Dark Shadows Episode 252 - 6/13/67

Carolyn walks in on her mother having a phone conversation regarding her divorce from Paul. She is trying to push it through immediately. Carolyn tells her mother that she's the picture of the impatient bride. Liz tells her to stop being facetious. She says she can't believe that she would marry Jason. Liz says that she is going to marry Jason McGuire, and there's nothing that she or anyone else can do about it. Carolyn says she just wants to help her. She says she doesn't have a problem with her getting married—she has a problem with her marrying Jason McGuire. Carolyn suggests that she's not doing so of her own free will.  Liz mentions that she also thought there were secrets in the basement, and she has proven that not to be true. Liz asks why Carolyn hates Jason. Carolyn says he lies and is deceitful. She asks her mother if she loves him. Under pressure, Liz tells Carolyn that yes, she loves Jason, and that maybe Carolyn should do something with her own life. Carolyn says she will, and storms out.

Roger and Vicki are reviewing David's schoolwork when Carolyn bursts in. She says she had a confusing chat with the bride to be. She says that her mother insists that she wants to get married to Jason. Vicki says that perhaps her mother is infatuated with Jason. Roger says that regardless of what they all think, his sister has the right to make her own bad decisions. Carolyn picks up the phone and calls 'Buzz'. She mentions having seen him on his motorcycle, and then asks him if the gas tank is full.

At The Blue Whale, Joe tells Vicki how he saw Carolyn on the back of a motorcycle with a bunch of losers. She tells him Carolyn is lashing out against her mother. Joe asks if what he's heard about Liz marrying Jason is true. Vicki explains that it is. A roar of motorcycles outside signal the arrival of Carolyn and Buzz. Carolyn is drunk, Vicki and Joe are dismayed by what they see. Carolyn sees them and drags Buzz over to meet them.

Carolyn talks about the great time they've been having. Carolyn asks Vicki to go for a ride on Buzz's motorcycle, but she declines. Buzz encourages her, and Joe interjects, saying she prefers the safety of the chair. Carolyn and Buzz start making out in front of them.

Back at Collinwood, Buzz pulls up and tells Carolyn to get off the bike.

She starts kissing him and he pushes her away, telling her the world isn't coming to an end. She invites him inside, and he says it's not for him. She convinces him to come in, and he's excited by the stairs. He talks about zooming his bike upstairs, and Carolyn gets excited by the concept. She tries to convince him to do it but he refuses.

"Cool it!" -Buzz

She then offers him a drink, and turns on the radio. He asks for a beer, but she hands him a cocktail instead. They start dancing around the drawing room.

Liz comes down and says it's three o'clock in the morning, and Carolyn is drunk.

Carolyn introduces her to Buzz, who calls her mommy.

Carolyn introduces her mother as Mrs. McGuire, and she goes upstairs without saying anything. Carolyn yells at her that if she's fallen in love, then so has she, and she grabs and kisses Buzz.

Our thoughts

John: How predictable for Carolyn to run out and find a bad boy, strictly for the purpose of showing up her mother. Suddenly Burke Devlin looks like a real catch.

Christine: Predictable, yet entertaining. She attacked Buzz more violently than we've seen Barnabas attack Maggie. Is this the first time she's worn pants on the show? Do you think Buzz is his real name or a nickname for his state of mind?

John: Whatever happened to the curfew in Collinsport?

Christine: Whatever happened to the drinking age? 

John: Every now and then we get an episode that reminds us that it's 1967. I don't know how long this Buzz/Carolyn romance will last, but if it's more than a few weeks, I hope Buzz will be developed beyond the leather jacket and motorcycle... though he's still arguably a nicer guy than Jason McGuire.

Christine: He's certainly more pleasant than Jason, despite the fact that he's tooling around with Carolyn on his bike while they're both loaded. Let's hope she doesn't hear anything about tuning in, turning on, and dropping out, or Miss Carolyn will be packing her bags for San Francisco with flowers in her hair. Part of the allure of Dark Shadows is that, for the most part, it does not incorporate contemporary culture into its storylines. We might otherwise wonder how Burke and Joe have avoided the draft, or why the Collins family does not own a TV. At any rate, the addition of Buzz means we're all in for "a gas."

Carolyn: "To more horsepower."
Buzz: "To louder exhaust."

Buzz is a fun loving guy.