Discuss - Ep #0500

[Watching Project]

Robservations #500

And if you'd care to look back, the first WP discussion topic for this ep:

Re: Discuss - Ep #0500

[DarkLady]

Poor Sam's career as an artist is finished, it seems.

Meanwhile, Willie tormenting Adam by playing with Josette's jewels, making lights on the wall that Adam chases fruitlessly. Barnabas arrives and carefully puts everything away but instantly misses Josette's emerald earrings. Willie claims Adam must have taken them, and Barnabas orders him to search the room. When Willie doesn't find them, Barnabas shows Adam how to turn out his pockets, and we learn that vampires, or even ex-vampires, don't carry money or keys or any ID (let alone a driver's license).

It turns out that Sam's optic nerves were burned, so his sight never can be restored. Barnabas berates himself for ruining yet another life.

THE CHICKEN-LEG INCIDENT!

In his cell, Adam is listening to Lang's voice on the tape once again. Carefully he forms the words, "If … both … live." From listening to the tape he has actually worked out that there is some kind of link between Barnabas and himself, but has no way of telling anyone. Willie comes with his snack--some chicken. When Adam reaches for it, Willie throws a piece out of his reach,  then (in a classic scene) taunts Adam with a drumstick. Between bites Willie tries to make Adam say that he stole the earrings. Adam refuses. Eventually he decides he has had enough of this and breaks free once again. He chases Willie upstairs, taking the stairs three at a time, and is about to strangle him when Julia and Barnabas return. Adam is too angry to listen to Barnabas’s command to let Willie go. Barnabas ends up beating Adam with his cane (pretty strong stuff for a daytime soap, it seems to me, like Doc Woodard's death). Willie gets away and runs upstairs shrieking, practically on all fours. Adam gets the cane away from Barnabas, and sets out to strangle him while a horrified Julia tries ineffectually to get him off Barnabas

[Gothick]

In her first book published in the 1980s, KLS recalled that the striking-Sam-blind storyline was written to accommodate the actor's need to rely on the TelePrompTer more heavily than would have been possible had he not been wearing dark glasses. She also gave an account of a certain pivotal episode for the character of "Pop" Evans that isn't supported by the tape, though I've always wondered if the incident might have happened during the "tech" runthrough on the sets (a dress rehearsal with the cameras to make sure blocking decisions were on the mark). 

Given that Sam's next major storyline echoes events in the classic horror film Bride of Frankenstein, I'm not sure I entire buy KLS's story from her memoirs.  It is certainly true that some cast members made heavier use of the TelePrompTer (or other memory aids provided for them by the crew) than did others.

G.

[dom]

Sam sits alone in his studio. Enter a gay pretty Maggie home in her ugly new coat and mod dress. Sam tells her he can’t see. Upset, Maggie starts to phone Dr. Slone but Sam stops her and asks that she get Barnabas. She tries to reason with him but he snaps at her. A hurt and confused Maggie grabs her ugly coat and leaves to fetch Barn. Sam gets up and stumbles into a stool and stops at an easel. Fade to black. It’s a long darkness and I wonder if it’s a symbolic gesture to Sam’s blindness – there was no music curtain to take us into the title. Ford plays his part well, I was very sad for Sam.

Barnabas enters the basement to find Willie making a fool of Adam with the help of the family jewels. Barn is not amused and does not believe Willie’s tale of Adam stumbling across them while playing with the wall. (Willie reminds me of Mickey Rooney here. And why the F is he wearing a tie?) Barn notices the earrings are missing and Willie tries to blame Adam. Barn’s not buying it and has Willie search for them in the cell. Rodan out-acts both Frid and Karlen without saying a word. Meanwhile, upstairs, Julia is reading when pretty Maggie comes calling for Barnabas in her ugly coat. She explains the situation to Julia and waits as Julia goes to get Barn.

B & J & M arrive at the Evans cottage. A bitter and angry Sam insists on speaking with Barn alone. Maggie leaves but Julia stays. Sam tells his story and Barn clues Julia in that Sam is speaking of Cassandra and the portrait of Ange. Julia examines Sam’s eyes but only tells him to consult a specialist. She tells Barn later that Sam will probably be permanently blind. Barn is devastated that he ruined yet another life. I liked that Sam made a snyde remark about Julia being "in on this" when Julia showed up at the cottage with Barn & Maggie. The scene with Jules and Barn is good - nicely acted and nicely written. Barn worries about what Ange might do should she find out about Adam's existence. Dear lord he should have an idea of just how bad that actually would be for him.

I agree with DarkLady that Adam's reasoning skills are developing much faster than his language skills. Willie brings Adam food and Willie tries to teach Adam to say he stole the earings but as per usual Willie goes overboard and Adam reacts badly. He escapes his bond and chases Willie down and starts strangling him. Jules and Barn walk in on this and Barn beats Adam with his cane to stop him. Willie retreats upstairs (yes, on all fours, lol, Darklady!) and Adam turns on Barnabas. Julia closes the episode with screams of despair. This is my all-time favorite Julia-ism - when she screams "NO!"

The sets could barely hold up to Karlen & Rodan's use of them in the chase scenes.

[MagnusTrask]

Someone (Sam) finally sees the need to give Barnabas a whuppin'.   Too bad it's a blind guy who can't implement this policy.   I guess Barnabas got the tongue-lashing from Sam that I was hoping for, but I wanted Barnabas to be devastated.  I don't think he was.   I think he paid lip-service to feeling guilty, saying the expected things, feeling discomfort at what he brought on Sam, but not caring all that much.

Old Willie is back.   When Adam raced after him, I said to myself, he sure had that coming!   Barnabas makes yet another huge mistake, beating Adam.  This moment was full of horrible, contradictory messages, the perfect combination to induce lifelong trauma and personality warping.   Barnabas has certainly had a lot of impact on the world today.

[alwaysdavid]

Maggie arrives as previously noted in one of Ohrbach's finest frocks to learn Sam is unseeing. Barnabas meanwhile catches Willie taunting Adam and wants Barnabas to take his side. after all he was here first. Willie doesn't like babysitting the bratty little brother.
Barnabas never thought there would be repercussions as usual. Julia pulls out the pills for sedation. I can sees the charts at windcliffe all saying sedate as needed.
Willie tries to teach Adam to say he stole the earrings. Willie hasn't thought out what Adam did with the earrings. The boys race around the house fighting when Willie eats Adams food.