The Levithins Are The Best Time Period!!!

I just got to the end of DVD set 18, shortly after Jeb is introduced.  After about 30 episodes that were nothing more than rotten little kids being rotten (gee, do you suppose they pandered to the children in the audience enough?), it's finally starting to get a little bit better.  I enjoy the unrelated subplots with Quentin, Julia and Amanda Harris and the portrait a whole lot more than the Leviathan stuff.  By far the high point of the whole story so far was [spoiler]Quentin and Amanda lost in the nether realm or wherever they were.  Also really liked Barnabas explaining the Leviathans to Julia as the thunderstorm raged outside, that was classic.[/spoiler]

[spoiler]Also really liked Barnabas explaining the Leviathans to Julia as the thunderstorm raged outside, that was classic.[/spoiler]

I like how that episode was done, too - very atmospheric. But would it surprise you to know that many fans were extremely disappointed and upset by it - not because of how it looked - but because of the lack of info it contained? ABC had heavily promoted it as finally revealing "the real story of the terrifying Leviathan plot" - but it really contained nothing that regular viewers didn't already know. And the letters fans wrote to the various daytime magazines about the stunt were scathing. 

TRhanks MB... anything further like that that you could pass on would be appreciated.

I forget what made me think "future" in the first Leviathans scene, but I think it must have been the speech about the charred and blackened star that made me think "alien".   By the way, doesn't this connect it all to Satan and Blair right from the start?   Blair said this too.

But would it surprise you to know that many fans were extremely disappointed and upset by it - not because of how it looked - but because of the lack of info it contained? ABC had heavily promoted it as finally revealing "the real story of the terrifying Leviathan plot" - but it really contained nothing that regular viewers didn't already know. And the letters fans wrote to the various daytime magazines about the stunt were scathing. 

That does surprise me!  I guess sometimes they can ruin something for the fans by over-hyping it when everyone might have enjoyed it much more if they hadn't said anything.  They still do that today on soaps - I sometimes watch As The World Turns and the previews make it look like something important is going to happen in the next episode, then when it airs you realize they tricked the viewers and what they showed was only part of a dream sequence or someone was hallucinating or god only knows what.

ABC had heavily promoted it as finally revealing "the real story of the terrifying Leviathan plot" - but it really contained nothing that regular viewers didn't already know. And the letters fans wrote to the various daytime magazines about the stunt were scathing. 

It doesn't sound like ABC promos have changed much in the last 37 years.  "LOST" fans have the same complaint today about promo overhyping ("The answers to four mysteries in next week's episode!" Oh, really?)

Maybe we'll find out next week that the Leviathans have drawn everybody to the island in yet another attempt to take over the world.

ProfStokes

I love the Jason McGuire storyline that ran parallel with Maggie's kidnapping. My imagination was stimulated by those episodes. Very much so.

I totally agree.  I think that if DS would have balanced "regular soap plots with supernatural ones the show may have not ran out of gas so quickly!  Oh well...we will never know.  I guess it was destiny!  

I have to say that I also didn't know that the Leviathan storyline was cut in half. I would have loved to have seen how the full 6 months would have played out.  I agree with JF when he said the show needed to move a little this way and that way instead of changing the story so often.  I am sure DC was the main culprit of this all.  I also wish he would have turned over DS to someone else. I think I have read on this board, ABC toyed with the idea.

Now onto the episode about Barnabas finally revealing the truth about the Leviathans to Julia!  That episode, hands down, might possibly be my favorite of the entire series. Everything worked.  The acting, the atmosphere, the camera work!  JUST SUPERB storytelling!!  

Also thanks MB for some more insight into DS I didn't know about! You are a wealth of information. YOU should be the one writing a DS book!

T

Sorry for the double post.  I meant to mention that I am watching these episodes of the Maggie's kidnapping/Jason McGuire for the first time ever. I am totally loving it.  I have volumes 2 & 3 on the way!  After almost 20 years in fandom I am coming close to seeing all DS.  It's slightly saddens me in a way.   

Glad I'm not the only one didn't realize the Leviathan storyline was cut in half.  I own (and have by and large, read) all of HP Lovecraft, so I really WANTED to like this storyline.  Wish I could have liked it more.  The start was good, and as has been said, if it was intended to be longer it explains the slow start.  They could have gotten a lot more into the science fiction/horror aspects, and some of the whys and wherefores.

Paul Stoddard's backstory also got short shrift, and it would have been good to get more character development.  Goes without saying that more emphasis on the Liz, Carolyn and Paul situation and the current externally driven conflicts would have been interesting.

After all the teasing with the subplot of bringing back "Grant Douglas", to do virtually nothing with the character once he's himself again is a terrible waste.  Outside of Professor Stokes, he has the most knowledge of the occult of anyone we've seen. He probably added even more to that in the 70 something years since he left Collinwood to avoid Petofi. But instead, the character serves no plot purpose other than to hold up walls and look pretty.

I'm partial to a mental image I have of Prof. Stokes asking his old doctoral advisor to come consult on this.  An "expert on the occult, and obtainer of ancient antiquities" he and Quentin are trying very hard not to let it slip how often they've encountered each other before.

And don't even get me started on the nonsense with Peter Bradford's ghost. 

Jeannie

I'm now firing up the ignition to get Jeannie started on Peter Bradford's [spoiler]ghost![/spoiler]   Vroom vroom!!!!!   Go Jeannie go!!!!!

I was just researching info on the Leviathans for some work I'm doing and came upon an interesting tidbit I wasn't aware of. I knew about the connection to H. P. Lovecraft's work, of course, but I found this rather surprising.

Original Leviathan Model

That IS enough to drive anyone insane! 

 

 

Love LOL Cats!

Kitty IS the Root of all evil.

Which explains why we love her so much.

G.

Serious LOL! Good one.

LMAO! Thanx I needed that!