Violet Welles wrote some amazing dialogue here: The Count ponders what pleasures of the senses he will find in the future ("I burn to find out!"), takes shots at his gypsy enemies ("They are like black cats; they bring misfortune"), masterfully commands the spirit he angered to depart, and faces off with Barnabas, who tells him, "You are incompetent!" And Johnny's lines are at times compelling as he taunts Magda with glimpses of her fate ("Maybe you'll be saying hello to them quicker than you think").
Unfortunately, the ongoing story of Magda's plight is a ripoff of
Bajour, the 1964 Broadway musical that starred Herschel Bernardi as King Johnny (and features a young gypsy named Anyanka). But even if the negative stereotypes of gypsies in the production and on DS (Magda is repeatedly called a thieving and murderous liar in this ep) were overlooked during the 60s, how can we
possibly reconcile today that it also features a black man who was punished violently for attempting to flee after he was accused of a crime?
Can Aristede be trusted with the two torches not to set the lair afire.
Between that and the open fire at the gypsy camp, a ladder company should have been on standby!
I think Paul Michael was very good in his role as the proud gypsy leader.
Abraham Howell was played by Philip Cusack, and Istvan by Henry Baker.
And a large shadow at the mill was performed by the boom mic.