Downtown Abbey...last night's episode
Feb. 4th, 2013 09:34 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
shadowkatThis episode was better than the last two, in part because they tied up a few annoying story lines. But it did emphasis the classism and bigotry of Carson and Earl Grantham, who seem to view women in a less than stellar manner. I wanted to smack both of them upside the head. But everyone else I adored, particularly Cora, Mrs. Padock, Daisy, Mary, and the Dowager Countess.
Best line-
Earl Grantham: A fool and his money are soon parted, and I have been parted from my money, so I assume I am a fool.
Yep. Although you were one prior to the money parting bit.
*Was very amused by the conversations between the Dowager Countess and Doctor Clarksville and the Dowager/Clarksville, Cora and Earl Grantham. It reminded me of the discussion I'd had on lj last week - right down to the dialogue.
The Dowager was right about one thing - it does no good for Cora to continue to blame the Earl for Sybil's death. Doesn't bring Sybil back. And it's not like the Earl deliberately did it - he did what he thought was best at the time. Granted it was the wrong choice, but he didn't know that. And he appears to have learned from it and shown remorse. No good can come from holding a grudge, it's not what Sybil would have wanted. Besides Clarksville and Cora made their point. No reason to go about it. Clarksville finally agrees and states, when everything was weighed in the balance it is my belief Lady Sybil was going to die, allowing the estranged pair to reunite.
* Ethel's situation...and how some of the characters are reacting, while realistic is grating. Particularly when you consider Lord Grantham and Carson have no difficulty being sympathetic to and accepting of Bates - who has served prison time twice. Ethel only turned to prostitution to feed her child, and selflessly gave her child to his grandparents...and is trying to turn her life around now. Bates granted didn't do it, but he didn't handle his wife well and aided in a prior crime and cover-up. I like Bates. But if they can be accepting towards him, why not Ethel? Bigotry.
* Mrs. O'Brien is being quite evil - in regards to Thomas and the new footman. The new pretty footman, I suspect is sweet on Daisy. While Daisy is sweet on Alfred, and Alfred is sweet on Ivy and Ivy on the new footman, who Thomas is also sweet on. Quite the unrequited love quadrangle here. I feel sorry for the new footman - Alfred, Mrs. O'Brien and Thomas may do the poor guy in. Mrs. O'Brien is implying to Thomas that the new footman is sweet on him, when the exact opposite is true. And of course - if it ever comes out that Thomas is gay, Lord Grantham will fire him in the blink of an eye and blackball him. Because, Lord Grantham is a bigot when it comes to gender and sexual orientation. (Of course 99% of men were back then, but it doesn't excuse it.)
* Bates situation - which was difficult to follow and annoying - is finally resolved. Turns out he didn't kill his wife, his wife committed suicide and framed him for it as originally thought. The lawyer gets the woman to confess it. Finally. That story was a bit grim.
* Rather loved Mary in this episode - where she supports Matthew, Tom, and Sybil to her father. Stating that Sybil wanted her child baptized Catholic and telling her father he has to learn how to change and be flexible. There's two rather good scenes between them. She
also is rather compassionate and warm towards her husband and Sybil's child.
*Also the scene where the ladies, Mrs. Hughes and Mrs. Paddock stand up for Ethel against Mr. Carson. And Dowager, Mary, Cora, and Edith stick up for Isbelle and Ethel against Lord Grantham. (The men are not portrayed well in this series, which is odd - considering it's a man writing the series. Does Fellows have something against his own gender?)
Rather loved the Dowager's lines and Cora's.
Dowager (in response to the news that Ethel was a prostitute): Really? It must be hard to get good servants nowadays.
Robert: Aren't you coming?
Dowager: Seems a shame to pass up a good pudding.
Carson: I thought you had standards, Mrs. Hughes. What will people think?
Mrs. Hughes: That I'm a kind person, Mr. Carson.
(their relationships reminds me oddly of Emma Thompson and Anthony Hopkins in Remains of the Day.)
* Will's father is pushing Daisy to give up Dowton and move to the farm, take it over, and learn from him. I'm sort of rooting for Daisy and the young pretty footman to get married and take over the farm at the moment - but only if I can follow their story. I like Daisy.
Best line-
Earl Grantham: A fool and his money are soon parted, and I have been parted from my money, so I assume I am a fool.
Yep. Although you were one prior to the money parting bit.
*Was very amused by the conversations between the Dowager Countess and Doctor Clarksville and the Dowager/Clarksville, Cora and Earl Grantham. It reminded me of the discussion I'd had on lj last week - right down to the dialogue.
The Dowager was right about one thing - it does no good for Cora to continue to blame the Earl for Sybil's death. Doesn't bring Sybil back. And it's not like the Earl deliberately did it - he did what he thought was best at the time. Granted it was the wrong choice, but he didn't know that. And he appears to have learned from it and shown remorse. No good can come from holding a grudge, it's not what Sybil would have wanted. Besides Clarksville and Cora made their point. No reason to go about it. Clarksville finally agrees and states, when everything was weighed in the balance it is my belief Lady Sybil was going to die, allowing the estranged pair to reunite.
* Ethel's situation...and how some of the characters are reacting, while realistic is grating. Particularly when you consider Lord Grantham and Carson have no difficulty being sympathetic to and accepting of Bates - who has served prison time twice. Ethel only turned to prostitution to feed her child, and selflessly gave her child to his grandparents...and is trying to turn her life around now. Bates granted didn't do it, but he didn't handle his wife well and aided in a prior crime and cover-up. I like Bates. But if they can be accepting towards him, why not Ethel? Bigotry.
* Mrs. O'Brien is being quite evil - in regards to Thomas and the new footman. The new pretty footman, I suspect is sweet on Daisy. While Daisy is sweet on Alfred, and Alfred is sweet on Ivy and Ivy on the new footman, who Thomas is also sweet on. Quite the unrequited love quadrangle here. I feel sorry for the new footman - Alfred, Mrs. O'Brien and Thomas may do the poor guy in. Mrs. O'Brien is implying to Thomas that the new footman is sweet on him, when the exact opposite is true. And of course - if it ever comes out that Thomas is gay, Lord Grantham will fire him in the blink of an eye and blackball him. Because, Lord Grantham is a bigot when it comes to gender and sexual orientation. (Of course 99% of men were back then, but it doesn't excuse it.)
* Bates situation - which was difficult to follow and annoying - is finally resolved. Turns out he didn't kill his wife, his wife committed suicide and framed him for it as originally thought. The lawyer gets the woman to confess it. Finally. That story was a bit grim.
* Rather loved Mary in this episode - where she supports Matthew, Tom, and Sybil to her father. Stating that Sybil wanted her child baptized Catholic and telling her father he has to learn how to change and be flexible. There's two rather good scenes between them. She
also is rather compassionate and warm towards her husband and Sybil's child.
*Also the scene where the ladies, Mrs. Hughes and Mrs. Paddock stand up for Ethel against Mr. Carson. And Dowager, Mary, Cora, and Edith stick up for Isbelle and Ethel against Lord Grantham. (The men are not portrayed well in this series, which is odd - considering it's a man writing the series. Does Fellows have something against his own gender?)
Rather loved the Dowager's lines and Cora's.
Dowager (in response to the news that Ethel was a prostitute): Really? It must be hard to get good servants nowadays.
Robert: Aren't you coming?
Dowager: Seems a shame to pass up a good pudding.
Carson: I thought you had standards, Mrs. Hughes. What will people think?
Mrs. Hughes: That I'm a kind person, Mr. Carson.
(their relationships reminds me oddly of Emma Thompson and Anthony Hopkins in Remains of the Day.)
* Will's father is pushing Daisy to give up Dowton and move to the farm, take it over, and learn from him. I'm sort of rooting for Daisy and the young pretty footman to get married and take over the farm at the moment - but only if I can follow their story. I like Daisy.
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no subject
Date: 2013-02-05 04:12 am (UTC)I love how pragmatic Mary has become, of course I think it fits with her character's experiences (she needs to be pragmatic to resolve some of the mistakes she has made, mistakes that no 'true lady' would ever make... like having dead foreigners in her bed).
I like Daisy too, she is interesting in that she is really trying to do the right thing, but is so easily manipulated by other people.... Of course it seems like the new footman is also easily fooled, so I'm not sure they would be a very successful couple (they would have other people making fools of them right and left! LOL).
Anyway I think the anti-woman prejudice is at least honest to the time period... . I would think it was lame if they pretended that there was equality between the sexes, any more than there is equality between the classes.
no subject
Date: 2013-02-05 04:45 am (UTC)Bates situation - which was difficult to follow and annoying
Amen. The whole thing was built up of chewing gum and bailing wire. Didn't make a whole lot of sense at any particular point. I hope that's the last we'll hear of it. It seems like they just kept Bates in prison long enough for Thomas to get very smug in the job as the Earl's valet. Between Bates returning and James getting very fed up with Thomas's attention, I expect something really messy.
An odd coincidence (or maybe done on purpose), Cora mentions the desert Ethel made, a Charlotte Russe. In Elizabeth McGovern's first big film, Once Upon a time in America there is another girl, a teenager slipping into prostitution, who says she'll accept a cupcake sized Charlotte Russe in payment from one of the neighborhood boys.
no subject
Date: 2013-02-06 12:30 am (UTC)Exactly. I got lost somewhere around the whole prison guard/bunk-mate conspiracy to do Bates in - which made very little sense. So glad it appears to be over. Finally.
I think you are right - that situation with Thomas/new footmen and Mrs. O'Brien is about to blow up in Thomas' face. Curious to see when Bates will take over the valet position, before or after it blows up?
no subject
Date: 2013-02-05 01:29 pm (UTC)I also like Daisy and agree that James (the new footman) likes her. I would be interested in seeing that relationship developed.
I also kind of wonder what they are going to do with Tom. I was majorly spoiled about something a couple of weeks ago, so I think what they had originally planned for him may change...
no subject
Date: 2013-02-06 12:21 am (UTC)Felt much the same way. Near as I can figure...they wanted to destroy Bates because they were annoyed/jealous of the fact that he had the Earl of Grantham helping him. In short - they hated him because they felt he had undeserved privileges and opportunities. And wanted to take him down a notch.
I also kind of wonder what they are going to do with Tom. I was majorly spoiled about something a couple of weeks ago, so I think what they had originally planned for him may change...
Interesting...now I'm curious. I keep thinking the whole thing with the second footman is going blow-up in his face and he'll be outted to the Earl, with Bates taking over his position and Tomas out on his ear.
no subject
Date: 2013-02-06 12:28 am (UTC)I was actually talking about Tom; the ex-chauffeur/Sybil's husband...
I am not sure how they are going to deal with the Thomas thing. For some reason, I think that O'Brien just wants to embarrass/hurt him, not get him thrown out...but we know how her over reactions have gone in the past.
Only 2 more episodes to go, but they are both 2 hours.