Discuss - Ep #0770

[Watching Project]

Robservations #770

[alwaysdavid]

As always the door to the Old House and basement are wide open to anyone who wants to enter.  Why does Barnabas not put in a secret coffin room in the house to insure his safety.   Barnabas is already coming up with another half-baked story to supposedly explain the vampire, but anyone with half a brain would realize that Dirk was not a vampire until recently and that Charity amoung others had been victims.  Dirk has died and risen as a vampire, but will it play out as Barnabas hopes?    I liked that Edward, after the Laura experience, has kept his belief in the supernatural.  How many times did his grandson learn of something supernatural and then when something else came along be totally shocked that it was a supernatural happening. 

[Taeylor Collins]

VO: Louis Edmonds

Again I love the suit that Jonathan has on!  I wonder if David H was supposed to fall coming up the cellar steps?? 
I love the fade in and fade outs they are doing!!  It’s a nice change from cutting from scene to scene!  I LOVE that couch that Dirk is on. I just love the bookshelf’s hidden room!  Poor Beth wrapped up in all these crazy shenanigans! 

Great storytelling the writers have done on 1897 so far! 
GONE!!  A crazy vamp is never a good thing!!

[Pansity]

Oops  we have Jamison finding the coffin in the basement.  At least he doesn’t open it. (has anyone ever kept count of the number of crises could have been avoided if some knucklebrain had only locked the flipping door) 

Meanwhile all unbeknownst Barn is dealing with Dirk the jerk upstairs.  Odd reaction Dirk is having.  As we saw, this isn’t the first time Barn put the chomp on him, but he seems to be all whats happened, what’s going on.  Then again, we keep seeing he’s really not the brightest bulb in the bunch.  His reaction is just very different from any other victim we’ve seen, including Willie .  But unlike Willie, he gets the chomp on the neck just like everyone else.

Snicker.  Dirk asks what happens if he refuses and Barn tells him he can’t refuse because he has no will of his own.  Uh, doesn’t the fact that he asked about the consequences of refusing mean he DOES have some independent will ?  Seems to me Barn is back to assuming he only has to wish an outcome and everything will happen the way he wills it to be, rather than the way things are really playing out.  He’s also back to being sociopath barn.  Dirks action may have messed up his plan, so he assures him, very coldly and matter of factly, that he’ll kill him if it has. Hmm, Dirk tries to make a break for it.  Seems Barn’s hold on Dirk is the weakest he’s had on any of the victims we’ve seen.  Maybe the Force DOESN”T have a strong effect on the weak minded after all 

Nice scene with Beth and Jamison.  Hmm, looks like she’s got a new dress – I don’t remember seeing that one before.  Seems we’re back to the mystery of whether she’s actually employed by the family again or not.  I don’t remember anything said, but she’s sure acting like she works for them.  She takes the time and trouble to order Jamison to bed, and she’s very good dealing with him – until he finally trumps her. Seems she’s used to dealing with children, perhaps she was eldest in a large family. Course, practice with the manchild Quentin probably ddidn’t hurt.  If she is working officially, she’s sure bright eyed and wide awake at 11PM,for someone whose duties probably start before dawn.

Good for Beth, she’s not totally wimped out yet, she’s pushing Barn about what he's going to do and what he can do now things have changed. Interesting track of logic Barn has in the later scene with Beth at the Old House.  He doesn’t want to push Jamison for fear of alienating him – well DUH isn’t he going to be alienated from Barn already, what with what he knows and wants to tell Edward. Seems that chomping on the kid for some reason never crosses Barn’s mind.  Odd, since he was all gung ho to kill David before the 1795 time travel intervened.  Sheesh how insulting, telling Beth she couldn’t possibly understand the reasons behind it all.  She's doing a fine job so far understanding all these impossible things before breakfast. I guess once again it's Barn’s “girls aren’t smart, especially pretty ones” kicking in.

Hmm something Barn doesn’t think of with his cunning plan to incriminate Dirk for all the vampire attacks (though alwaysdavid thought of it!) He’s been working for the family for some time, and I’m sure they’ve often seen him in the daytime.  So how do they explain him being out and about in the day with attacks that happened in that timeframe.  Doesn’t occur to Barn very often that people can reason things out (like it didn’t to Edward with the cockamamie story he spun about how Jenny died).

And of course while everyone was running around and chatting, Dirk beat a hasty retreat.   Lucky Barn – wouldn't it have been something if he’d come out of the room just when Edward was there questioning the whole business.


Jeannie

[Midnite]

This just was not Barnabas' night, was it?  Plans A (Jamison will be convinced to not believe what Dirk told him), B (Beth will prevent Jamison from telling the secret to Edward), C (Dirk will stay on the sofa until he can recover his strength), D (Dirk will be kept under the vampire's control), E (Dirk will tell Jamison he was lying), F (Dirk will recover his strength in the secret room), G (Edward will be convinced to not believe Jamison), H (Beth will sit with Dirk until his death) and I (Dirk will be under Barnabas' supervision when he rises as a vampire) did not come to pass.

Since according to Barnabas, Dirk had to "do what I ask you to do," I sure wish the vampire had asked him to stop overacting.  Sheesh.

Jamison said a few eps ago that he liked to play in the Old House basement, yet the way he looked over it here seemed to not gibe with that.

Beth:  "He's going to die.  ... Oh no."
Was she really grieving for Dirk, as Barnabas said?  Or was she troubled that his death would mess up Barnabas' plan?  Because I would swear that in the last ep, she said she was okay with Barnabas doing whatever he needed to do to stop Dirk from talking.

Interesting that a servant would refer to the Collinwood drawing room as the "living room."

Barnabas:  "I don't know what to say, Jamison."
Well, for starters you could call him Edward, cuz that's who's in the room with you.

I wonder if David H was supposed to fall coming up the cellar steps??

He slid his foot backwards right after taking a step with it and dropped where he stood, so yes, the fall was intentional.

I LOVE that couch that Dirk is on.

I like that the seats on the ends slant inward.  If DS' set choices are any indication, the Victorians were very adept at designing furniture that promoted conversation.

Poor Beth wrapped up in all these crazy shenanigans!

Speaking of Beth wrapped up (bad segue, I know), there's a terrible storm out and the best coverup she can find is a shawl?

Seems that chomping on the kid for some reason never crosses Barn’s mind.  Odd, since he was all gung ho to kill David before the 1795 time travel intervened.

Noooo.  Jamison is key to the future of the Collins family.  And, prior to Vicki's trip into the past, Barnabas was not the self-appointed family protector.

[Pansity]

Since according to Barnabas, Dirk had to "do what I ask you to do," I sure wish the vampire had asked him to stop overacting.  Sheesh.

 

Beth:  "He's going to die.  ... Oh no."
Was she really grieving for Dirk, as Barnabas said?  Or was she troubled that his death would mess up Barnabas' plan?  Because I would swear that in the last ep, she said she was okay with Barnabas doing whatever he needed to do to stop Dirk from talking.

Here's a thought on that.  She was ok with it in the abstract perhaps, but actually seeing someone she knows -- and was at least friendly with, whether you perceive them as being involved pre-Quentin or not -- dying could be a completely different thing.  Her track record is that she does care about people, whether they deserve it or not.

Interesting that a servant would refer to the Collinwood drawing room as the "living room."

I wondered about that too.  Unknowable question is whether it was in the script or whether it was a case of blanking on the words and saying what came to mind.

Barnabas:  "I don't know what to say, Jamison."
Well, for starters you could call him Edward, cuz that's who's in the room with you.

 

Seems that chomping on the kid for some reason never crosses Barn’s mind.  Odd, since he was all gung ho to kill David before the 1795 time travel intervened.

Noooo.  Jamison is key to the future of the Collins family.  And, prior to Vicki's trip into the past, Barnabas was not the self-appointed family protector.

I should have been more specific.  Chomped to make him forget, not chomped for a midnight snack.  Or hypnotized, or any of those other esoteric powers they tend to give him when the script needs these things.   

Jeannie

[Midnite]

I should have been more specific.  Chomped to make him forget, not chomped for a midnight snack.  Or hypnotized, or any of those other esoteric powers they tend to give him when the script needs these things.   

I understood what you meant, and I was responding to the idea that Jamison would be bitten for any reason.  It's just too risky.  As Barnabas explained--

I came back to Collinwood on a mission, and if Jamison is harmed now, it could mean failure for me.

As for hypnosis, it previously worked well on Nora and will again, though it was only used for short-term purposes.  And getting Jamison to stare into his eyes while the boy is terrified of him could be problematic.

[EmeraldRose]

Major Milestones:
1. Jamison told Edward that Barnabas was a vampire and he (Jamison) saw the coffin in the cellar.
2. Fortunately, Edward didn't believe Jamison, but he still talked to Barnabas to check it out, since he knew that Laura was a supernatural creature.
3. Dirk escaped from the secret room behind the bookcase - which means he died and rose as a vampire!
4. It was a good thing that Barnabas moved the coffin before Edward came! That was a close one!

There were many bloopers in this episode, too. They were:
1. At the Old House, Beth told Barnabas that Jamison didn't get here until 10:00. She should have said there, because she was talking about Jamison arriving at Collinwood.  
2. Another one by Beth, who said to Barnabas: "There's still time to go back to Collinsport before Edward comes home." She should have said Collinwood.
3. As Midnite humorously pointed out, Barnabas incorrectly called Edward Jamison.  

I agree, Taeylor, I love Jamison's suit and tie, too. He looked very handsome! David Henesy was really starting to grow up. Much different than he was two years ago when he played David at the beginning of the show.

Boy, Barnabas sure blew it with Dirk! He got too carried away and bit him too hard! At the end of this episode, Dirk disappeared! Uh, oh! Vampire Dirk was on the rampage! I agree that Barnabas had a dumb plan about Dirk - someone had to sire him! Dirk was still alive and roaming around in the daytime when Charity and others were attacked.  

Excellent episode again!! Great acting by all - except for the bloopers, of course. But the bloopers are part of why we love DS so much!

----- Sally -----

[MagnusTrask]

But the bloopers are part of why we love DS so much!

Actually I love DS in spite of the bloopers.   I didn't remember them when I started watching again in 2002, and I just sympathy-cringe when they happen, and shake my fist in the air at DC, maybe.

DC is also responsible for your being overworked in the milestone department now.  He made sure that something notable happens in each episode at this point.   That's something I like DC for, though.   Anyway, you can rail at DC for overworking you now, as some writers probably did back then!

[EmeraldRose]

Yes, indeed, there's been lots of milestones lately! So I can blame it on DC, huh?! It takes me a long time to write these posts about the 1897 episodes because of that! There's so much to write about, it's hard to find the time to catch up. Case in point, I was going to write about Episode #771 this early morning, too, but I ran out of time.

But I think it's pretty neat, despite all the milestones, that there is at least one milestone per episode! That's a lot of what makes 1897 my favorite storyline!

----- Sally -----

[Taeylor Collins]

The bloopers never have bothered me.  Even if I see a boom mic this world enthralls me so much I don't flinch!    I think they are fun to watch in a compliation though.

[MagnusTrask]

I think it's only blown lines that trouble me.   Boom mics and stagehands in the frame just make it seem like a play.

[Taeylor Collins]

I can see that Magnus and you're certainly not the first person who doesn't like "bloopers!" I think we talked a lot about this in a post which spoke of MPI taking out the famous "Then go to the house of the curse" blooper for the DVD compilation!

[MagnusTrask]

Still, I don't want shows altered to eliminate problems, no matter how much I cringe.

[Pansity]

I understood what you meant, and I was responding to the idea that Jamison would be bitten for any reason.  It's just too risky.  As Barnabas explained--

I came back to Collinwood on a mission, and if Jamison is harmed now, it could mean failure for me.

As for hypnosis, it previously worked well on Nora and will again, though it was only used for short-term purposes.  And getting Jamison to stare into his eyes while the boy is terrified of him could be problematic.

Oh, OK. When I write up a bunch of these, sometimes I realize later that I know what I meant, but I took shortcuts and didn't make it clear enough to those reading.  Thought this might have been one of my oops moments.  Those are good points you bring up about hypnotizing a terrified Jamison.

On the bloopers, my feeling is about like everyone else who posted.  I don't look for the bloopers, my pet peeve is more the writers messing up continuity.  They can be fun, adding to the realism, since in real life people DO change words in midsentence, mix up names, get tangled around their tongues, etc.  The techie goofs as was stated, are more like a play, rather than something that's too perfect.

Jeannie