PD... Do you like Barnabas?
Sure, I love Barnabas! Look to the left. See. I've got a nifty Basil Gogos Barnabas avatar. PD clearly digs Barnabas!
That being said, I still think he's a bastard in a lot of ways. He's fascinating, and he's my fave TV character ever, but I probably wouldn't wanna hang out with him.
While Barnabas might have many redeeming qualities, he's unpredictable and dangerous. In a bad way.
Check out this gruesome list of murder victims post-1795.
[spoiler]1968
Tom Jennings (twice! - though technically Tom was already dead, Barnabas was pretty callous in dispatching the vampire)
1796
Crystal Cabot
1897
Sophie Baker
Dirk Wilkins
Istvan
Carl Collins
A Deputy
1970 Leviathan
Megan Todd
Schuyler Rumson
1970 Parallel Time
Cyrus Longworth/John Yaeger
1995
Sheriff
1840
Lamar Trask
This is off the top of my head. I'm probably missing some. Several other deaths were indirectly caused by Barnabas - Roxanne in 1840, Edith in 1897, etc... We can also assume sundry Collinsport ladies of the evening met their doom off-camera during Barnabas' feedings/strangulations.[/spoiler]
It'd be great to think of a subversive group of creative people back then, doing their best to get great, cool, challenging material past the DS and ABC suits and goons.
Heck, I think that's
exactly what was going on, plus they were making a unique TV show. The DS writers were a cool bunch. DS featured traditional gothic horror and romance, but was innovative in its knack for making most of these creatures into three-dimensional beings with feelings and human desires. The "otherness" of the monsters was tempered with a human soul.
Sure, I'd say the DS writers were definitely sneaking in some subversive cultural commentary. For example, even though it was sick and twisted when Barnabas walled up Reverend Trask, the viewers sort of wanted him to do it - we were horrified, but couldn't help but cheer on a bloodsucking vampire as he walled up a devoutly religious, fanatically insane holy man. Subversive? You bet.
If you agree with an anti-hero's murders, are you evil?
Yes.
j/k