S05.E02: Episode Two

[FineWashables]

Thanks, Chattygal, for that insight into how the series is scripted.  You're right: it really does explain an awful lot.  Guess I should stop looking for resolutions to all those hanging plot threads.

[Kohola3]

Has everyone forgotten that Baxter and her soap placement caused Cora's miscarriage?

 

That wasn't Baxter, it was O'Brien who took her hairdressing skills off to India with Shrimpy and his crabby wife.

Edited January 12, 2015 by Kohola3

[helenamonster]

What wasn't so cute was Anna being forced to purchase the diaphragm.  I'm afraid the storyline will be that someone finds out, a scandal ensues, and Bates thinks Anna is trying to avoid getting pregnant.  Then he kills the pharmacist.

 

You know, I was expecting one of two things to happen. 1. Anna goes back at the end of the episode to purchase a diaphragm for herself (this is assuming that is what she bought for Mary), or 2. The pharmacist recognized Anna and assumed that whatever form of birth control she was purchasing was a replacement for one she'd already bought. After the convo she and Bates had last episode, it appears that Anna is not in the least bit eager to procreate at the moment, and assuming that what she got for Mary was something for women, like a diaphragm, and not for men, like a condom, it would have been interesting to see that she wanted to or had already been using some kind of birth control method for herself without Bates's knowledge. Maybe she'll wait to see if what she bought for Mary was effective and she'll go back for one for herself.

 

Reading comments from the UK viewers back in September, they were speculating Tony may have killed his valet.  Mary did end up telling him about Anna's rape, didn't she?  And how Anna wouldn't be comfortable having the valet at Downton?  Hmmm....maybe he is very, very evil.

 

Mary didn't tell him about the rape when she insisted that he fire Green; she didn't even bring up Anna's name. She simply told Gillingham that Green had done something terrible and that she needed him to be sacked.

 

Personally? While I think the Gillingham theory is definitely gaining some traction (the fact that he ran up to Downton immediately after finding out Green was dead is suspicious), my money's still on Anna. I don't think it was Mrs. Hughes because I'm pretty sure she was at Downton all day that day (unless she arranged something, but that seems unlikely) and she seemed really worried and convinced of Bates's guilt when she found the train ticket in his pocket. I could see Anna (who we know was in London at the time of Green's death) running into Green on that crowded street, the two of them having a confrontation, and her accidentally pushing him into oncoming traffic. I think Mrs. Hughes look of terror at the end had to do with the fact that she's convinced of Bates's guilt, and afraid of what him being arrested, tried, and hanged would do to Anna's emotional health.

 

I liked all of Rose's dresses this episode, and I thought she was funny in her not-so-subtle hints for a wireless. She's come a long way, imo.

[proserpina65]

Tony was the one pushing for the Sex Week, so why not just tell him to do it?  A man could buy french letters and no one would blink.  Given how practiced and smooth he seemed to be about the arrangement, I assume he would have been okay with taking care of that himself.

 

I actually liked that Mary wasn't taking the chance of leaving birth control up to the man.  But why she made Anna buy it for her was beyond me.  Mary could've gone into a shop in Liverpool, or some town closer to Liverpool where no one knew her, wearing her own wedding ring, given the same reason that Anna had to use, and there wouldn't have been a problem.  I'm sure someone will find out about Anna buying birth control and it will get back to Bates, blowing up in Anna's face in the most catastrophic way possible.  Because that's how things roll with the Bateses.  (Both of whom I do still like, btw.)

I really thought last week that it was implied that Anna wasn't eager to get pregnant so I just assumed she was already on the birth control.    Confused now.   Did she get rid of an unwanted pregnancy with Green and now can't conceive?  Is she not having relations with Bates?   Are they just infertile?   So confused.

 

I'm going with one (or both) of them is infertile until proven otherwise.

[izabella]

Regarding Greene, it's unlikely that Anna was his first or last victim.  There could be a lot of people who wanted him dead.

[Little Ann]

That wasn't Baxter, it was O'Brien who took her hairdressing skills off to India with Shrimpy and his crabby wife.

Thank you to those of you who corrected me on this.  Glad I was wrong, I'm not sure how I got the two of them mixed up.

[chaifan]

I wonder if it will turn out that Baxter isn't actually a thief, but instead took the fall for someone else.  Maybe a member of the household she was serving, who couldn't have their reputation ruined but could pay her to admit to the crime and do a few years in jail.  And now she's obligated to keep the secret.  There's obviously  more to the story than "I stole, I served jail time, I repented and now I'm a different person."

[izabella]

I'm guessing she fell in love with a ne'er do well, and he concocted this get rich burglary scheme, but then dumped her after she gave him the jewels she stole.  Baxter is taking the guilt all on herself because she was foolish enough to steal for her lover.

[Kohola3]

Having rewatched the first episode last night, it seemed to me that whenever Bates and Anna were talking about children and mother's love, Baxter was in the background giving them soulful looks.  Since JF loves to throw kids in at random, I have to wonder if that's the secret.  If so, borrrriiiinnnnnggggg.

[proserpina65]

On the other hand, I don't know what Mary thought 1 condom would do for a whole sex week.

 

Maybe it was one packet of condoms.  (Or would they still have been called French letters in the 20s?)

[SunnyBeBe]

The entire thing with Thomas is so overdone.  I agree with those who feel that his intent on destroying Bates seems bizarre and confusing.  I'm having to ff through his scenes.  He reminds me of the monsters who cannot be destroyed in the movies.  He is hit with a huge bullet, but keeps going.  He is cut in half by a huge sword, but only regroups and continues to fight.  He is blown up, but reassembles to continue to fight. Why is he fighting?  It doesn't matter. He's just the mean one and that's what he does.  Enough already.  

 

I do get nervous with an admitted jewel thief in the house that also holds a valuable painting.  Please no....

 

Could Miss Hughes look anymore freaked out than she did when the police officer said why he was there?  She's pretty smart and has on many occasions held things with a tight lip, all the while seeming to know nothing.  But, now, she looks like the cat who ate the canary.  Why are things like this bothering me now?

[Catherinewriter]

Little Ann, you got them mixed up because this show repeats plot arcs over and over. So, no worries.

I think we have to face it that the reason we hate the possibilities for Mary is that we miss Matthew so much. I really do.

And are people being silly when they talk about either Anna or Mrs. Hughes killing Green? I thought so at first but when posters kept on about it I wondered. Frankly, Anna is incapable of this, I think. If she were capable of it, she would have killed him or tried to the night of the rape. And Mrs. Hughes - please.

Have people watched Robert be the pirate king on Galavant. He's great, and funny, and you don't want to have Isis attack and kill him.

[Abstract]

Ashamed to admit that Gillingham's doorway pose had its obviously-intended effect on me. I don't even find him attractive, and his scenes with Mary are boring, but that pose was awesome.

[Diane M]

"make love all night"

The plan to have a nice dinner, then return to "make love all night" doesn't sound very romantic when it's described that way.  More like a chore to be endured.  Isn't making love supposed to be spontaneous when you're in the mood?

 

I thought it was beyond the pale for her to ask Anna to buy the diaphragm

I felt so sorry for Anna.  Now I suppose she and Bates will stop at that pharmacy to buy something else and that rude clerk will say something about that purchase. It was none of her business why Anna was buying the condoms or diaphragm.

 

I loathe the name Marigold. 

Horrid name for that child.  If they wanted to name her after a flower, they should have chosen one that smelled good.

 

I can't say I give a damn which guy she chooses, other than for my own sake.  I think Blake is more interesting so I'd prefer him to Tony.

I don't believe Mary is really turned on by either of them, and I think that perfect man is still waiting in the wings.

 

I'm no child expert but Marigold looks a hell of a lot older than she's supposed to be.

I think she's probably three.

 

I love this speculation we're working on, accusing Tony or Mrs. Hughes of killing that valet.

Maybe Tony, but Mrs. Hughes would never murder someone.  I think that look of concern was for Bates and Anna.

 

As if the pair of them wouldn't actually be comparing notes in bed every night about what they learned about their various upstairs charges.

 

If Anna and Bates are spending their time in bed doing that it's no wonder she hasn't gotten pregnant.  Chatting about their jobs isn't my idea of foreplay.

[panthergirl13]

I know I said this back in September or whenever I flew to England to watch it the first time around, but how does Mary get to act all "I'm gonna be such a rebel with the sexy times" when she took it up the butt or whatever she did with Mr. Pamuk? (still my favorite episode of the whole series, bar none).

 

She fucking killed the guy (literally) yet she and Anna are both acting like this thing with Tony is soooo scandalous. 

[Hanahope]

Agreed that its going to be someone else who killed Green, but everyone is going to think it was Bates, at least for a while.  I could see both Gillingham and Anna being potentials, as well as some other person who Green had previously attacked (but who ended up looking like Anna).  I always did think it funny that Gillingham had to immediately run up to Downton to tell Mary Green had been killed.  He couldn't have just phoned to say Green was no longer in his service?

 

I had to laugh at the woman pharmacist, who suggested to Anna abstinence.  Yeah, that really works with most men.  Any yup, can see it somehow coming back to bite Anna the directed to buy the device for Mary, but Bates is going to think it was for Anna.

 

Carson finally disagreeing with Lord G, hahha, you could tell Carson was thinking Lord G was being very selfish.  Between that and the King on the wireless, the common folk are realizing the nobility are not really all that special.

 

Sarah did look a lot better this episode, being helpful to Daisy and understanding in not accepting the dinner invite.  Bout time.

 

Thomas, if you don't want to be an outsider, try being nice to everyone instead of mean and sneaky.  You didn't have to rat out Baxter.

[annzeepark914]

Mary and Gillingham.  I think he is after her money.  He specifically asked about Downton's finances when he met Charles Blake the first time at the abbey.  He is dishonorable.  Matthew would have never asked her to do what he is asking.  Mary might have been thinking it but a gentleman wouldn't have asked her that.  This is just a way to trick her into marriage.  She will feel too guilty to turn him down now and he could rub her nose in this misstep.

 

I think he killed his valet.  He pointedly kept saying he didn't like him and he acted very strange when Bates mentioned to him how strange it was that he died so quickly after their last visit.  I like Molsley and his gallantry.  Hate Bunting.

Amen!  I haven't trusted Gillingham since his first appearance when we learned that his family lost their estate...and when he explained to someone that he only hired Greene because he couldn't afford a better valet.  He's broke and IMO Mary and her fabulous DA are just what he needs/wants. Gosh, you people are really good (re: picking up on the horny monkey line).  My hearing is fine but some of the things these wonderful English actors say slip past me (maybe because "horny monkey" is a term I just can't imagine being used or because Mary didn't get a look of horror on her face and run out of the room...TG is not very suave). I believe Tony got rid of Greene for good after he had lunch with Mary, when she made that strange request (for him to find a different valet). He picked up on how important this was to her (even tho' he didn't know the reason...maybe he somehow got wind of what Greene did???) and being so desperate to marry into money, he did what she asked--he got rid of his valet.  I've liked Charles Blake right from the start but this is a soap opera (a very grand & gorgeous one, at that) and so Mary just couldn't connect with him--that would be too easy, too nice & pat.  I still love this show (especially the house & surrounding property/countryside, the clothes, the old cars, the butlers & footmen, the table settings, flowers, candles, etc).  And I loved it when the Dowager Countess stood up when she heard the King's voice on the wireless.  That gesture said so much about the English people, the time, and all the changes.

[Dirtybubble]

I liked all of Rose's dresses this episode, and I thought she was funny in her not-so-subtle hints for a wireless. She's come a long way, imo.

I enjoy the Rose character as well.  To me she is simply someone of the early 20's enjoying life.  I never found her to me mean spirited or vain just simply a young lady with character imperfections like everyone else in the house.

 

Thomas, if you don't want to be an outsider, try being nice to everyone instead of mean and sneaky.  You didn't have to rat out Baxter.

I agree with this statement but I always try to see it from Thomas' POV.  Yeah his behavior brought on a lot of it but I think the conversation he had with Anna was simply sweet and honestly his storyline is one I look forward to the most.  I have to keep reminding myself though the reason he has it in for Bates is to get that stupid valet job.  Man he can hold a grudge for a looooong time. 

 

 

 

 

[alias1]

Also: who the hell named that kid Marigold?  Edith, or the pig parents?  It's a very, very awful name.

 

 

Not only is Marigold a horrible name but it sounds way too much like Mary.  I was hoping for a good story for Edith, but this isn't it.  It's supposed to be heartbreaking and it's just plain boring to me.  

[ZoloftBlob]

Little Ann, that wasn't Baxter with the soap, that was O'Brien who left the family in the first episode of season 4 so that she could go work for Rose's mother Susan in India.

 

Well, its easy to get confused when almost every plot from Season one and two is being redone. :)

[Nire]

 After the convo she and Bates had last episode, it appears that Anna is not in the least bit eager to procreate at the moment, and assuming that what she got for Mary was something for women, like a diaphragm, and not for men, like a condom, it would have been interesting to see that she wanted to or had already been using some kind of birth control method for herself without Bates's knowledge. Maybe she'll wait to see if what she bought for Mary was effective and she'll go back for one for herself.

 

I'm not sure if they were different back in the day but I think it's very unlikely in my experience that Bates wouldn't be able to tell whether or not Anna is using a diaphragm during sex.

 

I do agree that it's going to somehow blow up in Anna's face.  I also wonder if Bates will end the series by going on a murdering spree and taking out the pharmacist among others. 

[Boton]

A lot of people have said Anna bought a diaphragm for Mary.  I don't think that's possible.  Diaphragms come in different sizes and need to be measured and fitted properly (or they don't work!!) by a doctor.  You can't go and buy one in a drug store, even today.  Would it have been realistic to be able to pick up a diaphragm in a drug store in the 20's in rural England?

 

I also think it must be condoms because Anna said she wanted to go back and buy a dozen more. 

 

On the other hand, I don't know what Mary thought 1 condom would do for a whole sex week. 

 

I'm very confused.

 

I'm not sure about rural England, but I believe diaphrams were already available in pre- and post-childbirth sizes by that era.  Which does present a bit of difficulty, because the town would know that Anna didn't have a child, so they would given her a pre- size.  Then again, all of these things were called "family planning" for a reason -- they weren't absolute, they were mostly meant to cut down the risk so that things got spaced out a bit.  The idea of iron-clad prevention was decades away yet.

 

I'm still betting on a pessary, or a form of cervical cap.  Those don't (I believe) have to be sized, and they had long been available for support for women with fallen uteruses, although people readily discovered that covering the opening of the uterus did have certain other advantages.

[Litnit]

My prom night had more erotic passion than that hotel scene and my date turned out to be gay.  Come on!  I hope it gets better next week because if a show is going to have a story line involving two characters going away for a sex week, I don't want to see fade out after one kiss.  Not to mention the absolutely atrocious dialogue.  Though if there is only one condom for the whole week...

 

Forgot to mention...I hope the Baxter thing turns out to be exactly what she says: she's a despicable thief.  It wouldn't be very dramatic, but it would be funny as hell to have everyone trying to guess when it's nothing.

Edited January 12, 2015 by Litnit

[Constantinople]

I know I said this back in September or whenever I flew to England to watch it the first time around, but how does Mary get to act all "I'm gonna be such a rebel with the sexy times" when she took it up the butt or whatever she did with Mr. Pamuk? (still my favorite episode of the whole series, bar none).

 

She fucking killed the guy (literally) yet she and Anna are both acting like this thing with Tony is soooo scandalous.

That reminds me.

Isn't Mary taking a big risk traveling without a lady's maid in case Gillingham doesn't make it through the night?

Not only is Marigold a horrible name but it sounds way too much like Mary.

True, but Edithigold doesn't roll off the tongue as easily, and might cause unwanted suspicion.

[avecsans]

Poor Anna! Her mortification was palpable in the pharmacy scene. The clerk was a horror. It's a good thing we live in the 21st century and nobody thinks it's their business what a woman does with her uterus...wait. Never mind.

[Hanahope]

I have to keep reminding myself though the reason he has it in for Bates is to get that stupid valet job.  Man he can hold a grudge for a looooong time.

 

Certainly, that was probably his initial reason for being anti-Bates.  But I had thought that with Bates helping him out later, plus Thomas becoming an 'underbutler' Thomas should be beyond his grudge with Bates.  Isn't an underbutler at least equal to a valet or perhaps even just above?  Certainly Carson, as butler, is above valet and that's supposed to be what Thomas is training for.

[izabella]

Thomas always shoots himself in the foot, er, hand.  He gains nothing by being a conniving ass except enemies.  He'd be digging ditches if it weren't for the kindness of his enemies.

[Dirtybubble]

My prom night had more erotic passion than that hotel scene and my date turned out to be gay.  Come on!  I hope it gets better next week because if a show is going to have a story line involving two characters going away for a sex week, I don't want to see fade out after one kiss.

Well this is PBS so I don't think they can show much more but honestly I found it rather romantic.  To hear Lord Gillingham speak in such a manner (so direct & frank) I was taken aback and blushing a bit myself.  Enh maybe I'm naive but while the dialogue is kinda soap opera -ish I still found it rather moving. 

 

Certainly, that was probably his initial reason for being anti-Bates.  But I had thought that with Bates helping him out later, plus Thomas becoming an 'underbutler' Thomas should be beyond his grudge with Bates.  Isn't an underbutler at least equal to a valet or perhaps even just above?  Certainly Carson, as butler, is above valet and that's supposed to be what Thomas is training for.

That's true, I had forgotten about that.  Maybe Barrow wants to be his lordship's valet and not just an ordinary valet or under butler.  I'm not really sure who ranks higher in that order.  Enh maybe Thomas just dislikes Bates because he is married and happy--who knows...

[Diane M]

I also wonder if Bates will end the series by going on a murdering spree and taking out the pharmacist among others.

I hope you're joking.  There has never been any proof that Bates killed anyone, including Vera. 

 

Though if there is only one condom for the whole week...

If it was condoms that she bought and not a diaphragm, it would have been a package of several.  Condoms aren't sold as only one.

[Constantinople]

Upon reflection, it's a bit odd that Tom used Charles I as justification for what's going on in Russia.

At least it is given what Cromwell did to Ireland.

[Calamity Jane]

Wan't that O'Brien that pulled the soap stunt?

[attica]

Hello, Richard E. Grant! He totes magotes wants on Cora. Am I wrong in actively wishing for this affair?

 

REG and EMcG played flirty hubby & wife in the Scarlet Pimpernel  series  some years ago and had (imo) ginormous chemistry. I love him so much anyway. I don't even mind admitting I was hoping he'd say at some point, "I've gone on holiday by mistake!"

[DHDancer]

FYI Grant is George (footman) "downstairs" in Gosford Park.  As a separate comment, no surprise at some of the similarities given who wrote Gosford Park.  I also suggest you check out Upstairs Downstairs for some borrowed stories/themes.

[statsgirl]

. We've seen Mary on numerous occasions carry on conversations that aren't focused on herself. 

The best example I've seen of inadvertently damning with faint praise.

 

The thing that puts me off Downton Abbey is how in love Fellowes is with Mary, and how he can't ever cut Edith a break. It makes the show unpleasant to watch, to see Mary getting all the men (Matthew and then three suitors) and the money while Edith is consistently left alone love-wise and dependent on others while Mary gets to even tell her father what they're doing.  The snide remarks Robert and Mary make again and again just makes it that more unpleasant.

 

No Edith isn't perfect but she deserves to be measured by the same yardstick as Mary is and that the show still refuses to do it makes me turn it off when I try to watch.

[fishcakes]

Certainly, that was probably his initial reason for being anti-Bates.  But I had thought that with Bates helping him out later, plus Thomas becoming an 'underbutler' Thomas should be beyond his grudge with Bates.  Isn't an underbutler at least equal to a valet or perhaps even just above?  Certainly Carson, as butler, is above valet and that's supposed to be what Thomas is training for.

 

Yes, as underbutler Thomas ranks higher than Bates now. Bates commented on it at the time Thomas got the job, saying he helped Thomas out and now he was stuck working for him. Because of that, I too don't understand why Thomas still has it in for Bates. Even if he doesn't know that Bates is the one who whispered, "soooooaaaapppp" in O'Brien's ear (although I think he does? I can't remember), being above him now ought to be enough for him to just drop his stupid grudge already.

 

I rather like Tony, but honestly the "scrumptious dinner" line would have made me pack up my birth control and head back to Yorkshire.

[jschoolgirl]

The thing that puts me off Downton Abbey is how in love Fellowes is with Mary, and how he can't ever cut Edith a break.

----

Sometimes I wonder if Our Lord Creator has a bug up his ass about Laura Carmichael.

Edited January 12, 2015 by jschoolgirl

[SoSueMe]

Any history scholars know if that was  the king's speech on the wireless? The one that Colin Firth (?) portrayed in the movie?

Edited January 13, 2015 by SoSueMe

[Pallas]

Thomas should be beyond his grudge with Bates.

 

He should.  I think though that Thomas may be a case of arrested development -- arrested by culture as well as by nature -- who has decided that attention of any form is better than neglect. Animosity is better than anonymity, or scorn.  Thomas seeks a place among his fellows: he admitted this to Anna, and has done so before.  But he believes, to his core, that he can never engender fellow-feeling among his colleagues at Downton.  I suspect he thinks he has a greater chance of finding a lover or even love, than he does of simply joining in a community, being accepted as one man among many. His only option then is either to rise above them all, or at least, to entangle them all.  

 

He schemes because this gives him a purpose, even an identity, beyond oddball, outcast or nonentity. At this late date he also schemes for the same reason alcoholics drink: because he's become a schemer.  And he needs to hate Bates, because Bates is a kind of mirror to Thomas. Dark and smart, maimed and ready, secretive and passionate.  But what rankles Thomas is that where Bates was honorably wounded, Thomas was not; where Bates was falsely accused of crimes and jailed, Thomas was an actual perpetrator of crimes, misdeeds and false accusations, yet keeps getting off (though not without humiliation).  Bates is a mirror that shows Thomas in a bad light.  

 

Most of all, what burns Thomas is that Bates, so like him in many ways, has been marked out for particular consideration by both the lord of the manor, and the angel downstairs.  Bates is esteemed and Bates is loved -- Bates is even feared, god damn it; Bates was even good to him: how galling is that?  Good to him, Thomas suspects, because Bates truly feels that he's got nothing to fear from the likes of Thomas.  Part of Thomas needs to bring Bates down, because he feels that Bates must be no better than he, and because he knows that Bates believes otherwise. And part of Thomas must bring Bates down, because what other part is there for him to play?  

[moonb]

An history scholars know if that was  the king's speech on the wireless? The one that Colin Firth (?) portrayed in the movie?

 

In 1924, that would have been Bertie and David's father, George V - who made cranky remarks in the movie about "performing" for his subjects over the wireless or some such. 

Edited January 13, 2015 by moonb

[MaryHedwig]

An history scholars know if that was  the king's speech on the wireless? The one that Colin Firth (?) portrayed in the movie?

    In 1924, that would have been Bertie and David's father, George V - who made cranky remarks in the movie about "performing" for his subjects over the wireless or some such.

So just to put a bow on Moonb's correct response, this is Colin Firth's (the King in the King's Speech) father speaking on the wireless, the current Queen Elizabeth II's grandfather.

[Popples]

FYI Grant is George (footman) "downstairs" in Gosford Park.

 

The Dowager Countess' butler Spratt played the second footman Arthur.

[cattykit]

 

I know we were meant to think he'd been a victim of some sorts, but could he possibly be collaborating now with the new regime in Germany?

The regime in Germany in 1924 was the Weimar Republic.  The Nazis didn't come into power until 1933.  That being said, it is ridiculous that his fate has never been revealed.  I don't know if JF is just leaving the door open if the actor wants to come back?

 

I'm very fascinated by the speculation that Tony may have offed his valet.  Certainly would be more interesting than the automatic assumption that murderous Mr. Bates must have done it.  But a witness a year later?  Did they have TV amnesia?

[helenamonster]

Gosh, you people are really good (re: picking up on the horny monkey line).  My hearing is fine but some of the things these wonderful English actors say slip past me (maybe because "horny monkey" is a term I just can't imagine being used or because Mary didn't get a look of horror on her face and run out of the room...TG is not very suave).

 

Lol, Tony never said anything about horny monkeys. But it was basically the subtext and whoever originally wrote that was just making a (quite funny) joke.

 

I'm not sure about rural England, but I believe diaphrams were already available in pre- and post-childbirth sizes by that era.  Which does present a bit of difficulty, because the town would know that Anna didn't have a child, so they would given her a pre- size.  Then again, all of these things were called "family planning" for a reason -- they weren't absolute, they were mostly meant to cut down the risk so that things got spaced out a bit.  The idea of iron-clad prevention was decades away yet.

 

But the pharmacist didn't seem to recognize Anna, and Anna implied that she already had children, so if it was a diaphragm it was probably a post-childbirth size.

 

Isn't Mary taking a big risk traveling without a lady's maid in case Gillingham doesn't make it through the night?

 

This? Was wonderful. The day I stop finding jokes about Mary's Vagina of Death funny, someone please put me out of my misery.

 

Poor Anna! Her mortification was palpable in the pharmacy scene. The clerk was a horror. It's a good thing we live in the 21st century and nobody thinks it's their business what a woman does with her uterus...wait. Never mind.

 

Lol good point, but I'm pretty sure if a pharmacist told a woman picking up birth control that she should maybe just not have sex, it would be, at the very least, grounds for a firing.

[LaChavalina]

I think anyone who is waiting on more closure for Michael Gregson will be sorely disappointed. We've gotten an excuse--albeit a flimsy one--and the story's moved ahead almost two years since he left. More to the point, JF has built a story arc around "single mother Edith" that he can continue to milk for seasons to come. Perhaps at one point there was really some discussion of leaving the door open for the actor to return, but at this point it's not going to happen. At least not until we've sucked the life out of Edith's story line completely.

[Epeolatrix]

Isn't making love supposed to be spontaneous when you're in the mood?

The phrase had a more general meaning at the time, for the most part, like "make out" or "pitch woo". The tone of the phrase starts to shift from "be amorously affectionate" to "have sex" in the 1950s in the UK.

[RealityTVSmack]

I wonder if it will turn out that Baxter isn't actually a thief, but instead took the fall for someone else.  Maybe a member of the household she was serving, who couldn't have their reputation ruined but could pay her to admit to the crime and do a few years in jail.  And now she's obligated to keep the secret.  There's obviously  more to the story than "I stole, I served jail time, I repented and now I'm a different person."

ITA chaifan, there's definitely more to Baxter's theft story and incarceration. She kinda admitted to Mosley someone else was involved...but she's loyal and protecting the person...for now.

[MaryHedwig]

I think anyone who is waiting on more closure for Michael Gregson will be sorely disappointed.

I posted this on the Edith thread but maybe I should clear things up here as well.  It came to me that Gregson died on the day that Marigold was born.  Whether or not Gregson had been abducted by brown coats in Germany, he would have still died on that day, if Edith had not.  Sadly, Gregson and Edith are caught in the Crawley curse: one parent must die on the day their offspring is born (RIP Sybil and Matthew.)

[RealityTVSmack]

Yes, as underbutler Thomas ranks higher than Bates now. Bates commented on it at the time Thomas got the job, saying he helped Thomas out and now he was stuck working for him. Because of that, I too don't understand why Thomas still has it in for Bates. Even if he doesn't know that Bates is the one who whispered, "soooooaaaapppp" in O'Brien's ear (although I think he does? I can't remember), being above him now ought to be enough for him to just drop his stupid grudge already.

I rather like Tony, but honestly the "scrumptious dinner" line would have made me pack up my birth control and head back to Yorkshire.

At my age the "scrumptious dinner" could be foreplay but for Mary I doubt she eats much for dinner! Tony should have taken the bull by the horns...action speaks louder than words and shown Mary what his plans were for her...rather then spilling the beans so to speak. After the first course...if room service was available, she may have worked up an appetite, lol. Edited January 13, 2015 by RealityTVSmack

[RealityTVSmack]

Poor Anna! Her mortification was palpable in the pharmacy scene. The clerk was a horror. It's a good thing we live in the 21st century and nobody thinks it's their business what a woman does with her uterus...wait. Never mind.

I truly hated the pharmacy lady(ghoul)...how super rude can one be? What proprietor hoping for repeat business would drag a customer through the mud by subjected them through 20-questions...especially about such a sensitive/personal subject?!? Guess the ghoul was written into the episode to show "no good deed goes unpunished!"

During this scene I imagined the audience calling out, "Mary get your own darn birth control!"

[Constantinople]

I think anyone who is waiting on more closure for Michael Gregson will be sorely disappointed. We've gotten an excuse--albeit a flimsy one--and the story's moved ahead almost two years since he left. More to the point, JF has built a story arc around "single mother Edith" that he can continue to milk for seasons to come. Perhaps at one point there was really some discussion of leaving the door open for the actor to return, but at this point it's not going to happen. At least not until we've sucked the life out of Edith's story line completely.

True, but given JF's tendency to repeat himself, and given that Edith has already had one dead love who maybe returned from the grave story line (Patrick Crawley), viewers can be forgiven for wondering if/when Gregson will return.

After all, Matthew was supposed to be unable to walk for the rest of his life. Then it turned out it he only stubbed his toe, albeit really badly.

So viewers are left wondering what's really going on, JF only has himself to blame.