Dark Shadows Episode 276 - 7/17/67

Willie tells Jason to take the jewels and leave. Jason says he thinks the jewels are in the coffin. Willie tells him that it's Barnabas' coffin. Jason insists, and Willie steps back and tells him to go ahead and open it. Jason lifts the lid, and is grasped by the throat by Barnabas.

Barnabas walks around the body of Jason, lying on the floor. Barnabas tells Willie that Jason is dead. Barnabas closes the lid to his coffin. Willie is shocked that Barnabas killed Jason.

Barnabas asks what they were doing in the basement. Willie explains that Jason saw them through the window, and broke in the next day to steal the jewels. Barnabas threatens Willie, but puts that on hold so they can deal with Jason's body. He says they'll bury Jason in the secret room of the Collins' Family Crypt. Barnabas says they'll dispose of the body as soon as it's dark. Willie can't bring himself to pick up Jason's body. Willie asks if Barnabas ever had a friend die. Barnabas explains that he did, once, long ago. Long before Josette. Someone who died while young and innocent. He says he mourned her death for a long time. The two pick up Jason's body, and carry him upstairs. As they do, we see the little girl in the basement playing with a ball. She picks up Jason's hat and puts it on Barnabas' coffin.

Doctor Woodard asks Julia if she's shown Sam's drawing of the little girl to Maggie yet. She explains that she has not. She explains that she'll see the sketch in time. He insists that they show Maggie the sketch today. A nurse brings Maggie in to the room. Maggie sits down at Julia's desk, and Woodard asks her to look at the sketch he brought. He asks if Maggie recognizes her. Maggie struggles with it before saying she doesn't know. Then she says it's Sarah. They try to get more information from Maggie. She says she came to the room. Julia says he's pushing her too far. Woodard asks where the room was. Maggie starts singing London Bridge until the nurse drags her away.

Willie and Barnabas sneak Jason's lifeless body into the crypt. Barnabas tells Jason's dead body that his greed destroyed him. Barnabas is upset he had to resort to defiling the family tomb with the likes of Jason McGuire. Willie walks through the names in the crypt. Willie asks about Sarah, and Barnabas describes mending a broken doll for her the day before she died. Willie asks if that's the friend he was referring to earlier. Barnabas confirms that it was. They leave, and the ghost of Sarah appears in the crypt, doll in hand. She sits down in front of her tomb.

Our thoughts

John: I think it's going to take a while to get used to these rotating narrators. Is that Maggie's voice? Did Vicki finally get some vacation time? You'd think she could have recorded the opening bits in advance if they were written.

Christine: Did Sarah get another doll, or did she take back the one she gave to Maggie? I was hoping the Caretaker at the Eagle Hill Cemetery might pop up while Willie and Barnabas were lugging Jason McGuire's corpse around the cemetery, though he never would have seen them through that dense fog. It was so thick it was creeping into the mausoleum.

John: Well, I can't complain in that I got what I wanted with Jason dying at Barnabas' hand... but I was hoping for something a little more grandiose.

Christine: It was a bit of a let down. I would have liked to have seen Jason at least attempt to fight back. He was dispatched much too quickly. Barnabas is quite fond of strangling people. His vise-like grip seems to have a paralyzing effect.

John: So for anyone not paying attention, the little girl who has been making herself at home in and around the old house is Barnabas' younger sister Sarah. In time, we'll probably hear exactly how she died.

Christine: I wonder if we'll also find out why his dear little sister has appeared to everyone but him so far. I was surprised Maggie was able to recognize Sarah in Sam's sketch, since he drew her without her long hair hanging down.

Sam's sketch of Sarah looks more like David.

Barnabas and Willie share personal feelings with one another.

Barnabas does not have a very luxurious coffin.

Farewell, Jason McGuire.

Dark Shadows Episode 275 - 7/14/67

Liz lies in bed asleep, asking where Carolyn has gone. It sounds like a doctor had stopped by to give her some sort of tranquilizer. Liz is sure Carolyn hates her, despite not knowing the truth.

Meanwhile, Carolyn walks along the beach.

Carolyn returns home. Upstairs, Liz is asleep in bed when she enters. She wakes her mother, who is pleased to see her. She says she's home to stay. She said she needed time to think. She asks her mother what's the matter. She says the doctor gave her an injection to sleep. Carolyn apologizes for running out on her. She explains that she should have known that anything she did was in her best interests. She tells her mother that they'll get the best lawyers for the trial. Liz explains that she didn't kill Carolyn's father. She says Jason lied. The trunk buried in the basement was empty. Carolyn realizes that this means her father was still alive. Carolyn realizes that it's all over.

Carolyn brings her mother tea. Carolyn said she called the sheriff to get all the details. She mentions that it's odd realizing that her father may still be alive. Liz says that now that they're officially divorced, Paul has no hold over them. And Jason is gone.

At the old house, Jason closes the window he came in through. He looks around when Willie startles him. Willie tells him he's supposed to be out of town by sundown. Jason asks if Willie is threatening him. He tells Jason he's not safe if Barnabas finds him in the house. Jason says he can take care of Barnabas. He says he needs to find the jewels in the house that Willie brought to Barnabas the night before. Jason slaps Willie around and asks where the jewels are. Willie tells him the jewels are in the basement, and Jason lets him go. Jason says they're going there together, and Willie warns him that Barnabas is down there. He tells him that Barnabas isn't alive. He says that if Jason goes down there, Barnabas will kill him—or worse. They make their way to the basement, and Jason asks what the coffins are doing down there. He asks if that's where the jewels are, and starts to open one.

Willie stops him and says he'll get him jewels. Willie gives him a handful, and Jason says that's not enough. Willie says he doesn't have time to get the rest, and Jason calls him a liar.

He says he thinks they're in the coffin, and Willie says it's Barnabas' coffin. Willie gives up, and tells Jason to open the coffin.

Jason lifts the lid, and a hand reaches out, clutching his throat.

Our thoughts

John: Wait—your name isn't Victoria Winters. Carolyn reads today's opening narration, but fails to introduce herself...

Christine: This marks the transition from Vicki being the main character to Barnabas taking over that position. We'll have rotating narrators from now on, with narration done by someone who appears in the episode. Here's some information about the opening narration from The Dark Shadows Wiki:

Also beginning with 275, the opening narrations are not in character, but are in the third person. Barrett, for example, does not introduce the show as Carolyn Stoddard. This includes Moltke's narrations. When Moltke returns as narrator in 277, she does not begin by saying, "My name is Victoria Winters," but is also a third person narrator.

John: The chest that was in the old house when Jason broke in yesterday was gone today. Did the ghost of Josette run off with it?

Christine: It was either her or Sarah Collins or someone who realized that if it was left there Jason would grab it and never make his way down to the coffin room. 

John: Yes! Willie gets to relive his introduction to Barnabas through Jason. Willie all but calls Barnabas a vampire, but again, Jason's greed blinds him. I wonder if we'll see him get his just desserts come Monday.

Christine: Is there some reason Willie can not say the V-word? After Jason has slapped him around and abused him, I'm surprised Willie is still trying to protect the obnoxious lout. Feed him to the vampire! I can't imagine that Barnabas will allow Jason to live, now that he knows where he sleeps.

Dark Shadows Episode 274 - 7/13/67

Jason makes his way through the woods to the old house.

Barnabas comes downstairs, and Willie tells him he was upstairs for a long time. Barnabas waxes poetic about time, and tells Willie the room upstairs cannot be vacant long. He tells him that he's already selected his next Josette. Willie says that Maggie Evans failed. Barnabas says he was too hasty. Maggie didn't possess Josette's tender qualities. He says he has made his next selection with great care. He tells Willie to grab his jewel chest so he can select a gift.

Jason approaches the house and peers in the window at Barnabas when Willie brings him the jewel chest. Barnabas fondles the pearls in the chest, and says the entire contents of the chest wouldn't buy the one he wants. He tells Willie that he's pleased he seems to be improving. He says he thought he might help Maggie escape.

Outside, it appears that Jason can hear them.

Willie realizes that Vicki is Barnabas' next target for Josette.

Jason is surprised to hear the conversation.

Willie walks through the woods when Jason taps him on the shoulder. He tells him he'll be moving on. Willie asks if he's getting married, and Jason said he had a change of plans. Willie says he knows him too well, and that his plans must have backfired. Jason asks Willie if he'd like to come along with him. Willie says he'd like to but he's doing alright here. Jason says he needs Willie to do him a favor. He needs a little to tide him over. He tells Willie to grab two handfuls from the chest of jewelry in the old house. Willie says he doesn't know what Jason is talking about, and Jason says he saw it himself. Jason then brings up Maggie Evans, poor thing, and what's about to happen to Vicki Winters. Jason tells Willie he knows what to do, and Willie agrees. He tells Jason he'll meet him tomorrow at noon, and Jason tells him to come to The Blue Whale then.

In The Blue Whale, Jason drinks at the bar when Vicki comes in. She asks the bartender if Carolyn has been in. He shakes his head when Jason comes forward and asks to talk to Vicki. She says she'd rather not, and that she's still looking for Carolyn. Vicki says Carolyn doesn't yet know the truth about her mother. Vicki tells Jason she ruined the life of a wonderful woman, who has been trapped for the last 18 years. Jason tells her she's living in a fantasy world. He asks her who she is, and where does she come from. He says he knows that she doesn't know the answers to those questions. He says he was around 18 years ago, and maybe he does know the answers. She asks what he knows, and he says whatever he knows he'll take with him when he leaves. She storms out of the bar.

Jason is sitting at a table in the bar when Willie shows up. Jason tells him to sit down for a farewell drink. They take a drink of the beers the bartender brings them, and Jason asks Willie what he's got. Willie says he's got what Jason wants. He asks to see it, and Willie gives him a single brooch. He says it's all he could manage, and Jason is angry with him. He tells Willie he can't let him down like that, and Willie reiterates that the one piece is all that he's getting.

Back at the old house, Jason breaks a window and sneaks in. He sees the jewelry box right where Willie had left it.

Our thoughts

John: Will the real Josette, please stand up? You'd think Barnabas might be more open to trying traditional dating techniques.

Christine: Barnabas has a fondness for young girls. I don't think traditional dating techniques would work out for him. Also, he seems to be really hung up on Josette, which makes it funny that the first thing he did when he got to the Old House was to assert she had no power there. He's a complicated vampire.

John: So Jason implies that he knows Vicki's history. Something tells me that mystery isn't going to be solved before Jason meets his final fate, which I have a hunch is fast approaching.

Christine: How would Jason know about Vicki's history unless Paul Stoddard were involved? Could this mean that Vicki is the illegitimate daughter of Paul Stoddard and Betty Hanscomb?

John: I had expected Willie to lure Jason back to Barnabas on purpose, but it seems like he was trying to help out his friend one last time. And this time, I'm guessing Jason's greed will get the best of him.

Christine: Hope to see Jason's comeuppance tomorrow!

"The sun sets and the sun rises, but only night could become eternal, the blackness that is always." -Barnabas

Dark Shadows Episode 273 - 7/12/67

Burke and the sheriff pull a crate out of the ground in the basement. The sheriff takes a crowbar to the lock on the crate, and then Burke helps him lift it open. They stare into it, and then at each other.

Roger asks Liz why she didn't tell him the truth, and she blames it on pride. Roger admits that had he known, he might have used it against her the same way Jason did. Liz expresses concern that she's lost Carolyn. Burke and the sheriff come into the room, and Liz asks if they found the trunk. He says they did when the phone rings. It's news for the sheriff that Jason McGuire has been caught. He tells his deputies to bring Jason to the house. Roger is appalled. Liz asks if she has to identify the body, and she's told that won't be necessary. The sheriff tells Roger he's got some specific questions for Jason, which is why he wants him brought to the house. The sheriff explains that the trunk they dug up in the basement, that Jason buried Paul Stoddard in, was empty. Liz can't believe it.

The group makes their way downstairs, as Liz wants to see for herself. She's shocked, and begins to rave about her nightmares, and how she's locked herself in the house for the past 18 years. She wants to know what happened to Paul's body. The sheriff asks how she knows she killed Paul. She says she never saw Paul after McGuire checked on him, but she was sure she killed him. They hear footsteps outside. Burke and the deputy escort Jason in. The sheriff opens the trunk, and Jason says he's never seen it before. Liz demands Jason to tell her what happened to Paul. The sheriff says that Jason might as well tell them everything. He asks to speak to Liz alone for a moment. Roger says it's out of the question. Jason says he has nothing to say to anyone other than Liz. They agree to go upstairs to speak privately.

Roger, Burke and the sheriff talk in the foyer. Roger suggests Jason will be able to bend Liz to his will.

Liz asks Jason if what he's told her is the truth, and he says it is. He tells her to call in the sheriff. She invites them into the drawing room.

She tells them she did not kill Paul Stoddard. He was only stunned. The sheriff asks what happened. Jason said when he entered the room, Paul was rubbing his head. He told him he was a fool for trying to take so much money. They split the money Liz gave them to bury the trunk. Roger asks where Paul is, and Jason says he hasn't spoken to him in 10 years, since he last saw him in Hong Kong. Jason tries to excuse himself, and Burke stands in his way. The sheriff tells Jason he's coming with him. Liz tells him she agrees to drop all charges. Despite that, Roger asks the sheriff to arrest him. Liz says she just wants to be rid of him. Even Burke agrees with Liz.

The sheriff gives Jason until sunup to get out of Collinsport. Burke manages to get in a threat as well. Jason asks that they give him until tomorrow evening to get out of town. The sheriff reluctantly agrees. Jason thanks Liz for everything, and then leaves.

Jason approaches the old house.


Our thoughts

John: Did Roger just tell his sister that he would have blackmailed her the way Jason did?

Christine: That's a crazy piece of dialogue. I find it difficult to believe that Roger would have blackmailed her for some new suits and a Swiss bank account. While they may not get along, he has shown true affection for his sister, and offered to support her when he suspected she was being blackmailed. Plus, knowledge of her crime gives him the satisfaction of knowing she can't look down on him for setting Burke up to take the blame for his manslaughter charge. 

John: Well, I'm honestly a bit disappointed to have been right about Paul Stoddard. It was a mystery I didn't expect would ever get resolved, so finding out that Jason and Paul had conspired to fake his death was a bit underwhelming. The one thing that remains unaddressed was the connection between Liz and Vicki at the foundling home, and whether Paul had anything to do with that.

Christine: I liked that we found out the trunk was empty. It leaves open the possibility that deadbeat dad, Paul Stoddard, might return to Collinwood someday. Liz's stunned reaction when she realized she shut herself in and tortured herself for 18 years was worth the price of admission.

John: While it's disappointing to see Jason weasel his way out of trouble (again), here's hoping that Barnabas will have a chance to say goodbye to him in person...

Christine: A meetup between Jason and Barnabas could make for an exciting Friday episode.

Dark Shadows Episode 272 - 7/11/67

18 years ago, Jason shows Liz where he buried Paul's body in the basement. In present day, she holds the key and says she knew she'd be a prisoner of Collinwood forever.

Jason denies the allegation, and says there's nothing downstairs. He tells them they can dig up the basement and they won't find a body. Liz goes to call the sheriff, and Roger stops her. He asks to talk to her first. She refuses. She says she wants to be free of Jason. He once again claims he's done nothing wrong.

Liz picks up the phone and asks the sheriff to come to Collinwood because there's been a murder. Jason hits Burke's hand, causing the gun to go off, and then knocks him down and runs away. Burke grabs the gun and chases him outside. Roger says he's grabbing another gun, and several gunshots are heard.

Burke and Roger, armed with guns, search for Jason in the forest. Jason hides in the bushes as Roger goes past him. Burke says he'll follow the cliffs and tells Roger to go towards the road. Burke tells him not to kill McGuire, to ensure Liz can see him turned over to the sheriff. Roger is upset she contacted the sheriff, and Burke brings up how he did time for Roger's lies in the past. He tells Roger if he starts shooting, it had better not be at him.

Vicki tells Liz that the deputies would join the search for McGuire. Carolyn is upset that her mother killed her father, and Liz tells her she didn't mean to. Vicki offers to leave them alone, and Carolyn asks her not to. Liz tries to explain, and Carolyn says she can't hear anything anymore. She bemoans that she was standing at her father's grave when Liz took her down to the basement to tell her there was nothing there. Liz says she went down many times and cried, and Vicki realizes those were the wailing sobs she heard. Carolyn runs out of the room, crying.

The sheriff tells Liz that they'll find Jason. He says from what she told him, McGuire is the real criminal. Roger returns home. She tells Roger she told the sheriff everything. She asks if they're going to take her into custody. Roger tells the sheriff Liz is innocent. She says Jason's denials aren't true. The sheriff asks what she means, and she says Jason denied being involved, and that there's no body in the basement. Burke arrives and the sheriff asks him to help dig up the body. Liz gives them the key.

Burke and the sheriff make their way into the basement, and into the locked room. They prepare to start digging, and the sheriff asks if McGuire is right, and there's no body down there. Burke doesn't understand his skepticism, and they start digging.

Liz tells Vicki that Carolyn will need help, and she's unable to give it to her. She asks Vicki if she heard something. She says she could hear them in the basement, and felt as if the house was being shaken to its foundation. Vicki says it's her imagination. She tells Vicki to beg Carolyn to come and see her. Vicki says she doesn't know where Carolyn is; she's not in the house.

The sheriff says that perhaps for once, McGuire is lying. Burke digs a little more and hits something. He says McGuire was lying—it's a trunk.

Our thoughts

John: I think I may have been right about the body in the basement, or lack thereof. But does that mean that Paul Stoddard is buried somewhere else, or that he isn't really dead? Since they didn't show us his face, it's almost like they want to reveal he's someone we've seen since, but that wouldn't make any sense because obviously Liz would recognize him if he turned up in town under another name.

Christine: You were right when you suggested back in Episode 5 that it was Elizabeth who was crying in the basement. I loved Jason's quick getaway. With all the shots being fired, I would have expected someone to have been shot.

John: I was really hoping that Jason was going to bump into Barnabas, but maybe that will happen tomorrow, since Barnabas has had the last couple of days off.

Christine: I was thinking the same thing. I am hoping he'll get to face the wrath of Barnabas at some point.

John: I love how the sheriff is so lazy, he wants to believe Jason McGuire rather than going to the trouble of digging a hole. And after they've dug less than a foot deep, he's ready to give up, of course by that point, the trunk had to have been exposed...

Christine: Speaking of lazy, Roger was all too willing to agree to stay with Liz instead of helping with the digging. It looks like Sheriff Patterson decided to shave his mustache off.

"I have to be free even if I have to go to prison." -Elizabeth Collins Stoddard