326

Following his dream, David concludes that Barnabas and Sarah are dead.
== Synopsis ==
Teaser
: The night brings to Collinwood an austere and lonely silence. Inside the great house this night, a child will have a dream. And for him, the dream will be a revelation of the evil that still threatens us all.
David Collins is restlessly sleeping and dreaming of the coffin Sarah Collins showed him in the Mausoleum's secret room. Drawn into a nightmare, David has been led to a coffin by Sarah. It begins to open. This, Sarah tells David, is whom she came to find. It is Barnabas Collins. The vampire emerges and advances on the terrified boy.
Act I
David screams for help in his sleep. Victoria Winters rushes into his room and wakes him. Hysterical, he tells her about his nightmare and that both Sarah and Barnabas are dead. Victoria tries to calm him, but David becomes upset when she doesn't believe him. He promises to prove his dream was real by finding Sarah and the coffin from his nightmare. David now understands how Sarah has managed to appear so mysteriously: she is a ghost.
Act II
At the Old House, Barnabas returns and is none too pleased to find Dr. Julia Hoffman reading in the parlor. Not only has he paid a visit to Collinwood this evening, but he also went to the Collinsport Hospital in search of news on Willie Loomis' condition. His servant continues to cling to life and poses a threat to Barnabas' existence. Julia, however, insists that Willie's death is forthcoming. Barnabas plans on disposing of the comatose Willie, but Julia is quick to point out the danger if such action is taken. Also, Barnabas' plan to murder David will only serve to expose the vampire's secret. Julia offers to hypnotize David and remove all trace of his curiosity in the same manner in which she erased Maggie Evans' memory.
Act III
The following day, Julia overhears Victoria relating David's nightmare to Elizabeth Collins Stoddard in the drawing room. She interrupts, offering to speak with David alone and claiming to have had some experience in child psychology. Elizabeth gives her permission and leaves to get David. In the meantime, Julia talks with Victoria alone and presses her for the details of David's nightmare.
Upstairs, Elizabeth checks in on David and urges him to talk with Julia. He agrees. Elizabeth notices that David has been drawing but is shocked to find it is a picture of a coffin and a tombstone emblazoned with Barnabas' name.
Act IV
Alone with Julia, David is prompted to relate his dream and his fear of Barnabas. She learns that Sarah told him nothing about Barnabas' true nature. Urging David to relax, Julia produces her jeweled medallion and attempts to hypnotize him. But David quickly realizes that Julia was the faceless woman in his dream, and he shouts for Victoria. Julia, having failed, cups her medallion.
== Memorable quotes ==
: Barnabas: You have nothing better to do than to sit around reading books at a time like this?
:Julia: You enjoy browsing through your family album. I enjoy browsing through medical journals.
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:Barnabas: (about Willie) No, he clings to life with a leech-like persistence.
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: Barnabas: (about Willie) I'm talking about getting rid of him before someone brings us the news that he has miraculously recovered and is writing his memoirs!
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: Barnabas: (about David) I asked him questions again and he lied again. I'm still convinced that he knows too much.
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: David: He isn't dead all of the time, just some of the time.
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:Elizabeth: You seem a woman of many talents, Miss Hoffman.
== Dramatis personae ==
* Joan Bennett as Elizabeth Collins Stoddard
* Jonathan Frid as Barnabas Collins
* Grayson Hall as Julia Hoffman
* David Henesy as David Collins
* Sharon Smyth as Sarah Collins
* Alexandra Moltke as Victoria Winters
== Background information and notes ==
=== Production ===
* Sharon Smyth appears only in the reprise from the previous episode's cliffhanger.
=== Story ===	
* DREAM SEQUENCE: David dreams about Sarah, who shows him a faceless woman with a medallion and Barnabas in his coffin (reprised from previous episode).
* TIMELINE: Day 122 begins, and will end in 329. It was last night when David had his nightmare.
== Bloopers and continuity errors ==
* In the teaser narration, Alexandra Moltke uses the first-person "us," seeming to speak as Victoria Winters. However, by this time, the narrators were no longer speaking as characters within the story.
*When David is telling Victoria his dream, David Henesy flubs a line. He says, "And then the coffin came out," when he meant to say that "he" (he hadn't identified Barnabas yet) came out of the coffin.
*A boom microphone shadow appears on the curtains of the Old House parlor. It also appears in David's room while Victoria is talking to David.
* When Julia and Barnabas talk at the Old House, Grayson Hall pauses too long before saying "The investigation will continue," and Jonathan Frid steps on her line.
== End credits announcements ==
* Dark Shadows is a Dan Curtis Production.
==External links ==
Dark Shadows - Episode 326 on the IMDb
Dark Shadows Everyday - Episode 326 - A Time Like This
Dark Shadows Commentary- Episode 326: Some experience with child psychology
Dark Shadows Before I Die- Episode 326: 9/25/67
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