Season 6 Discussion

[Quilt Fairy]

1 hour ago, TVForever said:

Cathy is an absolute jewel.

That’s all I’ve got for now🙂

I've been watching some of the older episodes, and with the new hairstyle she's been sporting this season, she looks 10-15 years younger than she used to.  She is a stunner this season. 

Edited November 19, 2021 by Quilt Fairy

[sistermagpie]

On 11/15/2021 at 1:17 PM, Sarah 103 said:

His sermon was amazing. It was the first time I realized what a loss that has occured. He could have been an amazing vicar, and it will not happen. His sermon was far better than what we have seen in the past. It may be previous sermons were last minute and he didn't have time to prepare or they were supposed to be the comedic moment. 

I thought this experience was a breakthrough for him. In the past, as was noted above, his sermons were very academic and intellectual--he's a nerd. But then, he was also hiding a lot of who he was back then. Now he was opening up, speaking to people where they live as people, and it was much better.

 

 

On 11/15/2021 at 2:31 PM, dubbel zout said:

Same. I hate people like her, blasting her way through other people's lives with no respect for them at all, then getting all insulted people call her on her shit. All because Mummy and/or Daddy did love her enough. Ugh.

Absolutely. She might make for some good plots down the line, but can't stand her as a person. The worst, for me, is that she's always making a point of showing how she's supposed to be adorable and irresistible, so it's frustrating to have people treat her as if she's at all right. 

Btw, loving to see where Mrs. C goes with her new book. First gay rights, now feminism. Sydney wouldn't recognize her. (Sometimes I still think of those poor Civil Rights activists having to deal with him.)

18 hours ago, Noneofyourbusiness said:

Was?

Beat me to it.

[ComeWhatMay]

“Sidney was a drunk.” Yes, he was. Tell it, Leonard. 

Leonard’s a new man after his time in prison. Unspeakable times can break us or make us. 

Johnny and Geordie are a tragic duo. “Three meals a day, blankets, and clean water…” 

Henry made a great save. 

I do not blame Cathy, but man it’s sad to see Geordie given the boot, however well deserved.

Geordie: “I am glad you did not serve. You can see the world as it ought to be because you didn’t serve.” 

Will: “The only reason I didn’t have to is because of men like you and Johnny.” 

Lovely. 

[HoodlumSheep]

On 11/19/2021 at 4:13 PM, sistermagpie said:

Btw, loving to see where Mrs. C goes with her new book. First gay rights, now feminism. Sydney wouldn't recognize her. (Sometimes I still think of those poor Civil Rights activists having to deal with him.)

I wish season 1 Mrs. M could meet season 6 Mrs. C. Like, could you imagine how that showdown would go? 

Mrs. C is the definition of Growth™. 

Season finale:

Geordie making my heart ache T︵T. I think it'll be good for geordie and cathy to have some time apart even though it makes me sad. Geordie's getting a chance at a fresh start: i hope he uses the opportunity wisely.

Leonard: 

I wonder what they have planned for him now. Personally i'd still like to see him runaway with Daniel, but it almost feels like they're planning on him sticking around in some capacity.

Season 6 overall:

As mentioned before, the mystery half of this season was a total bust. None of them were very interesting. Heck, why even bother with them this season? (That's what it felt like at least). They felt very uninspired. Adapt some of the actual book mysteries if need be if it would help.

And what about that librarian from whatever episode? Are we gonna revisit that at some point?

I hope they bring back the journalist girl and more of the townspeople for season 7. That was something the previous season did right imo.

A step down from season 5. 

7 minutes ago, HoodlumSheep said:

 

 

7 minutes ago, HoodlumSheep said:

 

* ignore the dumb empty quote boxes. Post went a little wonky and i have no idea how to delete them. :/

Edited November 22, 2021 by HoodlumSheep

[mjc570]

I have to admit this episode really didn't do it for me, although I very much liked everything about Leonard (such as his interaction with Mrs. C and Henry) but especially Daniel in the car.  

I also liked Henry stepping up and defusing the situation with the bishop.  I hope he sticks around; he and Will might make for some interesting times.

[Grrarrggh]

Leonard and Mrs C are what make this programme watchable. Henry is going to be quite interesting too. He might become what Sidney and Will are supposed to be. 

[dubbel zout]

11 hours ago, ComeWhatMay said:

Johnny and Geordie are a tragic duo. “Three meals a day, blankets, and clean water…” 

That scene was so great. Geordie trying to reassure Johnny that he'd at least have the basics they didn't get in the POW camp. And Geordie being able to go into the cell with Johnny to talk to him was a big step. 

11 hours ago, HoodlumSheep said:

As mentioned before, the mystery half of this season was a total bust.

I agree, and we never got a reason why Johnny was suddenly the only solicitor in town. It was a rather clunky plot point to get him back in Geordie's life.

10 hours ago, mjc570 said:

I very much liked everything about Leonard (such as his interaction with Mrs. C and Henry)

I loved Leonard scolding Mrs. C. She was being awful to Henry. He didn't deserve to be set up, though I'd hope the bishop would see through such a transparent attempt.

A separation for Geordie and Cathy is a good idea, though poor Geordie. I don't think he'll ever tell her everything he went through in the war, but she deserves to know at least some of it so it helps explain his anguish.

I loved that Dickens had a special hello for Leonard. I thinik he was more Leonard's dog than Sidney's anyway.

[cinsays]

 

When Geordie confessed to Johnny that he had prayed for Johnny to die at the hands of his captors instead of himself, I was expecting Johnny to tell Geordie that. likewise, he had prayed for himself to be spared and Geordie to be killed. 

Would have made Geordie see that his thought, though selfish, was understandable and only human.

So, since Leonard was convicted for his loving Daniel, if they again are together, might he not again face trial for this?  And why wasn't Daniel facing any charges?

This was not a crime just in the eyes of the church at the time, but for the whole country, no? 

 

 

[Cetacean]

7 minutes ago, cinsays said:

This was not a crime just in the eyes of the church at the time, but for the whole country, no? 

Correct, it was illegal.

I was a bit taken aback at how quickly Leonard bounced back.  Maybe his time leading the Bible group in prison was a help but he certainly put it all behind him in a heartbeat.  Not that I am not glad but I'd think there would be some PTSD involved after all he went through and how awful he looked when Will visited.  Watching him dress down Mrs. C was priceless.

I have nothing against Henry, I tbink he's a good guy that got tossed into a bad situation.  The bishop can go such an egg, what a pill.

Robson Green deserves an Emmy for his performance in this episode.  I was sobbing when he talked about the daily executions.  I do hope that he can open up to Cathy or use Will to be the emissary between them so that she can some to terms with his behavior.

[sistermagpie]

16 minutes ago, cinsays said:

 

When Geordie confessed to Johnny that he had prayed for Johnny to die at the hands of his captors instead of himself, I was expecting Johnny to tell Geordie that. likewise, he had prayed for himself to be spared and Geordie to be killed. 

Would have made Geordie see that his thought, though selfish, was understandable and only human.

I expected that too. Though I guess it was setting up the way he came to be involved in the crime. He was the type to want to throw himself into protecting others.

[sinycalone]

Georgie's difficulty in talking about his war experiences reminded me of the movie The Best Years of Our Lives.  None of the returning vets wanted to recount those awful times.  The oldest of the vets had enlisted....he never would have been drafted:  two kids, already in his mid to late 30s, etc.  Wound up serving with the Marines in the South Pacific and Asia.  His wife understood his reluctance, and did not press him about it.  But you know they had a strong enough relationship that eventually he would open up to her.  His teenage kids wanted to discuss future warfare and the atom bomb.  You knew he would never share those war nightmares with them.

I'm just hoping Geordie is able to find a way to talk to Cathy about those years as a POW.

[rove4]

13 hours ago, ComeWhatMay said:

Leonard’s a new man after his time in prison. Unspeakable times can break us or make us. 

I think Leonard now realizes how strong he really is. If he's sticking around Grantchester, I'm excited to see what he's able to do with his newfound confidence.  Loved him confronting Mrs. C about her scheme against Henry - "I'd know this shade of lipstick anywhere."  🤣 I also really enjoyed Leonard speaking to Henry and calling Mrs. C a "right of passage".  Leonard holds no ill will against Henry and that was lovely to see. 

Speaking of Henry, I quite like him. I loved that he explained himself to Will but also rightly pointed out that he's held to a higher standard and likely has to perform twice as well to just be considered equal. While I like Will, he does deserve to have some sort of consequence for always shirking his primary duties as the vicar. 

I love Cathy and I'm glad she's sticking to her guns. As much as I felt for Geordie, he needs to sort things out for himself first. 

Overall I enjoyed the season. The mysteries have always been incidental to me, even back in Sidney's day.  I'm here for the characters so they could do away with the murder aspect altogether and I'd still tune in to see how these characters navigate their lives.

I still find it weird that they never mentioned what happened to Ellie, the journalist lady from last season.  Then again, the police station has had staff come and go with no mention either.

[DonnaMae]

2 hours ago, cinsays said:

Why can't I remove this??????  Sorry, Cinsays.

I wouldn't be surprised if Leonard and Daniel leave Grantchester and move to France or Spain.  

[Sarah 103]

3 hours ago, cinsays said:

So, since Leonard was convicted for his loving Daniel, if they again are together, might he not again face trial for this?  And why wasn't Daniel facing any charges?

This was not a crime just in the eyes of the church at the time, but for the whole country, no?

This is going to be a nitpicky answer. Leonard was charged and convicted but not Daniel, because it was clearly Leonard in the pictures and it was harder to see who the other person was. The blackmailer was specifically targeting Leonard, so Daniel was not named or charged. 

If Leonard and Daniel stay together and continue thier relationship as a couple, there is a very good chance that Daniel may not be so lucky the next time and may be charged as well. 

The laws in England regarding homosexuality were not changed until 1967. 

It will be interesting to see what happens with Daniel and Leonard. I hope the relationship between Henry and Will improves. 

Geordie has to tell Cathy something of his horrible wartime experiences. He needs to find a way to explain his behavior over the past few months. Since he has changed and realized what he wants and cares about, I think they will be able to make it work. 

Edited November 22, 2021 by Sarah 103

[Cetacean]

2 hours ago, sinycalone said:

Georgie's difficulty in talking about his war experiences reminded me of the movie The Best Years of Our Lives.  None of the returning vets wanted to recount those awful times. 

I was involved in an organization called Honor Flight.  We raised money to take WWII vets to Washington DC to see their memorial, one that was not finished until 62 years after the war was over.  Many were either too elderly or too poor to go alone so we paid for flights to take them  and we had 15 guardians for each 40 vets.

Many, many of these men and women had never talked about their experiences.  When the war was over in 1945 the expectation was that they would come home and resume their lives as if nothing had happened.  Even though "shell shock" was identified in WWI, it was still something that was "shameful" in 1945.

We had many family members tell as that their loved ones had never talked about their experiences until after they had traveled with other vets to see the Memorial.  The most memorable was a set of twins who served in different units but had never discussed the war.  On the plane on the way home they opened up to each other and found that they had been wounded on the exact same day about a mile from each other.  

I dearly hope that Geordie gets help but it was not readily available in that time period.

[Grrarrggh]

8 hours ago, cinsays said:

So, since Leonard was convicted for his loving Daniel, if they again are together, might he not again face trial for this?  And why wasn't Daniel facing any charges?

Daniel didn't face charges because Leonard said he wasn't with Daniel but some random bloke he met at the holiday park. 

[Cetacean]

19 minutes ago, Grrarrggh said:

Daniel didn't face charges because Leonard said he wasn't with Daniel but some random bloke he met at the holiday park. 

And Leonard was the target because he had alenated the blackmailing photographer.

[dargosmydaddy]

Leonard has always been a favorite of mine, but Leonard-with-a-backbone is infinitely more awesome! You go, Leonard!

That said, I don't know how they can realistically keep him around next year, both in terms of plot believability (if Leonard is going to continue his relationship with Daniel, he's making it infinitely harder by staying in Grantchester... and what's keeping him there, anyway? He can always visit Mrs. C/ write letters), and storyline (what can Leonard contribute if he's no longer living at the vicarage? Unless he gets some kind of job that relates to police work in some way (which again would seem really contrived), it's going to be very hard to shoehorn him into the plot). I know it's been reported that Al Weaver is still on the cast list for the season that's currently shooting, but I wonder if it'll be a James Norton situation where he's in a couple episodes, gets a proper good-bye, and then rides off into the sunset with Daniel.

[Quilt Fairy]

14 minutes ago, dargosmydaddy said:

I know it's been reported that Al Weaver is still on the cast list for the season that's currently shooting, but I wonder if it'll be a James Norton situation where he's in a couple episodes, gets a proper good-bye, and then rides off into the sunset with Daniel.

That's what I wonder, as well.  I hope it's not the case since I love Leonard and I can't warm up to Henry, at least yet.  He's a very one-dimensional character.

I was really disappointed we got so little of Leonard in the final episode.  Did anyone else notice that last week when the original prison chaplain was holding services there were a total of 3 people (including Leonard), but each time we saw Leonard speaking the group got larger and larger?  He really seemed to find his calling speaking to the prisoners.  I hope that that is a set-up for Leonard becoming the new prison chaplain.

I love how Will and Geordie seem permanently attached at the hip.

[howiveaddict]

1 hour ago, Quilt Fairy said:

That's what I wonder, as well.  I hope it's not the case since I love Leonard and I can't warm up to Henry, at least yet.  He's a very one-dimensional character.

I was really disappointed we got so little of Leonard in the final episode.  Did anyone else notice that last week when the original prison chaplain was holding services there were a total of 3 people (including Leonard), but each time we saw Leonard speaking the group got larger and larger?  He really seemed to find his calling speaking to the prisoners.  I hope that that is a set-up for Leonard becoming the new prison chaplain.

I love how Will and Geordie seem permanently attached at the hip.

Hopefully Leonard can continue a lay ministry at the prison.

[sugarbaker design]

14 hours ago, Quilt Fairy said:

I hope that that is a set-up for Leonard becoming the new prison chaplain.

I don't know if that's going to happen.  I can't see any CoE church taking Leonard on after a gross indecency conviction.

12 hours ago, howiveaddict said:

Hopefully Leonard can continue a lay ministry at the prison.

That's more likely to happen.

[ddawn23]

On 11/15/2021 at 5:45 PM, dubbel zout said:

He was fired from his position as curate in Grantchester, and with no license—which I presume is given by the Church—he can't get a position elsewhere. Effectively he's blocked from working as any sort of cleric. Maybe he could get a lay position, but given what he went to jail for, that seems unlikely.

This is correct. In addition to ordination the Church of England requires parish ministers to be licensed. Without his license Leonard is barred from any work as clergy.

[Cetacean]

15 hours ago, howiveaddict said:

Hopefully Leonard can continue a lay ministry at the prison.

He certainly seemed to have a following and he seemed to be uplifted doing it. Seems like a good fit since he knows what it is like in there.

How big is Grantchester anyway?  Is it big enough to have a prison in the area?  Since Leonard won't be in the rectory, will he be living with Daniel?  Guess we will find out next season.  Maybe he'll join Geordie and Will and they can be the triumvirate of crime fighters.

[Sarah 103]

My guess is that Daniel and Leonard will move to London where it will be slightly (emphasis on the slightly) easier for them to live as couple, but he will make frequent trips to Grantchester. I am basing this on what is the absolute edge of plausible and TVLand logic. (Does British TVLand logic differ from its American counterpart?)

[Cetacean]

20 minutes ago, Sarah 103 said:

(Does British TVLand logic differ from its American counterpart?)

Probably not.  Hallmark is forever producing cheesy Christmas movies with fake snow on green leafy trees and blooming flowers.

[sistermagpie]

On 11/22/2021 at 10:18 PM, howiveaddict said:

Hopefully Leonard can continue a lay ministry at the prison.

Especially if the man who died was right about most people there being gay. There are stories to be had in Leonard counseling people both in and out of prison in this kind of area. He's got the makings of an unexpected activist in how much strength he gets from it and his inability to not be who he was in the end.

[seacliffsal]

i didn't appreciate how Will overstepped his role in regards to helping the police in this episode.  He directed the staff to run tests, he went right into interrogations, he looked offended when asked to leave when Georgi and Johnny were discussing privileged information.  If I worked there or was brought in for questioning, I would resent a vicar who just made himself a part of the process (I know he has been encouraged through his work with Georgi).  I also didn't understand his antagonism towards Henry-there was/is a certain standard of behavior for the clergy and Will was upset that Henry shared Will's behaviors.  Pay attention to your job Will and maybe there won't be anything to talk about.

[TVForever]

4 hours ago, seacliffsal said:

i didn't appreciate how Will overstepped his role in regards to helping the police in this episode.  He directed the staff to run tests, he went right into interrogations, he looked offended when asked to leave when Georgi and Johnny were discussing privileged information.  If I worked there or was brought in for questioning, I would resent a vicar who just made himself a part of the process (I know he has been encouraged through his work with Georgi).  I also didn't understand his antagonism towards Henry-there was/is a certain standard of behavior for the clergy and Will was upset that Henry shared Will's behaviors.  Pay attention to your job Will and maybe there won't be anything to talk about.

It bordered on comical. I spent most of the episode thinking that someone should remind Will that he's not actually a police officer.

[Gravity Check]

On 11/22/2021 at 7:29 PM, Quilt Fairy said:

Did anyone else notice that last week when the original prison chaplain was holding services there were a total of 3 people (including Leonard), but each time we saw Leonard speaking the group got larger and larger?  He really seemed to find his calling speaking to the prisoners.

What I noticed was his passion in teaching the Bible. Original Leonard was boring the congregation to tears with his cerebral sermons and lack of passion. It was a nice contrast to see him coming into his own at a time when his faith had to have been tested.

[dubbel zout]

I think Leonard's time in prison probably forced him to think about what his faith meant to him. It wasn't an academic exercise anymore, it became real. He was finally able to link Bible verses with real life in a genuine way that spoke to him and to others. It also didn't hurt that it was a fellow inmate preaching instead of someone from the outside, as it were. Leonard was authentic when he talked about facing problems in prison, and the other inmates recognized and respected that.

[Quilt Fairy]

15 hours ago, Gravity Check said:

What I noticed was his passion in teaching the Bible. Original Leonard was boring the congregation to tears with his cerebral sermons and lack of passion. It was a nice contrast to see him coming into his own at a time when his faith had to have been tested.

I've got all the seasons available to me and I started re-watching them yesterday.  Leonard is introduced in Episode 2 and gives his first sermon which Sidney was too busy too review.  He's talking about the Kantian vs. the Utilitarian(?) view of the universe.......

[momo]

On 11/22/2021 at 7:02 AM, cinsays said:

So, since Leonard was convicted for his loving Daniel, if they again are together, might he not again face trial for this?  And why wasn't Daniel facing any charges?

I don't think anyone identified him.

[bunnyface]

I finally got to catch up on the last episodes last night.  It probably says more about me than the show that I quietly cried through almost the entire last two episodes.   The futility and stupidity of Leonard's situation, plus Geordie's spiral just gutted me.  (I kinda napped through the college student one, so I may have missed things.)  The fact that Cathy didn't just pitch Geordie out a 2nd story window instead of just giving him "time" means she's a better woman than I.  I know he had war trauma and that at that time, they didn't talk about it (some still don't).  But I also know she would in no way be "better off" without him and I reckon she knows that too.  Being a divorced, single mother wouldn't put her much higher on the social scale than being a homosexual.  I like that she has carved out some of her own space with her job and isn't totally dependent on Geordie, but still being divorced would be very hard for all of them.  Still a lot of stigma attached to it then.  

I wish when Geordie admitted that he wished for Johnny to be taken ahead of him, that Johnny could have admitted the same thing (because you KNOW he thought it to).  But he needed leverage at that moment and couldn't say it.  Hopefully, somewhere else (because it will probably disappear before the next series, like so many other issues) it is said privately and Geordie can get some peace.

Now to finish Midwife and start on Creatures!