anna0852

If it means a fully staffed firehouse again, then I am all for it. I’m currently working my way back through season five and the difference is night and day.

My best guess would be how collaborators were treated throughout Europe in the immediate post war period. Some were vilified by their communities, like the head shaving and public humiliation in France. Some died due to mob action and some simply settled quietly right back into their old lives and tried to pretend they hadn’t participated.

Oh yes! Violet and Millicent could potentially appear as well as they both appear to have lived in Poplar for a while. Violet was definitely there during the war.

Von Braun wasn’t instantly recognizable to the public the way Serena would be. Remember, she was famous pre-Gilead and has been fairly prominent since. Plus, Von Braun wasn’t associated with human rights violations the way other Nazi leadership was. If the US had tried to cut a deal with Himmler or Goerring for example, the reaction might’ve been different. By the time Von Braun became known in the press for NASA rocketry, the war had been over for nearly 10 years. With the Cold War raging, there was a real emphasis on overlooking shady pasts for anyone who provided a bulwark against the communists.It’s really only in the past couple of decades that Von Braun has truly been vilified for his work on the V1’s and V2’s and the slave labor used to produce them. The conflict we’re seeing on the screen however is still ongoing. And there are going to be a lot of people angry at Serena. She is a living symbol of the suffering of millions. It’s going to be very hard to find any place to put her without her life being in long-term danger.

The way I figure it, the prequel series is going to have to focus on Sister Julianne, Sister Evangelina, and Sister Monica Joan. None of the lay midwives are old enough to have been working in London during the blitz, with the exception of Phyllis, and I got the impression that she did not. Dr. Turner and Fred are both confirmed to be in the army and out of the country. And Shelagh doesn’t join the order until after the war. However, they have a wonderful opportunity for one little cameo: Sister Monica Joan delivering Valerie Dyer. Remember, it’s canon that she attended Valerie‘s mother at her birth 😁

Called it!

I think he makes a good point. I like being able to flip on a familiar show in the background as I cook or work. These prestige shows on the streamers that are only 6 to 8 episode seasons suck up so much attention. You can’t look away because everything means something and feeds into something else. With an 18 to 22 episode season you don’t have to be nearly so focused on details.

The karaoke didn’t really happen, it was just June envisioning what could have been without Gilead. And I’m going to assume that the people on the wall were extra judicial killings, similar to how concentration camp survivors turned on their guards at the end of World War II. Not some sort of official execution.

Lydia is one of the three primary book characters

Mrs. Putnam receiving no consequences is very sadly true to history. Think about all the Germans, who went to scott-free following World War II. They just picked up and went on with their lives. Only a handful were ever held to account. I don’t think I’ll watch the Testament either. I’d much rather watch something focused on American society being rebuilt. Not with June front and center, I’m over her. But again, harkening back to World War II there is quite a historical template to be used when you think about the survivors of the concentration camps returning home and trying to restart their lives. Margaret has always said that all the elements within the book were drawn from history.

I wouldn’t put too much stock in that. Time moves very differently on the show. One season does *not* equal one calendar year. Lucy was talking about being in her late 20s in season four. So a birthdate of 1988, placing her at 37 years old now, makes no sense. And Tim just said two episodes ago he was 45, which means he would’ve been born in 1980.

I know she didn’t keep her in the traditional sense. But she wasn’t forced to place her for adoption either and apparently retained enough custody that she was able to pull Colette out of the orphanage without the nuns being able to stop her.

Natalie lied to the school about who her guardian was.

Natalie’s mom could signed have over guardianship to the older sister. It’s not uncommon when you’re dealing with less-than-stellar parents.

Herman definitely gave up his rank. He’s back to being just a regular old firefighter on engine. I think he was OK as a lieutenant, but captain was more desk time and paperwork than he wanted. And battalion chief would be even worse. I hope he talked it through with Cindy first though, that’s going to be a pay cut. given the departure of Carver and Ritter plus the promotion of Mouch, I wonder what’s going to happen with the ladder truck? That Stella’s entire team. I’m hoping they elect to lose the actual engine. Because other than Herman, those crew members are just extras. Have Herman and Mouch go back to truck plus maybe bring Kylie as the fourth and Mouch is at least acting lieutenant while Stella is on pregnancy restriction/leave.

I’m re-watching and I just love the moment when the woman in curlers comes banging on the door. And you think she’s about to storm in all angry as heck, give her unmarried daughter hell about having had a baby. And instead, in true gruff East End fashion, tells her daughter to bring the baby home. She can see the family nose on him and he might as well live in the family house. They’ll pull out the cot and make the best of things. It was just such a lovely moment! And a marked dichotomy to poor Paula, who gave birth with (kind) strangers and her parents miles away with their metaphorical fingers in their ears. And while it was a bit of a soapy storyline, I did love that when Nancy finally told Phyllis, Millicent and Violet her news she was met with nothing but congratulations and (concerns for her health). I guarantee you she did not get that reaction when the authority figures learned of her pregnancy with Colette. I still think it’s a flipping miracle that she managed to keep Colette.

That ended exactly how I thought it was going to end. The second they started talking about adoption, there was gonna be a birth control failure!

I think since she hadn’t made her final vows yet, taking off the head covering was OK. I would’ve loved to have seen Shelagh and Patrick discussing how they would ensure their daughters were never caught as unaware as that poor teen mom. Maybe even a mention from Dr. Turner about making sure they have access to birth control.

Damn it. I hate being held for midseason

Yeah, I’m always willing to hand wave the size of the supposed newborn simply because a film set is not a healthy place for newborns to hang out. The only exception might be Call the Midwife because the whole show is centered around delivering babies and they put the work in on the back end for those babies to be present.

Or maybe it’s a tax thing?

Boden explicitly told them that when he left at the end of last season. When he got promoted to deputy commissioner, he told Herman that ultimately he wanted Herman to become the battalion chief at 51. But Herman had to pass about the captain test (which he has done) and is now facing the chief test. Herman moving up, opens the spot on engine for Mouch to become lieutenant.

I would absolutely buy Mouch as chief vs Hermann. And having Carver transfer for a ‘clean slate’ seems like a sensible enough storyline, even though I still think that the show is nuts for cutting the character in the first place. Especially since Jake just got promoted the main cast.

It’s a first responder show. Write off is easy: line of duty injury. Have Bobby lose hearing in an ear or nerve damage to a hand/foot or any number of things that force him into medical retirement. Killing the character was a cheap shot. An injury would have at least left the door open for future guest shots.

I think his actor is at university and has limited availability for filming.