S04.E04: Episode 4

[maraleia]

 

Sister Winifred's eyes are opened to Poplar's seedy underworld when she cares for expectant prostitute Bridget Cole. Horrified by the young woman's lack of experience, she draws on her teaching experience to help, and with help from Sgt Noakes sets out to promote safe sex to all local working girls. Barbara struggles to understand why expectant father Frank Robbins would pressure his wife to bear him a son, while Sister Monica Joan is feeling sidelined - until she finds herself unexpectedly assisting Shelagh with an emergency birth. Trixie invites herself along to a meeting between Tom and the Bishop - but things get tense when the idea of the couple moving to Newcastle is raised.

 

[maraleia]

This show never fails to make me cry. The thing that got me the most is when the mother named her daughter after Sister Monica.

[Primetimer]

...are many, many good women.

Read the story

[jah1986]

Another strong episode. Good for Sis. Monica Joan still being of some good. Poor Trixie, I think one of the problems with her is that she doesn't really have any friends around. I know she is friends with Patsy but not on an equal level like she was with Cynthia, Jenny and Chummy.  She doesn't seem to have any confidantes and no one to really confide in. I hope things work out with her and Tom.

 

Loved seeing Shelagh back doing mid-wifery, it seems almost everyone forgot she used to be a nurse and a good one.

 

Sister Winifred and the condoms...at least she is trying.

Edited April 20, 2015 by jah1986

[stopeslite]

I'm getting a little tired with the social movement issue of the week feel it suddenly has. Maybe it had it before, but it's more prominent now. 

 

But wow, was Trixie ever devastated. This is the first time we've really seen her facade slip, and that shot of her at the end... that was something. I still don't know if she really loved Tom and that was the majority of it, or if it was following in her father's alcoholic footsteps was the main source of pain, but it was heartbreaking. So glad that there wasn't a worse outcome due to her being passed out drunk.

I was just thinking how they haven't had even two or three births at once in forever, and then they said it was the most they'd had in years. :) 

 

I don't quite understand why Shelagh can't be a midwife now, or at least one of sorts. She's already working in her husband's office, why not as his nurse? Or as a part-time midwife? I don't see why it's ok to be a receptionist but not to work on the medical end.

[Lillybee]

Since Chummy is also married and works as a midwife, I really don't understand why Mrs. Turner can not.

I want Chummy back.

[honeywest]

Shelagh has gotten on my nerves ever since she left the order, so it's good to be reminded what a capable midwife she is.

 

Oh, Trixie. Get help.

 

The Sister Monica Joan scenes reminded me of a wonderful PBS series from the 1970s that has never been shown again in the U.S.--"Shoulder to Shoulder," about the women's-suffrage movement in England, with Sian Phillips (Livia!) and Patricia Quinn (Livilla!) as Emmeline and Christabel Pankhurst. Judy Parfitt played an earl's sister who became involved with the movement and insisted on being treated like anyone else, for which she underwent a horrifying force-feeding in prison. Terrific actresses and performances. So glad to see Parfitt as a competent Monica Joan.

Edited April 21, 2015 by honeywest

[anna0852]

Since Chummy is also married and works as a midwife, I really don't understand why Mrs. Turner can not.

I want Chummy back.

I think it's her own sense of duty as a wife and mother that is holding her back. Renouncing her vows as a nun was incredibly difficult for Mrs. Turner and left her with a lingering sense of having betrayed/turned her her back on her sisters. We saw her struggling with this during the second Christmas special. I think she sees being the best homemaker possible as the route to 'make up for that' as it were. Given his comment about her 'being wasted' as his secretary, I don't think Dr. Turner would be opposed at all to Shelagh working part-time as a midwife. My theory is that it is her own sense of duty to the home and her commitment to being a wife/mother that is holding her back.

[izabella]

I thought we might get to see Chummy when Sister Winifred brought up the mother's home she was working in, but sadly, no.

 

I wasn't expecting them to turn Trixie into an alcoholic.  Why couldn't it be that she just didn't want to raise a family in Newcastle, and didn't think she could deal with the Church being such a big influence on their lives together?

[Beldasnoop]

I think Shelagh's issues with staying home are less from guilt and more from having spent so many years doing what was expected of her, that she's had to learn to assert herself and discover what she really wants. It takes longer for her to make major decisions like this than for people like Chummy. Shelagh can be assertive/bold when she needs to be, but it seems to take her a while to admit what she really wants/needs.  

 

I think Shelagh's story has been very well-told from the very beginning. In fact, on a show that's incredibly well-written with excellent characters and story arcs, I think Shelagh's stands out as the most complex and interesting, at least to me. The show hasn't been afraid to take time with telling her story, as well as showing her growing difficulties/uneasiness after she left the order. Season 3 was a lot of angst for her, but she's gotten to a place now where that's behind her and she can truly move forward.  

 

As for Trixie, I had trouble sympathizing with her for a while, because she just seemed to be more focused on her own wants in her relationship with Tom instead of what was best for both of them. I like both characters, but I really don't think they're a good match. Trixie needs to figure out her own issues before she can move ahead with any plans with Tom or any other romantic interest, I think. 

 

I love Barbara. She's quickly become one of my favorite characters on the show. I love how she can be gently assertive, and how supportive she is of her patients and the other midwives.  

 

Nurse Crane confuses me a little. I really like her sometimes, but then she can be mean and bossy again (like she was to Shelagh and Trixie this episode). She's a great character, though. I'm not just sure I always like her very much.

 

Also, about Chummy, even though I like Chummy, I was actually surprised at how much I haven't missed her this season. I think the other characters and stories are interesting enough that the show is fine without her.

Edited April 20, 2015 by Beldasnoop

[Beldasnoop]

Sorry, but I really don't think what I posted about Chummy was a spoiler. When I said I didn't miss her this season, I was talking about the episodes that have aired so far. I said nothing about how long she stays away (except in the tagged spoiler which I have now removed). She could come back next episode and that wouldn't change my opinion. I'm saying that I think this show is fine when Chummy isn't there, no matter when (or if) she comes back. I also think it was fine in season 2 when she was gone for four episodes, because I think the rest of the show's characters are just as interesting as Chummy (and several are even more so, in my opinion). If anyone does want to know when or if she comes back, I'm tagging that here--

she does--in episode 8

. 

 

As for the rest, I've edited my previous post to remove spoilers and teasers, and I've changed some wordings to clarify it slightly. I will try to keep my comments to current episodes. Again, though, I don't see how saying I think it's a great season or that I like how a character's story goes is a spoiler. Those are opinions that you may disagree with after you see rest of the episodes. 

 

I'm sorry if I upset anyone by posting the teasers. I've spoiler-tagged one comment in this post, but I won't post any more spoilers, teasers or hints in the episode threads.

 

Could we make a spoiler thread, maybe? Would anyone be interested in one?

Edited April 20, 2015 by Beldasnoop

[GaT]

That was a lot of babies! I was having a hard time keeping everyone's story apart. I'm glad that man accepted he had a daughter, I get wanting to continue the family name, but he was an ass.

 

When I thought back about it, I realized that they've been leading Trixie to this point for quite a while. Since the beginning, she's always been a drinker, & she's always had a bottle in her room. I even noticed this season that she was the one who always had another drink, so I think this has been in the works since the show started.

[Beldasnoop]

I actually found it strange that, while talking to Mr. Robbins,  Dr. Turner didn't mention that he has a daughter as well as a son.

[pasdetrois]

 

The Sister Monica Joan scenes reminded me of a wonderful PBS series from the 1970s that has never been shown again in the U.S.--"Shoulder to Shoulder," about the women's-suffrage movement in England, with Sian Phillips (Livia!) and Patricia Quinn (Livilla!) as Emmeline and Christabel Pankhurst. Judy Parfitt played an earl's sister who became involved with the movement and insisted on being treated like anyone else, for which she underwent a horrifying force-feeding in prison. Wonderful actresses and performances. So glad to see Parfitt as a competent Monica Joan.

    

I saw that! It was one of the first things I ever saw on PBS and I was hooked forever.  I have always wished I could see it again.  There were so many great series back then,  gone now.

 

I remember that! Also, I Claudius. And recently PBS re-ran Jewel in the Crown. Such great television.

 

When Tom was making tea he looked kind of down, so I thought they were setting us up for some news about Chummy. I don't miss her, but I will be glad if she re-appears.

 

When Trixie was drinking alone, the snippet of song was from Peter and Gordon's "True Love Ways."  A flash from the past - Peter Asher was brother to Jane, who dated Paul McCartney.

 

Sister Monica Joan's story took us out of the soap opera and into a sublime moment. Older women can relate to the experience of remembering one's power days, when one was strong and capable and could (and often did) take on the world.

 

Whose photo was she holding - a real woman from history? I don't think the photo was of Parfitt in her youth but I could be wrong.

 

It's hard for me to buy the Trixie/Tom romance because she's so self-absorbed. Yes I know she works hard and is a good friend to the other women, but I don't think she's ready for the sacrifices a curate's wife must make (and who can blame her).

 

Speaking of women friends, I like the way the sisters and midwives support each other day in and out. It's refreshing to watch when so much of TV is about screeching housewives.

 

I didn't experience any spoilers Beldasnoop; no need to apologize.

Edited April 20, 2015 by pasdetrois

[vixenbynight]

Beldasnoop wrote:

Also, about Chummy, even though I like Chummy, I was actually surprised at how much I haven't missed her this season. I think the other characters and stories are interesting enough that the show is fine without her.

Agreed. I adore Chummy, but I'm glad that we're seeing more about Barbara, Patsy, Trixie, Sheleigh and delving more into the lives of the Sisters.

Happy that Cynthia will be back.

I wonder what her new name will be as a Novice.

Edited April 20, 2015 by vixenbynight

[Kohola3]

I think it's her own sense of duty as a wife and mother that is holding her back.

 

And, again, we can't see her in a 2015 light.  Back then the expectation was that women stayed home and were wives and mothers.  Late in the 60's more women were in the workforce but it was still fairly unusual and it was usually due to economic need rather than a feeling of fulfillment.

[marceline]

 

It's hard for me to buy the Trixie/Tom romance because she's so self-absorbed. Yes I know she works hard and is a good friend to the other women, but I don't think she's ready for the sacrifices a curate's wife must make (and who can blame her).

 

I think it's even more than that. Trixie has spent her entire life taking care of other people. Her father was a drunk with PTSD, now she's spent four years surrounded by poverty now she's realizing that being married to Tom will mean always coming second to a community in need. I think back to the fight she had with time over planning the engagement party where she said something to the effect that there is never a time when they aren't thinking of other people. She's always the chirpy cheerleader with a smile on her face and I think that she's hit the wall on that hence the drinking.

 

I honestly couldn't keep track of all the babies and births just watching so Barbara going out to do another one because Trixie was passed out just made me want to hug her. I also like the way Dr. Turner basically put himself physically between Barbara and daughter-hating dad because it was pretty obvious Barbara was about to open a can of whoop-ass.

 

I wonder where they get all these fairly young babies for the birth scenes. There were some beautiful wee ones in this ep.

Edited April 20, 2015 by marceline

[JudyObscure]

I actually found it strange that, while talking to Mr. Robbins,  Dr. Turner didn't mention that he has a daughter as well as a son.

I was waiting for him to mention hisdarling baby girl, too, but then I saw that he went to exactly the right place when he reminded Mr. Robbins that this little girl was his father's granddaughter and he would want her to be cherished.  Susan Robbins was played by another actress from, "Lark Rise."  I think her face is just wonderfully expressive.

 

 I always cry when a baby is born so now I'm completely drained and out of tissues, but satisfied.  I thought it was one of the best episodes, ever.

[SweePea59]

I miss Chummy more than I ever thought I would. And I'm really not enjoying this season so far as much as the other seasons. This episode was a lot better than the previous one, but all the cutting back and forth between all of the births just seemed gimmicky. And maybe because we have new main characters, I feel cheated that I have seen character development for characters that aren't here and there are new characters that at this point have little to no development. It's just a tv show and it's my choice to watch, so I guess I just have to ride it out, but I don't have faith that these characters will be developed as well as the others were or that the show will be as good as it was again. Maybe a drink from Trixie's bar would help.

[zoey1996]

The Sister Monica Joan scenes reminded me of a wonderful PBS series from the 1970s that has never been shown again in the U.S.--"Shoulder to Shoulder," about the women's-suffrage movement in England, with Sian Phillips (Livia!) and Patricia Quinn (Livilla!) as Emmeline and Christabel Pankhurst. Judy Parfitt played an earl's sister who became involved with the movement and insisted on being treated like anyone else, for which she underwent a horrifying force-feeding in prison. Wonderful actresses and performances. So glad to see Parfitt as a competent Monica Joan.

 

I saw that! It was one of the first things I ever saw on PBS and I was hooked forever.  I have always wished I could see it again.  There were so many great series back then,  gone now.  One sister kept to the society end of the movement while the other more radical one got her hands dirty with the underclasses.  I could totally see Sr Monica Joan in the latter role. 

 

I loved "Shoulder to Shoulder!"  I keep hoping against hope that it will be released for DVD or streaming - I would watch it again!  I didn't remember Parfitt from it; it would be great to see her as a young actor.  Also loved the song, "Bread and Roses."

 

Happy that Cynthia will be back.  I wonder what her new name will be as a Novice.

I think in the previews she was called Sister Mary Cynthia.  It will be good to have her back.

[Diffy]

I thought this episode was much stronger than the last one even though they are still bashing us over the head with the moral story of the week.  I loved that Sister Monica Joan was finally given a success story, and there was some fantastic acting by wonderful Judy Parfitt.  I am also glad Trixie broke off the engagement to that horribly wet curate.   I do wish they hadn't given her an alcohol problem as the reason though.  She is too good for that curate.

 

Thank you to the people who reminded me of "Shoulder to Shoulder."  I loved that series and the Suffragettes' March of the Women anthem (Bread and Roses was the Lawrence, MA textile workers strike).  By the way, I just checked and it looks as if the whole S to S series is on Youtube if anyone is interested.  

Edited April 20, 2015 by Diffy

[zoey1996]

I thought this episode was much stronger than the last one even though they are still bashing us over the head with the moral story of the week.  I loved that Sister Monica Joan was finally given a success story, and there was some fantastic acting by wonderful Judy Parfitt.  I am also glad Trixie broke off the engagement to that horribly wet curate.   I do wish they hadn't given her an alcohol problem as the reason though.  She is too good for that curate.

 

Thank you to the people who reminded me of "Shoulder to Shoulder."  I loved that series and the Suffragettes' March of the Women anthem (Bread and Roses was the Lawrence, MA textile workers strike).  By the way, I just checked and it looks as if the whole S to S series is on Youtube if anyone is interested.  

Yes!  Very interested!  I found it and will be watching!  

And right, I had forgotten that Bread and Roses was for the textile strike.  Thanks for setting the record straight.

As to Trixie, I hope she and Tom reconcile.  I think they're wonderful together.  At first I thought it an odd pairing, with her sense of style, fashion, and fun, and he, a man of the cloth, but now I think they are good for each other, and complement one another.

[maraleia]

I was just reading the AfterEllen recap for this episode and this was cut out of the Chicago broadcast. WTF it's not like this scene could've been that long. I just don't understand these edits at all.

 

Barbara goes home and finds Julienne looking after Trixie. They agree that no one else has to know, and tell the midwives that Trixie was sick.

[Beldasnoop]

This was actually the best-edited episode all season so far, i think.  The scene with Barbara and Sister Julienne is the only cut I really questioned.  

 

Still, although I'd prefer they show the unedited version on all stations and put it on the website, I think this episode did the best job so far of cutting scenes that weren't absolutely essential to the plot and keeping those that were.  

 

I'm glad there's a spoiler thread now. I may post some comments in it later about some upcoming story developments, but they will only be teasers. I don't want to spell everything out, but there are some topics that are easier to write about if I can include a few hints about what's coming up in the season. It's also easier to talk about edits there because my opinions about the edits often have to do with season-long stories that may be affected by the cuts. 

Edited April 20, 2015 by Beldasnoop

[anna0852]

Can I just say how awesome it is that Dr. Turner has such admiration for his wife? I really love how supportive they both are of each other and seeing the glimpses of the happy home they've made together. That little scene with Timothy telling Angela that their parents were doing 'their mushy stuff' and that she'd have to get used to it was just so sweet.

[CherryMalotte]

Judy is just a national treasure of an actress.  Her face just says it all when the new mother says she'll name the baby Monica.  Brilliant! 

[violetr]

When I thought back about it, I realized that they've been leading Trixie to this point for quite a while. Since the beginning, she's always been a drinker, & she's always had a bottle in her room. I even noticed this season that she was the one who always had another drink, so I think this has been in the works since the show started.

 

 

As a girl who always has another drink, this storyline kinda bummed me out! Ha. In all seriousness, I'm of two minds about it. On the one hand, it seems a little facile to suddenly make the one fun-loving, carefree gal an alcoholic. On the other hand, the carefree attitude is probably a bit of a facade given her difficult past. I am enjoying seeing the darker side of Trixie, though, since Helen George seems more than up to the task of going there. Those last shots of her with no makeup and such a sad face were so powerful. I hardly recognized her as Trixie.

[dcalley]

Susan Robbins was played by another actress from, "Lark Rise."  I think her face is just wonderfully expressive.

She was also Martha in Cranford.

 

I was just reading the AfterEllen recap for this episode and this was cut out of the Chicago broadcast. WTF it's not like this scene could've been that long. I just don't understand these edits at all.

Barbara goes home and finds Julienne looking after Trixie. They agree that no one else has to know, and tell the midwives that Trixie was sick.

Actually they just agree that no one else needs to know.

When Nurse Crane is tallying up the babies on the chalkboard, she asks where Trixie is and Sister Julienne tells everyone that Trixie is resting and under the weather. Patsy looks back at Barbara. I was a bit confused by something minor. When Sister Julienne was sitting next to passed-out Trixie in the bedroom, I thought she told Barbara she was going to move Trixie to her bed, but I thought Trixie was in the right spot already. Oh well. (I got fed up with the edited versions and sought out the full thing for this one.)

 

I think Sister Winifred eased up a bit on Bridget Cole after seeing her caring for Dora, who is sort of like the Sister Monica Joan of the bordello.

[Geillis]

I took sister Julienne's comment about getting Trixie to bed to mean that she was going to get her settled more comfortably in the bed rather than on  the bed.  I assumed she would be removing shoes and loosening or removing restrictive clothing, as any nurse would when perform bedtime care.

[vixenbynight]

As a girl who always has another drink, this storyline kinda bummed me out! Ha. In all seriousness, I'm of two minds about it. On the one hand, it seems a little facile to suddenly make the one fun-loving, carefree gal an alcoholic. On the other hand, the carefree attitude is probably a bit of a facade given her difficult past. I am enjoying seeing the darker side of Trixie, though, since Helen George seems more than up to the task of going there. Those last shots of her with no makeup and such a sad face were so powerful. I hardly recognized her as Trixie.

I don't think it was suddenly at all.

Trixie and her bar has been "open" since season one. I remember there being scenes of the ladies having an after evening beverage of what was available.

Trixie and her drinking has finally just been focused on, due to her engagement to Tom and the stress she is feeling from thinking that she can't be a vicar's wife.

That is something that any woman would have to seriously think about, in regards to her future life with a man of the cloth.

[kimberwatch]

Jumping on quick to say that I really enjoyed the recap. After the usual teary-eyed watching of the episode (business travel is the worst when you miss your shows), I was thankful for the laughs! ("I hope she burns it to the ground.")

[JudyObscure]

Thanks for reminding me of the recap, it was awesome. My favorite is the picture of Trixie having tea with the bishop, the condescending smirk on the fiancs face, and the caption, "Men are Talking. " Also the line, " Bitches gon' trip, am I right, my Lord Bishop."

Trixie dodged a bullet there didn't she? Thank God and Jim Beam for the courage she found at the bottom of that bottle to break it off.

[txhorns79]

And, again, we can't see her in a 2015 light.  Back then the expectation was that women stayed home and were wives and mothers.  Late in the 60's more women were in the workforce but it was still fairly unusual and it was usually due to economic need rather than a feeling of fulfillment.

 

Plenty of women worked in the 50s and 60s.  It was idealized that the women would simply stay home and take care of the kids, but the reality was much different. Heck, even Mrs. Turner doesn't stay home and take care of the kids, she acts as a receptionist for her husband.   

 

I would have let Barbara loose on that dad.  I can't even imagine the kind of father who honestly refuses to acknowledge his daughter because he's upset that he didn't have a son.  Even though he grew up by the end of the episode, what an asshole.    

Edited April 26, 2015 by txhorns79

[attica]

She was also Martha in Cranford.

 

And Charlotte Lucas in the KK Pride and Prejudice.