Viewers of the Dark Shadows television show joined the story of the Collins family of Collinsport, Maine in 1966, but it could just as easily have started in 1961 (when Roger Collins married Laura Murdoch and bought a number of paintings from local artist Sam Evans, while Laura’s boyfriend Burke Devlin was sent to prison for manslaughter due to Roger’s testimony) or 1948 (when Elizabeth Collins-Stoddard’s husband Paul vanished mysteriously, she fired all the servants except one and began a self-imposed exile which was to last more than 18 years). Viewers would eventually be introduced to the Collins family as it was in 1795, 1840 and 1897. My point is, the Dark Shadows story can begin at any time; it just depends on where one decides to pick up the tale. The new comic book series begins in 1971, shortly after the end of the television series.

“The year is 1971. The place, Collinsport, a remote fishing village on the Maine coastline. At its heart lies the ancestral Collinwood mansion, home to the wealthy Collins family, a dynasty living in the shadows of a troubled past. At the Old House on the estate lies the Collins family’s deepest secret - Barnabas Collins, a man two centuries out of his time, condemned by the witch Angelique to live for eternity as a vampire. As Barnabas struggles to keep his vampiric existence a secret, he faces an uncertain future living in fear of the supernatural forces that curse the Collins family across history.”

That introduction is from the inside front cover, not from the story itself. Just as each episode of the original series was introduced (at least initially) by an entry from Victoria Winters’ diary, so too does issue #1 begin with and entry from Julia Hoffman’s journal.

“My name is Dr. Julia Hoffman. Evening at Collinwood… the house on Widows’ Hill, and the Home of the Collins family. It is a house of secrets. A place where I first arrived as a stranger. Now I know so many of the Collins family’s secrets… the secrets they keep from one another… and secrets I keep from them.”

Writer Stuart Manning has the writing style down.

One thing the comics (even the Gold Key comics) have been better than the TV at doing over the years is depicting the setting. The Gold Key comics showed Collinwood overlooking the town of Collinsport, around a curve in the coastline (a point never mentioned in the show, but it makes sense); the Innovation comics showed an aerial view of the estate which depicted the exact location of Collinwood in relation to the Old House; the new Dynamite comic shows a view of Collinwood from the sea, sitting high atop Widow’s Hill in a way Seaview Terrace (where Collinwood exteriors were shot) never did.

As with any comic book series of this nature, of key importance is the depiction of the main cast, and artist Aaron Campbell’s drawing are all very recognizable. I imagine he’s working from photographic reference and his poses are a little stiff in places, but I suspect he’ll loosen up in time.

By the end of the TV series Barnabas had been freed of his curse, but in this version he’s a vampire again. This point is acknowledged in the script and a few speculations are put forth as to why this may be (plus I have a few of my own). Of course the real reason is that a cured Barnabas is boring; a vampiric Barnabas is much more interesting.

The resolution of the first issue’s cliffhanger is spoiled in the “next issue” blurb, but that’s more an editaorial fault than a story-telling one. I, for one, greatly enjoyed the first issue and find myself looking forward to many more. Those of you planning to go see the upcoming Johnny Depp movie version should start reading now to get yourselves up to speed.

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  • It is a house of secrets.

    I bet it's a house of mystery, too.

    I'll be following this thread, if not the actual comic.  I think I mentioned in a discussion about the Depp movie that I thought it was exactly right that the movie is set in 1972.  I think it's equally right that the new comic picks up in '71, where the show left off.  That just feels right to me.

  • I have the feeling if the early-90's prime time series had picked up in 1972 fans might have enjoyed it more.
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