DARK SHADOWS FORUMS
General Discussions => Current Talk Archive => Current Talk '24 I => Current Talk '09 I => Topic started by: Watching Project on April 10, 2009, 10:42:02 PM
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Robservations #755
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YAY, I'm caught up, at least temporarily!!! [dancing_skeletons]
No replay this time, the scene starts with Barnabas in the foyer, joined by Beth. Smart girl, she’s trying to deflect suspicion, but can’t convince Barnabas that the animal couldn’t have been wearing clothes or walked like a man. One good thing about the double standard is everything she says can be explained away by the menfolk as overwrought female hysterics; poor little woman, can’t be thinking clearly after she was attacked. I’m thinking she knows that, too, and is using it. [ideay]
Laura flounces in wearing a new dress. Very fancy and floaty, but it doesn’t look like a nighty. Wonder what would have happened if she;’d happened across wolfieq? Would she have been able to manage something with her powers? (Just got a sick mental image of a werewolf with a hotfoot.) It’s now open warfare between Barnabas and Laura, but who will make the next move? It’s nearly dawn.
Beth just has NO luck. The foyer is seeing as much traffic as a train station, and now Laura is insisting on waiting right there until she sees Jamison. Not even instructions to lock up are making an impression on Laura. She’s on a Barnabas soliloquy and is getting awfully close. It seems she’s the first one to wonder why Barnabas is NEVER seen in the daytime. [milestone] But Beth doesn’t seem to be paying attention. Beth gives into Laura awfully quickly, since, like Charity, Laura has NO rights in that house, and Beth was specifically instructed to insure she leaves.
So Laura is making the next move, getting her Renfield to snoop at the Old House for her. Barnabas leaves a note for Magda. Here’s hoping this one works better than his last note left for trespassers. Laura and her magic create a fire that Barnabas disappears from, with Dirk conveniently snooping from the window. One wonders, though, if the Old House was abandoned, how can Laura remember Edward showing it to her? Or maybe she’s remembering Jerimiah showing it to her, and this is the cover story. Like Barnabas she seems to have a peculiar idea that something she remembers is going to be just where she remembered it, even 100+ years later.
Thank goodness Laura was speaking, else Quentin would have walked right in on the conspirators. At least this time he seems to have been elsewhere when he came to, and not transforming in the middle of the foyer. Good thing Beth was still lurking about, since just pulling himself up the stairs seems to have knocked him out. Realistic looking fall; he just seemed to go boneless and fall any old way.
Smart of Beth to get him into the drawing room; at that hour the servants would all have been up, leaving out the back staircase. And with the rucus over Jamison, anyone's guess if the front one would have traffic.
Poor Quentin – can’t tell from the framing if it’s because of the last thing he remembers, or it’s the look on her face that tips him off, but he now knows that she can tell him what happens to him. Got to give him some points for not trying to run away from it (maybe for the first time in his life, he’s facing something head on). He wants to KNOW, no matter how bad it is – and he knows from the way she’s trying not to tell him that it’s BAD. TC & DS do a very fine job with this scene. We see quite a play of emotions from Quentin as Beth tells him past her tears. Beth’s not telling him all of it, and not really in order, but she’s telling him the basics, which might be all he can handle just now. I think this is probably a time when Quentin wishes he weren’t so quick, because I think he figured out very quickly that if he attacked Beth and had to be beaten off, that he’s responsible for the dead girl. But he still hasn’t learned! [8311] As soon as Beth reminds him it’s not him, it’s the curse, what does he do? Threaten to kill Magda. [6184] So, Mr. Know-it-all, worked out well for you the last time, did it? Beth, thank goodness has more brains. Points out essentially what Evan told him: you need Magda to remove the curse, which calms him down. Once he’s off that track, he does think logically – how to lock me up so I don’t hurt anyone else. And his other thought is logical, too: research and find out what can be discovered about the curse to deal with it and maybe get rid of it.
Another great Quentin and Beth scene, all told. Sweet in a very sad way near the end, where he just puts his head on her shoulder and wants to be held. [hug] This isn’t the lecher or the rake, just a man in a horrifying situation, even if he did bring it on himself, simply wanting comfort and human kindness from someone he cares for. [love8]
From the sublime to the ridiculous: Dirk and his careful and efficient method of getting into the secret room without anyone guessing he was there. Just so convenient, isn’t it, that the stuff Laura wanted is so easily accessible and quick to find?
And more on the ridiculous: Quentin and Beth picking the front landing to have a conversation about the lack of a full moon and things that happened to him last night and the night before. [90d1] Of course, that’s right up there with Quentin trusting Evan Hanley again. [stupid]
Cut to the graveyard, which is Grand Central station lately. Where’s the old caretaker’s incestors when you need them? And is it just me, or wouldn’t a plain pine box like this one have rotted by then?
Booga booga at the end with the appearance of Barnabas, watching and lurking as they defile Ben’s grave. [2Bats]
Jeannie
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Laura flounces...
I can't stop giggling. Just what the doctor ordered. Thank you.
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Either "flounce" is an especially hilarious verb, or I need to synchronize with the Watching Project, and actually watch once again this wonderfully transcendant era of DS we like to call 1897 (mainly 'cause it was in fact 1897... I should think these things out ahead of time, oughtn't I?).
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More like joyous. I've been sharing laughs with it for hours. It's a fabulous word. I brought a group to their knees using it to describe an old friend of ours. It was great.
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You're quite welcome. Glad to have given you a giggle, Dom. [9391] [9391] [9391]
She DID flounce, though. She came though the door, like a dreadnaught under full sail in that floofy dress, and FLOUNCED (there, I said it again!).
Magnus, you have to see her doing it. Yet another incentive to watch 1897 [thumbleft] [crowdhappy] [91a2]. We're getting close to where you said your tapes pick up, anyway. <HINT>.
Jeannie the instigator
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Laura's dress seemed very modern to me and was showing a lot of skin for a person who is supposed to be a proper lady even though she's not. Laura's speculation about Barnabas being a creature of the night and then that he's not seen during the day and then leading to his disappearing and her realization that he too is not human was very dramatic to watch. It seemed to easy to find Ben Stokes diary at the old house. When I saw Ben's coffin, I thought, it seems a little small for the Ben Stokes I recall.
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Jeannie-- I only just started on 12897 again yesterday. My tapes begin with the fire at the school.
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Since Angelique in this time is privy to all the goings-on at Collinwood, where the heck is she now that Barnabas has a powerful enemy?
Nice shot of the boom mic as Dirk entered the drawing room. Later, the backwards slide of CW again.
The secret room in the Old House is still to the right of the fireplace. But don't count on it always being there.
Laura arrived wearing a shawl but her hooded cape was mysteriously added when she stepped outside with Dirk. And then the cape was gone again, though the time to wear it would have been during her nighttime visit to the graveyard, no?
Laura's dress seemed very modern to me and was showing a lot of skin for a person who is supposed to be a proper lady even though she's not.
LOL It was such an odd choice-- the hemline not quite floor-length, and the plunging neckline that couldn't hide her black lace bra despite the silly flowers. And then that ever-present shawl hiding her arms... the dress was so wrong that I can't help but wonder if it was a last-minute replacement for something else.
It seemed to easy to find Ben Stokes diary at the old house.
Let's see-- we learned in #510 that Ben wrote a memoir that ended up in the hands of his ancestor, though important chapters were missing. He wrote a cryptic diary that ended up in a trunk in the secret room. And he wrote another diary that was buried with him. Could it be that Ben created records of his life that are all over the place? I mean geezus, once he learned to read and write there apparently was no stopping him!
Did Barnabas cause the storm? [scratch]
Beth was specifically instructed to insure she leaves.
I'm not sure that Beth was actually given the instructions to lock up after Laura left. I thought that comment and the one to Laura that she couldn't stay were her desperate attempts to get rid of her because it was nearly dawn and raggedy Quentin might be stumbling in like he did the day before. Laura said about it, "You take it so personally. How strange."
Hmm, I could see Edward showing his bride around the abandoned Old House and sharing its secrets with her.
Dirk and his careful and efficient method of getting into the secret room without anyone guessing he was there.
[lghy]
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Cut to the graveyard, which is Grand Central station lately. Where’s the old caretaker’s incestors when you need them? And is it just me, or wouldn’t a plain pine box like this one have rotted by then?
Dom got a kick out of "flounce" and this made me laugh my ass off! Incestors?? LOL Good one there Louis! [ghost_wink]
VO: Diana Millay
I love to see these two supernatural creatures squaring off. So is Laura making the child sick? I don't recall present day Laura doing this. However, I have only watched those episodes once. Diana has gorgeous eyes and in a lot of ways her and Angelique look/act alike! Although, I think Laura is no match for the all powerful Angelique!
FX all around and the episodes is one that proves that DS truly “reached for the stars!” ever day!
OH HELLO—there comes hotness around the corner! Hello Hottie! OPEN SHIRT! WHOO HOO! Why can't I find something like this at dawn, I ask you?? I am so envious of Terry Crawford running her hands through his hair! UGH!! So thick and gorgeous.Such a doll Q is. I don't think I would have made it through puberty had I watched during the original run. Lord I always get distracted with “The Pretty!”
Love the fog as it rolls in giving the show a creepy feel!
A+++++++++++++++++ for the chest shots!
SIDE NOTE: Thank Pansity for introducing me to dreadnaught! :) I am sure everyone knows by now I love WORDS and make a list weekly and learn new ones. :) I added it! You know some people may say this is such a waste of time and stupid for us to do this. However, it can be a most educational experience. I say "FOOEY" on them!!!
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I am sure everyone knows by now I love WORDS and make a list weekly and learn new ones. :) I added it! You know some people may say this is such a waste of time and stupid for us to do this. However, it can be a most educational experience. I say "FOOEY" on them!!!
Some people will go out of their way to call anything "stupid" that specifically isn't stupid. Lately on a Trek board, someone's very PO'd that another member started threads on each episode, where many people had good, thoughtful remarks to make. He was convinced that these stupid threads ruined the board, and that we all had to go back to the great old days of poll after poll after poll, and simply saying an episode was 'cool' or 'sucked'.
A larger vocabulary allows you to have better and more complex thoughts, and a wider perspective on your own life. Many thoughts don't occur before one has the words for them. I'm catching up on definitions now because of the Internet and dictionary.com. Even words we're familiar with can have nuances we didn't know about. The more words we carry around in our heads, the more thoughts are possible.
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VERY well said Magnus. I truly think you need to write as you have alluded to before! You probably could come up with some great stories. [ghost_wink] One hang up I have is my grammar and puncation. Sometimes I feel slightly stupid in that area, but I push through it. It's just a "DUMB HICK" stigma I have dealt with all my life. That is why I strive to learn more and be more erudite. I still talk very southern, but I like that, and don't really care about my accent! It adds character! [ghost_wink] Sorry to get off topic mods....
Back on: I thought Laura's dress was very inappropriate as well. It just didn't work for me!
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oh yikes, I've been away from this topic too long. Tons to comment on. Hope I don't mess up when I try to copy and paste the quotes I'm replying to!
I'm not sure that Beth was actually given the instructions to lock up after Laura left. I thought that comment and the one to Laura that she couldn't stay were her desperate attempts to get rid of her because it was nearly dawn and raggedy Quentin might be stumbling in like he did the day before. Laura said about it, "You take it so personally. How strange."
I read over my original post, Midnite and I did leave it fuzzy., so that it wasn't clear that I knew that Beth was using it as a story; however, thats what Beth told Laura she was told. So, Laura ignoring what Beth told her that the family told her to do was still pretty obnoxious.
Everyone's comments on Laura's (for want of a better description) ball gown: I agree, it's weird; however it's not too low cut for the period. Victorians were weird that way, low cut was OK, but legs were a huge no no. The general style reminds me of some period ballgowns, but I'm not enough into it to go looking for something like it to determne an exact time frame. VERY odd choice for the scene (lol on Midnite's comments on the shawl for outdoors and the cape for inside). I lean toward Midnite's theory that it was something substituted last minute. Its logical, and nothing plot related makes sense.
OH HELLO—there comes hotness around the corner! Hello Hottie! OPEN SHIRT! WHOO HOO! Why can't I find something like this at dawn, I ask you?? I am so envious of Terry Crawford running her hands through his hair! UGH!! So thick and gorgeous.Such a doll Q is. I don't think I would have made it through puberty had I watched during the original run. Lord I always get distracted with “The Pretty!”
Taeylor, you always crack me up when you start drooling over Quentin. Reminds me of a young friend of mine named Linda (her handle, not her real name). HUGE case of the hots for Qman and Selby since she was in her teens (she's in her 20s now). Its a shame, but the lunatic fringe element of every fandom makes me feel I need to add that she's well mannered enough not to have mortified the man when she's met him at Fests.
You're welcome on the new word. Any of my friends can tell you I'm the one to come to for ten dollar words. [ghost_wink] [ghost_grin] Comes from reading so much -- you pick up all kinds of interesting words, especially the more you read classic novels. Same goes for what you see are your weaknesses in grammar and punctuation. A lot of that tends to ooze in if you read a lot. You just start knowing what SOUNDS right. And DON'T lose the accent. When I went to WV the first time, I thought it was really cool that folks had regional accents and the older English usages (like going to the post). However, younger people picked up vanilla english from the TV I guess, and spoke generic American. Same for the Midwest and parts of the South.
Keep in mind, too (and this goes for both you and Magnus) that grammar and punctuation can be learned. The important thing (especially in fanfiction) is a story mind and good ideas. Thats another reason to mourn zines -- and fanfiction groups that actively encourage critique and improvement of writing. I think the only one that still does that is the Julia group. I've seen a lot of problems on other fanfiction groups because people ask legit questions about something that's unclear in a story, and get trashed and flamed, even by the moderators in name only. (Since this dumbing down of fanfiction is a personal pet peeve of mine, I better stop now before I get carried away).
On the "stupid"thing Magnus, yes I've seen that too. If you don't agree with someone's ideas, or what they want to do, that makes you "stupid", or the thing being discussed "stupid". It's a lack of respect, as well as the lack of vocabulary that you point out. A disrespect for opinions different from their own, and a feeling that only their thoughts matter. Just one more variation on the ME ME ME its all about MEEEE and gimme brats. People with the emotional maturity of 8 year olds no matter what their chronological age.
Jeannie
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I am doing better on grammar and punctuation. I was a dreamer in school and didn't pay attention like I should have. I had my strong areas though; literature, spelling and history were very "FUN" and "Easy" for me. Math, Science and English were not my strongest subjects. I have taught myself a lot and edited a fan zine and have had three short stories published so apparently I am not all that bad. I did have help though from a great editor who was strong in the areas that I wasn't in. It was vice versa with us. He wasn't good on computers so that fell to me.
Sorry Mods for getting this horribly off topic!
As far as getting all hot and bothered over Q, I can't help it. He is just gorgeous and oozes sex appeal. On top of that, he is a damn fine actor. Not a combo we get much anymore! However, if I do ever met David I will totally contain myself. I cannot stand rude or obnoxious fans. I have met several famous people and have kept my cool and then went to a room a screamed it out! LOL [ghost_cheesy]
It's also very true that you begin to realize what sounds right and what does not! Thanks Pansity!
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Attributing a quote needs some additional code. The posting area of the Help section explains 2 ways to obtain the code that links to the original post. Or, to credit a post without a link, this BB code will work:
[quote author=member's name]TEXT[/quote]
Anyway, your quotes now have post links. [ghost_smiley]
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As far as getting all hot and bothered over Q, I can't help it. He is just gorgeous and oozes sex appeal. On top of that, he is a damn fine actor. Not a combo we get much anymore! However, if I do ever met David I will totally contain myself. I cannot stand rude or obnoxious fans. I have met several famous people and have kept my cool and then went to a room a screamed it out! LOL [ghost_cheesy]
It's also very true that you begin to realize what sounds right and what does not! Thanks Pansity!
I hope you didn't take it the wrong way when I ragged you about your Q reactions! It cracks me up in a good way, because of the friend I mentioned. I certainly agree with you about the combination of good looking, sexy and very talented actor! Sad thing is that so many only see the first two, and totally ignore part 3. (I must have said this before, but it's frustration with that shallow view that made me start writing the performance reviews that became my Selby fansite.) As I've said before, what I've run into in other fandoms is more of a balance, like what is seen on this board. The same core in fandom who would do joke clubs like the Harrison Ford Chest Lovers Society also held long, detailed discussions, both at panels discussions and in letterzines, of such non hunky Ford projects as Mosquito Coast.
Its the increasing inbalance in this fandom which is why I felt I needed to stress that my friend behaved herself with Selby, not any reflection on what you would do. I figure you'd know how to behave, even before you said you share my pet peeve about obnoxious fans. [ghost_wink] Unfortunately it seems everyone who's attended Fests has their own stories about fans with no manners. [ghost_shocked]
On the writing stuff, you're quite welcome!
Midnite, thanks for fixing my blooper! I knew I would mess it up somewhere when I started trying to quote from multiple posts. [embb]
Jeannie
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I didn't take it wrong at all Pansy!!
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I love hearing my favorite dramatic music - "Bum... Bum... Bummmmm" - at the end of this episode! There was an echo! Gave me goosebumps. [ghost_cheesy]
Many milestones in this episode. Since there's a limited amount of Smileys allowed, I'm using just one milestone for all of them. [milestone] Dirk saw Barnabas disappear when Laura made the flames... Beth told Quentin what happened to him - that he was a werewolf.... Dirk found Ben Stokes's diary (I believe it was the first time that someone found it) ... Laura and Dirk went to Ben's grave and retrieved the diary. Of course, the most important one, at least to me, was the one about Quentin finding out what happened to him! [Wolfie]
Attributing a quote needs some additional code... to credit a post without a link, this BB code will work:
[quote author=member's name]TEXT[/quote]
This will help me a lot with my posts. Thanks for the tip, Midnite. [thumb]
The highlight for me was when Beth was explaining to Quentin about what happened to him. Wonderfully acted out by DS and TC. I'm glad that Quentin didn't have to wait too long to find out, and that Beth was able to talk him out of killing Magda. [whew] By the way, I love the screen capture on the Home Page of Quentin and Beth with the quote from Quentin: "I'm going to kill Magda!" Ooh! Quentin with an open, tattered shirt! Dreamy! [luv] The expression on Beth's face was great, too.
As far as getting all hot and bothered over Q, I can't help it. He is just gorgeous and oozes sex appeal. On top of that, he is a damn fine actor.
I agree, Taeylor! [ghost_rolleyes]
Quentin had his priorities. As much as he wanted to get rid of Laura, when Barnabas approached him with more information, Quentin blew him off. Quentin's being a werewolf and wanting to get help from Evan Hanley was all he was thinking about. [ghost_sad]
Laura was very smart to figure out that Barnabas was a "creature of the night". Nobody else took the time or energy in that endeavor. But Laura had an ulterior motive because Barnabas was getting in the way of her plans with Jamison and Nora. I thought it was great when Barnabas appeared at Ben's gravesite just as Laura and Dirk were uncovering Ben's diary! [ghost_shocked] How did Barnabas know, I wonder?
Not to Self: It's time to watch more episodes!
----- Sally -----
[snow_bigglass]
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This will help me a lot with my posts. Thanks for the tip, Midnite. [thumb]
You're welcome. But the shortened code wasn't meant as a replacement for all quote links. The purpose of the quote link is to make it easy for the reader to read the quoted passage in its full context, which is key if the quote is part of a bigger discussion. Without a link, this can be more difficult if the original post isn't directly above the response, or if the member you're quoting has more than one post in the same topic, and even moreso if the quotations are on a different page from their source posts (such your post in the discussion for #756).
So while the shortened code is better than no attribution at all, quote links are still preferred most of the time. I apologize if my suggestion was misleading.
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Sorry, Midnite. [ashamed3] I was thinking that using a shortened quote code would be a faster way to write a post when I use a quote (or, especially, several quotes). [ideag] When I use the quote link (click on quote or insert quote), I have to delete the passages of the post that I don't want to use. [ghost_nowink] If I use the shortened code, I can just copy and paste the passages that I do want to use. [ghost_smiley] It's a hassle to delete long sections of a long-winded post when I use the quote link. [ghost_tongue]
But I see your point that it's more difficult for the reader to read the full context of the quoted passage. I guess I'll just have to "bite the bullet" and spend a lot of time deleting a lot of unwanted passages. [ghost_rolleyes] Unless there's another way to avoid all that deleting. [ghost_huh]
----- Sally -----
[snow_bigglass] [hippy2]
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Diana has gorgeous eyes and in a lot of ways her and Angelique look/act alike! Although, I think Laura is no match for the all powerful Angelique!
I was thinking, during that scene in the foyer with Laura and Beth, how it would have been if Lara Parker had played Laura and Diana Millay had played Angelique. I couldn't imagine Millay giving Angelique the willingness to grovel that Parker's Angelique had.
Thank goodness Laura was speaking, else Quentin would have walked right in on the conspirators. At least this time he seems to have been elsewhere when he came to, and not transforming in the middle of the foyer.
I think Quentin didn't transform in the foyer last time either. My thought today was: "So that's how he ended up on the floor last time!"
I felt sorry for Quentin. He would have had such fun being nasty to Laura and Dirk! But he couldn't show himself to them, and even if he could have, he was too tired to care.
the dress was so wrong that I can't help but wonder if it was a last-minute replacement for something else.
Maybe Roger Davis tore the original dress during rehearsal. I liked this dress, and didn't think about whether it was right or wrong. Did anybody notice Laura's shoes?
A+++++++++++++++++ for the chest shots!
I thought of you when I saw them, Taeylor.
Gosh, what a lovely line, when Laura tells Beth that dawn is about the time Quentin usually goes to bed - "unless you've changed him."
As for Ben and his various writings, maybe he was just working on improving his vocabulary.
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I hope you don't think me to shallow Lydia! I do value story as well!
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Taeylor, I don't think that an appreciation for beauty makes you shallow. But why should you care what I think? Take Magda for your role model and don't care what anybody thinks! Except your grandmother, of course.