shang yiet
-
Posts
488 -
Joined
Content Type
Blogs
Gallery
Downloads
Discussion
Posts posted by shang yiet
-
-
I understand why Ada would enjoy being the lady of the house after so many years of being dominated by her domineering sister.
On the other hand, she needn't lord it over her sister as she must know that Agnes sacrificed her happiness to marry a cruel man to save the family financially. So she is in debt to Agnes.
I just wish the writing was better. Julian Fellowes is not at all subtle, every point he makes is underlined twice.
I remain bored by Peggy's story. It feels like a dull history lesson. Also is it realistic that the only racist out of all the people she meets in NY is Armstrong? Also not very discreet to be arranging a meeting at a public park with a married man.
Now about the downstairs folk, I'm still not that interested in their personal issues. I feel they are most useful (storytelling-wise, exposition-wise) when they are commenting on the upstairs folk to give us another POV of the upstairs people.
Now Marian is too modern for me. Any 1880s lady with no personal fortune of her own and with her aunt financially ruined would not so quickly break off her engagement like that, even if she really didn't love him.
-
2
-
-
Mr Van Rijn will turn up alive and well. Is it confirmed he is really dead? Maybe he went exploring or was lost at sea but they never found his body.
A long-lost love of Agnes will turn up. She was in love with him 40 years ago but he was poor so she had to turn him down.
Gladys will be forced to marry the Duke but the night before her wedding, she will escape out the window with the help of the guy she really likes.
-
The thing is, Marian has been written as 'modern'. We never see her eagerly putting herself out there or showing any anxiety about securing her future.
Gladys can afford to sit back and wait as she's an heiress and there will always be suitors chasing her. Marian is a poor relation who should know the van Rijn money is not coming to her.
-
1
-
-
On 12/4/2023 at 2:08 PM, lucindabelle said:
Peggy’s storylines bore me. I don’t turn on this show to be immersed in the social issues of the day- similarly if we spent many weeks on the strike I’d be bored with that. TBH I’m here for the clothes.
Same here. I feel like every Peggy scene is like being hit with a condensed history book. Boring. And so not subtle. Of course boorish white racists would burst into the restaurant.....
Quotewhere the social issues of the white people are presented in ways where we're personally invested, with Peggy it's just an abstract thing where she's Donig What's Right. So somehow things that are far far more important (like Civil Rights) are far less important than who gets the central box at the opera.
I felt that way with Downton Abbey. Mary and Edith are allowed their personal quirks and flaws but Sybil had to be always Doing What's Right, which is why I found her the most boring sister.
Tired of the clock which is getting more airtime than some major characters. Still don't care about the servants, I can't remember why one butler has to forgive the other, don't care about the dead wife.
QuoteDid people really do public proposals in that era?
That scene just doesn't ring true to the 1880s old money circles. I almost expected Agnes to get out her smartphone to record the moment.
-
2
-
3
-
-
I am just not interested in Peggy's dull baby storyline. It's not Gilded Age specific, it could have happened to any girl, rich or poor, black or white, in any time period.
Yes, Agnes, Bertha and George really should be busy matchmaking. What are they waiting for? Although I suspect Oscar's sexuality is an open secret in high society. He's already in his 30s, hanging out with that dashing man friend who is also single, no interest in women, disappearing somewhere at nights. Agnes and Ada are not stupid, I suspect they know.
Not interested in the servants, I can hardly tell them apart. The footman and the maid are both still bland.
I agree that things seem too easy for Bertha. I feel Mrs Astor and Ward McAllister succumbed too easily.
-
3
-
-
Oh she had excellent networking skills but the Mulroneys weren't handing over their money to her. That's where the British royals come in. And the reason why she quit acting was a serious lack of talent.
QuoteBut the BRF mindset towards charity and activism is bringing publicity to as many (vetted and approved) causes and institutions as they can - quantity over quality. And that's a different approach to both Meghan and Harry.
They said in their half-in half-out proposal they wanted a more progressive role but so far, they haven't shown their work has much quality.
-
1
-
-
On 2/25/2023 at 5:45 PM, Melonie77 said:
They did prepare her. The Queen personally selected aides who had been with the RF for a long time to assure Meghan's smooth transition into her new role
i think the experienced Samantha Cohen was asked by the Queen to stay on just to help Meghan. She had quite a lot of help given that she rushed into royal life after a mere 18-month transatlantic courtship.
William was just being sensible when he advised Harry to slow down, not just for his sake but for the sake of his bride who came from the land of no tabloids, never saw a walkabout, didn't know the words of the UK anthem, twisted her ankles trying to curtsey.... But they wanted to rush into marriage hence the crash course. Also, Harry himself didn't seem to help Meghan much. Maybe he thought since M was so smart....
I don't see the need for that bit of British Empire history, H and M were happy to accept all the royal perks and privileges, titles and Charles' money, rent-free palace-adjacent accommodation, publicly-funded security, curtseys from the common British folk...
Oh and I suspect H and M will find that the American press can be just as brutal as the British press.
-
2
-
-
On 2/21/2023 at 3:56 PM, Melonie77 said:
I honestly don't think the royal family wanted them gone. I believe they were brokenhearted to lose Harry and very disappointed that Meghan did not work out. I think she was just impossible to work with and determined to leave anyway. I'm sorry if you think I'm being unkind but I think this couple is dangerous and they make me nervous for reasons I won't be able to explain here.
I agree. They wanted Harry to stay, they never wanted to chase him off. They were upset out of love and concern. But his have-your-cake -and-eat-it-too option was not practical.
Harry might have fantasised about being out and living quietly in South Africa as Just Harry, a normal person, one of the lads, but now he's in the US building a 'brand'. That wasn't his dream but Meghan's dream. I feel she just wanted to use the British royals as a stepping stone to Hollywood fame, I'm pretty sure the Queen, Charles and William were nervous about that.
-
2
-
1
-
-
No, H and M made a mountain out of a molehill over a child they insisted should be a prince entitled to 24-hour tax-funded security. They're leaving hospital with a healthy child, no worries about full-time nanny care and parental leave... Gee, just pose for a 5-min photocall and hand over a photo, then you can have all the privacy you want. I bet the Windsor Castle photocall took a lot longer to arrange and more time than 5 minutes on the hospital step. They made a fuss over nothing.
-
2
-
-
Quote
The royal family was very welcoming in the beginning until MM showed her true personality - which did not take long.
H and M even gushed over how welcoming the royals were in their engagement interview. Or were they lying?
But seriously, did H and M really believe they were sooo popular and doing the job better than Charles and Will? Why would the other royals be jealous? They've all had their own successful popular tours in the past and they knew perfectly well new royal brides/couples always get a lot of attention at first. But that always fades away in the end the further you are pushed down the line of succession and the younger generation grows up.
The Aussie tour got a lot of positive press at that time but funnily enough, some negative stories about it emerged afterwards - hot tea throwing, wanting the entire wing of the Australian high commission building, M saying she couldn't believe she wasn't paid to shake hands... So maybe they ruffled some Australian feathers...
As for rent-free Nottingham Cottage located in a safe, secure, premium location of London... well, H could have used his inheritance to rent a bigger home.. but he chose not to.
About having to serve up Archie on a silver platter... Gee, it's just a five-minute photocall and one official photo... such fuss over nothing.
-
4
-
-
I'm from a Commonwealth country and I believe most people don't have any special feelings about her. Just because she's biracial doesn't mean the people of the Commonwealth automatically feel a special connection to her. So I disagree with that expert who was so sure M would have been such as asset for the Commonwealth. She never lived in Asia, Africa or the Caribbean or showed any interest in the culture and people there. How would she have been an asset?
That part when M was lamenting about family. "Never easy, never perfect"'. Well, the Windsors have my sympathy there, dealing with M as their family, since she's not perfect or easy herself.
Thomas Markle, ok, he's not easy to deal with himself, but the Queen and Charles gave perfectly sensible advice to just meet Thomas and nip in the bud. But M rejected their advice and thought she knew better. Hence, the letter (written to make her look good, pull at the heartstrings like she said) and all the mess that followed. when she leaked details to 5 friends who blabbed to a magazine...
Funny how M lectured about how bad it is to label people but here comes this expert to point out all M's haters are middle-aged white women! Yeah so? Are this group of women not entitled to their opinions?
It's sad to read about the horrible threats from crazies, of course, that's simply awful for any public figure to face including H and M.
But I get the feeling H and M scroll through every article, every blog, every website ... just stop it. Didn't M claim in previous interviews that she only reads the Economist and that criticism and praise all go down the same drain? Was she lying?
Harry claiming that M never asked him to leave... Who is he kidding? Oh and that part when someone thanked M for her sacrifice? What sacrifice? She jumped at the chance to marry into royalty. She leveled up.
So Harry chose option have-your-cake-and eat-it too and was surprised William shouted at him? I would have done the same in William's position.
I don't see anything wrong in M not being allowed to join the Sandringham meeting. They probably didn't trust her not to secretly tape the meeting.
-
11
-
4
-
2
-
-
How H and M have the nerve to complain about leaks from Buckingham Palace or Thomas Markle blabbing to the press when here we have a couple who seem to have endless platforms to use their voice. They are certainly not 'silenced' now.
So how many time are they going to rehash their story before the public lose interest? In these tough economic times, there's going be a limit of sympathy for exiled royalty sitting on mummy's 20 or 30 million.
This docu series doesn't clear anything up, it's so obviously one-sided, their story, their truth but not necessarily THE truth. Also it makes them look bad to be seen endlessly washing dirty family linen.
Oh and I think H implied that the stress of the lawsuit caused the miscarriage. So what does he think the stress of the Oprah interview did to his grandparents?
Also, I don't see any evidence that Charles is racist. I thought it was sweet of him to arrange for the black gospel choir and walk M down the aisle.
-
5
-
6
-
1
-
-
Yes, Viserys is slow on the uptake. Every episode, they have to tell him the freaking obvious to get him to act. "A King needs to remarry, sire new heirs, hunt the white stag, end the war on the Stepstones..." They practically spelled it out for him.. marry Laena to join two Houses... like Viserys can't figure out anything for himself.
Speaking of marriage proposals, surely the King himself should have had to deal an avalanche of offers from the other Houses pushing forward a maiden daughter or niece. But the show acted like Laena or Alicent were the only two eligible high-born girls in the whole of Westeros.
The princess is taking the wrong tack if she wants to be accepted as heiress. First, don't sulk under a tree and avoid family functions. A future Queen needs to be seen all over the place by the side of her father.
And don't spend two years cold-shouldering your stepmum. You're practically begging her to retaliate by getting her own son named as heir.
I was surprised the Crabfeeder was dispatched so easily, I thought they were setting him up a season one villain.
-
2
-
1
-
-
The writing of Downton Abbey was not really that good and the same weaknesses are cropping up here. Characters behaving dumbly like the maid and Marion. Just a bit too heavy-handed for me.
And I am really not interested in Peggy. I feel like I've seen that storyline before - spunky smart girl resisting family pressure and needs to do her own thing, blah blah. As for Marion, it would be more interesting if she drops the wide-eyed act and suddenly become aware that she is penniless, dependent on Aunt Agnes's charity and needs to marry well before Agnes drops dead. That would be a more interesting storyline, how to find a husband in the Gilded Age.
I really can't tell the servants apart.
The dialogue seems somewhat stilted to me as if the fictional characters are always ''aware' of the viewer.
-
8
-
-
I keep expecting Mac's mother to turn up now that the dad is dead. Also Riley suddenly pining for Mac came out of the blue. They always had a brother/sister vibe.
-
2
-
-
Lovely film and I can understand the focus on Freddie and his lifestyle but I wish the other three were more well-fleshed out. They had hardly any scene without Freddie in it. I had little idea what they were doing off-screen when Freddie's not around.
-
2
-
-
Not another Little Women remake. Why not move on to Good Wives and Little Men? It would be interesting to see the second generation plus the other kids at the home.
-
5
-
-
Theon's death was so unnecessary. He died thinking he failed Bran. How did the Night King' s sword manage to pierce his front and back armour?
-
Our hero/heroine enters the armed forces and is singled out for especially harsh treatment by the training officer for being too weak or a sissy. Once or twice our hero / heroine comes close to quitting. But he or she makes it to the graduation day ceremony. He or she will step up to exchange salutes with the very same training officer who taunted him or her. There will be a special moment. The training officer will have a look on the face that seems to say "Damn , I guess I underestimated you. You're tougher than I thought. I take back my words. You' re not a sissy."
Now whether this happens in real life, I don' t know.
-
1
-
7
-
-
The Quest,a Western that came out in the late 70s and lasted barely half a season. It starred a young Tim Matheson and a young Kurt Russell as brothers who love each other. If this show had come out 20 years layer, the fandom shipping and broyay buzz would have helped the show last 5 seasons at least.
-
3
-
-
Arya killing the Night King. Thats a hell, no from me. The kill should have gone to Jon and Bran.
-
Meh. The show kinda fizzled out in the end. It was pointless getting new Greg back just so he could revolve around Rebecca and a whole episode about Nathaniel learning to let go and in the end, he didn' t do that. Ah well, at least career wise, they both moved on.
And all the fuss about Darryl's baby last season and he ends up with a girlfriend who got pregnant pretty quick. And yes, he' s annoying.
I wanted to know more about White Josh instead. As for the musical, also meh.and pointless with recycled songs. The songs seemed randomly chosen and the concert was all over the place.
-
8
-
-
A woman will slap a jerk or a villain or spit at him in contempt but he won't slap her back because even jerks or villains can be gentlemen deep inside.
-
5
-
-
Simon and Garfunkel's 'The Boxer' - about this poor guy who comes to New York seeking a job - has one line which I thought was 'I get no offers but a come-on from the horse on 7th Avenue'. Later I learned that word was whores on 7th Avenue.
-
6
-
Pet Peeves: Aka Things That Make You Go "Gah!"
in Everything Else
One thing which I find slightly annoying is celebrities or certain royals hiding the faces of their little children on the pictures they post and choose to release to the public. I don't care about their children anyway but still, what am I supposed to look at, the back of the kid's head? No thanks.
Don't post any pics of your kids then, if you're so concerned about their privacy.