Everything in this one is designed to induce a sense of claustrophobia.
Dangerously unstable ruffian Willie Loomis has presented himself at the great house of Collinwood as the guest of seagoing con man Jason McGuire. In the opening section, Willie and Jason go into the drawing room. Willie closes the doors of the drawing room, a gesture that had been reserved to reclusive matriarch Liz for the first 32 weeks of the show, and in the five weeks of Liz’ absence was something well-meaning governess Vicki occasionally did when she was effectively in charge of the house. On Monday, dashing action hero Burke Devlin briefly seized control of Collinwood, and he began his fifteen-minute reign by closing the drawing room doors. Regular viewers who see Willie casually assuming this right within minutes of bluffing his way into the house will therefore shudder at the suggestion that he is taking charge of the place.
Willie threatens to wreck Jason’s evil schemes unless he can stay in Collinwood. James Hall has too much trouble with his lines for Willie to be really effective in this scene, but Dennis Patrick has enough tricks up his sleeve that Jason holds our attention throughout.
Jason tries to ease Willie’s way in by lying to housekeeper Mrs Johnson, claiming that Liz wanted her to make up a room for Willie. Hall is still shaky with the dialogue, introducing himself to Mrs Johnson (as he introduced himself to flighty heiress Carolyn yesterday) as “Willie Lomez.”
Later, Mrs Johnson meets Liz on the stairs. She tells her what Jason said, and asks Liz what she wants. This conversation is upsetting to Liz, and taking place between the two women as they try to maneuver around each other in the confined space of the staircase it adds to the claustrophobic feeling.
In the drawing room, Liz and Jason discuss Willie. For the seventh time, Jason makes a demand, Liz resists it, he threatens to expose her terrible secret, and she capitulates. They’d added some variations to this pattern in recent days, but this one is indistinguishable from iterations one, two, and three. The repetition is not only tedious, but confining.
Vicki runs into Willie in the study. Hall and Alexandra Moltke Isles are both on top of their form in this scene, and the result is deeply disturbing. Willie presses into her personal space, forcing her to reach under his arm for a book she needs. She tries to leave, and he repeatedly blocks her exit. She objects, and he traps her between two pieces of furniture. She objects more loudly, and he leans deeper into her space. If they had cut away at this moment, we would have assumed that Willie raped Vicki.
Liz hears what is happening and comes into the study. She tells Willie to go. Jason enters, and she tells him to take Willie away. Jason questions Vicki, who agrees that Willie didn’t touch her, that they talked to each other, and that she supposes he didn’t really do anything. Vicki’s words come as a shock, but it is a shock of recognition- we could see what Willie did, and we know how hard it would be to put a complaint about his behavior into words while you were standing right there being questioned. Since Vicki does not know what Jason and Willie are trying to do or what Liz is facing, it is easy to imagine her deciding to take a pass on fighting this particular battle.
As Vicki backs down, Liz’ resolution to stand up to Jason and Willie crumbles. When the two men have left the room, Vicki asks Liz who they are and why they are staying at Collinwood. Liz says that they are her friends, and that she invited them. At Vicki’s disbelieving reaction, she repeats this statement and hastens away, leaving Vicki alone in the study.
Liz’ resolution to throw Willie and Jason out when she sees what Willie is doing thrills us, both because we care about Vicki and because it promises the end of this jail cell of a storyline. We know that Jason’s threats are hollow, because on Monday we heard him on the telephone telling Willie that if Liz called the police they would have to flee right away. All she has to do is stand her ground, and we will all be free to go. But she doesn’t know that. So the heartbreaking conclusion comes to us as all too familiar a reality.
Acilius on Dark Shadows 