Monday, January 14, 2013

Downton Abbey Season III episode 2 review


"Upstairs", this episode focused on Edith's upcoming nuptials with Sir Anthony, the possible sale of the family home and Matthew's reusal to accept Mr. Squire's fortune. "Downstairs", the theme for the episode was gossip. Carson overhears Ms Padmore and Mrs Hughes talking about the latter's possible illness, Thomas tries to extract reveng on O'Brien by feeding the gullible Mosely a false piece of gossip and Anna finally gets to speak with a friend of Bates ex-wife.
It is finally time for Edith to be in the spotlight. Over the course of 2 seasons, we have seen Edith grow from an envious sister who reports her elder sister's scandalous indiscretion to an intelligent, independent woman who can drive, helped on a farm and supports wounded soldiers with coming to terms with their injuries. Through all this change however, one thing remains constant - her need for love and a partner. This need appears to be mad...
e more acute by the marriages of her siblings. The buildup is well paced and we are kept guessing as to whether Sir Anthony will go through with the wedding. Likewise, we are kept in suspense as to whether Mrs Hughes diagnoses will be bad. On the other hand, I felt that Matthew Crawley saving Downton was predictable, although the manner by which he was made to change his mind was interesting.
Two interesting points: Lady Mary calls her mother-in-law by her first name when speaking to her husband. I think in modern times one would say "your mother" when referring to your husband's mother when speaking to him.
The two wedding dresses were very, very different. Lady Mary's dress had a very medieval look to it, while Lady Edith's looked 20th century.
I enjoyed the episode, which as always had great balance between uplifting occurrences and emotional devastation. We are also learning more about Mr. Bates and I am eager to find out more about the circumstances of his wife's death.

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