Eolivet

I can't figure out if Nelly would make an ideal disciple for Nicole or not. Nicole liked needy people, but wanted to be the caretaker, not the caretake...ee. Nicole would probably be impressed with Nelly's murderous skill, use her to off a few people and then spike the distilled water for her iron with poisonous gas.

I had no memory of the Catherine/Sonya Walger/Penny from LOST case -- that was two weeks ago -- so I had completely forgotten that she didn't kill her daughter or that it was some creepy guy working for her husband. After not addressing the case at all last week, the fact that they expected us to jump back into it as if we remembered what was going on was asking a little too much. So, we're supposed to keep track of all the random plot threads and drink those gallon-size glasses of red wine that Olivia does during the show? Those two things should be mutually exclusive. Fitz and Jake's "duet" was random, creepy and yet, somehow completely appropriate for this show.

I really liked this episode, and I didn't expect to like it that much. Meredith was hilarious comic relief -- especially her mocking of Derek. "Have you cured death yet, Meredith? If I was in D.C., I would've cured death by now" was priceless. Ellen Pompeo doesn't get much of a chance to be a comedienne, and she has a great, dry delivery. How many times did they mention that Callie is bisexual and also likes men? Not much of an anvil at all...nah...

I know your feelings about Nicole, WendyCR72 -- and I never saw any romantic spark with her and Bobby. She was the definition of a femme fatale. But I liked how VDO played Bobby in "Semi-Detached" with Nelly. At first, I was like "Well he's totally over-the-top!" and then as the episode went on, the line blurred more and more. His face when Nelly gave him his Academy photo (which was a good likeness, my goodness!) and then when he was trying to "break" her at the end, using a quieter, more intimate approach. It was a human side of Bobby we hadn't seen much of until then (and saw waaaaaay too much of in a couple years), but as you and others have said, Rene Balcer knew how to balance the personal without making it too melodramatic. Take away Nelly's crazy, and I could see Bobby with a sweet girlfriend like her -- who was devoted to him (in a weird, non-creepy way) and who took care of him, like he had to take care of his family. Or I could be influenced by the fact that I've always liked Francie Swift's intensity (ever since she was Megan/Bobby (hee!)/Nancy on the Mothership, who killed her therapist). A lot of actors were overmatched with VDO, but she was right there with him. I think that's why I enjoyed that little subplot so much. Not that I really want Bobby with a crazy killer. (I never understood the argument that Bobby had romantic feelings for Nicole Wallace. Nothing like wooing someone with stories of their childhood sexual abuse -- which he brought up every time he saw her. No, she was his Moriarty -- but nothing more. Eww!)

I haven't been able to stop chuckling about this since yesterday, so I'm just requoting it for posterity. If I could like it a hundred times, I would. Heh heh. Again, not seeing romantic sparks with Mary. I half-expect her to opine in the next episode how (a la "Clueless"), "Charles has become one of my favorite shopping partners!"

Ooh, great point about the religious themes, WendyCR72! Actually, that reminded me of an amendment I have to make to my pixie blonde list. It wasn't just pixies doing the killing, as the S3 finale and S4 premiere can attest. I call it... Nicole Wallace and her Tow-Headed Terrors (a.k.a. blonde killer/criminals): -"Ill-Bred" -"Consumed" -"Semi-Detached" -"Blind Spot" -"Bedfellows" -"Faithfully" (which can also join the religious list! Janel Moloney as the minister's wife) Also, the show went to this well a couple times: Is the fetus an accessory after the fact? Pregnant killers -"Undaunted Mettle" -"Silver Lining"

I had absolutely no sympathy for Jack. I don't care how cute he was -- that kid was a brat who needed to be taught a lesson somehow. I did laugh at Pops thinking that Dre saying Jack disappointed him was worse than spanking him. That's some interesting logic there. The whole "spanking in the abstract vs. spanking your own child" scene was spot-on. Once again, this show absolutely nails the social commentary.

I know she was crazy, I know she was a murderer, but damn if I don't ship Bobby with Francie Swift's Nelly in "Semi-Detached" just a little. Yes, she's obsessed with her ex and made him a keychain with human hair. But there was something so sweet about Bobby with her in this episode. I know, I'm as unhinged as she is. But..."I didn't mean for you to see it." Sorry, Eames -- I don't think he was just playing her. Despite the crazy. And the human hair. And all the killing.

Daisy Lewis (formerly Sarah Bunting) just tweeted this: I feel sorry for her. It was a thankless role, and how much her character seemed to be hated always made me uncomfortable.

A nine-year old show expects to see some recycling of themes, but there were some that the writers seemed particularly fond of -- even if they were just quirks having little to do with the cases. I've started the list from my early season rewatch, but I'm sure others will remember better than me (and can add their own topics!) These just stuck out: I became a criminal because of a childhood toy -"Chinoiserie" -"Cherry Red" -"Vacancy" (bonus points to the latter two for becoming a criminal due to a toy car!) I'm a criminal/suspect with a highly attractive younger girlfriend who won't put out: -"Crazy" -"Shandeh" -"D.A.W." I killed because of a fake person/person who doesn't exist: -"Faith" -"In the Dark" -"Legacy" Bonus points to these tropes occurring in the same year (when the writers' room definitely needed more ideas): My mommy got sick, so I became a serial killer! -"A Murderer Among Us" -"D.A.W." I'm a pixie blonde, so naturally I'm also a killer! -"Blind Spot" -"Bedfellows"

And I strongly disagree with this. Fellowes has said (and I have no reason to doubt him, because of how much he loved M/M) he would've written Matthew going off to America or to work in the London office or something, had Stevens agreed to come back for a few episodes a year. Stevens refused to do even that, so Fellowes had no choice but to kill him off. I agree that the "zippy car of death" was Fellowes' way to give the middle finger (as opposed to Matthew dying of a tragic illness or heroically saving someone, with all the family tearfully surrounding him), but Stevens gave Fellowes no choice but to kill Matthew. Fellowes chose the manner of his demise, but Stevens was the impetus for it all. But I do think Stevens made Fellowes wise to (and skeptical of) all of Mary's future love interests -- to the point where none of them -- likely including the guy she ends up marrying -- will need to be a regular on the show. Fellowes got caught flat-footed when one-half of his main power couple opted out, and I think the writing for Mary's suitors has been very purposeful after that. It would've been bizarre for Matthew to suddenly agree to leave Mary and just disappear, but not these other suitors. Mary will remain at Downton (where the action is) and her eventual husband can have matters at his own estate to look after. He shows up for the occasional family dinner, and it's pretty much status quo (and likely the way many aristocratic marriages functioned back then). If the guy wants to join the cast, great! But if he decides to leave, he doesn't have to die in order to do so. Ironically, I think Fellowes wants to lock up a suitor/husband for Mary just to make him irrelevant. Making her husband cheat on her or killing him gives him relevance. He wants someone to stick with Mary to occasionally disagree when the plot calls for it, and who can conveniently disappear for long stretches of time so Mary can interact with her family.

Charles Blake has an Irish estate of his own. After the Stevens debacle, I think Fellowes ensured all of Mary's potential love interests could be very conveniently written to be away, in case they wanted to leave the show for long periods of time, without jeopardizing their health or Mary's. (Gillingham, when he was a viable suitor, also had his own estate). The show is going to have to do a lot of fancy footwork, however, to get me to think Mary is romantically interested in Charles Blake. I'd have expected an emotional scene between them by now instead of a whole bunch of aimless flirting and snark. Mary likes to deflect, but not that much, and other than the pigs (and even that's debatable), I haven't seen her have one genuine moment where she drops her guard with Blake. She had several with Matthew (in public and private) by this time. She's even had a few with Gillingham -- despite his turn for the worse. But with Blake, it's like "Let's scheme and plot and be besties!" not "I think I'm falling for you and I'm scared to tell you!" I wonder if Fellowes is now using Blake and Gillingham to show what Mary needs in her next husband: intellectual conversation, fun and flirting, and also mutual attraction and deep passion. Combined together, Blake and Gillingham would be the perfect guy for her. But they're each uncovering sides of herself she thought were lost forever when Matthew died, and it's going to be Bachelor #3 who becomes the total package. (I still wonder if Lord Merton has a nicer son somewhere -- if only because I think Fellowes would be incredibly amused by Isobel becoming Mary's mother-in-law all over again.)

Yes! At the very least she studied Ellen Pompeo's cadence and inflection. It was so distracting, though, because Kate Burton and Ellen Pompeo have entirely different speaking voices -- Meredith was like her mother in temperament, but not appearance. I thought Sarah Paulson nailed the temperament of Ellis Grey, while this actress looked like...alternate universe Meredith. Other than that, I thought this was a very strong episode. It was a treat seeing Kate Burton's scenes again -- she's such a talent. She and Meredith were one of my favorite stories in the early years. That "you are no more than ordinary" scene still gives me chills. This is one of the times where Shonda's tendency to hire the same actors for different shows really pays off. I hope Kate Burton comes back to Scandal soon. And I liked Maggie for the first time -- she was very much a secondary character, with everyone reacting to her. I feel like the Maggie-centric episode would've played a lot better after this one -- now that she's been "accepted" into the Grey's "family" (literally!) Richard watching his two surrogate(ish) daughters poring over their mother's journal was a really nice moment. Poor guy only ever wanted a family of his own. One minor nitpick: nobody abbreviates Massachusetts General Hospital as "Mass Gen." It's "Mass General" or "MGH." Come on, Shonda -- you went to Dartmouth: tell your writers something about the regional culture!

I don't agree with this at all. As other posters have stated, boys and men of all ages are given an incredible amount of leeway when it comes to sexual activity. The President's son would have his face in the tabloids for three weeks, but then America would be onto the next because "boys will be boys." Just look at the Senators, Governors and politicians involved in sexual scandals, who the public kept reelecting. And then see how clean a female politician has to keep her image. Ted Kennedy can have a dead girl in his car, and get reelected numerous times -- yet Hillary Clinton is a concern if she projects the image of a grandmother. The double standard is real and it is rampant. I actually thought Fitz's "I'm a failure as a man" speech was a sly bit of misandry on Shonda's part. In this episode about female sexuality being put on display, hidden and then attempted to be sold for profit, Fitz claiming that Liv's departure made him look impotent was...an interesting contrast to say the least.

I really liked the scene with Rose and Atticus Aldridge. It was well-played and poignant. Since Downton isn't exactly known for its romantic subtlety, I keep thinking what they face in 10 years if they marry. And what their children may face, being Jewish. Lots of nice, subtle romances this year. Isobel and Lord Merton, Molesley and Baxter and now Rose and Atticus (potentially). The show hasn't done subtle well in a long time, so it's refreshing. I'll be happy for Mary if Charles Blake makes her happy, but I really can't see him as anything more than her gay best friend at this point. Careful, Bates. The last man who opined about all the children he was going to have ended up in a ditch.

Not only did they nail the situation, but they nailed the tone of it. Dre strolls in, deferential, but not apologetic -- with a touch of self-satisfaction. He commanded respect from his boss. His female colleague was harried, guilty and meek in how she presented. Her body language implied she'd done something wrong, and was reprimanded for it. It absolutely nailed the dynamic between how men and women feel about their child-rearing responsibilities. Brilliant. The show is using Lawrence Fishburne really well. He had some laugh-out-loud moments, especially in the theater: "He's going to die soon," as well as his description of women's "cartoon princess voice" when they're trying to pretend everything is OK. As others have said, really great social commentary there (especially because it's true!).

I thought this was a great episode -- heavy on Liv's fixing, judicious use of Olitz scenes (a little goes a long way), Mellie snapping out of her funk at last (expect to see her fully dressed next episode), progress on the secret assassin!Tom story and a reminder that if Olivia wants normal, she shouldn't be looking at Fitz or Jake. I was actually really pleased to see Jake try to choke David Rosen. Though I agree with a poster above, that Scott Foley doesn't quite have the dark hitman look down, so he has to do more "show" than "tell." I actually find myself really missing Charlie. George Newbern is the best of any of them (better than Huck or Jake) at balancing "I'm just a normal, regular guy...who will torture and kill you if someone pays me." He was equally believable drilling holes in someone as he was playing happy families with Quinn. With Jake sometimes, I feel like he's playing at being a bad guy. "Look at me! I'm a badass! Would my black leather jacket lie to you?"

Post-season 1, you could say the same about Matthew. The guy went to war, and managed to make it all about his love life (Mary! Lavinia! The toy dog!). Even his war injury was directly related to his love life/Mary/his not-Mary love interest. In season 3, I expected to see Matthew practicing law again. Nope. He became completely about Downton. He got married and practically never shared a scene with his mother again. He went from a character in his own right to a complete appendage of Mary (except when his job was to disagree with her, for conflict and drama). He gave up his job, his relationship with his own family, everything except I guess his principles for the sole purpose of being Mary's husband, for the advancement of Mary's family's estate (that would be his and Mary's in 40 years if he was lucky, which he wasn't). Don't get me wrong -- I don't mind or care that Matthew was molded to basically serve Mary's storyline, as she is the female lead, but I think Matthew is being remembered with rose-colored glasses. After season 1, he's basically the same as Blake or Gillingham: everything he did revolved around Mary in some way, shape or form. After years and years of other dramas creating superficial female characters -- wives and girlfriends for strong male characters much in the same way, it's refreshing to see the shoe on the other foot. But I don't think Matthew was all that developed, outside of Mary. We just knew him longer.

Mary was also only married to Matthew for 18 months (March 1920-September 1921). She loved him dearly, and she certainly knew him longer than that, but it was an 18 month marriage and she's 33. If she were 43 or 53, I could see making the argument that she had a great first marriage, years of happiness and has left Downton secure with an heir so that now she doesn't have to marry again. But I think if she doesn't marry again, that's just sad. To have maybe 40 years of her life remaining and decide "Nope, 18 months was all I need, I'm good." To say nothing of how she may want her child to have a father figure (especially if he's going to inherit an estate). Heck, the audience knew Matthew for longer than Mary was married to him. So, I don't see the need to keep her mourning his memory while her romantic life passes her by. Either Charles Blake or some new mystery suitor could make her quite happy -- as she said herself "As happy with my second husband as I was with my first."

I'm not a person of color, but this characterization is very uncomfortable to me. I understand Sterling is presenting himself in a certain way. I think he seems to act a different way in his talking heads than he does on the line. If he's just trying to get TV time, he seems harmless to me. If he's a true contender, his skills will win out, and I think we will see a less over-the-top version of Sterling. And I would take harmless Sterling any day over deluded, nasty braggart Santos.

The thrust of Kevin O'Leary's bio has changed as well -- he's no longer "turned a $10,000 loan into a software business worth $2.2 million," now he's "sold a children's education company for $4 million" (or something?) Must've been a recent transaction. The credits now look less like "Shark Tank" and more like "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous." We get it, they're rich -- they have money to invest. I don't need it spelled out in sports cars and yachts.

There was a rumor that Lily James was supposedly leaving Downton at the end of the season (thanks, DianeDobbler!), which would've made it much more likely she ended up with this Atticus Aldridge -- a one-off character. I still think Fellowes is content to let Branson the Bachelor be, at least until next season. Yes! "Seinfeld." I knew there was a reference I'd missed. I still think Gillingham will be difficult to shake, but not in a threatening/blackmailing/controlling way like Carlisle was. Put it this way: I'd think if someone asked Mary if she was going to marry Gillingham now, she'd say "No," whereas she always said "Of course!" when asked the same about Carlisle. Mary has made up her mind, but Gillingham hasn't accepted it. I see him being a pushy, clingy ex, but not creepy or stalkerish. I could be wrong, though.

Anyone else think Gregson will be revealed to have joined the brown shirts, because that's how bad Edith's luck actually is? I still find Gillingham whiny and pathetic as opposed to the domineering nature of Carlisle. Mary didn't look too impressed with his pleas either. I kept thinking of some TV show or movie about "I don't accept the break up!" Still not ready to declare him a villain just yet. Just a desperate, mopey, temper tantrum-throwing manchild.

Just rewatched "Undaunted Mettle," and I think it's a highly underrated episode. It was one of the more "soapy" episodes I can remember, but it somehow never felt over-the-top and contrived. The slow revelation of Laurette's three families, plus who the victim turned out to be was just perfect soap drama. Jessica Hecht was great, too -- perfectly pitched as the assumed-Trophy-Wife. When Laurette points at her pregnant belly and says "That is nothing!", it could've been groan-worthy, but it somehow worked. It's one of those episodes that I feel teetered on the brink of melodrama, but never crossed over -- in later seasons, I think it would've been unbearable. But these early writers knew how to skirt that line really well.

Who was a riff on Sherlock Holmes as well, tying into the "Doctor as Sherlock" feeling. This was a pretty good episode until the end. I realize there are five (?) episodes left until the finale, but to have Clara "suddenly" decide that everything she found wrong with traveling with the Doctor before didn't matter anymore because he saved a few people...? I wish she'd been written like the Companion version of the Doctor with Martha -- where she was mourning the loss of "her" Doctor, and it made her very skeptical about this one and less likely to trust anything he said. Instead, her character has become a series of plot points -- when it makes sense for her to distrust the Doctor, she does. When it makes sense for her to trust him again, she does. Her "Impossible Girl" schtick has made her less like a fully-formed character, and more like a Marionette -- when the writers/story need her to act one way, they just yank on her strings.