Discuss - Ep #0838

Robservations #838

The events leading up to Quentin's demise pretty much play out the way Beth's ghost explained to Julia a few episodes ago, except that Petofi prevented her from killing Quentin.

What can I say about Quentin except he was just asking to be knocking at death's door (again). Jamison's love and admiration convince him the boy would never reject him. Okay, I can buy that Quentin woud have difficulty believing Jamison could ever hate him no matter what he did (the Laura matter aside) considering how much his nephew adores and looks up to him. But why take the chance that something could happen to him? It did once before. One would think that would make Quentin a bit more cautious towards his life.

Now that Petofi has saved Quentin, Quentin will have to pay the piper.

Why not just leave Collinwood?  This whole episode make Quentin look like a dummy.  So now the storyline is shifting to Petofi trying to find out how Barnabas came to the past.   I noticed the credits say Pr. Stokes. 

I noticed the credits say Pr. Stokes.

Good catch! I missed that one.

Major Milestones:
1. This episode took place on September 10, 1897 - the date that Beth's ghost said she and Quentin would die.
2. The events played out exactly like Beth's ghost said they would until Quentin, realizing that Beth was the one to kill him, pulled away from their embrace and Count Petofi stopped Beth from shooting Quentin.
3. Count Petofi told Quentin about the portrait - Quentin saw that it was his "normal self" again.
4. Count Petofi told Quentin that his price for saving Quentin was that Petofi wanted Quentin to spy on Barnabas to find out how he traveled from 1969 to 1897.

This was a thrilling episode! Quentin wasn't very smart when he opened his door to talk to Jamison, and then he left his room! He succeeded in staying there all day until 7:30 PM - there were still 5-1/2 long hours before Midnight. The scenes between Quentin and Jamison, while they were reminiscing and Quentin told him how much he loved him were very warm and touching.

It was really exciting to watch Quentin be so afraid for his life. It sure was a relief when Count Petofi showed up!

----- Sally -----

He succeeded in staying there all day until 7:30 PM - there were still 5-1/2 long hours before Midnight.

4-1/2!

Petofi keeps picking up pretty young men and using them.  I imagine there have been dozens of them over the past hundred years whom we haven't seen.

Thinking things over, I'm a little bit peeved that both Barnabas and Quentin (or anyway, Quentin in the original timeline, as far as we can tell) were brought down by women whom they had scorned, and not only that, but both of the women involved were servants, too.  I'd prefer to see a little more variety.  I suppose we did see a slight variety in the response of the women involved.  Angelique decided she was going to have Barnabas and she kept on trying until he died.  Beth didn't try; her immediate response was despair.

I can't believe Jamison would get as upset as he did about Quentin casting aside Beth, but maybe I'm being unreasonable.  My thought is that I don't remember Jamison ever showing any particular affection for Beth, but in Dark Shadows that's irrelevant; the David Henesy has more than once turned out unexpectedly to be great pals with a grown-up.  And the fact that I don't like Beth should not blind me to the possibility that others might be very fond of her.  So let it pass.

4-1/2!

Oops! Thanks for catching that! You're right! I figured it out too fast in my head!  

----- Sally -----

We learn that the person who alerted Petofi of Quentin's impending death was Charity, but I would have much preferred hearing that it was Magda, if for no other reason than that she was assigned to keep Quentin safe on the 10th yet she's neither seen nor spoken about that entire day.

This time, when Beth's hands canoodle with the poison bottle, they were sans nail polish.

Quentin (ecstatically, as the clock strikes 12):  "Oh-h-h-h-h, Midnite."
 

Quentin wasn't very smart when he opened his door to talk to Jamison, and then he left his room!

Leaving his room was foolish, and just being at Collinwood was stupid, but I think I understand why he invited Jamison in.  Once the kid knew he was there (Quentin responded to his knocking because he thought it was a persistent Petofi), ignoring him would have only angered him-- a very bad move.  But since his rejection was already expected, Quentin instead invited Jamison inside to both reassure him of his feelings for him and remind him of their swell times together while promising many more to come.  That's exactly what I would have done under the circumstances!

I can't believe Jamison would get as upset as he did about Quentin casting aside Beth, but maybe I'm being unreasonable.  My thought is that I don't remember Jamison ever showing any particular affection for Beth, but in Dark Shadows that's irrelevant; the David Henesy has more than once turned out unexpectedly to be great pals with a grown-up.  And the fact that I don't like Beth should not blind me to the possibility that others might be very fond of her.

Do the children not have a governess at this point, and has Beth taken up some of those duties?  Anyway, I mentioned in an earlier topic why I found the affection between Jamison and Beth believable, so all I'll add about it is that I find it far more believable than his supposed friendship with Petofi, but after hearing Jamison's speech before turning his back on his BFF Quentin, I'm not sure that any of it is relevant anyway.  Jamison said, "All I understand is that you've hurt someone-- someone you love, Quentin. That's something I never believed that you could do. I don't want to see you anymore, and I don't want to talk to you or have anything to do with you. I hate you, Quentin! I hate you!"  So was it really about his fondness for Beth, or even Beth at all, or just that Quentin behaved in a manner that Jamison found shocking and unacceptable?  I'm wondering now if it was a matter of Quentin falling off his pedestal (as created by Jamison) because of his actions-- because Jamison learned that his uncle was capable of hurting an innocent so badly that they were driven to despair and the brink of suicide.

Hmm...there's a certain plausibility to what you say, Midnite, but I don't find it entirely satisfying.