porch and convinces him that Adam is probably in the Old House. They find him in his cell. Once they’ve earned his confidence, Julia is able to tend his wound and Barn heads to the Great House to size up the situation as it now stands. Roger haughtily grills Barn about his apparent connection to Adam. Barn weakly defends his false total lack of knowledge and splits. Julia finishes up with Adam and he grabs her hand (as Barn taught him) in gratitude but overdoes it and hurts Julia. He senses this and lets go leaving Julia to contemplate her risky exit. Adam asks for music and a relieved Julia plays Lang’s tape for him and exits the basement leaving Adam to his soothed senses.

Afterthoughts: Does it astound anyone that Julia persists in developing a friendship with Cassandra – it dumbfounds & confounds me. I can see the ‘keep your enemies close’ thang but I am not picking up that vibe. During the drawing room scene with Rog, Cass & Barn, every time I looked at Barn all I could see was the cover of the Dark Shadows game – obviously, the one with his true image on it. Or maybe it’s the View Master envelope I’m thinking of. For some odd reason the drawing room doors seem as if they open to a frontal view of the fireplace and sofa. This seems ‘new’ to me. I always remember the doors being very much to the right of (facing) the fireplace. The fireplace wall also looks shorter in width than I want to remember it. Perhaps it’s just the camera angle.

I feel as though I haven’t seen Roger pour a drink in ages and there was something comforting about it. I felt it was very effective to have Cass pretty much just stand there while Rog was questioning Barn. I kept expecting her to open her mouth in support of Roger’s suspicions (to annoy Barn) and then at one point to defend Barn against Roger’s grilling. Her silence added intensity to the scene. So far, Rodan is superb as Adam. I wonder how much of Adam belongs to Rodan and how much to the director. His closing scene was marvelously executed. And the scene between Adam and Julia as she readied to leave the cell was breathtakingly suspenseful – I almost passed out waiting to exhale - very gripping & quite intense – everything from rape to neck snapping crossed my mind. Had I not joined the WP I would have went to my grave giving the ’68 storyline no value whatsoever. So far, it has merit. Today’s ending credits are flash and roll.

What were their other options?

teach Adam how to say "Sufferin' succotash!"

Nice opening still of the Great House – no hint of 200 + years of horror and despair. Barn brings a captive, lonely & miserable Adam his supper. Adam speaks Barn’s name much to Barn’s delight, which in turn delights Adam. After Barn leaves, a distraught Adam breaks free and escapes the Old House. Meanwhile at the Great House, David and Roger chat in the foyer. We learn that David is now fond of Cassandra and has no memory of disliking her, this much to Roger’s confusion but much more importantly, his approval. Enter Barnabas looking for Julia. David runs out to play with the new pocketknife Cass bought him earlier. An icy Roger informs him that Julia is out and Liz is on her way to the Old House. Roger stops Barn from going after Liz so they can discuss a matter of discourse between them – Cassandra. Roger insists upon civility and Barn acquiesces to placate him. On the path to the Old House, Liz comes across Adam, scolds him as a trespasser, then sees his chain & shackle and flees to the Great House in fear. Liz tells Barn & Roger of her terrorizing encounter. Concerned for his son, Roger retrieves a gun and takes Barn into the woods to search for David. Meanwhile, Adam comes upon David as he plays with his pocketknife. David is friendly toward Adam and the two ‘play’ together until ownership of the knife comes into question – during the melee David twists his ankle and Adam picks him up to alleviate his pain but this freaks David out. David’s panicked shouts gain the attention of R&B and they find the boy. Rootin’ tootin’ Roger aims his gun at Adam but Barn is able to talk Adam into putting David down. Then in a moment of fear and confusion, Roger shoots Adam in the shoulder and Adam runs back to the Old House (with a determined Roger, a limping David & a concerned Barn all in hot pursuit) and takes to his cell wallowing in pain.
 
Afterthoughts: Adam’s a totally sympathetic – and dare I say, likeable character. Barn & Roger’s conversation – Barn pulls the ‘Liz’ card and Roger states that Liz hates rudeness more than he does. Loved it. I’ll give partial credit to the prop guys for making Adam look eight feet tall, they hid the rise very well but shrubbery continually blocking his feet would have made the effect so much better. Maybe the stage director is to blame for that. Frid is still coming across as quite unrehearsed to me. I am guessing that maybe he was doing a lot of promo work at this time. His Barnabas ‘look’ is very familiar as is seen in hoards of promo photos I seem to recall and I know the show is becoming a national phenomenon about this time. Well, that’s my theory anyway. Bennett looks great – I love that color green. Every time I see Roger now I am analyzing him per Magnus’s comments of late. I think the writers are doing a good job balancing the old Roger with the new Roger. I miss the entertainment value of the old Roger but I do take comfort in the new and improved Roger, especially since I’ve experienced JLM’s Roger in Shadows ‘12. BTW, I thought it was an interesting choice to have David run into Barn’s arms instead of his father’s. I guess this left Roger free to shoot Adam. And there’s nothing like terror to make you forget you’ve sprained your ankle, lol. Barn & Liz & Roger in the foyer took on the ambience of a Three Stooges skit to me. Not that is was funny or inane – it was just the rapid-fire delivery. (Still, I did crack up though.)
 
L: “But Barnabas, wait! He said your name!”
B: “My name?”
L: “He had a shackle around his ankle with a broken chain!”
R: “What?!”
L: “It’s true!”
R: “David!”
L: “Where is he?!”
R: “He’s Out playing in the woods!”
B: “Well, we must find him!
R: “I’ll get my gun!”
B: “Is that necessary?!”
R: “Well if he had a chain there must be a reason!” (This is where I laughed out loud)
L: “But if Barnabas knows him!”
B: “Elizabeth!” (This is where I hit the floor)
L: “Well, why did he say your name?!”
B: “Well, we’ll have to find that out!” (And now I’m rolling)

In a skit, I would have Liz announce, “I’ll make tea!” as the men left to find David. Today’s blooper: Adam knocking over the shrub, lol. Today’s ending credits are ‘fade and roll’.

The opening location stills have markedly improved. In the Old House basement cell Barn, Jules & Willie wait for Adam to wake. Barn gets Shakespearian and romantic about Adam’s primal state while Willie frets over having to be left with him after he wakens. After B&J leave, Willie lights a cigarette and Adam grabs it and burns himself, knocks Willie out and escapes the Old House into the night. Jules talks to Mrs. J. at Collinwood and finds out she’s had the dream and that behind the last door were bats. This alarms Jules because it would seem that things are coming down to the wire for Barn. And discovering that David is next in line to hear the dream adds to her dread. Jules suggests Mrs. J. leave town so as not to pass the dream. But Mrs. J. is too afraid to do anything. Willie barges in chasing MJ off and tells Jules that Adam’s escaped, etc. Julia & Willie leave to get Barn to decide on their next move. Adam wanders upon Collinwood’s terrace and discovers the fountain. He drinks from it and despairs at his reflection in the basin. Mrs. Johnson wanders out looking for David but comes upon Adam. Mrs. J does her best ‘Mrs. J.’ third-degreeing Adam and eventually flustering him up to what she interprets as menacing behavior. She starts screaming and Barn, Jules & Willie run out to see what the commotion is about. Mrs. J. tells them of a strange man and they don’t get it until she claims he was more a monster than a man. Mrs. J & Julia talk while the men search for Adam. MJ’s gripped by paralyzing fear but ultimately decides she will leave Collinsport for David’s sake. Barn & Willie find Adam in the woods and coax him back to the Old House where he is put into a deep sleep and a heavy duty ankle bracelet and matching chain. Adam wakes and pathetically grieves over his new predicament.
 
 
 
Afterthoughts: Pretty emotional episode for me. I was distraught right out of the gate with the thought that Willie was to be locked up with a free range Adam. I was slightly comforted when they did not lock the cell door. Mrs. Johnson really tugged at my heartstrings with pretty much her whole performance sans the meeting with Adam at the fountain, where I got my comic “go get ‘em Mrs. J.” rocks off. Another new outfit for Mrs. J. – I wonder what’s up with that? Not that I’m complaining mind you, but like, it is supposed to mean something to us? So far R. Rodan is giving a good performance as Adam and though the writing was week in spots today – I do like how they are writing the Adam character. The bit with the fountain was very good, IMO. Karlen is especially good also today.