Hercules: The Legendary Journeys
Title: Hercules: The Legendary Journeys
Created by: Christian Williams
Genre: Fantasy, Action/Adventure
Episode: “Darkness Visible” - Season 6, Episode 4
Directed by: Philip Sgriccia
Written by: Phyllis Strong
Original Air Date: October 18, 1999
Characters: Hercules, Iolaus, Vlad, Galen, Nadia
Setting: Kingdom of Dacia
Keywords: Vampires/Strigoi, Haunted Castle
Synopsis:
Hercules is called by on old friend, Vlad, to help defeat the Strigoi that have invaded his kingdom.
Analysis:
From the first steps Hercules and Iolaus take on Dacian soil, the viewer is informed that this is not an “inviting” place, or as Hercules puts it: “it’s not really known as a vacation spot”. After the grueling trek up the mountain to Vlad’s castle, the characters are greeted with the sight of a field of impaled men in various stages of decay, and soon after they get attacked by a strigoi, which they manage to kill with a spear. The atmosphere of the castle is suffused with typical gothic horror clichés, from the squeaking door, to the rolling mist and the gargoyles guarding the entrance. The gloominess of the scene is broken by a cheery, smiling Vlad who welcomes them warmly, kissing Hercules on both cheeks, which is taken in stride.
The interior of the castle abounds in much the same stereotypes, with candelabras, secret passages, red curtains, and lugubrious music. The camp element of Vlad’s bar being made out of a casket takes things one step further. The strigoi, despite the “exotic” name, are just our run-of-the mill vampires: fangs, no reflection, killed by a stake through the heart, able to fly, climb walls, disappear into thin air and, as an added bonus, regenerate limbs. Prince Vlad of Dacia, the Impaler (a name which only an enemy of the country would use), is an anachronistic character, taken out of the expected mediaeval timeline and said to have taken part in the Battle of Antioch (145 BC), where he had supposedly met Hercules. He has long hair and the stereotypical villain goatee, and his clothes are more reminiscent of a heavy metal band member than a historically accurate voivode.
Vlad recounts the sad story of how his father had attempted to kill him in the dead of night and how he, in self defense, had killed him first. The news of this quickly spread to the Turks, who were now trying to take over his kingdom. The viewer is shown a man desperate to protect his people, willing to go to any lengths to achieve that, even going so far as to desecrate the bodies of the dead, by having them impaled in front of his castle, as a message to his enemies. But soon after that, we are secretly made privy to the fact that Vlad is himself a strigoi, when upon glancing in the mirror, he seems to have no reflection.
No other language apart from English is spoken throughout the entirety of the episode, and there are very few references to Romanian customs and traditions, apart from the kissing of the cheeks and Vlad’s offer of plum brandy to Hercules.
