Season 8 Discussion

[alias1]

34 minutes ago, dubbel zout said:

Alfie gave Will the pills to stop him (Alfie) from ODing on them. 

I thought the pills were probably sleeping pills since Alfie seemed to think they could kill him by od'ing on them.  Maybe not, if Will is popping a couple here and there.  Can antidepressants kill you?

[statsgirl]

12 minutes ago, alias1 said:

Can antidepressants kill you?

Yes, many drugs can if you take enough of them. Tylenol is particularly dangerous to the liver.

For antidepressants, you have to build it up in your system gradually and the side effects in the 1960s were not fun. Will popping pills like candy is bad. (And yet I don't feel sorry for him.).

[peeayebee]

They didn't seem like antidepressants to me because they seemed to make Will manic.

[wanderingstar]

I'm liking this season. It's not Grantchester if there isn't turmoil. I feel bad for Will in his crisis of faith. I've been there, so I relate to that lost feeling. I'm assuming those pills are the beginning of his downward spiral.

Poor Leonard. His desire to do something good is clouding his judgment. And of course, the NIMBYs throwing bricks into his halfway house are making things worse.

The culprits in this episode irritated me. They couldn't face their daughter's death by suicide, so they took that out on Alfie. 

Edited August 1, 2023 by wanderingstar

[wonderwoman]

On 7/27/2023 at 5:22 PM, LakeGal said:

I don't know if I can keep watching this

feeling the same. but, will probably hate watch just to see how they write will out. 

[buttersister]

Quote

Geordie really needs to start his own investigation agency with Miss Scott.

Sign me up!

[howiveaddict]

6 hours ago, alias1 said:

I thought the pills were probably sleeping pills since Alfie seemed to think they could kill him by od'ing on them.  Maybe not, if Will is popping a couple here and there.  Can antidepressants kill you?

They were probably Mother's Little Helper, aka valium

 

[dancingdreamer]

I feel for Will, he's struggling with his faith.  He can no longer see or hear his god, or his calling. He cannot  forgive himself  for killing  that man.I'm not religious,  but he's portraying  his part  well, that I can feel what it must be like.

Poor Leonard, he can't do anything  right, and when things get rough, I suppose  we take it out on those we love, or. are closest to us. I think, Daniel is in need of a huge apology. 

The twist  at the end, I did not see coming,  and I liked the housekeeper!

[sugarbaker design]

On 7/24/2023 at 7:38 AM, Orcinus orca said:

Let's hope the new housekeeper for the halfway house brings some zest into the mix.

She sure did!

[Noneofyourbusiness]

22 hours ago, Sarah 103 said:

What were the pills? Were they just generic "it's television and drugs=bad?"

21 hours ago, HelenCrump said:

I came to ask the same thing.  Some type of antidepressant?  Or uppers of some type?

The label briefly visible when Will used it said, "Dextroamphetamine Sulfate Tablets". Google tells me it's a stimulant usually used to treat ADHD.

20 hours ago, statsgirl said:

Did Will do anything this episode to help solve the case other than realize that there is a town of the same name in Scotland? It's almost not worth having him on the case. He couldn't even pray with Alfie.

He also guessed that Martha was Phyllida and tricked her into responding to her real name.

20 hours ago, Orcinus orca said:

Why shouldn't she?  In an era when advancement for women was abysmal, she was promoted to a position of authority and made more money.  Damn, if that had been my mom, the whole neighborhood would have known the minute she got home. And my dad would have been so proud of her.  Geordie has really grown into an "all about me" wet blanket.  Kathy should have kicked him to the curb and not gotten back together after the separation.

And the writers really hate Will.  His descent to the dark side is really getting tedious.

It would have been nice to hear a "That's wonderful, you deserve it."

More like the drug side.

22 hours ago, 12catcrazy said:

I'm going to admit that I figured it was the guy in the locked room who was the murderer but didn't see the other twist coming.  

Yeah, it was annoying they didn't question such a weak alibi for so long and just said, "He had an alibi". Locked in a room all night by someone who can't even remember it? Easily done himself.

I began considering that "Martha" might be Duncan's wife after it was established the case involved his daughter. It was just a vague idea, though.

Edited August 1, 2023 by Noneofyourbusiness

[Orcinus orca]

Alfie never met his girlfriend's parents?  They just hated him sight unseen?

[Noneofyourbusiness]

24 minutes ago, Orcinus orca said:

Alfie never met his girlfriend's parents?  They just hated him sight unseen?

They didn't hate him till she died, because until then they didn't know he existed. The kids were keeping their relationship secret because they knew her parents would disapprove because he was Italian. Even after Heather's death, they refused to believe that she and Alfie were actually dating consensually and he hadn't tried unsuccessfully to seduce her and killed her for rejecting him.

22 hours ago, HelenCrump said:

 didn't realize the season was ending next week.  This seems like an unusually short season!  

The season has the same number of episodes as every previous one (6), it just seems shorter because the last two are airing together this time.

Edited August 1, 2023 by Noneofyourbusiness

[dargosmydaddy]

18 minutes ago, Noneofyourbusiness said:

22 hours ago, HelenCrump said:

 didn't realize the season was ending next week.  This seems like an unusually short season!  

The season has the same number of episodes as every previous one (6), it just seems shorter because the last two are airing together this time.

Season six had 8 episodes for some reason... that was the never-ending Leonard-in-prison Geordie-dealing-with-his-war-years season. I'm glad this season is only 6... I've had about as much Will angst as I can take.

[Orcinus orca]

5 hours ago, sugarbaker design said:

She sure did!

A bit more zest than anticipated!

However, I did know it was her toward the end because she was the only other option and because I remember her from Downton Abbey.  She was a baddie there as well.  Although not a killer....

[J-Man]

Will should've sent Alfie over to Kembleford to confess to Father Brown.

What's a "stovie"?

[dancingdreamer]

4 hours ago, J-Man said:

Will should've sent Alfie over to Kembleford to confess to Father Brown.

What's a "stovie"?

The term 'stovies' comes from the way the dish is cooked. The potatoes are stewed slowly, rather than boiled. The process of stewing is known in Scots as 'to stove. ' The ingredients vary a bit, but rarely stray from tatties, onions and meat.

[statsgirl]

 A problem with the last episode for me, and for much of this season, is that the show is off-balance. There's too much time spent on angst, Will's about killing the man and about Bonnie, Leonard's about the half-way house, Geordie's about retiring, and not enough about the mystery.  It's become more soap opera than detective show.

[Shelbie]

To me it’s become a boring soap opera. Everyone is just moping around being a combination of  stiff upper lip and angsty teenager.
 

I’m glad the season is ending.

[Orcinus orca]

10 hours ago, Shelbie said:

To me it’s become a boring soap opera. Everyone is just moping around being a combination of  stiff upper lip and angsty teenager.
 

I’m glad the season is ending.

I agree. I enjoyed it somewhat at first but getting through this last season has been painful.

Edited August 4, 2023 by Orcinus orca

[ichbin]

I questioned myself for continuing to.watch the past couple of seasons. I tried with this but now I give up.  Pure melodrama.  God forbid any character is happy because that must quickly be remedied.  I stopped watching Call the Midwife for the same reason.  

 

[buttersister]

Angst is their brand, at least lately. The problem is that they‘ve run out of fresh ideas. Vicar—angsty and clearly moving on. Geordie—troubled and an inattentive husband. Leonard—Oy. Murder—meh and short-changed. Too bad.

[surfgirl]

My God, the end of this season, if one can call it that, cannot come soon enough! Good riddance vicar, go have your crisis of faith elsewhere and let's just put Leonard back in the rectory where he belongs. 

[HoodlumSheep]

miss Scott continues to rock. Larry has quite a ways to go though.

Mrs. C accidently made things worse for Leonard and Daniel :(

It already looks like they're taking a breather from each other but maybe it'd be better if they officially break things off. Do a bit of self reflecting. And if they're meant to be then they'll find their way back together.

I didn't realize we were getting back to back episodes and considering everyone's headed off to sleep already, I guess my thoughts on the season finale will have to wait til tomorrow. Lol. guess I should have checked this thread sooner since my last post.

 

 

 

[Newsreader]

Could Will possibly get any more insufferable? I just don’t care if he’s popping pills. Will probably can’t hear God because he won’t STFU long enough from his whining to hear him.  Give me Geordie and Leonard solving mysteries at this point. I almost gave Leonard a standing ovation when he told Will off. 

[Orcinus orca]

So we had to suffer though 5.5 hours of deep. dark angst and suddenly all is well in Willville? Although I do have to confess I had a few chuckles there at the end.

[magdalene]

Well, I grew quite to like Larry the twerp.

This show is giving me emotional whip lash. A season of of nothing but utter misery and angst and then, in the last 15 minutes, happy, happy, happy - and puppies!!

Let this be the happy ending for Will and let us have an angst free next season ha!

I am glad Geordie's boss got transferred, that character made my teeth grind.

[sistermagpie]

I wonder if, when Grantchester makes a request for a new vicar, they make "drama queen" part of the actual job description? 

[buttersister]

Well that was some magic wand! 

I’ve heard there’s a season 9 in the works. Why?

Seriouly, Geordie is saved and enlightened. I’m good.

 

[cardigirl]

I really enjoyed see Mark Benton (Shakespeare and Hathaway) in this episode and would gladly watch another season if he was featured. What a lovely character he played. And I very much enjoyed watching Larry begin to bloom and his working with Miss Scott to figure out the murder. 

I chuckled a little when Will just was able to give up the uppers so quickly. Ha! If only it were that easy. 

Not sure what to make of this show. It's definitely a melodrama, which I could deal with, but the writing is so absurd it's hard to remain in it. 

What is up with Kathy's make up and hair? She looked terrible this season. Ugh. 

So, for next season, I'm willing to watch if they make Larry and Miss Scott, Leonard and Geordie, and Mark Benton's character featured players. I can do without Kathy, less of Mrs. C (although her husband got a good line or two in the episode).  

Preposterous show.  😝

 

 

[wonderwoman]

9 hours ago, buttersister said:

Well that was some magic wand! 

I’ve heard there’s a season 9 in the works. Why?

Seriouly, Geordie is saved and enlightened. I’m good.

with you all the way! what a perfect series finale that would have been. will, bonie and the kids off in the sunset. geordie keeps his job - and a puppy. things are copacetic between leonard and daniel. why not. quit while they were ahead?

[Daff]

10 hours ago, buttersister said:

Well that was some magic wand! 

I’ve heard there’s a season 9 in the works. Why?

Seriouly, Geordie is saved and enlightened. I’m good.

 

There are:

Ernie

Dicken’s puppies 

Mrs. C keeping house for Geordy and Cath

maybe a mystery or two

and the new, somewhat improved Larry

Edited August 7, 2023 by Daff

[dubbel zout]

11 hours ago, Newsreader said:

I almost gave Leonard a standing ovation when he told Will off. 

I had to laugh when Leonard told Will he (Will) loved wallowing in self-pity, so what does Will do? Run off to wallow in more self-pity.

11 hours ago, magdalene said:

I am glad Geordie's boss got transferred, that character made my teeth grind.

Same. He was so cartoonishly written.

The birth scene was kind of clichéd, but I did like that it gave the entire cast a chance to be together (though why wasn't Jack at the baptism?). And Leonard sobbing when he saw James was very sweet. I also like that James's middle name is George. That's exactly right.

There was a shot at the end where we saw James smiling so broadly, and I just died at the cuteness.

They wrapped up Will's story extremely fast, but at least the final episode wasn't too full of angst. Larry sort of figured out what sort of policeman he wants to be and was redeemed a bit (him dropping the dime on the boss was nice), and of course Miss Scott was her usual awesome self.

[Sarah 103]

14 hours ago, Newsreader said:

I almost gave Leonard a standing ovation when he told Will off. 

My thought was, "It's like Leonard has been reading this message board."

I'm so happy we got to see the puppies, and they are adorable. I am looking forward to seeing who gets the other puppies. I am still rooting for Leonard to get one. It can be a pet/mascot/therapy dog for the halfway house. 

Larry is finally starting to grow and become a better person, which was wonderful. I hope it continues.

I liked the story with Will and the younger characters, and especially the policeman. There was a definite theme of found family/adoption. Geordy is very much Will's father and I liked the the police officer is going to be the same (in a more official capacity) for the orphans.  

[wanderingstar]

Miss Scott may be this season's MVP.

I loved the little scene with Geordie and Kathy walking and talking about his future. 

I expected Elliott to tell Geordie he would be the new head of their station. Anyway, I'm glad Elliott and his sour face are gone.

It was such a surprise and delight to see Mark Benton (Frank Hathaway to us Shakepeare & Hathaway fans) as PC McKenzie. I thought he and Geordie worked well together.

I'm glad Will came to his senses. Love that he gave the new baby George as a middle name. Geordie looked so touched.

I hope this means Leonard and Daniel are back together for good, but then this is Grantchester 😄

Curious to see how Will and family will be written out of the show.

[Quilt Fairy]

15 minutes ago, wanderingstar said:

Curious to see how Will and family will be written out of the show.

Yeah, now that this dreadful, boring season is over, I guess it's OK to mention here that Tom Brittany (Will) is leaving.   I don't know why they ever cast him, the guy has no chemistry with any of the other actors.

[nokat]

14 hours ago, sistermagpie said:

I wonder if, when Grantchester makes a request for a new vicar, they make "drama queen" part of the actual job description? 

Have an affair and steal a wife, or steal a fiancée. Drink or take drugs. Wonder if you can be a vicar amidst your Eeyore view of life?

[dubbel zout]

31 minutes ago, wanderingstar said:

I loved the little scene with Geordie and Kathy walking and talking about his future. 

Same, and it was great he reiterated they were a team. There was also a mention of Kathy's promotion, so I guess she took it. Good for her, though boo she's not getting enough money.

[nokat]

Some funny moments: Bonnie and Cath in the church talking. They keep looking up and saying forgive me. The subject comes up about sex and how he's good at it and Bonnie says forgive me, and Cath says 'not for that.' I had a good laugh.

Geordie and Will seeing the puppies, and Will going in to see Bonnie. Geordie says 'He's a dead man.' Will walks in and Bonnie says 'Ladies' and Cath and Mrs. C get up like they are going to beat his ass. She says 'By which I mean, give us a moment.' I loved it.

[sistermagpie]

1 hour ago, nokat said:

Have an affair and steal a wife, or steal a fiancée. Drink or take drugs. Wonder if you can be a vicar amidst your Eeyore view of life?

Vicars with strong faith need not apply. Regular crises required!

[peeayebee]

1 hour ago, wanderingstar said:

Love that he gave the new baby George as a middle name.

Me --->   😭

1 hour ago, Quilt Fairy said:

Yeah, now that this dreadful, boring season is over, I guess it's OK to mention here that Tom Brittany (Will) is leaving. 

Me again --->   🙌 

[nokat]

2 hours ago, wanderingstar said:

Miss Scott may be this season's MVP.

So many of us feel this way. I love her and her maybe making Larry a better person. She is undervalued of course in that era, but what a wonderful character and actress portraying her.

[magdalene]

Cathy wore an obvious wig all season. I hope the actress is well.

[cardigirl]

2 hours ago, nokat said:

Some funny moments: Bonnie and Cath in the church talking. They keep looking up and saying forgive me. The subject comes up about sex and how he's good at it and Bonnie says forgive me, and Cath says 'not for that.' I had a good laugh.

Geordie and Will seeing the puppies, and Will going in to see Bonnie. Geordie says 'He's a dead man.' Will walks in and Bonnie says 'Ladies' and Cath and Mrs. C get up like they are going to beat his ass. She says 'By which I mean, give us a moment.' I loved it.

I enjoyed both of those scenes but wondered why Bonnie kept looking up and saying "Forgive me," since she is an nonbeliever. 

1 hour ago, magdalene said:

Cathy wore an obvious wig all season. I hope the actress is well.

I know I commented on Cathy's appearance, and I meant that the show didn't need to make her look like that. There was no purpose to it, unless they wanted to make her look like she didn't know how to wear makeup. I didn't find her appealing the way they styled her. It was nothing against the actress. 

 

[statsgirl]

I wondered how long Bonnie's labour was lasting because those puppies had to be six weeks old at least.

I appreciate  that they had to wrap up Will's story for a happy ending but it was too fast for me. One moment he's abandoning everyone including his pregnant wife, the young boy who just asked to call him 'Dad"and Dickens, popping pills, getting beat up and rejecting Geordie who came to help him, and then suddenly he's back to a loving person who is instantly off pills and so All In with the baby that he ignores the nurse who tells him that he can't come into the delivery room.

Two seasons of Elliott being the chief at the station was 1 1/2 season too long. The sudden physical violence seemed out of character though.

Larry redeemed himself at the end. I liked his explanation of why he liked Elliott, because Geordie and Will (?) always treated him like he was incompetent.

I loved the quick scene at the end with Kathy and Geordie heading off to work and Mrs. C. in her flowered apron taking charge of the children, all three girls in the dresses and the boy's shirt in the same flowered fabric as the apron.

Ernie saying that his mother sounded like a dinosaur was funny too.

5 hours ago, wanderingstar said:

I expected Elliott to tell Geordie he would be the new head of their station.

I hope that he's not. He's a great senior detective but not so good at being a boss. He always gave Will too much leeway, and he was impatient with Larry.

[nokat]

1 hour ago, cardigirl said:

I enjoyed both of those scenes but wondered why Bonnie kept looking up and saying "Forgive me," since she is an nonbeliever. 

I do this myself as a nonbeliever when in the presence of someone who believes. 

[magdalene]

2 hours ago, cardigirl said:

I know I commented on Cathy's appearance, and I meant that the show didn't need to make her look like that. There was no purpose to it, unless they wanted to make her look like she didn't know how to wear makeup. I didn't find her appealing the way they styled her. It was nothing against the actress. 

Oh, my thought had nothing to do with your comment. I come from a background where the only women wearing wigs like that had lost their own hair due to chemo. And I sure hope that is not the reason here.

[Orcinus orca]

I thought Miss Scott's hair looked like a wig as well, as does Mrs. C's.  Maybe that's the MO for that show.

[HoodlumSheep]

Puppies! Finally. Every time I see Dickens I'm always trying to figure out how many zillions of years old in dog years he is at this point. I keep thinking he's got to kick the bucket at some point.

Larry for MVP! glad he's starting to shape up. Hope it continues next season.

The police boss suddenly getting violent felt like it came out of nowhere. It's like they couldn't think of a better way to get rid of him. Also, how does he go from smacking Leonard around to taking his transfer news so well? Just seemed odd.

Cathy and Mrs. C were totally ready to duke it out with Will and I'm kind of sad we didn't get to see them give him a beat down.

U best believe James gets named after Geordie in some capacity!

I almost thought Leonard was gonna ask to go to London with Daniel but ofc not; can't have them stray too far from grantchester.

I enjoyed Mack. He was a nice fellow.

 

[dargosmydaddy]

11 hours ago, dubbel zout said:

I also like that James's middle name is George. That's exactly right.

A bit of a callback to the first season when Geordie gave his son the middle name Sidney.

Where were Geordie's other three kids in the hospital waiting room scene?? Why did Esme need to be there, but not the rest? And if you could bring puppies into a hospital waiting room (which you can't, that was bizarre), surely you could bring three more kids.

Also, what was with Mrs. C going all Sound of Music with the Keating kids at the end? She had them in matching outfits (which the oldest two are definitely too old for and would surely protest), and marching!

I was hopeful that Geordie would actually retire and go into the private detective business next season (and bring Miss Scott with him) right up until the boss hit Leonard, and then I predicted the ending we got. Sigh.

On the one hand, I guess Grantchester should be applauded for basically ending every season on a positive note-- any of its eight finales would have worked perfectly fine as a series finale-- but it's getting ridiculous, particularly in the last two seasons, how much they have to pull sunshine and roses out of their ass in the last episode to make everything come together. Like, maybe a little less angst in the episodes leading up to the finale would be a better idea, no? But they've been doing it so long I don't know why I should expect it to change...

36 minutes ago, HoodlumSheep said:

Every time I see Dickens I'm always trying to figure out how many zillions of years old in dog years he is at this point. I keep thinking he's got to kick the bucket at some point.

As much as I love Dickens, I'm kind of hoping Will and his family take him along wherever they end up going, and we're spared a doggy death scene. New vicar can have one of the pups. But knowing this show, Dickens's decline and eventual passing will serve as part of next season's angst.

[Clawdette]

Jack was at the christening.  The whole gang was there.