I'll be thinking positive thoughts for Allison, and the rest of the clan, Mark.

Wishing you well and a smooth & speedy recovery Jackie!

I'm saving up to get it. I can't wait! I read a few chapters on-line and I was instantly hooked - And I hate reading! I am so proud of everyone involved and so proud for Grayson.

Great episode! I say so because before I knew it - it was over.

A few bloopers today - the camera or mich obscuring Josette's portrait in the opening segment. Frid really screwed up his lines in the basement scene - at one point you can hear either some kind of tape reverb or someone is actually feeding him his line. And then there was the unsteady brick wall Maggie (shouldn't have) leaned on in the basement.

KLS did a fine job today. I was thrilled with Maggie finally coming out of her vamp stupor. It made the whole episode very tense and enthralling. It's a shame that Maggie didn't use her act to run away. I guess Willie forgot to lock her in her room - giving her at least two good opportunities to escape - and yes, I was silently yelling at her to escape NOW you idiot! (lol) Perhaps they had the front door locked - I guess that is what we are meant to believe. Did anyone else's heart stop as Maggie went to leave Barn and he called her Maggie and she stopped? Whoa - waiting to exhale! I kept thinking that Barn is as stupid as David - his not being able to tell Maggie was faking - must be a male family trait. She couldn't fool Willie though.

Karlen was very good today also. I kept wondering if Willie liked pretty sparkley things or if he was thinking of the monetary value of the necklace (which looks gorgeous on video in B&W. I wonder what color the large gems are in the necklace? Does anyone recall if this necklace resurfaces in 1795? The stones look dark so I would guess they were rubys or emeralds). I never got the impression that it represented freedom to him. It was as if the old criminal Willie was trying to resurface for a moment. And is Willie a jack-of-all-trades or what? (How to build a coffin in nine easy steps.)

This is the first time I've ever seen the back entrance to the Old House basement - what a thrill - I loved it. I guess they had to do something in order to get Maggie down there unseen. They could have had her listening from the basement door we are all familiar with but I like the way they chose to do the scene very much. It rekindled the exploratory child in me. Unfortunately, the wobbly wall and Frid's going up broke the spell but this ep was so intense that I was not frustrated by it.

I got a real kick out of Barn & Willie during the coffin scene when Barn asks if Willie can find the beauty in a well built coffin. Willie says no and Barn offers to give him the capability - and Willie says, no thanks - lol. I loved it.

I also enjoyed Willie and Maggie in their segments together. Willie is so smart (in this ep anyway). Maggie may as well have been imitating Roger for the aire of snobbery she tried to capture in her attempt to fool Willie. But to no avail. (Damn that heartbeat!) She certainly showed she has a backbone and almost convinced Willie to let her stake Barn. Maggie the vampire slayer, lol. I guess Maggie's got hairier balls than Willie.

If we didn't have sympathy for Willie before, he's certainly working his way into our hearts now by his display of sympathy and empathy towards Maggie. I really love that aspect of Willie right now.

Barn says that neither Willie nor Maggie will ever be completely free as long as he's alive (alive? okay). Then he later says that after tonight he will have no control over her (uh, okay). He's certainly underestimating Maggie's strong free will. Too bad Maggie suddenly got real stupid at ep's end.

Seeing Barn baring his fangs and Maggie's back to the wall pose were corny as all hell.

I thought this ep sucked technically - the acting was subpar (except Alexandra), the writing could have been better, and the directing - sloppy. My concentration was broken repeatedly and I found it very frustrating.

I did like the premise of the episode though. We finally get inside that basement room! My goodness, what the hell is Liz worried about? Did anyone see anything that hints of a dead body buried in there? The floor in there looked alot like the foyer floor - And are those stones set in dirt? How the hell did Jsaon dig a grave in there? And if there really isn't a body under there, why the hell did he check the floor for signs of whatever he was looking for?

I did like the way Vicki was represented - the voice of reason - in attendance but not involved in the actual purpose. I also liked Roger's demeanor in the basement, and Liz's reaction after his apology.

Didn't like Carolyn's deportment in the opening segment. She came across as hateful which I think was inappropriate for the character in that specific situation.

I love the basement set. But can someone tell me why there is a big-ass window in the basement? And while I am asking, why are the hanging lights down there so low from the ceiling?

The worst of the worst - the display of six knee-to-toes crisscrossing the basement room floor. I wonder how many times they had to rehearse that little exercise? It was so contrived that it was laughable.

Does anyone wear a brooch better than Joan Bennett? - I thought Liz looked fab. Also love Vicki's hair up like that.

Does anyone really believe that Roger could break into anything, or help someone do so? How absurd. All I could picture Roger doing was standing four feet away critiquing Carolyn's attempt at a break-in - most likely with drink in hand. Yeah, Roger, when you're done helping Carolyn break in, go upstairs and kick Jason's ass for good measure.

Roger's comment about how easily the lock opened went right over my head until hours had passed. I don't remember if Jason had any trouble with the lock. I remember Liz as having had entered the room before, possibly just opening the door or having it appear she'd exited and was locking up. But maybe it was just a scene of her checking the lock.

Too many mess-ups today. By the time Liz announced her marriage plans (nice little speech) I was already thinking about what to make for dinner. Oh well...

Anyone notice this episode had a still in the original trading card series?

C

Canopy bed (Vicki's and anyone else's)