Although the Leviathan Storyline left much to be desired, even a really good storyline would have paled in comparison to the 1897 Storyline. Coming on the tails of 1897, it was probably very hard for the writers to come up with compelling material. And remember, Dan Curtis was now focusing his attention on the upcoming Dark Shadows Movie.
I always felt that Michael Maitland did a very good job. It was easy for me to connect with him and David Henesy. We were all about the same age. I imagined him returning to the show as the long lost son of Angelique. He had the same icy cold stare as her, but he never returned to the show. And neither did Chris Bernau. And neither did Marie Wallace. The Storyline was so unpopular that even the actors directly connected with it seemed to be blamed for its lack of sucess. Perhaps that is why Michael Maitland declined to be interviewed for the DVD release of the Leviathan Storyline and has never accepted an invitation to a Dark Shadows Convention.