Dark Shadows Episode 843 - 9/17/69

Amazon Prime members can stream today's episode free!

Tate asks the man he created how he got there. The man approaches him with a puzzled look on his face. Tate takes the drawing, and says he created the man, and can destroy him. He brandishes the drawing and rips it in half. Nothing happens to the man. Tate grabs the man and shakes him furiously, demanding to know what he is.

Amanda tells Tim that Tate created her. He tells her that her lost memories have nothing to do with Tate. She assures Tim that she saw him create someone else. Tim finds that amusing. He tells her that they are going to pay a visit to Mr. Tate, and he picks up a gun.

Tate shakes the man repeatedly, but he says nothing. There's a knock at the door and Tate throws the man into his closet and locks the door. He picks up the pieces of the drawing and places them in a wastebasket before opening the door.

Tim brings Amanda in. He says that she says she saw Tate create a man from a sketch. Tate denies it. Tim asks what he's done with the man. Amanda is adamant that there was a man. Tate invites Tim to search the place. Amanda tells him to check his sketch pad. Tim only finds a sketch of Amanda. Tate says that's for a portrait Trask commissioned. Tate tells them that in the absence of a man or a sketch, they can leave. He tells Tim that Amanda needs help.

Amanda is adamant that she saw the sketch and the man. Tim says they should go. Amanda tells him to look, as a door handle turns. Tim checks it and finds that it's locked. He pulls his gun and tells Tate to unlock the door. Tate says there's no one in there. Tim uses the gun to convince Tate to give him the key.

He opens the closet and pulls out a man. Amanda screams, saying it's the man Tate sketched and created. Tate apologizes to Amanda as she cries. Tim asks if he really created the man, as he had Amanda. He asks Tate how he does it, but he says he doesn't know. Tim tells him to draw him one. He tells Tate to think about the possibilities. Tim calls the man a creature, and says it fascinates him. He tells Tate that if he won't draw him a new one, he'll take the one he created. He takes the man and leaves Amanda with Tate.

Petofi tells Beth that he's not surprised she has come to him. He asks her what she's planning now that she attempted to kill Quentin. She asks to work for him. He says that his last aide ran out on him. He says his needs are not ordinary. He says that if he decides to employ her, her only devotion would be to him, even if it cost her her life. He offers her a job, but tells her there's no turning back if she accepts it. He asks if she's willing to accept the offer under his terms. She does.

Amanda asks Tate what she, his creation, does now. He asks her to marry him. She asks how he can propose to something unreal. He assures her that she's real, and can touch, feel, and love him. She says she can never love, and no one can ever love her. She says when she saw the newly created man today, she saw herself. Tate assures her that she can love, and leans in to kiss her. She says she can't, but says that she can hate, and she hates him. She runs out on him.

Petofi asks Beth to help him experiment with time. He asks if she's familiar with the I Ching. She says that Quentin dabbled in it, and she's frightened by it. He tells her that she's going to travel through time and then tell him about her experience. He has her cast the wands, and interprets her hexagram. He tells her to sit down, and tell him exactly what she sees. She gets up from the chair. He reminds her that there is no turning back. She sits back down, and concentrates on the door.

Beth describes passing through the open door. Petofi asks her what lies on the other side. She screams. He asks her what's happening. She looks at him, grabs a letter opener, and tells her she's going to kill him. He asks what lies behind the door. She says only shadows. He wipes the wands from the table, and leads her to a room where he locks her in.

Tim talks to the manufactured man, telling him that he could speak if he wants to. He promises the man that he can protect him.

The man stands up and walks around the room, confused. He puts his hand on Tim's shoulder and shakes his head. Tim tells him that no harm will come to him. He asks the man to tell him everything he can. The man is about to speak when Tate interrupts them. He's holding a gun on the man, and says he's going to kill him.

Our thoughts

John: So Tate's initial attempt at destroying his creation failed. Though lets face it, tearing the sheet of paper in half wasn't exactly the most impressive attempt. You'd think he'd try burning it. And the way they made such a big deal about him placing the pieces in the wastebasket, I was surprised that they didn't rely on that clue to prove Tate was lying. Makes you wonder if someone forgot an important line in the script, and they just rolled with it.

Christine: I would have liked to see him erase his sketch and have parts of his creation disappear as he did so.

John: Hold on just a second. Out of the blue, Tim has ditched his lovely confidant Amanda for Tate's blank-man? I don't even want to imagine what sordid plans Tim's got in mind for him, but even worse is leaving Amanda with Tate of all people. In time, I sure hope Tim gets his just desserts.

Christine: Yes. Why would Tim throw over his lovely girlfriend for a lovely boyfriend? Enquiring minds want to know. It is pretty selfish of him not to consider the fate to which he's consigned his former partner in crime. I guess he doesn't much care whether or not she will continue to support his plan for Trask.

John: I'm sure hoping that we'll find out that Barnabas secretly put Beth up to working with Petofi. If she truly did that of her own accord, she too will deserve what I'm sure that decision will bring.

Christine: It's a real stretch to believe Beth would go to work for Petofi for any other reason, so if it turns out Barnabas did not have a hand in it, I will be extremely disappointed. I have a feeling I'm in for a letdown.