I love vampires so it was inevitable that I would eventually watch the original TV series Dark Shadows, which aired from 1966 to 1971. Dark Shadows is a TV series about the Collins family in a small fishing town named after them from the eighteenth to twentieth century and includes parallel time lines (there is a lot of time travel). The family is constantly plagued with trouble of either a human or supernatural evil origin. There is not a TV show in existence that does not owe a supernatural or sci-fi storyline credit to Dark Shadows, which in turn owes a debt of gratitude to literature such as Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, Varney the Vampire, Wuthering Heights, Jane Eyre, The Count of Monte Cristo, The Crucible, Edgar Allan Poe’s and H.P. Lovecraft’s short stories, The Picture of Dorian Gray, Pygmalion, Rebecca, The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.
My journey to the original Dark Shadows was a bit circuitous. When I was a teenager, I watched the reboot of the series starring Ben Cross, but was unaware that it was a reboot then rewatched it in 2011. I watched the dreadful Tim Burton film on DVD. In 2011, I began to watch the original Dark Shadows starring Jonathan Frid, but abandoned the project after one episode. I tried again in 2012, but it was not until December 2013 that I began my journey in earnest, and I finished it on October 8, 2016.
It took me some time to adjust to the original Dark Shadows. First, the task is a bit intimidating. There are 1,255 episodes, and even at a half hour per episode, that is a big time commitment! Second, I have never watched a daytime soap opera before so I initially found it really aggravating how the majority of an episode is a recap of the pervious episode or how characters would respond to a question by repeating the last two words of what the other character said then add a question mark. In stuck under a rock news, daytime soap operas are really melodramatic.
Third, I started watching Dark Shadows on Netflix streaming and felt like I was missing something. The first episode didn’t feel like an introductory episode. I was unaware that I technically started the show in the middle of the series. Netflix and Hulu started streaming the series as if it began with the first episode that introduces Barnabas Collins, the family vampire, which actually occurs after six seasons. As a completist, I would have preferred to watch Dark Shadows sequentially, and would almost watch it again in the proper order, but life is short. If you want to watch it as it originally aired, then begin by watching the DVDs titled Dark Shadows: The Beginning: Collections 1 through 6 then watch Dark Shadows: The Collection 1 through 26, but note that the last season has the same cast, but is a parallel world with completely different characters, i.e. no vampires.
Fourth, the style of Dark Shadows is a little different from TV shows currently produced, which is not a negative, but takes some time to adjust to. The special effects are dated. The acting is more stylized than naturalistic (think Lawrence Olivier versus Meryl Streep). The fight scenes are anti-climatic. The actors are older, which is not a problem, but I could not believe that Frid was considered a sex symbol.
So what made me love Dark Shadows. Initially Dark Shadows was background tv. I watched it when I had something to do and did not have to give it my complete attention. Then I got really into the absurd storylines. As I progressed through the series, I gave Dark Shadows more of my undivided attention and would have mini marathons. I really miss the show after almost watching it daily for almost three years.
Dark Shadows had terrific anti-heroes. Initially Barnabas and Dr. Julia Hoffman, a doctor who blackmailed the vampire so she could make a scientific discovery and had a huge crush on him, were awful villains, but at some point, they began to be less selfish and became protectors of the Collins family against other supernatural forces. Angelique is also the best villain who somehow becomes sympathetic and an underdog when she meets others who are her supernatural equal or superior. She is just feisty and never accepts her place as a servant or a woman, which is impressive for a woman from the eighteenth century.
Professor Stokes is my consistently favorite character that was never evil. I would totally have brunch with him. He knows the deal, has no hidden agenda, but keeps enough of a distance that he never gets into mortal danger. His ancestor was less clever, but just as interesting.
I cannot stand David. He is a budding serial killer/rapist since episode 1, and he only improves slightly as the series unfolds. David was an unrepentant, chronic liar, but everyone loved him because he was a kid. To be fair, many of the people in Collinsport are kind of awful-they don’t respect each other’s boundaries, are nosy and have no self-preservation gene. How that family lasted for generations is beyond me! If something insanely supernatural happens, have a little less disbelief each subsequent time. Why do some characters believe in witches, but think that the existence of vampires is absurd!
Because there were multiple storylines spanning centuries and parallel time lines and many actors played different characters, while watching the show, if an episode referenced an earlier event or character, I would have to consult an online Dark Shadows wiki page to refresh my memory. Things could get confusing, and I can’t exactly recall if there were any storylines that were never fully resolved. This is another reason why I am tempted to rewatch Dark Shadows.
If you are looking to start a new show that will not finish anytime soon, enjoy soap operas and/or supernatural storylines, but are easy to follow, definitely check out the classic Dark Shadows. Even with all the amazing television series available today, I am glad that I spared a few years to watch Dark Shadows, flaws and all. I miss watching it.