Season 2 Discussion

[JudyObscure]

Edited April 20, 2016 by JudyObscure

[attica]

having a pastor who listens to jazz music is an embarrassment

 

Margaret's line "I've even put up with your jazz" made me laugh. Not because I think she thinks it's unseemly for a vicar to like jazz, but because I think (much of) jazz is unpleasant to listen to.

[proserpina65]

proserpina65, on 19 Apr 2016 - 12:49 PM, said:

 

Did Geordie say that or was it just the prosecutor?  I can't remember, and don't have it recorded so I can't check.

When Geordie insisted Gary was guitly because he had a relationship with Abby and wanted to get rid of the baby, Sidney replied it wasn't Gary's baby and Geordie said they didn't know that and that she was with Sam didn't mean she didn't sleep with Gary as well.

Thanks for checking.  I remember them having the conversation, just not the whole conversation obviously.

 

(Edited so that I could credit the info about Geordie's conversation with Sidney to Sonja.  Something went a bit wonky with the quote.)

Edited April 20, 2016 by proserpina65

[Margherita Erdman]

Thanks, Sonja & Judy — esp. for the bonus Dickens pic! He is a very dark chocolate though, quite a beautiful dog! The contrast in his coat wasn't showing up on my TV or maybe just not to my very old eyes ;)

[elle]

Margaret's line "I've even put up with your jazz" made me laugh. Not because I think she thinks it's unseemly for a vicar to like jazz, but because I think (much of) jazz is unpleasant to listen to.

Was jazz that unusual then?  I could see it more in the 20s but this is the 50s, right?

 

Thanks, Sonja & Judy — esp. for the bonus Dickens pic! He is a very dark chocolate though, quite a beautiful dog! The contrast in his coat wasn't showing up on my TV or maybe just not to my very old eyes ;)

I judge by the nose, black labs have a black nose where chocolate labs have a more brown to pinkish nose.  (google Labrador by color for puppy overload!)

[Margherita Erdman]

I judge by the nose, black labs have a black nose where chocolate labs have a more brown to pinkish nose. (google Labrador by color for puppy overload!)

You're totally right of course! I didn't see that before; there will generally be that contrast in chocolates with a lighter nose and lighter more golden brown eyes. I'm a German shepherd & Akita person myself, but some of my best friends are Lab people, and some of my dogs' best friends are Labs, LOL, coats of many colors. Looking at that same Dickens puppy picture above now it is obvious to me that the coat color is black (on the same screen, although I think the color temperature setting has now reverted back to cool from warm, which may make a difference).

This slideshow and this behind-the-scenes clip provide heaping helpings of more Dickens cute and also make his coat color much clearer, for some reason, than it was for that first season on my PBS station, even in HD.

I wonder, given how much sunnier — both literally and figuratively — Grantchester was in the first season could account for my seeing Dickens through rosy-brown lenses as a puppy :p

Was jazz that unusual then?  I could see it more in the 20s but this is the 50s, right?

It was still far from mainstream or "comfortable" in pop culture. I'm an Anglophile but no expert in UK culture in the '40s/'50s, but I do know that here in the U.S. during that time, jazz and blues were still considered "race music" (nice right?). One big reason (arguably the bigger reason), along with his overtly sexy vibe, that Elvis was so scandalous when he hit the scene was his blues-inspired music, so clearly influenced by and derived from African-American artists and traditions. To oversimplify, the youth-oriented"Jazz Age" of the 1920's and 1930's was a fairly narrow movement, and generally referred much more to safer, less experimental and improvisational, more Broadway- and Hollywood-oriented, *whiter* composers like Cole Porter, Johnny Mercer, Irving Berlin, the Gershwin brothers (who were in their turn borrowing and riffing on African-American blues and jazz traditions).

Were there beatniks in England? Because that was the epithet used to describe young white people who hung out in jazz clubs in the U.S. in the 1950s.

Edited April 20, 2016 by Margherita Erdman

[attica]

It never occurred to me that a dog named Dickens could be anything other than a black dog. "What the Dickens!" is/was a euphemism for "What the Devil!" amongst folk who were too superstitious to call the Unholy One out loud by name, and gosh, such a creature would just have to be black as the devil. That's another layer of the joke that the dog represents.

[dcalley]

As the trial of local teen Gary Bell approaches, Sidney and Geordie find themselves at loggerheads regarding his guilt – not even building a go-kart together can get them to see eye to eye. Sidney's mind is taken off these matters when he finds the anxious Reggie Lawson at the graveside of his dead wife, Anna.  Convinced that she still haunts his home and stable yards following her suicide he implores Sidney to come to his estate, Kingsbrook and perform an exorcism for him.

Did this happen in the PBS broadcast? I don't remember it.

 

Red letter Easter egg:

Lord Byron Ghost

[elle]

I wonder, given how much sunnier — both literally and figuratively — Grantchester was in the first season could account for my seeing Dickens through rosy-brown lenses as a puppy :p

<snip>

Were there beatniks in England? Because that was the epithet used to describe young white people who hung out in jazz clubs in the U.S. in the 1950s.

Season 1 did seem rosier, especially in retrospect.  With all the black labs my family have had, and also those of friends, there are times when the sun hits the black coat and it seems brown.  Usually giving the owner a few moments of "is that dirt ?" (sometimes it is dirt) :0)

 

I will be interested in hearing the answer to your question about beatniks.

[dubbel zout]

not even building a go-kart together can get them to see eye to eye.

Did this happen in the PBS broadcast? I don't remember it.

 

We saw a little bit of it. I was wondering what Geordie was doing and couldn't figure it out until I saw the episode description.

Edited April 21, 2016 by dubbel zout

[DD51]

Well, I obviously don't know and can't figure out how to hit the right button/key to put this reply where it should be,,,but the books leave the crime cases some what in the background and look at how Sidney grows in his life within both the church and in his personal life. Less agony, more contemplating. I like both versions of events, but I must say, the TV version is a little more hyped and frankly somewhat improbable. Isn't what is said to a priest considered totally confidential. And as such he could not testify in court about conversations/confessions. And I liked Amanda's role in the books much better. A totally different person.

[Sonja]

We saw a little bit of it. I was wondering what Geordie was doing and couldn't figure it out until I saw the episode description.

Thanks for that, I was wondering what the dickens he was doing with what was left of the pram and couldn't figure it out.

 

 Isn't what is said to a priest considered totally confidential. And as such he could not testify in court about conversations/confessions. And I liked Amanda's role in the books much better. A totally different person.

I don't know much about the rules in the CoE, but where I'm from, this only concerns confession, not conversations. Especially if clergymen have to testify at court.

 

This slideshow and this behind-the-scenes clip provide heaping helpings of more Dickens cute and also make his coat color much clearer, for some reason, than it was for that first season on my PBS station, even in HD.

Were there beatniks in England? Because that was the epithet used to describe young white people who hung out in jazz clubs in the U.S. in the 1950s.

The clip is blocked for me, but the last pic in the slideshow is killing me. I only have a 'holidays and every other weekend' dog (my mother's fox terror, ahem terrier), but thankfully we have a lot of dogs running around the office.

 

Yes, there definitely were. I just watched a documentary on the BBC iPlayer last week. It's the first in a series called The people's history of pop and was about 'the birth of the fan' (presented by Twiggy). There was a beatnik who described how you became one - and squeezed into his old outfits. If you can get your hands on it, it's quite funny.

[seacliffsal]

I just can't stand Amanda. I think the writers want us to feel sorry for her, but every time I see her I feel sorry for Guy. What a pouty, dour woman she is. Why would I assume the issues in their marriage are Guy's fault? Yes, he punched Sydney...but I also think Sydney should leave her alone. Be friends, but don't be each other's refuge.

[Sonja]

I'm not a fan of Amanda's either, but the way Guy treats her (at Jennifer's party for example) doesn't sit right with me. He also seems to order her around and not pay her much attention otherwise. Of course, Amanda shouldn't have accepted his proposal from the start. As Sidney said when he tried to invoke his veto, love should be a prerequisite. I don't know what she expected from a marriage of convenience to get her father off her back.

 

Still miffed they never adressed why she didn't keep her job after all. Did Guy change his mind about 'letting' her work after the wedding or was it her choice?

[dubbel zout]

I feel sorry for Guy in that Amanda isn't really trying to make the marriage work (pregnancy not withstanding), but I don't feel sorry for him because the marriage is basically a business arrangement. He knew her attachment to Sidney before they married.

 

ETA: They both suck, in different ways.

Edited April 22, 2016 by dubbel zout

[Kohola3]

I feel sorry for Guy in that Amanda isn't really trying to make the marriage work (pregnancy not withstanding), but I don't feel sorry for him because the marriage is basically a business arrangement. He knew her attachment to Sidney before they married.

 

Didn't Amanda show up with a black eye in one of the episodes?  She's a pill but there is no excuse for him beating her.  Punching Sidney is a different thing but  not his wife.

[Broderbits]

 

Didn't Amanda show up with a black eye in one of the episodes?  She's a pill but there is no excuse for him beating her.  Punching Sidney is a different thing but  not his wife.

 

I think you're confusing her with that businessman's wife, whose coloring was very similar. She showed up at his very important meeting with a black eye and bruises, and her head held high.

[photo fox]

Quote

Amanda promotes a petition to stop the hanging of Gary Bell while Sidney has to solve the death of a wife beater in a locked cell after being arrested by Geordie who knows the beaten wife who had refused to make a complaint. Evidence of a false arrest and bruising on Geordie's hand and Margaret's statement raise doubts in Sidney's mind as to his innocence. Dead rats at the dead husband's house provide another solution. Sidney, present at Bell's hanging, is distraught and the attitude of Geordie to justice taking it's course.

[sinycalone]

I dislike Amanda so much that I believe she only started that petition to ingratiate herself with Sidney.

 

He finally asked her the right question, though:  we does she keep coming back.

[Pickles]

What a grim episode. Ugh.

[whatsatool]

Not a cozy. So sad. So does Rita face death penalty?

Edited April 25, 2016 by whatsatool

[HoodlumSheep]

What a grim episode. Ugh.

Agreed.

Geordie's a disaster, Sidney has full-on cracked--my mom and I cheered when he yelled at Amanda. Margaret came off unlikeable.

On the bright side I liked the stuff with Leonard and Mrs. M.

Poor Leonard kept on saying all the wrong things, even though you could see what he was trying to say.

Felt bad for the momma who lost her son (can't remember either of their names).

The police deputy dude has now been proven to be shady.

And that fight at the end...yeesh. When they had each other by the neck, did Sidney have Geordie lifted in the air? Because that's what it kinda looked like. Or was It just how it was framed. I thought it was weird how that fight went down too. Geordie didn't look too phased after Sidney beat him up. He was just sorta like, "Uh, Sidney...you can stop now," rather non-chalantly.

Edited April 25, 2016 by HoodlumSheep

[zxy556575]

Ugh is right. I can't quite put my finger on why, but I pretty much dislike everything about this season, including Sidney. My range of emotions has been: sad > depressed > impatient > bored.

 

I hate the offhandedly cruel way Sidney treats Mrs. Maguire and Leonard. In truth, all of his relationships are fucked up this season, especially Amanda and Geordie.

 

No good reason for me to continue to watch, I'm afraid.

Edited April 26, 2016 by lordonia

[sinycalone]

I'll continue to watch because, in spite of some cracks, I won't tear down the wall.

[kat165]

This was a grim episode. I bawled my eyes out as they led Gary to the rope (it doesn't help that he strongly resembles a close childhood friend). And here I wasn't too chuffed about missing Midwife tonight because that show always makes me cry & wears me out only to make up for it with tonight's Grantchester.

I've never expected cozy English mystery from this show. I don't think it's ever presented itself like that. For that I look to Miss Marple or Father Brown or Midsomer. So the darkness doesn't bother me. But this season has had too much of it. Between endless Amanda and a fucked up/aimless Sydney and whatever Geordie's been going through I've haven't enjoyed the show as much as last season's.

Question: in the beginning that man who asked Leonard to come away with him, was he the same vicar who impregnated the girl Gary was accused of killing?

I've never liked Margaret and she didn't redeem herself in this episode. I wouldn't be surprised if she's up to something also.

Disappointed that Geordie's new partner is shady.

Missing Amanda's husband - he's in another show I watch which isn't on right now so I enjoy seeing him here occasionally although he plays a completely different (and unlikeable) character.

Forgot to mention: I jumped for joy when Sydney told Amanda to get lost. Best part of the episode.

[Pyralis]

kat165

 

No the guy putting the moves on Leonard is completely different.

[DD51]

This was a grim episode, but I think Gordie nailed it when he said that Sidney was dealing with his own demons through others. The guilt Sidney feels about killing one of his troops, a mercy killing, haunts him. He asks for compassion for others because he wants compassion for his actions. Gordie, who obviously has his faults, is in fact a more or less straight shooter, a by the book type of person. I think Sidney is angry that Gordie will break rules to convict a guilty person. And yet, Sidney wants to break a few rules himself.....that is the conflict between Gordie and Sidney. It is tempting to look the other way, especially if what you believe to be justice, is served.

[kat165]

Thank you, Pyralis. Something that the man said made me wonder, something about he could have been in the same spot if they hadn't charged Gary, but maybe I misunderstood him.

I'm glad Leonard & Mrs. whatsher name made up and that she went to sit with Jack by the river at the end. And yes, as someone

mentioned above, Sydney's very short tempered with them both lately.

I wish Hildegarde would come back.

[tootsie]

Ah, Cathy. A small bright spot in a universally unpleasant episode. You loving/understanding your husband & Mrs. M defending Sydney to the parish were bearable moments. Otherwise, please put Amanda, Margaret, Sydney, Geordie & Geordie's duplicitous police underling (Name? Phil?) in a large barrel and roll it downhill. Leonard gets a bye on the barrel because he was faithful to his calling, remembering his Sunday duties at personal sacrifice. (You're way better than your companion, L, a man that says he already has plenty of friends & doesn't need any more. Really? Lucky man, then~) On the witness stand S blurts out something G shared with him privately & then later G pulls out a sensitive memory S shared with him & tosses it into the conversation like a grenade. Guys, go look up 'friendship' in your Webster's. The mystery du jour, such as it was, seemed negligible to the episode. Truly, I think I'm done for the season.

Edited April 25, 2016 by tootsie

[DD51]

Not a cozy. So sad. So does Rita face death penalty?

I think so, that is why at the end she was telling Gordie to see that her children were taken to her sisters. She clearly knows she will be convicted, but somehow I think at that time women were not hung in the UK, but I could have that wrong.

[statsgirl]

Wow, when did Sunday on PBS get so depressing?  Between Call The Midwife, Grantchester and Mr. Selfridge, I think I need medication, or a strong drink.

 

Kudos to Cathy, who isn't willing to take down the wall because there is a crack in it.  (But if it was only a kiss, how did she know he had cheated? And is a kiss really cheating, or is Margaret lying and she and Geordie did have sex?)

 

Also good for Mrs. Maguire at the end, and also that she didn't throw out Leonard's box even though she said she had. She really does rule that household.  And also for telling off those people who left the noose hanging on the porch.

 

Good for Dickens, for just being generally cute.

 

Sidney has become so neurotic that he's painful to watch, Geordie has lost a considerable number of brain cells and Rita was unfortunately not bright enough to kill her husband without anyone catching on.  General fail all around this episode.  I switched channels when it was time for the hanging; this is not how I want to spend my Sunday nights.

I wish Hildegarde would come back.

 

Yes x 1000.

 

For those on Facebook (I'm not), Grantchester has a Facebook page.  Maybe they will actually read our opinions of this season.

[magdalene]

I wasn't going to watch this episode, and I haven't. Reading the comments I think I made the right decision.

 

I am only going to watch the third season if there is no more Amanda crap and if Sidney gets a personality transplant.

[Irlandesa]

Kudos to Cathy, who isn't willing to take down the wall because there is a crack in it.  (But if it was only a kiss, how did she know he had cheated? And is a kiss really cheating, or is Margaret lying and she and Geordie did have sex?)

Geordie lied about who he was with that night. He said he was with Sidney but Cathy found out from Mrs. M that Sid was elsewhere.

[AnnaMayWong]

...And to think that I had somewhat high expectations for this show at the end of season #1.

*(sigh)* Oh, well...

Poor Leonard

[Kohola3]

Agree with everyone.  The darkness has reached a point where there isn't even a tiny point of light to encourage watching the next episode. I don't expect a Disney ending every week but I also don't want to require antidepressants (or a strong drink) every Sunday night. And from the previews for next week it apparently doesn't get any better.

 

Promising start, downhill since then.

[vixenbynight]

I'm not thrown off by the doom and gloom of this show. It is apart of the "Masterpiece Mystery" series, so death is always going to be factor.

I think that it's very telling (and about time) that Sidney has gone off the rails in this season.

He's trying to minister to others, but he himself needs to speak to someone about his issues and that person can't be Geordie OR Amanda.

I cannot stand that character, because she just doesn't quite get or want to get that she needs to leave Sidney be. She made the choice to marry a man that she doesn't love. Now, she's having their baby.

What does she expect Sidney to do? Continue on with their "friendship"?

Does she want him to christen their baby?

Be one of the godparents?

Something has to be resolved with those two.

[HoodlumSheep]

I'n actually glad that there's only one episode left this season.

This show has such a different feel to it than last season. Like seriously, go watch one of the episodes from season 1 and then compare it to any of this season's.

I'm also tired of the way Sidney has treated Mrs. M and Leonard this season. Like, seriously, they try to start a conversation with him and two sentences in he has an "ah-hah!" Moment about the case, dashes away, and leaves them hanging. I miss how much closer they seemed in season 1. :(

[novhappy]

I am enjoying watching these characters crack up. I don't mind the dark grim tone ( although I could not watch the convos between the mother and son or the hanging). It is different from last season and they haven't really explained why evetyone is so cranky but Sydney has reasons. He mishandled his relationship with Amanda and Now she is weaving herself back into his life at every chance in the guise of supporting him. Like her husband would actually let her!

Sydney's job is to make everyone happy and spiritually whole while he is neither-that's irritating for him.

As viewers we are accustomed to the main character confessing the source of his mental agony and that beginning the end of the agony Sydney confessed to Geordie about his war killing and we haven't seen any flashbacks this season so I believed we had moved on to some trauma in Geordies past. But perhaps Sydney, as the poster stated above, is still seeking redemption. I'd like to see Mrs. Maguire go off on Sydney. He could use a stern talking-to.

Geordie's having a simple mid life crisis as far as I can tell. He kissed another woman who was flirting and flattering. Not a Big Deal even then. Why did he stay out all night? Why was he so familiar with "Ri" the abused wife? His mid life crisis is causing him to want to right all the wrongs in the world. He is naturally a little jealous of his great looking, younger, talented, morally unambiguous friend. Not a surprise they are clashing.

The filming and staging is very different this season and that is contributing to the depressing feel for me. Tight shots of faces instead of broad expanses of countryside. Geordies appeared visibly dirty this episode. Wash your face man! And I guess his wife won't do his laundry anymore. He looks like he smells of day old beer, smoke and sweat.

I hope Leonard can be bold but I bet he goes to Sydney for approval first.

The case was a throw away this week. I don't mind all the drama if the put a little more mystery in the case. But the last two cases have been morally ambiguous so that is the thread they seem to be pulling. I don't like seeing the main characters falsely accused two weeks in a row though. What's next? Leonard gets caught being bold and gets arrested? I hope not.

Lastly, I hope we get a break from Amanda now.

[Sonja]

Didn't Amanda show up with a black eye in one of the episodes?  She's a pill but there is no excuse for him beating her.  Punching Sidney is a different thing but  not his wife.

As Broderbits said, that was a different woman. But Guy did get worryingly handsy with her at Jennifer's party and I didn't like Amanda's look when he put her in the car and wandered off with Sidney to punch him. She didn't doubt Geordie for a second when he told her about it and there's also something she says in the last ep of the season that leads me to believe Guy is one to easily fly off the handle in general. I hope he never really hit her though.

[Sonja]

I dislike Amanda so much that I believe she only started that petition to ingratiate herself with Sidney.

 

He finally asked her the right question, though:  we does she keep coming back.

I got the feeling she wanted to do something else than sitting in her window or drinking martinis. I don't think she actually cared about Gary either though.

 

That was long overdue. Especially since Geordie already told her she couldn't keep on coming back to Sidney (not that he knows that).

 

Geordie's a disaster, Sidney has full-on cracked--my mom and I cheered when he yelled at Amanda. Margaret came off unlikeable.

On the bright side I liked the stuff with Leonard and Mrs. M.

Poor Leonard kept on saying all the wrong things, even though you could see what he was trying to say.

The police deputy dude has now been proven to be shady.

And that fight at the end...yeesh. When they had each other by the neck, did Sidney have Geordie lifted in the air? Because that's what it kinda looked like. Or was It just how it was framed. I thought it was weird how that fight went down too. Geordie didn't look too phased after Sidney beat him up. He was just sorta like, "Uh, Sidney...you can stop now," rather non-chalantly.

Margaret behaved immaturely. It seemed as if she couldn't manage to think objectively when it came to Geordie's involvement. What ticks me off about this show writing characters like Margaret and Amanda is that the writer is actually a woman. If that's the kind of women she knows, I'm really sorry for her.

 

Leonard stumbling over his words and Mrs. M not being able to handle a compliment was adorable. If one is allowed to use that word in regards to Mrs. M without her unleashing her wrath ;-)

 

Phil really got away with 'he's a copper'?! And Sidney had to blackmail him into getting what he needed to clear Geordie.

 

I think that was the framing. The DVD was in my mailbox on the weekend and they showed a part of the fight choreography. Funnily, when I first saw the ep I thought the second punch looked way too far off and in the bonus features they show James Norton saying the same thing and the director saying it's fine.

I think Geordie was shocked.

This was a grim episode. I bawled my eyes out as they led Gary to the rope (it doesn't help that he strongly resembles a close childhood friend). And here I wasn't too chuffed about missing Midwife tonight because that show always makes me cry & wears me out only to make up for it with tonight's Grantchester.

I've never liked Margaret and she didn't redeem herself in this episode. I wouldn't be surprised if she's up to something also.

Somehow I knew the petition wouldn't save gary, but it was still hard to watch. Good that they didn't go the usual TV show route of saving him last second though. I also liked that they showed that you don't watch an execution and get away unscathed. I really would have liked Sidney to ask Geordie if he had ever been to one, since he's such a staunch supporter of the death penalty, but apparently I'm more interested in the answer than Sidney is.

 

Thank you, Pyralis. Something that the man said made me wonder, something about he could have been in the same spot if they hadn't charged Gary, but maybe I misunderstood him.

I'm glad Leonard & Mrs. whatsher name made up and that she went to sit with Jack by the river at the end. And yes, as someone

mentioned above, Sydney's very short tempered with them both lately.

I wish Hildegarde would come back.

Daniel is the photographer who made the pictures of Abigail. He was a suspect in her murder because Geordie thought he had seduced Abby until Leonard hinted at Daniel not having any 'ladyfriends' since getting divorced.

 

Jack is probably the only man in Grantchester who can keep Mrs. M on her toes.

 

So do I, but I think her saying she's already had one adultering, whiskey-swilling man in her husband might have put an end to that.

 

Kudos to Cathy, who isn't willing to take down the wall because there is a crack in it.  (But if it was only a kiss, how did she know he had cheated? And is a kiss really cheating, or is Margaret lying and she and Geordie did have sex?)

 

 

Geordie lied about who he was with that night. He said he was with Sidney but Cathy found out from Mrs. M that Sid was elsewhere.

Cathy broke my heart. Watching the deleted scenes on the DVD, it's a pity they got rid of the domestic scenes between Geordie and Cathy where she's really funny.

As squirrelly as Geordie was acting, I seriously doubt it was just a kiss.

 

I am enjoying watching these characters crack up. I don't mind the dark grim tone ( although I could not watch the convos between the mother and son or the hanging).

I hope Leonard can be bold but I bet he goes to Sydney for approval first.

The case was a throw away this week. I don't mind all the drama if the put a little more mystery in the case. But the last two cases have been morally ambiguous so that is the thread they seem to be pulling. I don't like seeing the main characters falsely accused two weeks in a row though.

I do too, it makes them more real as if they were just happily solving crime after crime. The hanging storyline was hard to watch, but I actually like shows and movies that make me uncomfortable instead of just running along.

 

He does have that already though, doesn't he? Sidney told him he didn't have to tell him everything but if the wanted to, he'd be there for him when Leonard mentioned he didn't really go to the library and Sidney knew very well he didn't. I also hope he took the 'take a friend to dinner' as 'take your special friend to dinner' but didn't yet dare act on it.

 

I really didn't care about the case either except for them putting the blame on Geordie. It's really weird they chose to accuse Sidney of molesting a girl and Geordie killing a prisoner in one season though.

 

 

I kept thinking 'shut up, Geordie' during the scene in the church. If he just had stopped at asking Sidney about being at the hanging, they could have gone for pints and backgammon. Unfortunately a lot of people really are like that and don't know when to let a topic rest of someone in peace when the last thing they need is to talk about something that bothers them, but I was cringing.

[dubbel zout]

(You're way better than your companion, L, a man that says he already has plenty of friends & doesn't need any more. Really? Lucky man, then~)

 

That guy wants more than what Leonard is able/willing to give him, so why settle for less? He's not willing to be Sidney to Leonard's Amanda, to use another couple as an inelegant comparison.

[attica]

I hate the offhandedly cruel way Sidney treats Mrs. Maguire and Leonard.

 

Yeah, he seems particularly contemptuous of them both, which is quite frankly ugly.

 

The fight in the church aisle was very poorly shot. It was laughably obvious that Norton's punches were missing Robson by a mile or two.

 

I'm coveting Margaret's pretty spring coat pretty hard right now.

[nara]

kat165

 

No the guy putting the moves on Leonard is completely different.

I believe he was the photographer of the porn pics

[photo fox]

That guy wants more than what Leonard is able/willing to give him, so why settle for less? He's not willing to be Sidney to Leonard's Amanda, to use another couple as an inelegant comparison.

 

I get that, and I deeply sympathize, but I still thought the comment was cruel.  Because Leonard doesn't have any friends (that we've seen), and surely the photographer must realize that after spending time with him.  Leonard appears to have a grand total of two people in his life, both of whom are basically forced to put up with him and neither of whom he can be honest with.

[statsgirl]

It looks like what the guy wants is sex (which was illegal in those days).  If he's not willing to settle for Leonard's friendship, Leonard who is a good, caring guy, then Leonard is better off without him.

 

Frankly, I think it's the photographer's loss.

 

(Let's change the sex a bit. If a man told a woman "I have friends, if you're not willing to have sex with me then our relationship is over", what would we say?)

I cannot stand that character, because she just doesn't quite get or want to get that she needs to leave Sidney be. She made the choice to marry a man that she doesn't love. Now, she's having their baby.

What does she expect Sidney to do? Continue on with their "friendship"

If Amanda thought ahead, which I don't think she actually does, she would probably want Sidney on the side to prop her and make her life more interesting while she stayed with her husband and his money.  Maybe including in the bedroom if her husband is a bad lover.

 

Goodness, there seems to be a lot of sex on this show. Even the hanging was about sex.

[nara]

I like where this season has been going, including all the darkness.

I assume that Sidney will hit rock bottom next episode, most likely due to something terrible happening with Leonard which would make Sidney feel horribly guilty about not paying enough attention. It could also be something bad that happens to Amanda/ her baby, and he would feel guilty for having sent her away.

I think the argument with Amanda had to happen, but I think it's about more than just their relationship. She represents hope to him, which is probably why he's always treated her like some unrealizable dream. The Abigail incident, another example of his not paying attention, and Gary's execution are causing him to lose hope. To a certain extent, this makes him more like Leonard, who has no hope of an openly loving relationship, and Mrs. Maguire, who had accepted a life of loneliness. Both are starting to hope again, so they may be slightly ahead of Sidney on the hope curve, but we'll see if one or bother are quashed. (By the way, is it just me or are we finally seeing Dickens with Sidney after a long time. Is he/she usually with the person who needs the most comfort?)

And then Season 3 will cover his and possibly everyone's redemption/ recovery

[snarktini]

(Let's change the sex a bit. If a man told a woman "I have friends, if you're not willing to have sex with me then our relationship is over", what would we say?)

 

Wouldn't matter to me, really, especially since that's not what he said. Beyond sex, Leonard is unwilling to start/continue a romantic relationship. I have have been on both sides of very similar conversations and felt it was the right thing. (I'm a woman, I date men.)

 

If I am developing feelings and he doesn't reciprocate or wants something different, "let's just be friends" often isn't wise. If there aren't significant romantic feelings yet we enjoy being together, being friends can work fine. But if one is getting emotionally attached and it's unrequited? Sometimes best to cut ties before it becomes too painful. 

 

In this case, sweet Leonard needs friends and a gay friend to talk to would be particularly helpful, so it's a bummer. Perhaps he could have said it more kindly. Even though to my ears it wasn't mean, it was direct and without bullshit. But people often don't have the right words. Case in point: Leonard could have said things more kindly to Mrs. M, too. 

 

Not enjoying this season. If it weren't for the Masterpiece season pass, there is no way I'd be watching at all. I kind of dread watching the recordings, they're so depressing!

[roomtorome]

From episode 1 this season I didn't care for it and hung in there but just deleted from my DVR - 

 

I did see some promo for upcoming last season of Inspector Lewis so I guess I will wait for that. 

 

Right now, everything is so depressing on Masterpiece - I still like Call the Midwife as they do it so well even as intense as it is and Selfridge is now on the sad side of events but I'm hanging in there till the end on that one.  But, Grantchester just provides zero enjoyment or satisfaction of having watched a well made show, etc 

 

They really got a third season??

[AuntiePam]

I'm okay with the dark tone.  It's unexpected though, in a show where the main character is a vicar.  He's a troubled man, as is Geordie.  Actually, nobody on the show is content with their lot.  The crimes do seem to be taking a back seat to the personal conflicts.  I'm okay with that too.  There are enough procedurals, where characters fail to develop, or where we don't learn anything about the personal lives of the cops, detectives, lawyers, etc. 

 

Besides, I suck at crime-solving.  I was sure this one would have a different result, that the man died because of a health issue (not poison).  Even the dead rat and the poison powder on the floor didn't clue me in. 

[sinycalone]

I posted a comment on the Facebook page for Granchester.  I tried to be as polite as possible, but strongly suggested they get rid of the Amanada character...not the actress' fault, rather the character herself.