Customer Reviews

Dark Shadows DVD Collection 7

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(6)
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I love Dark Shadows, and Collection 7 contains some of my favorite episodes from the 5 year series. Ever since it was announced that the series was coming out on DVD, I had been looking forward to this set very much.

Victoria Winters returns from her inexplicable journey into the year 1795, and from the minute she re-appears, very strange events begin to occur at Collinwood. Victoria unexplainably purchases a portrait of the evil Angelique. A man with a striking resemblence to Peter Bradford enters her life suddenly. Roger begins to think he's Joshua Collins, then disappears in the middle of the night, only to return later, horrifying his family with announcement of a new wife, Cassandra (Angelique with a black wig).

Other memorable highlights from Collection 7 include:

-- Barnabas' reaction to the portrait of Angelique and what happens when he tries to destoy it.
-- Cassandra/Angelique's dream curse which terrifies a whole string of people, most notably Maggie Evans.
-- Dr. Eric Lang exposing Barnabas to daylight for the first time in 200 years.
-- The introduction of Julia Hoffman's radical haircut, which Barnabas and Victoria both comment on.
-- And most important for John Karlen fans -- the return of Willie Loomis after a long absence!

There's some great episodes here, and some outstanding performances, especially from Jonathan Frid and Louis Edmonds. Sink your teeth in and enjoy!

The 1795 Flashback wraps up in Collection 7 (VHS Volumes 45-52). In 1795, Nathan Forbes discovers Barnbas Collins' secret and plans to kill him, however Barnabas strangles him before he does. Joshua Collins then chains him up in his coffin, thinking he will never be released. Victoria Winters is hung and she returns to the present. In 1968, Barnabas fears that she has learned his secret and he bites her. After Victoria agrees to go away with Barnabas, they are involved in a car accident that leaves them both hospitalized. Barnabas is treated by the mysterious Dr. Eric Lang, who allows him to see sunlight for the first time in almost 200 years. Lang offers to permanetly cure Barnabas through a bizarre experiment where he will transfer his life force into another body. Roger Collins returns to Collinwood after some time away and introduces his new wife Cassandra Collins, whom Barnabas and Victoria realize is actually Angelique, the witch from 1795. In a dream Cassandra vows to return the curse to Barnabas. She eventually kills Dr. Lang, but the experiment is performed and the man-made creature Adam comes to life.

Overall I thought these episodes were good, but not as good as 1795. They just don't seem "scary" enough. But still good nonetheless.

Bonuses include interviews with Nancy Barrett, Kathryn Leigh Scott, director Lela Swift, and photographer Ben Martin.

Victoria Winters returns from the past to be haunted by vague memories of the horrors sustained by the Collins family. This set introduces a "mad scientist" like doctor who promises to help Barnabus where Julia Hoffman failed, but does he also have his own evil hidden agenda?

The variation in story line provided by this set breathes a breath of freshness into the series. It is a well needed change that fans of the show will enjoy.

Grew up with Dark Shadows. Enjoy watching it now with my daughter. This one keeps you clued to the t.v.

Victoria Winters makes the transition back to modern day from 1795. Several new characters are introduced including Dr. Eric Lang and his experiment - a Frankenstein like creature that becomes spiritually connected to Barnabas; and Professor Stokes who is the descendant of Ben Stokes, who was Barnabas' loyal servant in 1795. Several old characters are reintroduced into the program including Willie and Angelique. Special effects are par for the period of production, but collection seven is immensely entertaining and I am looking forward to collection eight.

Victoria Winters finally returns to the 20th century and the repercussions of the past come into play. A great series of episodes including the beginning of the famous dream curse.

DARK SHADOWS is the cult classic soap opera, famous for the 175-year-old vampire Barnabas Collins, a sympathetic villain who becomes a dark hero. A major step in this transformation is the 1795 storyline, which presents a human Barnabas cursed by the witch Angelique. The curse now reaches the pinnacle of its cruelty. It's driven Barnabas's true love Josette to suicide; now it does the same for Barnabas's mother Naomi. Not only does Barnabas lose his mother, he knows she died because she knew what he was.

In #460, there's an attempt to resolve the discrepancies between what happened in 1795 and what we expected -- discrepancies resulting from Anthony George leaving the show. Barnabas's father Joshua resolves to expunge the horrors that have befallen the Collins family from all written histories. Alas, that doesn't cover the present-day Barnabas's accounts of his past, particularly his speech to Julia Hoffman in #345 (set 4).

Joshua promises to end Angelique's curse by shooting Barnabas with a silver bullet during the day. But Joshua breaks that promise, IMHO because of his arrogance and egotism; he can't stand to have his own legacy destroyed, regardless of where that leave Barnabas -- which is trapped in his coffin until Willie Loomis accidentally releases him 175 years later and 250 episodes earlier. After so much suffering, it's understandable that present-day Barnabas is angry, vengeful, and cruel.

BTW, it might be interesting to watch the 1795 episodes before watching DS from the beginning, so you can judge present-day Barnabas's actions in light of what he's suffered.

Vctoria Winters, who took us to the past, now returns us to the present when she's hanged for witchcraft and the gallows serves as a time machine. At the big moment, she hears the voice of her lover, Peter Bradford, promising he'll find her. We subsequently meet Jeff Clark, a dead ringer for Bradford, who can't remember his past.

We return to the exact time and place we left in episode #365 (set 4) -- the seance in Collinwood's drawing room -- although the tableau in #461 doesn't quite match. When replaying #365 to verify this, I was reminded that the ghost of Sarah -- Barnabas's little sister who prompted the seance -- swore never to appear to anyone again. This helps me accept her being completely dropped from the story when we return to the present.

But I can't accept a logical error that ignores the ramifications of time travel. Barnabas seems to still have his ORIGINAL memories of the ORIGINAL past. Now that Vicki's been back there, his memories should have changed to include her.

BTW, Julia's hairdo changes, in #462, to the one seen throughout the rest of the series.

Barnabas gets a shock when Vicki brings home a portrait of Angelique. I half wish that Vicki's seeing the portrait and being compelled to buy it had happened onscreen, but then we wouldn't have shared Barnabas's shock when the portrait is revealed.

Angelique then shows up in the flesh, as the brunette named Cassandra, who Roger Collins has impulsively married. The timing couldn't be worse for Barnabas, because he's escaped the curse with the help of Dr. Eric Lang. Lang encounters Barnabas when Barnabas is taken to the hospital after being involved in a car accident -- an interesting modern-day twist on the vampire scenario. Lang applies a medical treatment that works much better that Dr. Hoffman's did earlier. This is a DS milestone, but it seems anticlimactic for Lang to cure Barnabas in one night after the lengthy failed treatment with Dr. Hoffman.

Angelique/Cassandra strikes back with the "dream curse," which I see as a metaphor for a real-life problem. The curse involves a nightmare that plagues someone, driving the person toward insanity until he/she tells the nightmare to someone else, who was then plagued by it until he/she tells it to someone else, and so on, until the nightmare reaches its final victim, Barnabas. While this is an inefficient way to curse someone, it may strike a responsive chord in some viewers. Have you ever had someone unload a guilty secret or personal problem on you that you really didn't want to hear about? Have you ever been guilty of doing this inappropriately because you just had to unload, regardless of the consequences?

This set introduces Professor T. Eliot Stokes, descendent of 1795's Ben Stokes. This is one of many examples of Thayer David's versatility. Ben was uneducated and working-class; the professor is erudite and academic. Both characters contrast sharply with the evil Matthew Morgan and other villains he will play in future storylines.

A more significant character introduced in this set is Adam, the modern-day Frankenstein's monster who begins the next major storyline. Adam's creator is Dr. Lang -- whose assistant is the aforementioned Jeff Clark -- who convinces Barnabas to provide the necessary "life force." The idea is for Barnabas to permanently escape the curse by moving into Adam's body. (On top of Cassandra's dream curse, Dr. Lang's medical cure may be temporary.)

But Lang dies of a heart attack, Barnabas and Adam both live, and there's a mysterious link between them. Episode #491 is noteworthy for Robert Rodan's portrayal of the "newborn" Adam, who behaves exactly like an angry, frightened child.

Two technical bloopers: In #486, Lang is recording a message on tape -- regarding the aforementioned Barnabas/Adam link -- but the tape isn't running. In #477 Cassandra is working magic with a cigarette lighter that goes out and has to be relit.

Bonus interviews: Kathryn Leigh Scott and Ben Martin (Time magazine senior photographer) each discuss Scott's publishing company, Pomegranate Press. Director Lela Swift tells the apocryphal story of Louis Edmonds reshooting a scene with no pants on. Nancy Barrett analyzes Carolyn

In the next set, the story of Adam continues and so does the dream curse.

When we last left Dark Shadows DVD Collection 6:

Still in 1795, we see how Sarah died and how tormented Barnabas is to be a vampire among the living dead. He begs Ben to kill him with a stake. He longs to be in peace. Angelique stops Ben. Barnabas has bitten Josette once. Angelique still so jealous of Barnabas' love for Josette instead of her, coerces Josette to Widow's Hill and shows her what her future will be. Barnabas arrives just in time, but now Josette warns Barnabas to stay away from her. She falls to her death.
Victoria Winters is found guilty of being a witch, even though Ben told the truth that Angelique is the witch. Angelique makes a surprise appearance in court looking normal. Barnabas eludes Reverend Trask and makes him sign a confession that Victoria is innocent and is not a witch. He then traps Trask in a wall, bounds his hands, and brick by brick entombs him in the wall forever...buried alive.
Barnabas' father, Joshua, knows his son is a vampire and undead. He invites Barnabas to stay in the Collinwood tower for his own safety. Barnabas had told him Angelique is alive. Trying to help Barnabas with the curse that is on him, Joshua and Natalie have a seance. They have summoned Bathia Mapes. Angelique's power was too great for Bathia.
Victoria will be hung tomorrow, however, Peter has helped her escape jail, but she has been shot.

And now the gothic story of DARK SHADOWS continues:

Disc One: March 20 -- April 2, 1968 (Episodes 453-462)
These episodes include Roger Davis, Alexandra Moltke, Joel Crothers, David Henesy, Thayer David, Craig Slocum, Joan Bennett, Nancy Barrett, Louis Edmonds, Rebecca Shaw, Howard Honig, James Shannon, Paul Craffey, Timothy Gordon, Scott Upright, Margo Head, Grayson Hall, Timothy Gordon, voice of Addison Powell.

All episodes in color.

The end of this disc has an interview with Nancy Barrett.
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Disc Two: April 3 -- April 16, 1968 (Episodes 463-472)
Also in these episodes: Jerry Lacy, Peter Murphy, Katharine Balfour, Addison Powell, Clarice Blackburn.

The day episode #464 was broadcast on April 4, 1968, Clergyman Martin Luther King was assassinated in Memphis, Tennessee.

Episode #466: Barnabas ends up in Collinsport Hospital.

All episodes in color.

The end of this disc has an interview with Kathryn Leigh Scott.
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Disc Three: April 17 -- April 30, 1968 (Episodes 473-482)
Also in these episodes: Lara Parker, Kathryn Leigh Scott.

Episode #473: Roger has a shocking surprise and makes an announcement. What an entrance!

As of Episode #474, Jonathan Frid has now played "Barnabas Collins" for one full year. He has said it took him a year to fully understand his complexed character.

All episodes in color.

The end of this disc has an interview with Lela Swift.
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Disc Four: May 1 -- May 14, 1968 (Episodes 483-492)
Also in these episodes: John Karlen, Robert Rodan.
Episode #483: The return of Willie Loomis.
All episodes in color.
The end of this disc has an interview with Photographer, Ben Martin.
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Produced by Robert Costello
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Brought to you by MPI Home Video / MPI Media Group

4 discs total. 10 episodes per disc. Total: 40 episodes.
It may take you around 3 hours, 45 mins to watch each disc.

Every episode is uncut and unedited as broadcast. If any episode was pre-empted, you will see everything you were suppose to see.

Every episode will play right into the next episode. No need to look it up.

The next set to buy is: Dark Shadows DVD Collection 8

Dark Shadows: The Complete Original Series Set will be available April 10, 2012.

Update: DARK SHADOWS will be released in movie theaters May 11, 2012.
It will be based upon the ABC Network original Dark Shadows tv serial (1966-71).

Continuation of a Gothic series that I loved when it was first broadcast. Great plot twists and strange happenings! Will keep you on the edge of your seat and always wanting to come back for more!

I HAVE SEEN THE ORIGINAL IN THE 60'S AND ALSO BOUGHT ALL OF THE VHS TAPES. NOW I AM UPGRADING TO DVD AND CAN NOT WAIT TO SEE THE DIFFERENCE AND OR QUALITY OF THIS ON DVD.