Dark Shadows Episode 879 - 11/6/69

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Aristede arrives at Collinwood. Trask asks what he's doing there, and Aristede asks if Trask can hear the chains. Trask says he'll be safe with him, and Aristede asks if he'll be safe like Evan, who's now dead—murdered.

Judith is coming downstairs when she hears Aristede mention that Evan has been murdered.

Aristede says he saw Blackwood kill Evan with his chain. Trask says they have to put his plan in operation, then he will be able to get away. Aristede says Blackwood is a monster from hell. Trask tells Aristede that he will hide him.

Judith calls Tim and says she must see him. She says she'll be at his hotel room in half an hour.

Judith arrives to see Tim. She says that Evan has been murdered. Tim asks by whom, and she says she doesn't know, but he appeared to have many enemies. She says Evan told her that Tim hates Trask, and agreed to help find out where Trask travels to. Tim says he goes to Fall River, and asks if she's sure she wants to hear his story. She says she does. He mentions a widow of a minister that he has been seeing. The woman knew that Minerva was dead, but not that he remarried Judith. He says the woman killed herself when she discovered the truth. Judith says that Trask will cause no more deaths. She enlists Tim's help in her plan.

Trask tells Aristede that Judith is gone, and suggests that he can hide behind the draperies in her room. He asks him to take her jewelry to make it look like a robbery after he deals with her. Trask gives Aristede a gun to kill her with. He adds that if he succeeds, Blackwood's ghost will disappear.

Trask hears Judith's coach approaching. He goes into the drawing room and picks up a book. When Judith arrives, he tells her there's a madman loose in the area, and Evan has been killed. She says she knows, and that she was in the village preparing a surprise for him. He says he has found peace with her, and will be content to grow old with her. He suggests that she go upstairs to rest. She tells him to finish his reading in the study, and she will finish her correspondence.

Trask leaves and she sneaks Tim into the drawing room. She gives him a map of the house and points out where her room is. She tells him to come to her room in 15 minutes, but first to go hide in Quentin's room. She leaves, and we see Blackwood outside, peering into the drawing room.

Judith returns to her room. Aristede remains behind the curtains with his gun drawn.

Blackwood enters the house and begins searching for Aristede.

Aristede comes out from behind the curtain and points the gun at Judith. She asks who he is. He says he has come to kill her, when he suddenly hears chains.

Blackwood opens the door and tells Aristede that he learns little. He swings the chains at him and says it's too late for excuses. He says justice must be done as he approaches him with the chains. Aristede leaps out the window, and Blackwood says he shall not escape.

Trask rushes in to see Blackwood push past him. He offers to call the police, and she asks him not to leave her. She says there was another man who jumped out the window. Trask asks if she could identify him. She says the man tried to kill her. She says the man was in the room when she returned, but he hadn't tried to rob her. She asks him for a brandy, and suggests that he have one as well. He reluctantly agrees.

After drinking his, he notices that she didn't drink hers. Trask feels strange, and asks her what's happening to him as he collapses. Tim comes into the room. She says Trask tried to have her killed, and tells him they will now go through with their plans.

Trask is unconscious in a chair. He wakes and finds himself in Quentin's room. He tries to leave, but the door is locked. Tim comes out and says he's there to bid him a final goodnight. Tim pulls a gun on him. Trask asks what's happening. Tim says that Trask and Evan made him kill Minerva. He unlocks the door and leaves the room. He locks Trask inside.

Judith calls the sheriff, saying that two men were in the house and her husband went after them.

Outside the door, Trask hears something. He searches the room for another key. He finds one, but when he unlocks the door he sees that it has been bricked up, except for a hole at eye level. Judith says goodbye, and tells him he can have all the time he wants to meditate. Tim places the last bricks in place as Trask screams.

Our thoughts

John: Wouldn't it be cool if we found out that wide-eyed Aristede was in fact the source of the wide-eyed skull that pops up so often in Collinwood?

Christine: There is an uncanny resemblance!

John: Why exactly would Tim confess to the murder of Minerva? Did he think Judith was looking for work experience when coming to see him about her plans?

Christine: I think he had to prove that he would be willing to do something equally despicable to satisfy his desire for revenge and ensure that it would be something he'd keep secret.

John: It sure seems like they're settling all family business in Collinwood, 1897... I had to laugh how quickly Tim bricked up the doorway with Trask inside (a fate deserved of all Trasks). If only Trask had thought to throw his body against the newly constructed wall before the mortar had dried. At least the riddle of whose skeleton was in Quentin's bedroom has been answered. I hope we'll get a scene of Judith explaining to Quentin when he returns home just why she had the room bricked shut...

Christine: They've got 40 rooms in that place. You'd think they could have found an unused room to seal him up in. I also would like to see how Quentin reacts to being walled out of his room, but wonder if Judith will divulge the real reason why she did it. I guess Tim Shaw is good for something after all. Not only is he now an accomplished detective, he can do bricklaying in record time! Overall, this was a satisfying episode, and it's not even Friday yet!

The power of the Unibrow is coming for Aristede!

Dark Shadows Episode 875 - 10/31/69

Amazon Prime members can stream today's episode free!

(For the duration of the Petofi/Quentin mind-swap, Count Petofi occupying Quentin as played by David Selby will be referred to as Petofi-Q, and Quentin in Petofi's body as played by Thayer David will be referred to as Count Quentin).

Beth tells Petofi-Q that there's nothing to worry about Count Petofi any more. She says the gypsies are about to catch him . Petofi-Q asks who told her that. She says they arrived at Collinwood, and he says he has to leave. She asks if he's afraid, and Petofi-Q denies that he is. He tells her to look at him but she refuses. He asks if something is making her feel different towards him. He says he'll see her back at Collinwood, and leaves. She realizes that he is Petofi in Quentin's body. In fear for her life, she realizes that she can go to Tim Shaw, since he has history with Petofi.

Beth comes to see Tim. She says she's in desperate need of his help. He asks her why. She says that Petofi and Quentin have changed bodies. She explains how Petofi planned to use Quentin's body to go to the future. She says she can prove it. She tells him to find Count Petofi and bring him to her. He agrees.

Barnabas finds Count Quentin in the Mill. He tells him that he shouldn't have risked coming there. Count Quentin says the answer to transferring minds must be there somewhere. They search unsuccessfully. Barnabas says that what they're looking for probably doesn't exist. He says Petofi may have done it with the power of his mind, and suggests that Count Quentin might be able to do it, too, particularly now that he has the power of the hand. Barnabas asks him about when their minds were switched. Barnabas tells him to go to the same place and put himself in a trance. Count Quentin warns him that if he's successful, Petofi will be back in his own body. Barnabas watches over him as he sits down to try.

Beth sleeps, and hears Petofi and Quentin's voices. Tim wakes her. She asks why he came back alone. He tells her to be calm, and returns with Petofi-Q. He assures her that she need not be frightened. She accuses Tim of betraying her. Petofi-Q says Tim was helping, and that he's going to help her, too.  Petofi-Q tells Tim that he'll take care of her.

Count Quentin sits in a chair in a trance.

Beth begs Tim not to let Petofi-Q take her. She cries and Petofi-Q tells her that she'll be alright. He thanks Tim for coming to get him. He suddenly feels dizzy, and Beth runs out. Petofi-Q, in a daze, chases after her.

Barnabas watches over Count Quentin.

Beth runs through the woods, pursued by Petofi-Q. He collapses to the ground. He then sits up, holding his head.

Beth is atop Widow's Hill.

Barnabas watches as Count Petofi stirs. He leaves the room and shuts the door. Petofi screams.

In the woods, Quentin screams. He hears his music. He smiles, realizing that he has defeated Petofi. He goes to find Barnabas.

Beth hears someone approaching. Quentin asks what she's doing. She tells him to stay away. He tries to convince her that his mind has been restored. She says he won't trick her again. She backs up to the edge of the cliff.

Our thoughts

John: Beth dumps body switching and time travel on Tim in one fell swoop. She should be thankful he didn't take her directly to the sanitarium.

Christine: When good-for-nothing Tim Shaw is your only hope, you certainly are in dire straits. She would have been better off at the sanitarium than being turned over to Petofi-Q.

John: Pretty weak writing for Count Quentin to be able to 'think' himself back into his own body. Good thing Barnabas was there to offer up that novel suggestion.

Christine: Isn't that what Richard Collier did to travel back in time? It makes sense that if Petofi could do the mind swap with the power of the Hand, then Quentin could do it too. It's not like he's a stranger to performing rituals.

John: Good to know that Quentin's music plays in his head... I have to say, if only for the confusion in writing the episode recaps, I'm glad the mind-switch storyline has come to an end. But not everything is resolved, and I am interested to see if Beth will be the latest to go over the cliff. That would be one way we might see her once we return to 1969, as a ghost under different circumstances...

Christine: Unfortunately, Petofi's been sent back to his own body with the power restored to his hand, and I imagine those fingers will be twitching their way towards Beth, Quentin, and Barnabas. I wonder if this means the wedding between Angelique and Quentin will be back on, especially if Beth takes a tumble over the cliff.

Dark Shadows Episode 851 - 9/29/69

Amazon Prime members can stream today's episode free!

Quentin arrives at the train station, but the New York train has already left, and Amanda is nowhere to be found.

Tate comes to as Petofi is knocking at his door. He lets him in, and Petofi asks if Quentin got the portrait. He asks where it is. He tells him he will punish him for stealing it, but right now he needs to know if he found it. Tate uncovers it.

 Petofi tells him it's a good thing it's still in good condition. He tells Tate that he will not let him interfere with his plans for Quentin. Tate says Quentin interfered with his plans. He says he asked Amanda to marry him, but she was running off with Quentin. Petofi asks what he planned to do with the portrait. Petofi tells him that he will be keeping the portrait. Petofi asks if it's the first time Tate deceived him, and he says it was. Petofi says he has the portrait, Quentin has Amanda, and Tate has his painting of Amanda. Petofi tells Tate that he too has an ideal woman. He asks Tate to paint her for him. A quick sketch of a dark haired woman with a cat's eyes. Tate reluctantly does a quick sketch.

Petofi urges him to add a final stroke to finish it. Petofi says she's so beautiful that he can't believe she isn't in the room with them. Tate looks around the room.

Petofi says he almost forgave him for stealing the portrait, but Tate was arrogant. He grabs Tate's hand, and then leaves.

Tate sits down and tries to start a new sketch, but he is unable.

Tim arrives at Collinwood and shows Quentin letters from Amanda that he says implies she found a new man. Tim shows him a brooch she left him. Quentin asks Tim for all the information he has on Amanda. Tim says he won't help him, because his only future with Quentin is death. Quentin grabs him and threatens to kill him. Tim says they met in New York. Quentin asks where, and Tim says she'll be hard to find. Quentin throws him out the front door.

From the top of the stairs, Angelique asks why he was so harsh with him. Quentin explains he was interfering with his plans. She asks about his plans, and he says she wouldn't be interested. She says she's very interested, particularly in his wedding plans. He says he has none. She tells him to choose the date. He tells her they can do that when they return from Boston. She asks again for a wedding date. He goes upstairs to pack, and Petofi arrives at Collinwood. He asks if Quentin has left yet. She asks if he knew he was going away. Petofi says it's hard to believe someone would choose another woman over her. He tells her they have a common cause at last.

Quentin comes downstairs with a small bag to find Petofi waiting. He says he came when he heard that Quentin was leaving with Amanda. Quentin says he can't stop him, and Petofi explains that he didn't come to stop him and doesn't need to be near him to get what he needs from him.

Tim picks up a note from Amanda when Petofi comes to see him. He tells Tim that he's sorry Amanda chose Quentin over him. he asks if the letter is from Amanda, and Tim says it is. Petofi asks Tim if he would like him to put the situation right. Tim says yes. Petofi tells Tim that he had Tate draw a picture for him, but the person didn't appear. Tim says he didn't imagine it. Petofi says he saw what he wanted to see, the way a hungry man sees food when it isn't there. He assures Tim there are still ways they can be of use to one another. He leaves, Tim not realizing that he has taken Amanda's brooch.

Quentin is at the train station when Angelique appears. She points out that he's on the New York platform, despite having told her he was going to Boston. She says she knows he's going to find Amanda. He says he tried to care for her, but he loves Amanda. She tells him not to get on the train, and he says she can kill him if she wants. She tells him that she wouldn't harm him if he gets on the train, but Amanda would not be as fortunate. She pulls out a doll and Amanda's brooch, suggesting that she'll die horribly and painfully, if Quentin gets on the train.

Our thoughts

John: I love how Petofi toys with Tate. And while I love that the sketch he did in a few seconds was a near-finished portrait, I was disappointed that she didn't appear.

Christine: It is a mystery how Tate's gift of creation works, though I am surprised that Petofi wasn't a little more determined to test whether or not what Tim Shaw told him was true before removing the power to create from Tate. It seems Tate has been sketching more women. I wonder if a bevy of beautiful new actresses are about to arrive in Collinsport, courtesy of his charcoal pencil.

John: I still think the only thing missing from the new series within a series, "Everyone Loves Amanda!" is the presence of Barnabas. Somebody needs to get that stake removed, STAT!

Christine: I don't expect Barnabas to jump on the Amanda bandwagon while he's got the reincarnation of his beloved Josette around. I wonder how long it will take Julia to realize she can restore her boyfriend by de-staking him.

John: All this train talk has got me wondering. Before last Friday, have we been back to the train station since Vicky's arrival in Collinsport in the premiere episode, all those years ago?

Christine: The last time we were at the train station was when Edward arrived in Collinsport with Rachel Drummond in Episode 705. After another fun scuffle with Quentin over Amanda, I am hoping all three lovestruck guys will be able to get together for one big, nasty brawl before Angelique has a chance to dispose of her.

Episode 705

Down for the Count:
Barnabas was staked in his coffin 6 episodes ago.