TaurusRose

I enjoyed this episode so much. There were so many scenes to like: Albert's willingness to be corrected and learn from others (his wife, Anson), the intimate moments between husband and wife (the playfulness, helping with her jewelry), Victoria neatly resolving her husband's place at her side, Ernest falling for Harriett and Victoria choosing physical closeness with Albert over abstinence. I really liked the gown Victoria wore when meeting with her uncle and I wish Emma and Wellington would just leave. She's catty and he's obnoxious. The kitchen people continue to suck up screen time (even more with the extended scenes) with their uninteresting stories and little Dash is still a cutie. ETA: Effective birth control wasn't introduced until 1960, before that it was a crapshoot with a whole lot of misinformation.

I agree with you about Anne's speech. It's rare to get two powerful POVs in the same series, much less the same episode, so kudos. Was it the same episode? If not, still kudos. LOL

I didn't particularly like Tituba because she was really kind of stupid in her choices, but what she said to Mary about whites discovering places that had already been discovered by the people who lived there and taking over was spot on. As for Anne, she really should take seriously the lesson taught to all the powerful witches that came before her...it never ends well for the biggest bitch.

I totally agree with this. At least Tituba gave Mary one hell of a piece of her mind filled with contempt and loathing before Anne took away her voice. I've never liked Anne and I'm hoping the bitch dies in childbirth. You can't control everything even if you're the most powerful (only) witch in Salem. I'm glad John survived because I like Shane West (sue me). I was also glad that Mary told Sebastian that she may have enjoyed the fuck, but that didn't mean she loved him or ever would. Burn. All true, but I still HATE Anne Hale Mather and hope that she dies in childbirth. I hope the brat rips her in two on the way out.

I really can't stand Mary; I stopped liking her in S2. This episode has not improved my feelings toward her. Mary is an idiot. The way they're trying to frame the reason for Mary's Darnley interest (in order to make her look strong and badass) is laughable. It's too bad Adelaide Kane only has one expression to convey complicated feelings; Rachel Skarsten's portrayal of Elizabeth is far superior. What the hell is wrong with Greer's hair? She really looked like someone's poor relative. The French court wasn't very interesting and if Leith is really dead, at least Narcisse is still in the picture and pissed off about Lola. Sadly, there are only two reasons I'm still watching Reign: (1) to see how they work their way into killing the QoS and (2) to keep saying fuck you to Sleepy Hollow.

Oh. My. Gosh. How nasty.

I thought Elizabeth's conversation with her mother (after discovering how inadequate her formal education really was) was hilarious. From the question, "what does this have to do with me?" to the remark about Elizabeth surely not calling her out for her motherhood abilities, I was dying. The queen mother's ability to just let things roll off her back is amazing.

Margaret's speech was highly offensive and underscored the feeling of superiority and sense of entitlement England took with them everywhere they went. Why would the African servants sing in praise of a foreign queen? Foreigners were occupying their country, claiming it and its riches for their empire, and treating them with disrespect and contempt. Seriously, if they wanted "civilization" they should have kept their asses in England or wherever. Sorry, that whole colonization of Africa and India really pisses me off.

So much for a great love. Sorry, I couldn't resist.

Yes! This! If I could like your post a thousand times, I would. Foot note to the above: Although Henry VIII did return both Mary and Elizabeth to the line of succession after Edward, Edward actually nominated Jane Grey, a cousin, as his heir, and she had support for about a minute. She was queen for 9 days before Mary Tudor rallied her supporters and took the crown. Jane was thrown in the Tower and beheaded shortly thereafter. Mary's claim was stronger than the Greys because her father (King James) was the son of Henry VIII's oldest sister.

At the moment, I'm having a bit of hot and cold reaction to Matt Smith's Philip. Sometimes he doesn't seem very attractive and at other times he really does. But for me, it's a minor quibble because I didn't think the real QEII & Philip were particularly super attractive young people either. IMO, the actors' appearances (and I'm talking about all of them) isn't really the thing, it's the essence of the people they are portraying that I need to buy into and none of them are failing in this area. I think Claire Foy is nailing it. She is so reserved and aloof in the various situations she finds herself in that at times I'm taken aback. But at the same time I can empathize with the enormous shock and burden she must be feeling. I'm not sure what scenes you're referring to between Elizabeth and Philip that seem too modern to you, but for me their private moments have been pitch perfect.

LOL Yes. Ernest is the guy you party with, but when you want someone who will "love, honor and cherish" you, he's not even a consideration.

Nancy aka Skerrett is often shown mending something when she's not dressing the queen. I can't help you with Jennings, though. She mostly seems to eat and get in Penge's business. I suppose they all could be busier, but since they serve little to no purpose story-wise, I don't pay them a lot of attention. I disagree with your view of Albert. Not many people want to sit around doing nothing when they feel they have contributions to make. I think most people want their lives to have some kind of meaning; marrying a queen doesn't take away your identity as a person nor should it. Not to mention, men (then and now) aren't used to not having any authority over their lives, or earning a living and having their own money among many other things. I didn't see greed as the motivator behind Albert's request, just the desire to be somewhat independent. If you think Albert is unhappy on this score, you should check out Prince Philip in The Crown.

Thanks! I thought that odd, too, but let it go as soon as Albert said, "With this ring I thee wed..."

What is Lord Alfred's position at court? His only purpose seems to be to hang around Victoria and her ladies.

You are.

Excellent points about the downstairs crew. I didn't watch Downtown Abbey, so I have nothing to compare them with, but they are fodder. Don't care. Go away. Peter Bowles is 80 years old. Sadly, we can't hang on to youth. I can't believe my face when compared to a picture of myself at 25 or so. Now, I'm crying. LOL

Yeah, it kind of sucks. PBS shows the episodes for free for a limited time. After that, you can subscribe to their OD service. I want to add the series to my collection 'cause I'm graspy like that. LOL Blue is my favorite color and I've long been in love with blue sapphires. I think it's really pretty wonderful that the royal family has so many heirloom pieces to treasure. Just think how amazing it would be to wear a piece of jewelry that Albert had given Victoria.

Plus the tip of the blade had a little nub on the end to prevent injuring your dueling partner. I liked everything about Victoria's wedding. She ignored convention and looked every bit the young, romantic, radiant bride that she was. I watch practically everything with closed caption on. I'm not hard of hearing, I just find the sound for dialogue is awful on a lot of shows. Everything explained here was completely edited out of the U.K. version, so I couldn't really figure out what the deal was with Nancy aka Eliza until now. I don't know why that decision was made, but when I bought the season pass from iTunes, I discovered they are selling the U.K. version. Since I want what is being broadcast here, I asked for and received a refund.

I liked this episode very much. I love the chemistry between Victoria and Albert and I loved all of their scenes. It's so sweet how head over heels they are in love with each other. I thought it was adorable the way neither could wait to be married or that Albert spent a significant amount of time thinking about their honeymoon. At the same time, I can understand him wanting an identity and purpose aside from being the queen's husband. As always Ernest was entertaining. The side trip to the "house of ill repute" cracked me up. I thought Gretchen's amusement was gentle and her treatment of Albert very kind. The kitchen people continue to be unwelcome filler, but at least the extra dialogue in scenes edited in the UK broadcast help to make the affected scenes coherent. The Duke of Wellington is a smug jerk and I so wanted Victoria to say something snarky when he suggested Albert might be Catholic. I liked Rufus Sewell's performance as Lord M immensely in this his final episode. It must have been bittersweet watching the young queen whose affection and ear he'd held for a time run off to start a new life with her beloved prince. I guess Leopold didn't mind Albert's reduced income too much when the alternative was to give up his own. I'm liking Tom Hughes as Albert. He's not replacing Rupert Friend for me, but I can appreciate both performances because when all is said and done, I'm just a mushy romantic at heart. And I can never have too many scenes of Victoria snuggling with Dash. He pledged his worldly goods to his new bride and Wellington sniggered because Albert comes from a poor German country. I'm sorry, but the English nobles were insufferably arrogant.

Maybe the first time you see it, but becomes highly annoying thereafter.

I'm only a teeny tiny bit curious about what gave them a bump the week before. But as long as it doesn't hold and continues to decline, I'm good. Better than good. Ecstatic even.

Actually, Jonathan Rhys Meyers.

This. Me, too. Ecbert's constant fawning over Alfred got on my nerves ages ago. Unlike others I didn't care about Helga dying nor was it a surprise. It wasn't made clear (at least not to me) why she went off the deep end in the first place and started fixating on the girl they abducted during their last raid. That little girl went out like a champ. Kudos to her and offing Helga on the way out. Floki is all alone now. I wonder how his end will come about. Ivar and Sigurd. I always knew the animosity between those two would end up with Sigurd dead, since Ivar was shown to be a murderer since he was a child. I hope the remaining brothers shun that crazy bastard now because he's an uncontrollable rabid animal. That said, I really don't care about the remaining brothers, they're all sketchy and undeserving of any loyalty or admiration, IMO. It's hard to believe they are the spawn of Ragnar because they're all so ordinary and Ragnar was anything but. Since Aethelwulf escaped with his family, I guess that means I'll have to see that fucking Judith again next year. I'm glad Ecbert is dead because I was tired of him ages ago, too. I guess I wasn't surprised that he had an ace up his sleeve that would put a curve in the plans of any Northmen sticking around to build a settlement. It's always good to see JRM, although I could do without the obligatory sex scene he always seems to have.

Well, my free trial for DTN has expired, so I won't be seeing any of these people. I'll miss Rachel and Lawrence. sniff.