371

Angelique becomes worried that Barnabas may die and releases him from her spell; however, she is still determined to keep him from marrying Josette.
== Synopsis ==
Teaser
: Time in the great house on the Collinwood estate is held in suspension. Before it can go forward again, we must await the outcome of one person's perilous journey into the past, back to the year 1795. There, in the old Collins mansion, a strange, disenchanted, and evil young girl has planned the destruction of Barnabas Collins.
Angelique Bouchard, her love for Barnabas having been rejected, casts a choking spell on him by tying a handkerchief around a toy soldier's neck. As Barnabas and Josette du Prés embrace in the parlor, he starts to feel the effect of Angelique's spell. Unable to breathe, he collapses into a chair while Josette helplessly watches. The room begins to darken around Barnabas, and he tumbles to the floor. Josette screams.
Act I
Hearing Josette's cries, Jeremiah Collins hurries into the room and loosens his nephew's collar. Victoria Winters also rushes in and tries to comfort the distraught Josette. Barnabas' condition worsens as Jeremiah helps him to his feet and to his bedroom. Victoria remains with Josette, who cannot understand what has happened to her fiancé. She refuses to sit and wait, and runs upstairs to be with Barnabas. Meanwhile, Jeremiah manages to get Barnabas to his room and into bed. Barnabas' suffering increases to the point where he can barely talk. Josette, followed by Victoria, rushes into the room. Jeremiah quickly leaves to fetch Dr. Thornton. Unknown to them all, Angelique continues to strangle Barnabas via the toy soldier.
Act II
Sometime later Dr. Thornton finishes his examination of Barnabas and reports his findings to Jeremiah. He cannot detect anything physically wrong with Barnabas. He has no explanation for the cause of Barnabas suffocating. Frustrated that he can do nothing to aid his patient, Dr. Thornton departs. Victoria comes downstairs and consoles the upset Jeremiah, telling him that Barnabas will recover. She cannot tell Jeremiah how she is certain of this. Victoria admits to being confused toward his relationship with Barnabas. She has always been led to believe that Jeremiah and Barnabas were never close. Hearing this angers Jeremiah, and he takes Victoria to task for her "strange preconceptions". As Victoria turns to leave, Jeremiah apologizes for his outburst. Upstairs, Josette prays for Barnabas as Angelique appears in the doorway, wearing a triumphant expression.
Act III
Angelique feigns concern as she approaches Josette. She offers to pray alongside Josette, and suggests Josette should retrieve the medal of Saint Pierre from her room to hold close to Barnabas. Once her mistress has left the room, Angelique closes the door and privately gloats over the suffering Barnabas. She watches as Barnabas tries to speak, and she places her hand on his throat to ease the spell she has cast on him. Barnabas manages to gasp for help, telling a shocked Angelique that he is dying. It is clear his life is hanging by a thread and Angelique, unwilling to kill the man she loves, realizes she has gone too far.
Act IV
Josette returns and, with Barnabas on the brink of slipping away, Angelique dashes from the room. She returns to her own quarters and reaches for the toy soldier. Angelique tries to remove the handkerchief from around its neck, but she has tied it too tightly and it will not budge. Frantically, she searches the room for a knife but she cannot find one. Angelique tries to loosen the knot again and, this time, it pulls free. Barnabas slowly recovers much to Josette's joy and amazement. Jeremiah enters the room and is similarly stunned by his nephew's remarkable improvement. Barnabas describes to them how close he was to death. In her room, Angelique chides herself for being reckless and foolish. If Barnabas had died, she would have been left with nothing. She decides to find another means of vengeance in the hope of preventing Barnabas' marriage to Josette without harming him. Then, she is certain, Barnabas will finally be hers.
== Memorable quotes ==
: Angelique: I have been foolish, little soldier...very foolish. If Barnabas had died, what would I have had? Nothing. I must find some other means of revenge, a way of preventing his marriage to Josette while keeping him alive. Then he will turn to me...and I shall be his....I shall be his.
== Dramatis personae ==
* Anthony George as Jeremiah Collins
* Jonathan Frid as Barnabas Collins
* Kathryn Leigh Scott as Josette DuPres
* Lara Parker as Angelique Bouchard
* Peter Murphy as Dr. Thornton
* Alexandra Moltke as Victoria Winters
== Background information and notes ==
=== Production ===
* This episode was recorded out of broadcast sequence. The previous episode to be recorded was 368/369.
* On the menu of the original release of Collection 4 Disc 4, this episode is listed mistakenly as "Episode 370" and with the air date of "November 24, 1967". It was repaired on the 2012 reissue and disc 40 of the coffin set.
* The same erroneous listing as above also occurs on the Fan Favorites release.
*Peter Murphy, who plays Dr. Thornton in this episode, has played and will play a number of characters and stand-ins in the series. His first role was that of the caretaker of Eagle Hill Cemetery, replacing Daniel F. Keyes (337-360). He then played the ghost of Dr Dave Woodard (343-361), the Gaoler (437-465), and other bit parts, including the hand of aged Barnabas in 347 and 348.
=== Story ===
* Before the events of this episode, Barnabas never had a sick day in his life.
* Jeremiah states that even though he is Barnabas' uncle, they are the same age and grew up as brothers. In 391, Jeremiah's birth year is given as 1763, making him 32 years old at the time of his death in the year 1795. However, in 345, Barnabas referred to Jeremiah as a middle-aged man, insinuating that he was much older than Barnabas.
*When Josette says she will pray for Barnabas, she crosses herself, indicating that she is Catholic. As well, Angelique suggests she get her medal of St. Pierre to pray with.
* INTERNAL MONOLOGUE: Angelique: "Poor Barnabas." Angelique: "I do not want you to die."
== Bloopers and continuity errors ==
* Alexandra Moltke as the narrator in the teaser uses the first person "we," suggesting she is speaking in character as Victoria Winters. However, by this point in the series, the narrators are no longer speaking in character.
*Kathryn Leigh Scott is wearing a completely different dress to the one seen in the previous episode, which continues directly on into this one.
* In Act I, when Barnabas rolls over on the floor, Jonathan Frid manages to sit on the kneeling Josette's dress so that when Victoria attempts to help her up, Kathryn Leigh Scott is unable to stand up, and Alexandra Moltke has to pull her dress out from under Barnabas.
* Jonathan Frid steps on Lara Parker's line "I'm sorry, but it's true."
*As Angelique is talking to the toy soldier in the last scene, there is a clanking noise off-stage.
==External Links ==
Dark Shadows - Episode 371 on the IMDb
Dark Shadows Everyday - Episode 371 - Damn the Torpedoes
Dark Shadows Commentary- Episode 371: Death whispering
Dark Shadows Before I Die- Episode 371: 11/27/67
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