In the original plot outline for the Barnabas storyline, Julia was supposed to be strangled to death by Barnabas when she got in his way one too many times. It was actually mentioned a couple of times in the voiceovers that death was waiting for Dr. Hoffman during this period (or something like that).
My guess is that if they thought about what they would do after the 1795 flashback, it was in terms of Dr. Hoffman being out of the picture, one way or another. I would guess that they were deluged with fanmail asking for her return during her absence. Curtis and the show producers took the fanmail very seriously back then, in terms of what they did on the show. This seems strange today when, from what I can tell, series producers relish flying in the face of fannish opinion.
G.
