Posted by Dr. Bombay on August 5, 2011, 12:33 am Resident Bewitched Historian
...tonight ABC reaired Episode #217, "The Return of Darrin the Bold" which originally aired February 4, 1971.
On a lazy Saturday afternoon Endora and Serena covertly pop in to 1164 so that Endora can ruminate about her child giving up her great and glorious heritage to end up being Durwood’s live-in maid. It suddenly occurs to her that if Durwood were a warlock, he wouldn’t be so against witchcraft and he might be less irritating. Serena thinks her auntie’s off her rocker to think about changing Durwood into a warlock but follows her to the top of the world, where they actually have to hike because the atmosphere is much too thin for levitation, to visit the oldest and wisest warlock in the world. After waiting for him to finish smoking his hookah he finally reveals that other than not messing with your in-laws he does have a potion that will turn Durwood into a warlock! So Serena and Endora fly to the ancestral grounds in Salem to enact their plan which involves going back in time to the 14th century to administer a potion to Durwood’s ancestor Durwood the Bold that will be enhanced with three whiskers from his beard. With much fanfare and smoke, Endora zaps Serena back to Durwood the Bold’s time where she claims to have broken a wheel on her carriage and needs a place to stay for the evening. Bold is instantly smitten with her and invites her in and she asks him to help her light a fire so she can warm some medicine for a CHEST cold she is getting. When he goes to kiss her she bites a hair out of his beard and tells him that where she’s from it’s a custom for a lady to pluck a hair from the man’s beard to show him how much she likes him, and that if she plucks three, like WOW! He gets all excited when she plucks the third but is quite bewildered when she pours her “medicine” over him and even more bewildered when she disappears!
Meanwhile, in the 20th century, while trimming a bush that sits between his yard and Mr. Ferguson’s next door that blocks the view from the driveway, Durwood suddenly feels funny and goes into the house when Samantha asks him if he’d like some iced tea. He tells her he could really go for a beer when shockingly the tea turns into a beer. Durwood is irritated that Samantha would do that but she insists she didn’t. While talking he suggests he’d like a sandwich and one appears in his hand. Samantha thinks maybe one of her relatives is just trying to be nice to him or maybe that he is under some sort of wish spell. He wishes that she’d call for her mother so she can explain and so Samantha calls for Endora who denies any involvement however when Samantha tells her all that’s been going on with Durwood she is delighted and tells them that he must’ve become a warlock by osmosis! Sam and Durwood are shocked and Samantha asks that they be left alone to think about it and so Endora leaves. Durwood tells Samantha that it’s just not how he wants to live life, by zapping up everything he wants, and he also expresses his doubt about Endora’s explanation. Samantha agrees and tells him he should probably just go back to trimming the bush to clear his head but when he says he wished he’d never seen the bush it disappears! He also says he needs to be in a bar thinking it all out and he immediately pops out. Samantha starts calling the bars around town to find him when Serena pops in wondering what’s going on and Samantha explains and says that she thinks that Durwood might be thinking of leaving her. Serena expresses her sympathy but Samantha wonders why as she’s never cared about Durwood before. Serena explains that recently she met someone quite like Durwood and if Samantha’s Durwood is as groovy as her Durwood…which causes Samantha to realize she may have found the answer. She demands to know what is going on and Serena says if she spills the beans, Endora will zap her into the 14th century permanently! After getting the full story, Samantha pops back to the 14th century where she finds Durwood the Bold trying to have his way with one of the chamber maids but once he sees Samantha, he thinks it’s Serena with blonde hair and tries to have his way with her.
Back in the present, Durwood comes home to find the house empty when someone comes to the door. It’s Mr. Ferguson who has noticed his bush is missing and he wants an explanation. Durwood says he just trimmed it a little but Ferguson shows him that it’s gone and he’s going to trim him a little! Realizing that he still has powers, Durwood tells Mr. Ferguson so and warns him not to mess with him.
In the 14th century, Samantha manages to pour the anti-potion on Durwood the Bold which eliminates his powers and by ripple effect, Durwood’s powers. Samantha pops back and sees the front door open and is surprised to see that Durwood is about to get his block knocked off by Ferguson and so she zaps up an invisible barrier which breaks Ferguson’s forceful blow, much to his surprise. Feigning his wife’s call, Ferguson leaves and Samantha calls for Durwood to come in. He tells her that he’s thought about it and it doesn’t matter if he’s a warlock or not, he loves her and that’s all that matters. She is pleased but tells him that she figured out her mother’s tricks and he no longer has powers, which pleases him very much.
I LOVE this episode! Even more so than when Dick York played Durwood the Bold in Season Three’s “A Most Unusual Wood Nymph.” What's funny is that Dick York's Durwood the Bold lived in the 15th century but Dick Sargent's lives in the 14th. Maybe he's like us where we live part of our lives in the 20th century and the rest in the 21st though it's funny that the second Durwood is playing the earlier version.
I think Endora wanted to change Durwood into a warlock because it would mean that's who he is, so why fight it? Doing it through an early ancestor would mean it was just a trait handed down, though they didn't write the episode like that and instead just had Durwood acquire the powers after Serena went back in time when really he would've been born with the powers. But then that brings up the point that all of Durwood the Bold's descendants, including either Frank or Phyllis, would've had the powers too! What would've been cool is if it had been a two-parter involving Frank/Phyllis getting the powers (I would go with Frank) and see how everyone dealt with that. Then we could've had a great episode where Samantha's witchly identity is finally revealed to her in-laws! Of course, I'm totally thinking in terms of how time travel worked on Back to the Future because, if indeed Durwood the Bold got changed into a warlock, the whole course of his life would be changed possibly even negating Samantha's Durwood by virtue of maybe that maid he zapped off the face of the Earth being his great x 10 grandmother! I did like the eerie green effect that covered them when they acquired their powers.
I think Endora had Serena do it so that Endora could truthfully say it wasn't she that did it, kind of like when she had Serena put the love spell on Dusty Harrison in Season Six’s “The Generation Zap.” I did it find weird that Serena still had her powers cause I wouldn't think she's much older than Samantha. Of course, Samantha had her powers too, so it doesn't make sense.
I liked the Old Man of the Mountain scene, especially Serena saying, "I've never heard of a place that was too high to fly to!" And Burt Mustin that played the Old Man was eighty-six when this was filmed! In fact, according to IMDB.com, he was born the same year Marion Lorne was and in the same state, Pennsylvania! I also thought it funny when Serena asked, "What's he smoking?"
It was cool that Endora and Serena had the scene from the sacred grounds in Salem with that witchy music. And it seems they always cut out on TV when the smoke clears and Endora says, "Endora, thy gifts are infinite!" I also think it's funny after she goes through the huge list of things Serena has to do and ends it all with, "It's all so simple!"
I also liked it when Serena told Durwood the Bold that she needed her medicine because she had a CHEST cold! This episode was rather randy! And also when she told him that he could now have anything he wanted, and he says, "Anything?!" and she smacks him only for a few seconds to pass before she throws herself all over him!
Mr. Ferguson's pits were nasty! And I think that they should've got Don Rickles to play that part. We've already seen Richard X. Slattery in a similar role when Samantha changed his grass to the fake stuff in Season Four’s “How Green Was My Grass.” Plus Rickles was on EVERYTHING in the 60s BUT Bewitched.
When the tea changes to beer, Samantha was holding a glass however when they go to the couch it’s changed into a mug. I always thought it was cool when Samantha came back from the past and threw the stein in the air and it disappeared. Liz was very good at holding still, because I used to try to do the same trick with our camera when I was younger and you always just want to follow through with whatever you're throwing or try to catch it.
The ceiling was MUCH too high to be real in the opening scene. If the house were to be really built the ceiling to the living room would probably be where their feet were.
Anyway, LOVE LOVE LOVE this episode!
The next night a lunar eclipse lasting one hour, forty minutes and one second was observed.
It was most likely around this time that ABC began airing a promo for the upcoming Eighth Season:
Which, I need to mention something in regards to these postings and the 8th season...I'm going to have my book published and therefore, won't be able to post what I have written for the 8th season, as you should buy my book to read! However, I shall still post on the episodes anniversary, just to acknowledge it. I don't have a specific date yet, but I think it will be before the end of the year
"I never did dig what Sammy dug about that dodo." ~ Serena
Re: 40 Years Ago...
Posted by Tabitha on August 5, 2011, 9:16 am, in reply to "40 Years Ago..."
Oh my gosh! I Can't wait for your book! " This proves that the only thing stronger then witchcraft is love". Samantha Stephens.
Re: 40 Years Ago...
Posted by Octolad on August 5, 2011, 10:35 pm, in reply to "Re: 40 Years Ago..."
Thanks for the recap, Doc. And very exciting news about the progress on your book!
It's counter-intuitive that Sargent's interpretation of Darrin the Bold would seem to me to be more heterosexual than York's version. York seemed "straighter" as Darrin Stephens, but more dandified as his ancestor. I blame the wigs. "Sterbo... Vectra... Rangay... Zeem. You're about to have a dream. And, in the words of a wise philosopher, it's going to be a BEAUT!"
Re: 40 Years Ago...
Posted by MrMortimer on August 6, 2011, 8:20 pm, in reply to "40 Years Ago..."
Thanks Doc, can't wait for the book ! I love this episode too. I think DS does a fabulous job as "Darrin the Bold" and I think this is an excellent story for the Serena character at her most risque.
Re: 40 Years Ago...
Posted by MacDodo on August 7, 2011, 10:04 am, in reply to "40 Years Ago..."
Marvelous News about your Book! I expect and Autgraphed copy when it is published!
Re: 40 Years Ago...
Posted by beth on August 9, 2011, 12:08 pm, in reply to "Re: 40 Years Ago..."
Thanks Doc for yet another great post! CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR BOOK BEING PUBLISHED! I am happy and excited for you! I can't wait to see it! Again, congrats on your books! And thanks again for this great posting! I shall miss your posts here but will get the book as soon as it is available!