Dark Shadows: The Beginning: Collection 6 (1967)

The final collection in the Dark Shadows beginning saga manages to wrap up the strange ongoing storyline of The Beginning: Collection 5 and even manages to wrap up some mysteries set forth at the very beginning of the series. But like all the prior collections, once one bizarre storyline is concluded something even more mysterious crops up to take its place. This final collection in the pre-Barnabas Collins time-line introduces quite a few new and interesting characters that not only spark new unease at Collinwood, but also usher in the introduction of the series's famed star.

The first half of this collection wraps up the drug out storyline which has been focusing on Laura Collins and her obsession with taking David away from Collinwood. By now the story has become so anti-climatic that the conclusion loses most of it's surprise and intrigue probably bringing more of a relief to the viewers than the actual characters! Following that conclusion is the introduction of two shady characters, Jason McGuire and Willie Loomis. Jason is an old acquaintance of Elizabeth Stoddard, and it doesn't take long to realize he isn't a welcome one. Once again it's the past that seems to haunt Collinwood as Jason uses a rather dark secret regarding the disappearance of her husband Paul, which has been haunting Elizabeth for eighteen years, in order to gain residence at Collinwood. This turns Elizabeth into a nervous wreck and causes the residents of Collinwood to question this supposed friendship with Jason.

It's quite clear Jason's return to Collinwood is one of pure blackmail, as he attempts to get something out of Elizabeth for his continual secrecy of something he helped her with eighteen years ago. But when his partner Willie Loomis arrives in town and barges his way into Collinwood as well, Jason's hold on Elizabeth Stoddard begins to slip as Willie's personality and behavior begins to stir up fear and anger between those in Collinwood. Willie's not as patient as Jason, he wants his share of whatever it is they're trying to get out of the Collins, and he wants it now! The numerous Collins family stories of precious jewelry and an interesting painting of a man named Barnabas Collins begins to distract Willie from bothering the living and turns him to consider bothering the dead, because as legend says some of the Collins ancestors were buried with all their jewelry. Willie's greed ends up leading him to disturb an evil that has been locked up for hundreds of years, an evil that will end up controlling his life.

Once the Laura Collins storyline was finally put to rest the series begins to pick up a little more. I liked that the grudge between Burke Devlin and the Collins family, mainly Roger Collins, is finally put to rest. The introduction of Jason begins to shed some light on the truth behind Elizabeth locking herself in Collinwood for 18 years, as well as the mystery behind the locked door in the basement. As with every collection there's always a couple characters that really annoy me, this time it's Elizabeth Stoddard. A woman who has seemingly been a rock for the past five collections all of a sudden becomes a nervous wreck and then expects everyone to believe she's telling the truth when she says everything is alright? For the most part the other characters seem to believe it or choose not to pursue it, ultimately I know it's another avenue of dragging out the plot but it become quite aggravating at times.

7/10