Customer Reviews

Dark Shadows DVD Collection 5

5 star:		(17)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

When the now-classic daytime soap opera DARK SHADOWS introduced the 175-year-old vampire Barnabas Collins (Shakespearean actor Jonathan Frid), the plan was to tell a closed-ended story, set entirely in the present day. The events of 1795 that made Barnabas a vampire and took away his true love Josette were to serve only as a back story. But Barnabas's popularity changed the plan. He was spared the hammer-and-stake treatment, viewers were transported to 1795, and that back story became the main plot.

This entire installment is set in 1795, where the witch Angelique (Lara Parker) is determined to steal Barnabas from Josette, and has no compunction about destroying the entire Collins family to do so. Eventually, their confrontation reaches a crises in which Angelique turns Barnabas into the vampire we met way back in episode #210 (set 1).

To be fair to Angelique, you could argue that Barnabas had his fun with her, then dumped for the high-class woman. But you could counter-argue that Angelique is (and so perhaps always was) motivated at least partly by status-consciousness. In #373, she's trying on Josette's hat. In #374, she's using (then zapping) Josette's rose water. In #410, she's arguing with Joshua Collins (Barnabas's father) over her legal and financial rights as Barnabas's widow, even as she's rushing to prevent Barnabas returning as a vampire.

To the extent that Angelique is motivated by love, it's ironic that she understands one significant truth while missing the bigger truth. She understands that hexing Barnabas to make him love her would gain her nothing, because his love would be synthetic. The bigger truth she misses is that you can't force anyone to love you by any type of coercion or manipulation.

Note that events are inconsistent with the accounts we've gotten from the present-day Barnabas, particularly in #345 (set 4). I'm told this is because Anthony George left the show, forcing a reworking of the storyline.

AG's departure also also meant recasting the ghost of Jeremiah Collins -- body by Timothy Gordon, voice by Addison Powell. This leads me to say that I'm not happy with Jeremiah's ghost being dropped from the story with no resolution. (He'll turn up again briefly in the 1897 storyline to give Kitty Soames a good scare.)

A secondary storyline involves Victoria Winters, the vehicle for the trip back to 1795. In #365 (set 4), Vicki participated in a seance that sent her back in time, and the viewers followed her. Vicki's mysterious arrival and seeming ability to predict the future convince several members of the 1795 Collins family that she's a witch -- responsible for all of Angelique's machinations. Enter Reverend Trask (Jerry Lacy), a self-ordained, fanatical witch hunter from Salem. Eventually, Trask gets Vicki arrested -- with Angelique's clandestine assistance.

Vicki's response to Trask is foolish, but understandable -- up to a point. In #385, Vicki SHOULD play along and pretend to be exorcised. However, someone from the present might not realize they take this witchcraft stuff SERIOUSLY in 1795. When Trask ties Vicki to the tree, though, I would think she should see that he means business and perhaps say, "If I stay tied to this tree all night and it DOESN'T die, that proves I'm innocent, right?"

The irony is that Trask is right about a witch at Collinwood, but misses the real witch because, in #387, Angelique is shrewd enough to play the game Vicki wouldn't play.

Trask is probably offensive to a lot of Christians and being one myself, I understand, because he's the sort of character that gives Christians a bad name. However, we're intended to see Trask as a poor excuse for a Christian. Forbes vehemently denounces Trask in #385. In fact, Trask illustrates a point of Christian morality. He fails because of a flaw in his character that a true man of God dare not indulge -- egotism. He comes very close to catching Angelique, but she escapes because she licks his boots. Later, when his exorcism rite succeeds so perfectly, it never occurs to him that anybody but himself was responsible.

This leads me to mention the bonus interview with Jerry Lacy on Disk 3, in which Lacy opines that the 1795 Trask was the "purest" of the three Trasks he played in the course of DS -- the one driven by idealism rather than any overtly criminal motive.

Another interesting bonus interview is the one with composer Robert Cobert on Disk 4, in which Cobert talks about how he presented the DS theme to series creator Dan Curtis by whistling it for him.

In the other two bonus interviews, Jonathan Frid describes how he got the part of Barnabas by more or less dumb luck, and Kathryn Leigh Scott mentions her reservations about "going supernatural."

Other points of interest:

Victoria's reaction Ben in #372 probably puzzled 1967 viewers who hadn't seen the pre-Barnabas episodes, and so didn't know who Matthew was. Fortunately, we have those episodes (1) along with the synopsis in set 1.

I liked Naomi's statement to Abigail in #382 that "If the devil has blinded me, I consider it curious that he lets you in on all his plans."

#386 contains both a reference to the Revolutionary War and Barnabas's "Innocent until proven innocent" blooper.

In #374, Josette's portrait shouldn't be in Josette's room. It doesn't officially arrive until #402.

#400 includes the technical blooper in which Angelique's house of cards burns up too soon and she's left shouting "Burn! Burn!" over a pile of ashes. It's obvious if you're looking for it, but maybe not if you're wrapped up in the story, especially if you don't know what was supposed to happen.

The word "vampire" is used for the first time in #410.

In the next installment, we'll see that becoming a vampire was only the beginning of that curse ...

(1) At the time of this writing, only on VHS, but I understand they'll be released on DVD.

I think I've seen just about every episode of Dark Shadows when they showed it on the Sci-fi Channel, and this particular bunch is my favorite. The characters seem so completely at home in the year 1795; Almost moreso than they do in the present day. Being set in the past is the perfect compliment to the whole gothic atmosphere of the series. These episodes also set up the basis of the love / hate relationship between Barnabus and Angelique, as well as featuring the character we all love to hate, Reverand Trask. You really need to see these episodes to completely understand the motivation of Barnabus in all the others episodes. The whole series is as much about Barnabus as it is about anything or anyone else, and this is where his story begins.

Another neat thing is the accuracy of the historic setting. The man of the house is the master - no one dare cross him. This takes the viewer very convincingly into a different era. And the witch hunt concerning Victoria Winters is emotionally compelling as well. Even such details as spelling the word jail as "gaol", as it is spelled in Britain and would have been spelled in Maine in 1795, is correctly portrayed.

All in all, Dark Shadows always managed to take me completely away from my own life, depositing me within its plot and setting, surrounding me with its characters, and providing a fantastic escape from reality.

The much-anticipated 1795 Flashback begins in DS DVD Collection 5 (VHS Volumes 29-36). In these episodes, Victoria Winters has trouble accepting the fact that she has travelled over 200 years into the past. Barnabas Collins' fiance, Josette duPres arrives, and the evil witch Angelique Bouchard vows to destroy their romance. She enslaves family servant Ben Stokes to assist her. Eventually she ruins the plans and sets a plague on the entire family, resulting in deaths. Abagail Collins and Natalie duPres begin to suspect Victoria of being the witch and the cause of all the trouble at Collinwood. The fanatical witch-hunter Reverend Trask arrives on a quest to find and destroy the witch. After discovering that Angelique is really the witch, Barnabas shoots her, however she places a vampire curse on Barnabas.

Bonuses include interviews with Jonathan Frid (Barnabas Collins), Kathryn Leigh Scott (Josette duPres), Jerry Lacy (Reverend Trask), and music composer Robert Cobert.

The 1795 Flashback continues in the next collection.

In Collection five of the widely acclaimed MPI DVD set of the ever popular Dark Shadows, we find that Victoria Winters, governess of young David Collins has been thrust back into the year 1795 during a seance in present day Collinwood. As she tries to settle into the role of the new governess to young Sarah Collins, now very much alive, she is in fear that she will never get back to her present day in 1967. Meanwhile, Josette DuPres, fiance of Barnabas Colins has arrived with her aunt, father and maid servant, Angelique, who unbeknownst to Josette and Barnabas is plotting to get Barnabas for herself through witchcraft. Her wicked spells soon draw the suspicion of spinster Aunt Abigail Collins and Natalie Dupres to suspect that Victoria is the witch! As the family moves to the newly built Collinwood manor, Sarah falls sick and dies and the evil zealot Reverend Trask is summoned to bring Victoria to justice. Finding out who the real witch is, Barnabas shoots Angelique, who thinking she is dying, summons a vampire bat to bite Barnabas and infect him with the vampiric curse! This volume contains some of the most compelling episodes of the series. Although the storylines were loosely based on such classics as Jane Eyre and Dracula, this show far transcended even the classics. Although sometimes rife with flubs and technical difficulties during filming, these classic episodes are full of hours of enjoyable gothic suspense! Fully worth the price!

although all the dark shadows dvd collections so far are great,(a little concearn over collection 4 because of many kinescope recordings),but #5 has to be the best so far.set in 1795,the actors play their lines better,the plots are more suspensefull,and the period costumes are great.they are all a must if you are a true dark shadows fan,but don't miss this one,(collection #5).

The entirety of Dark Shadows Collection 5 takes place in 1795, as we see first hand all the events and details leading up to the vampiric curse being placed on poor Barnabas Collins. And though Barnabas isn't yet the villainous presence we all know and love in these 40 episodes, one needn't worry about a shortage of villainy in this set: the cunning, manipulative witch Angelique and the creepy Reverend Trask do a more than adequate job providing the scares and jolts, and keeping things interesting.

After watching five full sets of these episodes, the series remains compelling and somewhat addictive. Perhaps Dark Shadows never "jumped the shark" and remained strong to the end. In any event, I look forward to shortly reporting on Collection 6!

1795 really begins to heat up! In this DVD set, it is revealed to the viewers how the curse of the vampire was placed on Barnabas Collins, which means this is one set no fan of the show should be without!
There are other things going on as well, lots of other things. From the schemes of the which Angelique, to the triangle of Barnabas, Josette, and Jeremiah, to the arrival of the Reverend Trask to exorcise the witch from Collinwood, and to of course the origins of Barnabas Collins' vampire curse, there is a whole lot of goings-on!
I couldn't recommend this more highly, its pure entertainment. I've loved the show my whole life (even though it ended 12 years before I was born!). If you love Dark Shadows or gothic stories in general, you must get this DVD set, and get the other four sets as well.

If your a Dark Shadows fan or know one then this whole series is worth the expense. My wife is a huge fan and I have been buying her one collection each Christmas. She has enjoyed these so much. I must admit that when I was younger we only had 4 TV stations to view. Usually Dark Shadows was on the station that we couldn't receive well. This has been great fun for me to view also. If you want to relive a great television experience or create a new one this is the series to buy.

Watching the origin of Barnabas was eerie and suspenseful, and I never felt more sorry for Barnabas as in the second to last episode of this set. Some may find that the first ten episodes are somewhat listless, with Angelique casting one spell after the other before finally deciding what to do. That's why I rated five stars instead of six.

An added note for non-US buyers: Although not stated, this set of DVDs and all the previous in the collection are code free (region code 0), meaning you can watch them on any dvd player in the world. Bravo to MPI Home Video for doing this!

Oooooh, this has been the best of the series so far, I am just loving the 1795 setting and storyline. For those who haven't seen this yet, or don't recall much of it from the late 60's, then consider yourself warned - spoilers may be ahoy.

The action continues in 1795 as Victoria Winters is trapped in the past. Angelique will stop at nothing to win Barnabas from Josette and weaves a love spell between her and Jeremiah Collins. The betwitched pair elope, leading up to all kinds of drama - a duel, a death, a ghostly reappearance, an unexpected wedding and oh, so much more. Aunt Abigail is determined to find the witch in the household and brings in the frothing at the mouth Reverend Trask (oh, he's a mean 'un), and with plenty of help from the witchy Angelique, Victoria is finally trapped and taken to gaol to stand trial for witchcraft. Angelique eventually wins her prize, but was the price worth it in the end? And yes, we finally see how Barnabas became a vampire.

I loved this one, and the spookiness that DS is famous for really started to come out with this one. Jeremiah's ghost creeping out Josette was great, but when the entire old house seemed to come together to squick out the evil Angelique was just pure OTT good fun. I loved the character of Millicent as played by the present day Carolyn Stoddard (giggles and all, she was hilarious to watch), and Angelique is most definitely the woman you love to hate as she casts her evil spells here there and everywhere. The only thing that really had me rolling my eyes in disbelief was Victoria always reacting to a new character with the proverbial "you look so much like someone I once knew" comment and no one, but no one thought it odd after five or six or seven times.

These DVD's are packaged in sets of four DVD's with ten episodes on each. There are bonus interviews with cast members at the end of each DVD, some a bit boring but you will find some gems among them.