While Maggie does get more coverage in this issue that in the previous books, it's not exactly a leading role. Or is it? It's never quite clear who the focus of this issue is supposed to be. Is it Maggie? Sarah? Robin? Granny Whitlock? Will any of this have any connection to Barnabas or Vicki? It's fine to have subplots in a book but the pacing here is all wrong. Just as we are given a potentiality interesting scene with Maggie, Granny or anybody, the scene is dropped and we're thrust into a completely different scene with different characters and little, if any, exposition.
Yes, the scenes in this issue definitely jump around with little flow or connection. Perhaps if we'd gotten all four issues it might make some sense why things are written that way. But we won't ever see Issues 2 through 4, so we're left to wonder...
My main problem with the Innovation series is the decision to anchor the series in a block of continuity in the NBC series that was not depicted on screen. A bit indulgent but it could have worked better. Unfortunately, by choosing a setting that is locked into a specific time period turned out to be very restrictive. The DS characters aren't allowed to grow or develop because that might contradict things that happened on the series. So, they basically have to remain unchanged and stagnant.
Indeed. And the worse thing is that they don't always operate within the plot points already presented on the '91 Series. As we've pointed out so many times that I've lost count, characters' actions and plot often and blatantly fly in the face of the series.
The writers tried to get around this by bringing in a lot of new characters. With mixed results. I wanted to read about the Collins family and their circle of friends, not the goofy residents of Barrettstown or the Medusa family.
I didn't mind the Grimm sisters as much as I loathed Barrettstown. There were so many good aspects of Book 1, but they were often overshadowed by the Barrettstown foolishness. However, I strongly suspect the only reason Barrettstown ever existed in Book 1 was as an excuse to use Lara Parker's image and to use her character to set the stage for what was planned for Book 4. Book 4 might have been quite interesting (we'll touch more on what was planned for Book 4 after this issue ends) but we'll never know. While parts were similar to what became
Angelique's Descent, much was very different...
Too often, the Dark Shadows characters seemed like guests in their own book.
Exactly!