Dark Shadows Episode 655 - 12/27/68

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Carolyn asks Julia why no one called for her when Vicki disappeared. She then asks about her mother, and Julia says that Liz thinks she's going to die. While they talk, Joe sneaks into Collinwood. Julia tells Carolyn that they don't know why her mother is regressing. As they go upstairs, Joe comes out of the kitchen and starts upstairs.

Liz is sleeping when Carolyn checks on her. Julia offers to help Carolyn unpack. After they leave, Liz starts to stir, and has a nightmare. She finds Amy in the woods. She asks Liz if she heard the voice calling her to the woods, too. They then hear laughter in the woods. Liz then sees Cassandra. She tells Amy to go to the house, and Cassandra says she can't, until she lets her. Cassandra sends Amy away, and she goes. Cassandra tells Liz that she's beginning to think of death again. Liz tells her not to come closer. Cassandra reaches out to her and says when she touches her, she'll appear to be dead. She comes closer and Liz screams in terror.

Carolyn comes running to her mother. She and Julia find her. She says she had a terrible nightmare, and can't go to sleep again or she will come back again. Julia asks who, and Liz can't remember.

Joe sneaks into Amy's room. He says, "Tom, Chris, and you..." and approaches her as she sleeps. He then says he's got to save her. He grabs a suitcase and starts to fill it. The noise wakes up Amy. He tells her to be quiet, and that they are leaving. She asks if he's taking her to Chris and he pauses before saying they're going far away. He tells her she's not going to be like either Tom or Chris. Amy says she doesn't want to go, and he yells at her, telling her not to cry. He tells her not to be afraid. She says she doesn't want to go with him. He grabs her and then apologizes. He then shakes her and tells her she's never going to find out.

Julia offers Liz a sedative, and she refuses. She asks Carolyn to check on Amy.

Joe carries Amy downstairs with his hand over her mouth.

Carolyn finds Amy's bed empty. Julia comes in and she tells her that Amy has run away. Julia finds a suitcase open with clothes, and says she hasn't run away. She suggests she might be with David. She tells Carolyn to go lie to her mother, telling her Amy is asleep. She then says to meet her downstairs.

Amy struggles as Joe takes her through the woods.

Carolyn lies and tells her mother that Amy is sleeping. Liz asks Carolyn to read to her. Carolyn says she needs to do something first, and leaves the room. Liz gets out of bed.

In the drawing room, Julia calls for Amy. Carolyn comes downstairs. Julia tells her to wake Mrs. Johnson and Harry, and have him look outside for Amy.

Liz checks Amy's room and finds it empty. She then hears Cassandra, who steps out of the shadows. She approaches Liz, arm outstretched.

Amy tells Joe to let her down. He tells her it's for her own good. He lets her down, and tells her to be quiet. He says that 'he' knows he has her. As soon as she has a chance, Amy runs away from Joe.

Julia tries to reach Chris Jennings. She asks if a little girl is waiting outside his apartment. She then hangs up and calls the police when Amy bursts in. Joe follows and tells Julia that Amy is coming with him. She runs upstairs. Julia asks Joe what he's doing. Joe mumbles about the animal. He says he's the only one who knows. Julia tells her whatever attacked him is no threat to Amy. Joe is hysterical, saying Julia doesn't know. She slaps him. Upstairs, Carolyn screams. Julia runs upstairs to check on her.

Carolyn kneels over Liz' body in Amy's room. Julia comes in, and Carolyn says she found her like this. Julia checks her pulse, and tells Carolyn that her mother is dead. Meanwhile, Liz tries to move to show them that she's not dead.

Our thoughts

John: What the hell? Rock-a-bye-baby by way of kazoo? That was one of the weirdest dream sequences we've had, including all of the 'Let's Make a Deal' door surprises during the dream curse!

Christine: I don't know if that was a very bad dream or just terrible side effects from all the pills Julia has been feeding her, which might explain the undulating Amy effect.

John: We finally have confirmation that Cassangelique hasn't been vanquished. Who knows where she's been all this time, but she's finally delivered on her promise of 'killing' Liz. Of course, Roger's out of town, and they never did build her special tomb... so I guess buried alive it will be!

Christine: You'd think Julia might remember Liz sitting up after she declared her dead back in Episode 604 and be a little more hesitant to certify her death this time around. Hopefully Liz had time to make provisions in her will for her special tomb.

John: Joe's nuts. But it's not clear what he perceives to be threatening Amy. Does he think she's got the wolf gene? Or that she'll be a target of Chris? Sure, Tom was a vampire, through no fault of his own. And while we don't yet know what caused Chris' affliction, we can assume it's not genetic. I think poor old Joe's just lost his marbles. And we never did find out how he survived yesterday's second attack, unless the gunshots (which appeared to be ineffective) actually worked at bringing down the wolfman...

Christine: Chris did say that Joe would never be the same after seeing him go through the change. It's possible there is some predisposition for the supernatural that's shared among the siblings. Amy's already shown an affinity for helping evil spirits to commit murder, so Joe is right to suspect that she needs to be removed from Collinwood.

Dark Shadows Episode 548 - 7/31/68

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Julia asks Barnabas and Roger to leave her with the withered woman. She says she will not be long. Barnabas is concerned about what she'll do, but leaves with Roger.

Roger wonders who the woman is and where she came from. Julia comes out and says the woman's heart is weak, and she only has moments to live. Roger says he can drive her to the hospital. When they go back in, the woman is missing.

Barnabas tells Julia he should have killed her. She tells him he must go to Blair's room, which is where Cassandra must have gone.

Angelique enters Vicki's room through the secret door. She approaches the portrait when Blair turns on a light. He reminds her that her powers are lost, and the painting can no longer help her. She begs for him to turn her back the way she was. He tells her he doesn't care if Barnabas is a vampire, but he does not want him to die. She tries to convince him that she doesn't care about Barnabas.

He reminds her how she interfered with his plans. He says he needs Barnabas alive to find out how Adam was brought to life. She says she can help him with that. She begs him not to let her die like this. He says she should beg Barnabas for his forgiveness. He asks if she would, if he makes her a little stronger. He agrees to let her live if Barnabas forgives her. She asks if he'll restore her powers, and he tells her he'll see about that.

Barnabas comes downstairs, and tells Julia that Blair wasn't in his room. He leaves for the old house.

Withered Angelique is in the old house, waiting for Barnabas. He enters and is not particularly surprised to see her. He asks what she wants, and she begs him to sit down and listen to her. She asks if he remembers how she was when they first met, and he says yes. She asks if he pities her, because she needs him to forgive her. He says it's too late. He reminds her of all the people who are dead because of her. He refuses to forgive her. She begs him, and he says he cannot forget the suffering she caused so many—most recently with her dream curse.

She drops to her knees and he catches her. She asks him again, and once again he refuses. He tells her that when he asked for forgiveness, she made him a vampire. He says the two of them can never forgive one another. She appears to die, sitting across from the fire.

Roger tells Blair that the mysterious woman disappeared without a trace. Blair brings up Cassandra, and says that he saw her while Roger was out looking for the old woman. He gives Roger a note he says is from Cassandra, and Roger reads it and says she's gone, and will never come back. He tells Blair he's not sure how he feels about it. He tells Blair that there's no need for him to rush away. Blair says he would feel awkward to stay. Blair says he's looking into taking on a property in Collinsport, and Roger says they own some property, and can check into its availability.

Blair leaves the house after Roger goes upstairs to bed.

Roger is in the drawing room, throwing Cassandra's letter into the fire. Julia walks in, and then Barnabas arrives at Collinwood. Roger asks him if he found the woman, and when Barnabas says no, he raises his voice and asks if he's just paying a late call. Roger then apologizes, and explains that Cassandra has left him. Barnabas asked when it happened, and he says Blair brought him a letter from her. He retires to bed.

Barnabas and Julia enter the drawing room and close the door. He tells her that Angelique is dead. He's not sure what that means. Julia tells him the portrait should show what happened to her, and they go upstairs to look at it.

Blair is in the old house, standing over Cassandra's dead body. He picks her up and leaves.

Barnabas tells Julia that Angelique is gone forever when they see the portrait looks burned. He smiles, realizing that he is now free.

Our thoughts

John: The Cassangelique make-up looked pretty nasty today. She didn't just look like she was old - she looked like she was starting to melt. Although when she was in Vicki's room, she reminded me of Chaka from LAND OF THE LOST...

Christine: She did look wonderfully bad. I love when she asks Nicholas not to look at her and he tells her that her appearance is his masterpiece. He really seemed to relish toying with her, though I found it odd that he wanted her to develop empathy for Barnabas by making her feel the same fear she has caused him, and then promised to let her live if she got Barnabas to forgive her. It could be that he wanted her to develop her abilities beyond relying on her beauty to charm people.

John: I was very happy to see Barnabas not cave, and forgive Angelique. It took 200 years, but he finally stood up to her when it mattered the most!

Christine: I'm surprised that Roger would offer to help set Nicholas up with one of their properties and not want to sever all ties with Cassandra. It's funny that he said he would have preferred a legal break, but didn't intend to marry again, when that obviously didn't stop him from marrying Cassandra while still being married to Laura Murdoch Collins.

John: Do you think Blair can magically appear anywhere he chooses? How did he get in to the old house, and where is he taking Angelique's withered body?

Christine: Yes, he probably can, since he gained access to Adam's locked room, though Barnabas probably left the door to the Old House unlocked. I'd like to think he's keeping her crusty corpse around to use once he learns how to create human life, though it will be interesting to see where he's chosen to store her decaying body until he decides he needs her again. It's obvious that Angelique is not truly gone or the Collins ancestor that occupied the portrait before she stepped into it would have reclaimed it.

Dark Shadows Episode 547 - 7/30/68

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Cassandra says she has come to say goodbye to Barnabas. She lets him know that one word can end 200 years of pain. She asks why he never loved her, and he says he loved Josette. She's angry that he has escaped her curse. She says she has wasted her time on him. She explains that even dying, she loves him. He asks what she means, and she tells him that she too is now human, like him. He reminds her she is a witch, and she says she's not anymore. She says that she will die by the morning, and if she must die, he must, too. She points a gun at him. He doesn't believe that she's human. He assumes it's another trick of hers. She tries to pull the trigger but can't.

As her hand trembles, he says she really is human. He reaches for her and she warns him not to touch her. He asks if Blair condemned her. He gets the gun away from her, and tells her to sit down. With her hood up, she sits in a chair. Barnabas asks her who Blair is, and what she did. He tells her to look at him, and turns her to face him.

Vicki wakes in the night after having a bad dream. The portrait of Angelique is on a chair near her bed, glowing. As she watches it, the face changes. She realizes that she must get Julia.

Julia returns with Vicki, and they see the portrait has changed. Vicki says it's like the portrait is alive, and Julia adds that perhaps it is. She leaves to go to the old house, and Vicki asks what Barnabas has to do with it. She asks if the picture has something to do with Angelique. Vicki finds it hard to believe. Julia says Vicki knows more about Angelique than anyone else. Vicki realizes that buying the portrait paved the way for Cassandra's arrival. Julia goes to get Barnabas, and suggests Vicki stay with Roger in the drawing room.

Barnabas sits Angelique down and asks her again about Blair. Julia enters, telling Barnabas the portrait is changing. Barnabas points to Angelique and says she's dying—that she's human now.

Angelique begs her to help her. Barnabas says they can't help her. She tries to look at her face, but she runs off.

Julia tells him that this is his chance to be free of her, and he says that he could have killed her, but he chose not to. Julia says he'll regret that. Barnabas suggests that he will only be free if Blair does away with her. Julia says she won't let him miss this opportunity, and reaches for the gun. Barnabas says he plans to watch, to learn more about Blair. She takes the gun, and he tells her no.

Roger looks at the portrait, and says perhaps Blair's restoration is responsible. Vicki tells Roger that she doesn't trust Blair. Roger asks why. She says she doesn't have a reason, but she doesn't want him in her room that night. Roger agrees, and says it's curious that the portrait changed tonight. It's almost as if he caused it. He says that he and Cassandra fought earlier. He then suggests that she stay with Carolyn. They hear a noise downstairs, and Roger goes to check it out.

Cassandra pounds on the door, screaming for help. Roger opens the door and a shrouded Cassandra falls to the ground, her face old and wrinkled.

Barnabas and Julia arrive at the main house, and he demands Julia give him the gun.

Roger helps the old woman into a chair. Julia enters and Roger says he needs her help with the strange woman. Julia goes to get her bag, and Barnabas helps Roger lead the woman into the drawing room. They lay her down on the couch, and Julia asks them to leave her with the woman. She says she will not be long. Barnabas is concerned about what she'll do, but leaves with Roger.

Roger wonders who the woman is and where she came from. Julia comes out and says the woman's heart is weak, and she only has minutes to live. Roger says he can drive her to the hospital. When they go back in, the woman is missing.

Our thoughts

John: I'm a little disappointed that Barnabas wasn't able to take advantage of Angelique's state to get the information he (and we) wanted about just who Nicholas Blair really is.

Christine: Well, we know he's from Martinique, that they're members of the same coven, and his ability to make her human suggests that he's the leader of the gang. Barnabas should be concerned that if Blair can take her out, it's likely that he can also bring her back.

John: What's with the portrait? It looks like it got slimed. You'd think they would have pulled one of Sam's old-Angelique paintings out, since that's the look they went for with the make-up, anyway. And we won't even go into why Vicki would have the portrait displayed in her bedroom...

Christine: It was weird for her to have the witch's portrait propped up next to her bed, but I think it was part of the magical charm of the portrait exerting its influence over Vicki, that was dispelled once Nicholas removed Angelique's power. I also wonder why they didn't use Sam's portraits. Did Dan Curtis Productions throw them out? What has happened to all these wonderful portraits? I still have not discovered the answer.

John: I love how when they're outside the main house, Julia is fondling the gun with it pointed right at Barnabas. I thought for sure it was going to be him that she killed.

Christine: Julia was right. He should have finished off Angelique while he had the chance, but then she also could have put a pillow over her face when she was alone with her in the drawing room. In the end, nobody really wants to see Angelique die.

Dark Shadows Episode 546 - 7/29/68

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Cassandra listens to Lang's recording again.

Adam lies asleep in his bed.

Cassandra explores the West Wing, using her witchcraft to open the door to Adam's bedroom.

She comes inside and finds him asleep on the bed. She realizes that she can't kill him through magic, or Blair would know she was responsible. So instead, she raises an axe over her head. Meanwhile, Blair watches her from across the room. He asks her if she never follows orders.

Adam wakes up, and asks who she is and why she's trying to hurt him. He grabs her, and Blair tells him to let go of her, and leave her to him. Adam clutches her throat, demanding to know who she is. Blair points out that they have a shared hate of Barnabas. 

Adam releases her throat, and Blair promises she won't bother him again. Blair adds that Carolyn would not like it if Adam hurt Cassandra. He lets her go, and Blair sends her to the drawing room to wait for him. She says she was only doing what he wanted her to do, and he points out that she wasn't obeying his direct orders regarding Adam. She leaves, and Adam asks why she hates him. Blair says he has so much to teach Adam, after he finishes the business at hand.

Cassandra goes downstairs, thinking Blair couldn't get rid of her, but realizes it's her last chance. In the drawing room, she removes a voodoo doll of Adam. She says he can be destroyed as easily as she can tear the doll apart. She says when his heart stops beating, Barnabas will be a vampire again. She takes a pin and prepares to poke the voodoo doll.

In his room, Blair tells Adam that they will be very good friends.

Cassandra declares that Adam will bring the curse to Barnabas, and sticks the doll with the pin.

Adam clutches his chest in pain. Blair asks what's wrong.

Cassandra repeats her assault.

Adam drops to the floor.

Blair knocks the doll from Cassandra's hand. He grabs her and she admits she disobeyed him. She asks forgiveness, and he asks her what his master would say. She says he's her master, too, and he tells her that her master is on Earth, living in the old house.

She begins to panic, and he tells her that she will be a woman in panic. He asks her name, and she says Angelique. He tells her Cassandra Collins is her name now. She's no longer playing a woman married to a human—she is a human. He strips her of her powers, and tells her that she will die as humans die. He reminds her that she was born in 1774, and they shall soon know when she dies. He tells her she is now mortal, and laughs maniacally.

He hands her the voodoo doll, and says she can try to use her powers. She realizes that she is powerless. She asks how much time she has left. He won't tell her, other than to indicate that her time is short.

He mentions that her husband is coming downstairs. He opens the door to the drawing room, and meets him in the foyer. Roger asks about Cassandra, and Blair says she's in the drawing room.

Roger demands to talk to her, and she tries to leave. He tells her she's coming upstairs, and she says what he thinks of her no longer matters. He says the marriage was a mistake. She's not interested in him, and she says he's keeping her from more important things. She storms out, telling him that there has never been anything between them. She says that she used him, and when he asks for what, she explains she used him for what she's about to do.

Cassandra arrives at the old house and sees Barnabas through the window. She knocks on the door and he asks what she wants, and she says as the former mistress of the house, she should be allowed in. He asks why she's admitting that now. She tells him she remembers the day he hung Josette's portrait, and asks him where it is now. He doesn't trust her. She says she has come to say goodbye. She lets him know that one word can end 200 years of pain. She asks why he never loved her, and he says he loved Josette. She's angry that he has escaped her curse. She says she has wasted her time on him. She explains that even dying, she loves him. He asks what she means, and she tells him that she too is now human, like him. He reminds her she is a witch, and she says not anymore. She says she will die by the morning, and if she must die, he must, too, as she pulls a gun on him.

Our thoughts

John: Holy Axus-interruptus, Batman! While I'm glad Adam has lived to see another day, I was kind of hoping that his dismembered limbs might live on to attack Angelique, EVIL DEAD 2-style...

Christine: We all have our dreams...  I loved how Nicholas removed her powers, kicked her out of the coven, and then cackled madly about it. I was surprised he finally did it after all the times he threatened her and never followed through.

John: Poor Roger, only now realizing the girl of his dreams (or portrait) never truly loved him. Do you think anyone will point out that he has particularly bad taste in wives?

Christine: Liz may do so once she's back from the hospital, and free from Angeqlique's spell. Unfortunately, Nicholas didn't have the foresight to realize that without her powers, Angelique no longer has any hold over Roger, who will probably ask them both to leave, causing Nicholas to lose access to Adam. 

John: I wonder if Cassangelique found Roger's gun in the drawer in the drawing room, or if she stopped by the gun shop in Collinsport on her way over to the old house.

Christine: She must have grabbed it from the drawer while Nicholas spoke with him in the foyer. That was some quick thinking. Angelique continues to have a funny way of showing Barnabas how much she loves him by threatening to kill him. Can't wait to see how this all turns out.