S10.E03: Episode 3

[OtterMommy]

Quote

Sister Hilda and Dr. Turner are involved with a young woman whose health presents a series of challenges. A complicated pregnancy leads the Nonnatus team on a path of discovery.

 

[MissLucas]

I'm so glad the show hasn't forgotten about the friendship between Millicent and Phyllis. Maybe my dream of the two of them roaming the countryside in a sidecar motorbike will finally come true! Though a trip to the Alhambra by more conservative modes of transportation would also be a treat.

Looks like the sword of Damocles has been removed for a while, very good. Sister Hilda's plot was depressing but I suspected that there would be no happy end. I'm glad she found a way to deal with that painful experience. 

That poor curate. But at least Sister Monica Joan finally came clear to Sister Julienne. 

[Blackie]

Too many 1.5 second scenes, God knows what we are missing in North America with the PBS edits making scenes even shorter and disordered. Are Louise and Cecil engaged, I can't remember. 

I was so sad that the kept the baby away from that mom, to "establish the feeding schedule"??  what does that even mean, thankfully they have changed all that craziness of keeping moms and babies separated,

I just watched episode 2 today and read the thread, so looks like we are all on the same thought about Trixie and hot rich guy and the previews confirmed further contact.

[Dehumidifier]

11 minutes ago, Blackie said:

Too many 1.5 second scenes, God knows what we are missing in North America with the PBS edits making scenes even shorter and disordered. Are Louise and Cecil engaged, I can't remember. 

I was so sad that the kept the baby away from that mom, to "establish the feeding schedule"??  what does that even mean, thankfully they have changed all that craziness of keeping moms and babies separated,

I just watched episode 2 today and read the thread, so looks like we are all on the same thought about Trixie and hot rich guy and the previews confirmed further contact.

Could really live without those self back patting interviews after the episode.

[susannah]

I also liked Nurse Crane and Miss Higgins planning to travel together. It's awesome! I knew that the sick woman was desperate for company very early on. I don't know if she needed to be admitted to the mental hospital, but she did need care. I did not like the curate at all, he seemed to think that he was doing them a favor by staying there, and wasn't pleased with the room he was using for free.  I thought the way he spoke to Sr MJ was offensive, even if I am sick to death of her moaning about her crisis of faith. I thought that they kept the baby separate from Mrs Williams was because she was still recovering from her C section, even before it got infected. She needed her rest.

I read the other day that the show is on for two more years so they would have had to sort out the financial issues pretty soon.

I thought..I thought...that Lucille and Cyril would actually touch hands for a moment when they were having their picnic, but NO! We can't be having any of that!

[LittleIggy]

My medical degree from watching TV paid off today! I diagnosed both the gestational diabetes and the Munchausen Syndrome. 😁 

I like Sister Monica Joan, but she was a real bitch to that nice young priest. 
Lucille and Cyril are so freaking boring.😴

Edited October 18, 2021 by LittleIggy

[susannah]

21 minutes ago, LittleIggy said:

My medical degree from watching TV paid off today! I diagnosed both the gestational diabetes and the Munchausen Syndrome. 😁 

I like Sister Monica Joan, but she was a real bitch to that nice young priest. 
Lucille and Cyril are so freaking boring.😴

I don't think she was a bitch at all. He was being extremely patronizing to her, talking sooo slowly and enunciating every syllable like she was brainless and deaf, and I was glad she let him have it.  Lucille and Cyril passed boring a while back. I think they should market them as sleep aids.

[EllaWycliffe]

39 minutes ago, susannah said:

I thought..I thought...that Lucille and Cyril would actually touch hands for a moment when they were having their picnic

I mean, touching hands is how you get pregnant!!!

24 minutes ago, LittleIggy said:

I like Sister Monica Joan, but she was a real bitch to that nice young priest. 

I was struck by how absolutely lucid she's been. Who knew breaking a leg cured dementia?

I was a little disappointed in the Munchausen's plot. It was just dull.  

[susannah]

2 hours ago, EllaWycliffe said:

I mean, touching hands is how you get pregnant!!!

I guess so!  Apparently though, kissing so hard you leave a hair oil stain on the wall, ie Tom and Barbara, doesn't do it!  Just joking, I know they are of different beliefs.

 

2 hours ago, EllaWycliffe said:

I was struck by how absolutely lucid she's been. Who knew breaking a leg cured dementia?

Who knew indeed.  Sorry Pops, as soon as you start losing it upstairs, down the stairs you go!

[libgirl2]

6 hours ago, susannah said:

I also liked Nurse Crane and Miss Higgins planning to travel together. It's awesome! I knew that the sick woman was desperate for company very early on. I don't know if she needed to be admitted to the mental hospital, but she did need care. I did not like the curate at all, he seemed to think that he was doing them a favor by staying there, and wasn't pleased with the room he was using for free.  I thought the way he spoke to Sr MJ was offensive, even if I am sick to death of her moaning about her crisis of faith. I thought that they kept the baby separate from Mrs Williams was because she was still recovering from her C section, even before it got infected. She needed her rest.

I read the other day that the show is on for two more years so they would have had to sort out the financial issues pretty soon.

I thought..I thought...that Lucille and Cyril would actually touch hands for a moment when they were having their picnic, but NO! We can't be having any of that!

I was glad she let him have it. He pretty much wanted to give her the last rites! 

[EllaWycliffe]

3 hours ago, libgirl2 said:

I did not like the curate at all, he seemed to think that he was doing them a favor by staying there, and wasn't pleased with the room he was using for free.

I agree he wasn't pleased but I kinda got the notion that the nuns weren't pleased to have him foisted off on them and gave him a shitty uncomfortable room as a result. 

 

3 hours ago, libgirl2 said:

I thought the way he spoke to Sr MJ was offensive, even if I am sick to death of her moaning about her crisis of faith.

I thought he was trying to be helpful but wasn't used to dealing with the elderly. He didn't come across as an asshole to me, he seemed to be trying hard to be helpful . Point - having dealt with some elderly people in my time, its not always a barrel of fun and he did volunteer to talk to SMJ.

All this said in defense of Father Pointless Storyline - he really had no reason to wander by in a storyline did he?

[dubbel zout]

On 5/2/2021 at 4:14 PM, MissLucas said:

I'm so glad the show hasn't forgotten about the friendship between Millicent and Phyllis.

Same! They are a lovely pair. It cracked me up when Phyllis said Millicent's friend sounded nice, and Millicent replied she talked a LOT and Phyllis laughed. They know each other well. 

5 minutes ago, EllaWycliffe said:

3 hours ago, libgirl2 said:

I did not like the curate at all, he seemed to think that he was doing them a favor by staying there, and wasn't pleased with the room he was using for free.

I agree he wasn't pleased but I kinda got the notion that the nuns weren't pleased to have him foisted off on them and gave him a shitty uncomfortable room as a result. 

I don't think any of the rooms are particularly comfortable, TBH, but he definitely got one of the sparest of spare rooms, heh. The curate was obnoxious, but he was also pretty young, so likely pretty inexperienced. If the nuns didn't want him foisted off on them, he didn't want to be foisted off on the nuns.

[EllaWycliffe]

19 minutes ago, dubbel zout said:

Same! They are a lovely pair. It cracked me up when Phyllis said Millicent's friend sounded nice, and Millicent replied she talked a LOT and Phyllis laughed. They know each other well. 

I kinda hope they go to Spain and like, have a girls gone wild sort of trip where they do tequila shots and start fights in the tapas bars.

In fairness, tequila probably isn't on the menu in Spanish bars, so maybe sherry?

[movingtargetgal]

23 minutes ago, EllaWycliffe said:

In fairness, tequila probably isn't on the menu in Spanish bars, so maybe sherry?

Sangria?  I would love to see a spin off miniseries of Millicent and Phyllis on vacation.  A couple of episodes every year with them visiting different "exotic" locations would be so much fun to watch.   

 

[LittleIggy]

I still don’t think the curate was obnoxious. He was just trying to be helpful. Whatever.

[EllaWycliffe]

6 minutes ago, LittleIggy said:

I still don’t think the curate was obnoxious. He was just trying to be helpful. Whatever.

Agree. He came across as awkward and well intentioned. Also not bad looking. I am surprised there was no hanky panky plotline. 

[MissLucas]

38 minutes ago, movingtargetgal said:

Sangria?  I would love to see a spin off miniseries of Millicent and Phyllis on vacation.  A couple of episodes every year with them visiting different "exotic" locations would be so much fun to watch.   

 

Also: solve some crimes while they're at it. Why should Miss Marple have all the fun? They'd be awesome. Hmm... I've never felt tempted to write fan-fiction, but there's a first time for everything?

[Sarah 103]

14 hours ago, Dehumidifier said:

Could really live without those self back patting interviews after the episode.

They were interesting a few seasons back when they felt like fun DVD special features that gave an actual behind the scenes look at the show or were a quick overview of a historical issue/topic (sorry if that makes anyone feel old) that was part of th episode. When it became random stuff that didn't really add anything, I started to get annoyed they were cutting parts of the episode for it. 

1 hour ago, movingtargetgal said:

 I would love to see a spin off miniseries of Millicent and Phyllis on vacation.  A couple of episodes every year with them visiting different "exotic" locations would be so much fun to watch.   

Same here. 

33 minutes ago, MissLucas said:

Also: solve some crimes while they're at it. Why should Miss Marple have all the fun? They'd be awesome. Hmm... I've never felt tempted to write fan-fiction, but there's a first time for everything?

After reading @movingtargetgal's comment I said outloud, "and solve crimes or medical mysteries." I'd watch that spin-off. There's the christmas special. Maybe they need to do a summer special that's the adventures of Millicent and Phyllis on vacation. @MissLucas, I highly encourage you to write the idea as fan-fiction. If you have an idea that you want to see and you know the show probably isn't going to do it, write it yourself. That's how I got started writing fan-fiction. Also, episodes that I felt needed to be improved because I didn't like the way the series did it and thought I could do a better job. 

I've heard of low birth weight babies or premature babies in an incubator, but I don't understand why a larger than average healthy baby would be in an incubator. Could someone please explain this me? 

[EllaWycliffe]

17 minutes ago, Sarah 103 said:

I've heard of low birth weight babies or premature babies in an incubator, but I don't understand why a larger than average healthy baby would be in an incubator. Could someone please explain this me? 

Asked a friend who is a medical doctor. She said maybe in the first 24 hours they might have been worried about blood sugar levels but it also just might fall under old timey medical procedures - babies go in an incubator if they aren't in mother's arms. Ie: maybe thats just how the hospital did things at the time.

[CrazyMoon]

1 hour ago, MissLucas said:

Also: solve some crimes while they're at it. Why should Miss Marple have all the fun? They'd be awesome. Hmm... I've never felt tempted to write fan-fiction, but there's a first time for everything?

Medical crimes...Phyllis is very astute so would see through so much. Or stumble upon a complex birth in a very odd place (say aboard the boat to Palma). 

[TomGirl]

13 hours ago, EllaWycliffe said:

I was a little disappointed in the Munchausen's plot. It was just dull.  

Maybe, but I was mesmerized by the actress, Jenny Walser.  What a beautiful girl!

Edited October 18, 2021 by TomGirl

[AZChristian]

3 minutes ago, TomGirl said:

Maybe, but I was mesmerized by the actress, Jenny Walter.  What a beauty!

Her actual name is Jenny Walser.  She looks SOOOO familiar to me, but according to IMDB, this episode of "Call the Midwife" is her first acting job.  

[TomGirl]

1 minute ago, AZChristian said:

She looks SOOOO familiar to me, but according to IMDB, this episode of "Call the Midwife" is her first acting job.  

Apparently she’s done a lot of stage work.

[Shanna Marie]

I thought that with the complaints of all the clerical work plus the mention by Munchausen's girl that she had worked as a hospital clerk that their solution to help her would be giving her a file clerk job at the clinic. Give her a job and a purpose that would also give her social interaction in the medical setting that would be her happy place, since she associated medical stuff with feeling cared for. I guess she needed more intense treatment than that, but it also seemed like under her circumstances anyone would probably struggle, so fixing the circumstances would go a long way toward helping her.

I thought that the curate was reacting to what he saw of Sister MJ without necessarily knowing the context. She'd been skipping chapel, apparently claiming that she wasn't up to it, so he assumed she was too ill to make it and was going to bring it to her. Then she acted all weird and crotchety when he made the offer (since his offer put her in a corner -- she could no longer use the excuse of not being up to it if it was being brought to her, and one-on-one would probably be even worse in her situation), so it wasn't really a wild guess for him to wonder if she was all there and to speak slowly and gently to her. He was trying to help, but since she hadn't told anyone what was really going on, it ended up grating. Maybe that was the final straw that made her confess.

[labresq]

Folks are talking about how "standoffish" Lucille and Cyril are, but isn't it primarily because the actors are having to be separated because of filming during Covid?  I mean, it's so obvious in all of the scenes that everybody is being filmed away from another person - I just thought this is true of those two as well.  Even when all of the nurses/sisters were sitting down to eat in last night's episode, nobody was sitting next to anybody else - all spread out.  

[kwnyc]

Quote

That poor curate. But at least Sister Monica Joan finally came clear to Sister Julienne. 

He was the sacrificial lamb! But seriously, if he's going to be a priest, he needs to know how to talk to feisty older women.

And the way the OB/GYN treated the woman with gestational diabetes was AWFUL. No wonder women preferred to have their babies at home. And whenever the nurses use their observational skills to see/suggest something, it's "Harrupmph, let the men handle this, young woman." 

But hey: Lucille and Cyrill are SERIOUS. They are writing each others PARENTS! 

[Driad]

With the Munchausen's patient, Dr. Turner could have phrased it better.  Although he did not say "You're crazy and we want to lock you up," that's how she interpreted it.  She might have reacted better to "You have had a difficult time, and there are people who can help you deal with it."

[EllaWycliffe]

4 minutes ago, kwnyc said:

They are writing each others PARENTS! 

"Ma'am, your son is very dear to me. I wanted to write to you to advise you how I honor and respect him. Despite our being left alone by many many people who feel we should date, I need your permission to touch Cyril's hands, lest the resulting child be a demon from Sex Hell. Touching hands is intercourse, right? My own parents were too ashamed to tell me".

1 hour ago, CrazyMoon said:

Medical crimes...Phyllis is very astute so would see through so much. Or stumble upon a complex birth in a very odd place (say aboard the boat to Palma). 

"Oh this ship is deliightful, Phyllis! Let's play shuffleboard again!"

"Of course, but I must tell you, I witnessed something very shocking in the ward room. Two young sailors kissing... but judging by the belly on the smaller one, I think that sailor is a young girl pretending to be a lad! A shame really, they seem very much in love..."

"Well, perhaps we should talk with them. Between the two of us, I'm sure we can convince the lad to do the right thing by his girl. And perhaps there's some sordid reason the poor thing is pretending to be a sailor boy. Let's take our tea in the dining room and discuss it."

"Perhaps... we should have a spot of gin in our tea? We are world travelers, after all!"

"Of course. We'll get this all sorted before the ship docks at Ibiza!"

[proserpina65]

18 hours ago, Blackie said:

thankfully they have changed all that craziness of keeping moms and babies separated,

Unfortunately, in a lot of hospitals, they're replaced it with making you keep the baby in your room 24/7 whether you want to or not.  Seems to be the mother should have the choice if there's no medical issue.

58 minutes ago, Shanna Marie said:

I guess she needed more intense treatment than that, but it also seemed like under her circumstances anyone would probably struggle, so fixing the circumstances would go a long way toward helping her.

Her mental health issues were way beyond fixing with a job or some company.  She was actively hurting herself to get attention from the doctor.

56 minutes ago, kwnyc said:

But hey: Lucille and Cyrill are SERIOUS. They are writing each others PARENTS! 

Which makes sense given how deeply religious they are.

[libgirl2]

2 hours ago, AZChristian said:

Her actual name is Jenny Walser.  She looks SOOOO familiar to me, but according to IMDB, this episode of "Call the Midwife" is her first acting job.  

She reminded me of 60/70s actress Rita Tushingham. 

[Sarah 103]

2 hours ago, EllaWycliffe said:

"Ma'am, your son is very dear to me. I wanted to write to you to advise you how I honor and respect him. Despite our being left alone by many many people who feel we should date, I need your permission to touch Cyril's hands, lest the resulting child be a demon from Sex Hell. Touching hands is intercourse, right? My own parents were too ashamed to tell me".

"Oh this ship is deliightful, Phyllis! Let's play shuffleboard again!"

"Of course, but I must tell you, I witnessed something very shocking in the ward room. Two young sailors kissing... but judging by the belly on the smaller one, I think that sailor is a young girl pretending to be a lad! A shame really, they seem very much in love..."

"Well, perhaps we should talk with them. Between the two of us, I'm sure we can convince the lad to do the right thing by his girl. And perhaps there's some sordid reason the poor thing is pretending to be a sailor boy. Let's take our tea in the dining room and discuss it."

"Perhaps... we should have a spot of gin in our tea? We are world travelers, after all!"

"Of course. We'll get this all sorted before the ship docks at Ibiza!"

This sounds fantastic. I would totally watch this spin-off show. 

[EllaWycliffe]

Millicent really strikes me as someone who has a little flask in her purse. 

[Blackie]

7 hours ago, LittleIggy said:

I still don’t think the curate was obnoxious. He was just trying to be helpful. Whatever.

 

I thought he was trying to help in the "I know better, I can help" / mansplainging kind of way. And I am sure Sister MJ has had her share of priest -splaining in her day, so I am glad she set him straight. Although I was wondering if this was supposed to be some sort of motivation for her or something. Overall a pointless storyline as others said.

[Blackie]

3 hours ago, kwnyc said:

Quote

That poor curate. But at least Sister Monica Joan finally came clear to Sister Julienne. 

He was the sacrificial lamb! But seriously, if he's going to be a priest, he needs to know how to talk to feisty older women

 

or this^^^ 😉

[TomGirl]

2 hours ago, libgirl2 said:

She reminded me of 60/70s actress Rita Tushingham.

Good call!
 

 

[Cetacean]

3 hours ago, labresq said:

Folks are talking about how "standoffish" Lucille and Cyril are, but isn't it primarily because the actors are having to be separated because of filming during Covid?  I mean, it's so obvious in all of the scenes that everybody is being filmed away from another person - I just thought this is true of those two as well.  Even when all of the nurses/sisters were sitting down to eat in last night's episode, nobody was sitting next to anybody else - all spread out.  

 I just had a chance to watch and had read through this thread (I don't mind being spoiled) and I think you are correct with the separation.  There wasn't a single scene where people were not obviously distanced from each other.  And I do think that these two are meant to represent young people who came from a religious, conservative background who are both quiet and a bit shy.  I honestly have no issue with how they are protrayed.  Writing the parents is probably a really big deal to them.

Gestational diabetes was recognized long ago and scholarly articles were written about it in the 1950's so the timing on this was a bit off.  Normally they are pretty accurate on medical issues but I was taught all about it in nursing school in the 60's.  With that said, the pompous doctor was a blowhard.

I didn't find anything offensive about the young curate  He was young and I don't think he had any ill intentions, he just has a lot of learning to do on approaching people of different ages.  I did a lot of eye rolling when the young interns appeared every July but most of the old nurses did try to help them - once we put them in their place!

Love Millicent (in her red hat at all times) and Phyllis together.  Nice to see their friendship growing.

 

[libgirl2]

22 minutes ago, TomGirl said:

Good call!
 

 

That's  her! 

[Kenzie]

1 hour ago, TomGirl said:

She reminded me of 60/70s actress Rita Tushingham.

I always thought she was the strangest casting choice to play the love child of Dr. Zhivago and Lara in the movie Dr. Zhivago.

[susannah]

12 hours ago, EllaWycliffe said:

Point - having dealt with some elderly people in my time, its not always a barrel of fun and he did volunteer to talk to SMJ.

That is true, but one would find that out after talking to them. His first interaction with her was in that way, without knowing anything about her, and I thought that was insulting, as did she.

 

12 hours ago, dubbel zout said:

If the nuns didn't want him foisted off on them, he didn't want to be foisted off on the nuns.

Well if I remember right, they were putting him up rent free, so if he didn't want to be "foisted" on the nuns, he could have found other arrangements more to his liking, and paid for them.

[EllaWycliffe]

2 minutes ago, susannah said:

Well if I remember right, they were putting him up rent free, so if he didn't want to be "foisted" on the nuns, he could have found other arrangements more to his liking, and paid for them.

Its not always that simple in the religious world. For starters, he takes a vow of poverty and may not have the cash to seek lodgings elsewhere. He also may not have a choice, it may be "you're between postings and the sisters at Nonnatus have a spare room so go". 

[theatremouse]

3 hours ago, Cetacean said:

 Gestational diabetes was recognized long ago and scholarly articles were written about it in the 1950's so the timing on this was a bit off.  Normally they are pretty accurate on medical issues but I was taught all about it in nursing school in the 60's.  With that said, the pompous doctor was a blowhard.

This distracted me the whole episode. It almost would've been a reasonable plot in S1, but they're at least 10 years too late for the whole "there's only one study but it looks promising" shenanigans.

[susannah]

39 minutes ago, EllaWycliffe said:

Its not always that simple in the religious world. For starters, he takes a vow of poverty and may not have the cash to seek lodgings elsewhere. He also may not have a choice, it may be "you're between postings and the sisters at Nonnatus have a spare room so go". 

That's true, but none of that is the nuns' problem! See what I did there? 😀  They had to house and feed this guy, and the very LEAST he could do would be to appear grateful that they were, and not complain about it. Remember Sr Julienne's face when he said that he could give to them, she clearly thought he meant monetarily, however little, and her disgusted look when he said he could do a Mass for them.

[LittleIggy]

56 minutes ago, susannah said:

That's true, but none of that is the nuns' problem! See what I did there? 😀  They had to house and feed this guy, and the very LEAST he could do would be to appear grateful that they were, and not complain about it. Remember Sr Julienne's face when he said that he could give to them, she clearly thought he meant monetarily, however little, and her disgusted look when he said he could do a Mass for them.

I didn’t think she looked disgusted.

[LADreamr]

I still love this show, but I feel like it's lacking in the writing, heart and just cohesiveness that used to make it so great.  It's like now it's trying to be CTM, instead of just being CTM.

[EllaWycliffe]

9 hours ago, susannah said:

hey had to house and feed this guy, and the very LEAST he could do would be to appear grateful that they were, and not complain about it. Remember Sr Julienne's face when he said that he could give to them, she clearly thought he meant monetarily, however little, and her disgusted look when he said he could do a Mass for them.

But he didn't complain at all, and was actively trying to pretend he was totally pleased with his bad room. And Sister Julienne didn't impress me with the disgusted look when he was actually trying to offer something to her. I get that it's not the nuns problem that he took the same vow of poverty and obedience that he did but under that assumption, would we want Sister Julienne treated like an unwanted guest and expected to pay with real money when all she has to offer is service?

I get what you're saying, I just don't recall the young priest being ungrateful at all. He seemed to be trying really hard to be nice about the whole business.

Edited October 19, 2021 by EllaWycliffe

[MartyQui]

I felt bad for the curate…he was clearly just ordained, and waiting for his first posting and stuck in an attic.  I’m pretty sure it wouldn’t have occurred to him to pitch in for room and board…priests get that for free (at least in the US Catholic Church).  It wasn’t like Nonnatus was a boarding house.  And then Sister MJ…I am so over her.  Just die already.

[Daff]

9 hours ago, LittleIggy said:

I didn’t think she looked disgusted.

I agree, more like disappointed (“coal in stocking” disappointed). 
Maybe she was hoping for him to offer to cook, man the phone, organize the supplies? Anything to help lighten the load. 

Edited October 19, 2021 by Daff

[Daff]

50 minutes ago, LADreamr said:

I still love this show, but I feel like it's lacking in the writing, heart and just cohesiveness that used to make it so great.  It's like now it's trying to be CTM, instead of just being CTM.

Although, it might just be everyone, from writers to actors and crew, being weary of the restrictions to their creativity due to Covid-19 restrictions. 

[Daff]

I’m now thoroughly confused on the timeline here. Only 3 episodes ago, the intro mentioned Easter approaching, yet here we see summer flowers in full bloom and characters wanting to have picnics at the shore.

[dsteele]

46 minutes ago, MartyQui said:

And then Sister MJ…I am so over her.  Just die already.

Verily, I must offer my obsequious concurrence with your declaration. I so quickly tire of her meandering verbosity. 💤