Sunday, November 25, 2018

Sunday Fun: Darkroom Opening




Darkroom is another cursed feather in my cap; yet another television series that I liked and actually watched but one which ran just one season or less. Less here: seven episodes.

The stories were varied in tone, but the best variance was that of running time. In the one hour a story could be long or short, some really short. In total we saw sixteen stories over the show's limited run. The advantage of flexible length is obvious.

No doubt a big reason Darkroom got left in the dark was due to its anthology nature. The television viewing public, as a whole, demand continuing characters; people they can watch: grow up in front of their eyes; get into trouble with the law; dispensed with at the altar; or reveal a deep and dark secret, even after loads of episodes -- more often than not the shock was unplanned but created by the show writers in an effort to reinvigorate the program. (Diarrhea of the Writers' Room.)

James Coburn with Darkroom's fix, the continuing character. The veteran actor exuded a commanding presence and an authoritative voice, excellent for introducing tales of horrors and thrills.

Red filter.

"Remember Darkroom?...."

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