This is at least the fourth time i watched this entire series and i cannot hold back my displeasure with the earl of grantham any longer ... he is continually ill mannered and short tempered with anyone that doesn't kowtow to his almighty ... truth be known he has fallen way behind the times and can't keep up with progress or society ... if it wasn't for his wife, eldest daughter, mary, her husband matthew and tom branson the estate left in his care would have disintegrated long ago ... he muddles along day after day with no clear plan in mind except spur of the moment decisions
6 Reviews
Intrigues and Lies
jpismyname7 January 2018
Warning: Spoilers
Lady Mary's secret will not remain a secret forever. She is seen by the prying eyes of the Dowager Countess' butler, who then tells Violet about it. The butler is another one of the minor characters you'll really dislike. Anyway, of course Granny loves her granddaughter and will never allow her to be infamous for scandals, so she covers for her.
Downstairs, Mr. Green's death is being investigated. Bates gives an alibi. Mrs. Hughes and Lady Mary are frightened of what might happen, and Anna's scared to wits.
We see more of Edith's struggle to be with her child, whom nobody knows about.
Downstairs, Mr. Green's death is being investigated. Bates gives an alibi. Mrs. Hughes and Lady Mary are frightened of what might happen, and Anna's scared to wits.
We see more of Edith's struggle to be with her child, whom nobody knows about.
Mary's Secrets
Hitchcoc28 August 2020
Warning: Spoilers
I've said before, for me, the least interesting characters in this show are the men who pursue Mary. When she is with Gillingham, he is in love with love, putting on a show for her. Unfortunately, Mary has been seen by Violet's butler and he can't keep his mouth shut. Another issue is the continuing saga of the war memorial. Edith is finally told to stay away from the pig farmer's place. She is causing too much tension.
Does anyone else find Miss Bunting to be very rude?
robertjbailey-0230224 February 2023
Warning: Spoilers
This is a lively episode in which Robert is placed on the wrong foot in almost every situation. This is largely due to the presence of Mr Bricker, who really is after Cora though she is too blind to see it. Then there is the business about Mrs Patmore's nephew Archy who cannot be included in the War Memorial. I really do not believe that at this time there were many people who would have defended a man shot for cowardice. That said I really enjoy watching Downton Abbey, despite its occasional foray into historical revisionism.
I find one or two of the characters grate on me from time to time, none more so than Miss Bunting (ably played by Daisy Lewis). I find it odd that no-one seems to call her out for this. She turns up to various social events at the Abbey and without fail delivers a barbed comment normally calculated to start a fist fight. However, it seems her quite modern social views somehow excuse her complete lack of manners.
I really don't believe that people would behave like this when a guest in someone else's home. Often the "lower classes" are portrayed as completely ignorant of social norms - take Tom's brother for example in the Christening episode, wanting to have his dinner with the staff. This is done I suspect to highlight how out of touch the aristocracy are in the modern world. However, the fact is that while Tom's brother may not have known which fork to use he would most certainly have been bought up to at least be polite in someone else's home.
Miss Bunting however appears to have not been taught anything of the sort which makes me wonder how on earth she became a teacher. I am not entirely sure why she was written this way. Was it to demonstrate how far Tom has changed from his first days as a member of the family? Was it to introduce a long term love interest for him? If so I am not sure Miss Bunting is the right character choice. She is just too patronising and controlling and I couldn't see him really falling for her at all.
I find one or two of the characters grate on me from time to time, none more so than Miss Bunting (ably played by Daisy Lewis). I find it odd that no-one seems to call her out for this. She turns up to various social events at the Abbey and without fail delivers a barbed comment normally calculated to start a fist fight. However, it seems her quite modern social views somehow excuse her complete lack of manners.
I really don't believe that people would behave like this when a guest in someone else's home. Often the "lower classes" are portrayed as completely ignorant of social norms - take Tom's brother for example in the Christening episode, wanting to have his dinner with the staff. This is done I suspect to highlight how out of touch the aristocracy are in the modern world. However, the fact is that while Tom's brother may not have known which fork to use he would most certainly have been bought up to at least be polite in someone else's home.
Miss Bunting however appears to have not been taught anything of the sort which makes me wonder how on earth she became a teacher. I am not entirely sure why she was written this way. Was it to demonstrate how far Tom has changed from his first days as a member of the family? Was it to introduce a long term love interest for him? If so I am not sure Miss Bunting is the right character choice. She is just too patronising and controlling and I couldn't see him really falling for her at all.
wow, wow, love this im addicted
moviesfilmsreviewsinc14 May 2022
Rose is helping the Russian aristocracy by bringing them to Downton and showing them what they could have had if it wasn't for that pesky revolution. Spratt happened to be in Liverpool whilst Mary was having her sex holiday, and comes back bursting with news that he's far too scared of the Dowager to come out and say directly. His "I have a secret, can you guess what it is?" routine is glorious, but is countered by Violet informing him "I have told you before, I do not appreciate a man of mystery." Does he frequently skulk about the drawing room dropping unsubtle hints? What else does he know? He does make the rookie mistake of bringing it up with Mary when the Dowager summons her for a scolding, which goes about as well as you'd expect. Do not try and out-sass Lady Mary, Spratt. You will lose. Coming the week after Joanne Froggat's Golden Globes win and tearjerking accceptance speech, we get to see her giving a superb performance whilst seemingly doing very little. When Anna has to hide Mary's contraceptive, a scene that could be judgemental, we see just how weighed down by her rape she is and her terror at the possibility of being blamed for what happened. Froggat is magnificent, Anna is magnificent and creepy Bates should go far, far away and stop ruining everything. "Is this a mysterious present for me?" he asks, when Anna's trying to hide the Paper Bag of Sin. Not unless you want Lady Mary's used diaphragm, Bates. Poor Cora tries to take an interest in the running of Downton, but Robert doesn't want to distract her from her flower arranging. She tries to make polite conversation about Edith's newfound love of children, only to have him scoff "I only hope she isn't driving the mother mad." It leads to a wonderful shot of Cora, who really seems to despise Robert in that moment. He's a loathsome patronizing snob who mocks one of his daughters when he's not outright ignoring her, and Cora is tired of it. Up the social ladder, Isobel is starting to get a bit ticked off that her spinster companion for life is so keen to see her shacked up in heterosexual bliss. But karma is a funny old thing, and one of Rose's Russian refugees seems to have a bit of a past with Violet...
Granny's past.
mark.waltz3 February 2022
Warning: Spoilers
Mary certainly wishes she could go to the past for travels with her beloved and still formidable granny, going to Russia for the wedding of the Russian prince with her then husband, the late count Grantham. In fact, this is one of the few times where Mary actually gets a good insinuation, saying that if revelations about Lady Violet's past had taken place before her father was born, they'd have all types of fairy tales to spin. She's not on Edith case at all in this episode. In fact, Edith wasn't even present for this moment, in tears after she was told that she couldn't visit Marigold for the time being because his adoptive mother was upset. She had come home to find Edith and Marigold missing from the house, then later with her husband outside, and becoming more suspicious has put her foot down. Robert and Clara are certainly suspicious over this situation, while others think that Edith will drop the interest after a while. The audience knows better.
Lady Violet's past concerns visiting members of the former Russian aristocracy for a display of her souvenirs of a trip to St Petersburg from years before. A former Russian count is present and makes his presence known to the countess when she comes in, shocking her and leaving her near-silent, something that is very difficult to do. She had earlier admonished Mary when Spratt revealed that he had seen Mary coming out of a hotel, and got it out of her that she had slept with Lord Gillingham. It's obvious that Lady Violet had some experience or at least some knowledge indiscretions, and it's amusing to hear her speak about sexual relations considering how conservative she is in those types of conversations. As usual, Maggie Smith steals every moment she's on, and you can see the light in her eyes and the humor as the countess deals with these uncomfortable topics.
There are minor conversations in regards to the late Mr. Green, Tom's pending decision to move to America, and more footage dedicated to Cora and Miss Baxter and Cora getting the full story and giving advice as to how she feels Baxter should deal with what she learns. If only some of Cora's wisdom and understanding could rub off on her look-alike daughter Mary, but it seems that the late Sybil was the one who got the compassion while Edith got the ambition. Not much in the way of story for Isobel and Lord Merton, but some stories work better when they are told in small doses, working up to the important parts. The rarely-seen Spratt makes me glad by his appearance here that he is a recurring character, not in every episode, although the actor is perfect in expressing his dour nature. Eagle eye Carson and the kindly Mrs. Hughes as well as Daisy and Mrs. Pathmore don't have much to do, although there is a little bit of story concerning the World War 1 Memorial and the debate over whether Mrs. Passmore's deserter nephew who was shot should be included on it.
Lady Violet's past concerns visiting members of the former Russian aristocracy for a display of her souvenirs of a trip to St Petersburg from years before. A former Russian count is present and makes his presence known to the countess when she comes in, shocking her and leaving her near-silent, something that is very difficult to do. She had earlier admonished Mary when Spratt revealed that he had seen Mary coming out of a hotel, and got it out of her that she had slept with Lord Gillingham. It's obvious that Lady Violet had some experience or at least some knowledge indiscretions, and it's amusing to hear her speak about sexual relations considering how conservative she is in those types of conversations. As usual, Maggie Smith steals every moment she's on, and you can see the light in her eyes and the humor as the countess deals with these uncomfortable topics.
There are minor conversations in regards to the late Mr. Green, Tom's pending decision to move to America, and more footage dedicated to Cora and Miss Baxter and Cora getting the full story and giving advice as to how she feels Baxter should deal with what she learns. If only some of Cora's wisdom and understanding could rub off on her look-alike daughter Mary, but it seems that the late Sybil was the one who got the compassion while Edith got the ambition. Not much in the way of story for Isobel and Lord Merton, but some stories work better when they are told in small doses, working up to the important parts. The rarely-seen Spratt makes me glad by his appearance here that he is a recurring character, not in every episode, although the actor is perfect in expressing his dour nature. Eagle eye Carson and the kindly Mrs. Hughes as well as Daisy and Mrs. Pathmore don't have much to do, although there is a little bit of story concerning the World War 1 Memorial and the debate over whether Mrs. Passmore's deserter nephew who was shot should be included on it.
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