S06.E02: Episode 2

[OnceSane]

Quote

Sister Ursula insists the midwives do not become emotionally involved with their patients, but her harsh new approach proves hard to cope with in the face of two devastating cases. A father-to-be is badly injured in an explosion, leaving him unable to work to support his family, and a couple with dwarfism expecting their first child are warned that their child may be stillborn, a situation that leaves Patsy confronted with one of the hardest decisions of her life.

[Gulftastic]

Don't know where we stand on spoilering after it airs in the UK.

Spoiler

Patsy better be back soon. And not even her and Delia being parted will let the Beeb show them kissing. Sort it out! I literally shouted '**** OFF FRED!' at my TV last night.

Spoiler

 

[OnceSane]

Oh I teared up all over during this episode.  Mr. Reed worried about his wife?  Tears.  The look on Mrs. Reed's face before and after Patsy tells her about her daughter?  Tears.  The wife of the blind man saying they'll manage?  Buckets.  Not  mention Patsy leaving.  But all the tears fell when Phyllis recited the poem to Delia and told her the pain of love is always worth it.  

Just a terrific episode.  Though I both loved and hated Patsy standing up to Sister Ursula.  I loved her standing up for the Nonnatus way, but disliked her using her father's condition as a way to "win" the argument.  And why won't they just let Patsy and Delia kiss?  If Fred had walked in, I think he would have minded his own business as Phyllis did.

Trixie back next week!  Hooray!!

[Badger]

I'm already imagining Penny some time in the future telling Bella, "YOU'RE NOT TOO BIG TO GO OVER MY KNEE, LITTLE GIRL!!!!"  

Regarding spoilers, I think the rule is if you comment on the show when it airs in the UK, you can't comment when it airs in the US.  

I haven't seen any news or gossip about Emerald Fennell leaving the show so I'm thinking she may have gotten time off to do another show or something.

[Ceindreadh]

1 hour ago, Badger said:

I'm already imagining Penny some time in the future telling Bella, "YOU'RE NOT TOO BIG TO GO OVER MY KNEE, LITTLE GIRL!!!!"  

Regarding spoilers, I think the rule is if you comment on the show when it airs in the UK, you can't comment when it airs in the US.  

I haven't seen any news or gossip about Emerald Fennell leaving the show so I'm thinking she may have gotten time off to do another show or something.

I think the rule re spoilers is that you can't comment in an episode thread about stuff that happens in later eps even after they've aired. So this thread can only cover comments relating to eps 1 and 2 but no later. 

[Guest]

2 minutes ago, Ceindreadh said:

I think the rule re spoilers is that you can't comment in an episode thread about stuff that happens in later eps even after they've aired. So this thread can only cover comments relating to eps 1 and 2 but no later. 

This is correct.  Thank you!

[bybrandy]

I love Tim Turner but at some point he's got to do something that isn't wildly supportive and helpful... just so I convince myself he's a real kid.

Sister Ursula not allowing the flowers.  That was cold.  I mean compromising on the level of care that they give the community could cost lives and is totally the worst thing she did in the episode, but I don't even like cut flowers (it depresses me when they die) and even I think that there is always time for flower aranging if you like flowers.   Step off.  

Loved the scene with Phyllis and Delia.  

[purist]

Look, I usually cry because of one of the storylines each episode, but this one topped them all. All three storylines were massive tearjerkers, and I was a blubbering mess by the end. Great episode.

[Steph01924]

On 2/1/2017 at 2:14 AM, bybrandy said:

I love Tim Turner but at some point he's got to do something that isn't wildly supportive and helpful... just so I convince myself he's a real kid.

Nah, I've got enough bratty kids on my TV. Tim continuing to be a delightful teenager is a nice reminder that all teenagers aren't crappy. My cousin made it through her teen years being very sweet to her parents and supportive by helping with her five younger siblings. She had her moments, I'm sure, but 95% of the time she was great at home. 

I can't get through an episode of this show without crying. Patsy and her father, Phyllis reciting the poem to Delia to tell her she knows and she's cool with it (who knew that Phyllis would become my favorite character on this show!?), and Reeds and their daughter (I'm glad there was no discrimination from the other moms in the group. I was worried they were going to go there). 

[bybrandy]

On 2/10/2017 at 11:17 PM, Steph01924 said:

Nah, I've got enough bratty kids on my TV. Tim continuing to be a delightful teenager is a nice reminder that all teenagers aren't crappy. My cousin made it through her teen years being very sweet to her parents and supportive by helping with her five younger siblings. She had her moments, I'm sure, but 95% of the time she was great at home. 

 

I don't need him to be bratty.  I'd just like him to be less than perfect for one shining moment.  

[vesperholly]

On 2/11/2017 at 0:17 AM, Steph01924 said:

Reeds and their daughter (I'm glad there was no discrimination from the other moms in the group. I was worried they were going to go there). 

I do love the optimism on this show. Discrimination in TV Poplar is a few odd glances and then everyone's chummy. The abused wife who admitted to sticking her head in the oven also had a stunningly happy ending for the early 60s. The blind man not regaining his sight was a surprise.

Yes, have Tim do something a little bit rogue please. Just a bit. I do enjoy the saccharine quality of the show (and don't they cast some of the most adorable looking newborns! All that hair for little Bobby!) but some characters are too angelic to be real. I enjoyed Sister Rachet being nice to Mickey in ep1 - all evil is too convenient.

[Brattinella]

So, this nasty woman will continue to be a burr in my  butt forevermore?!

[Primetimer]

A warehouse accident adds another job to Shelagh's schedule: public safety advocate.

View the full article

[jschoolgirl]

36 minutes ago, Brattinella said:

So, this nasty woman will continue to be a burr in my  butt forevermore?!

I hope she is taken in hand and SOON! I don't want her on my screen for the entire season!

I watch with captioning to help understand the accents, and I love the captioning for the music! "[Soft inspiring orchestral music]" ... or "sad," "contemplative," "joyful," and others. I've never seen such descriptions on other shows.

[Kohola3]

I'm guessing there is no worker's comp since that poor blind guy can't make a living and there is no money coming in.  They can't live on Fred's veggies forever.

Another outstanding episode.  Sister Rachet (hee, good one, vesperholly) is going to get hers one of these days.  There is going to be a revolt from one side or the other or she'll dig a hole so deep that one of the staff will have to pull her out.  But loved Sr. MJ popping that bon-bon in her mouth!

Is the nurse that help Shelagh going to be joining the midwives?

Yikes, I love Phyllis more each week!

[movingtargetgal]

3 minutes ago, Kohola3 said:

Another outstanding episode.  Sister Rachet (hee, good one, vesperholly) is going to get hers one of these days.  There is going to be a revolt from one side or the other or she'll dig a hole so deep that one of the staff will have to pull her out.  But loved Sr. MJ popping that bon-bon in her mouth!

I know Sister Monica Joan would never say "Suck it Bitch" but we all know she was thinking it.  As I suspect we all were.

[jschoolgirl]

On February 1, 2017 at 2:14 AM, bybrandy said:

I love Tim Turner but at some point he's got to do something that isn't wildly supportive and helpful... just so I convince myself he's a real kid.

Sister Ursula not allowing the flowers.  That was cold.  I mean compromising on the level of care that they give the community could cost lives and is totally the worst thing she did in the episode, but I don't even like cut flowers (it depresses me when they die) and even I think that there is always time for flower aranging if you like flowers.   Step off.  

Loved the scene with Phyllis and Delia.  

Was the bit with the flowers cut from the U.S. airing?

I am worried about Shelagh's pregnancy.

[ItCouldBeWorse]

On 1/30/2017 at 1:43 PM, OnceSane said:

And why won't they just let Patsy and Delia kiss?  If Fred had walked in, I think he would have minded his own business as Phyllis did.

I don't believe that Fred wouldn't knock before opening a nurse's closed door.

On 2/1/2017 at 2:14 AM, bybrandy said:

I love Tim Turner but at some point he's got to do something that isn't wildly supportive and helpful... just so I convince myself he's a real kid.

He did threaten to move away if Shelagh had a baby girl!

[jschoolgirl]

30 minutes ago, ItCouldBeWorse said:

I don't believe that Fred wouldn't knock before opening a nurse's closed door.

 

He did knock, but I was very surprised to see him just walk in without waiting for a response.

[AuntiePam]

What's the deal with the bare-chested man in the clinic?

[LittleIggy]

38 minutes ago, AuntiePam said:

What's the deal with the bare-chested man in the clinic?

There was a live model drawing class going on at the same time in that auditorium or whatever that public space is.

Sister Ursula needs to go teach at a school and be one of those legendary "mean nun" teachers. Looks as if something happens with her next week. Please!

Behind the scenes: the actress playing Sister Winifred is really rocking a Stevie Nicks look! 

[J-Man]

42 minutes ago, AuntiePam said:

What's the deal with the bare-chested man in the clinic?

It was part of a "Life Drawing" class that was being held in the same facility as the expectant mother class. There was a brief glimpse of a sign listing the two functions.

I'd been assuming that "Patsy" was short for Patricia, but on the envelope her father sent her, she was "Miss Patience Mount."

[Brattinella]

27 minutes ago, LittleIggy said:

Behind the scenes: the actress playing Sister Winifred is really rocking a Stevie Nicks look! 

She looks AMAZING!

[GaT]

I don't think I can stand an entire season of Sister Ursula, she is such a bitch. The first thing I thought of after the explosion was that chemical smoke was not a good thing for a pregnant woman to breathe in, I wonder if that's something that's going to come up later in Shelagh's pregnancy?

[Sarah 103]

On February 1, 2017 at 2:14 AM, bybrandy said:

I love Tim Turner but at some point he's got to do something that isn't wildly supportive and helpful... just so I convince myself he's a real kid.

I'd love for him to get into small, minor kid trouble. Something simple and harmless like skipping school to see a movie. Of course, the town is small to begin with, and being the son of a prominent man, Tim has zero chance of getting away with anything, but I'd like to see him try. 

On February 14, 2017 at 8:34 AM, bybrandy said:

I don't need him to be bratty.  I'd just like him to be less than perfect for one shining moment.  

Agreed. I would love to see his friends talk him into doing something stupid, and he knows its stupid, but he goes along with it anyway because just for one moment he wanted to do something fun and not have to uphold this image of being the doctor's perfect son. 

3 hours ago, Kohola3 said:

Yikes, I love Phyllis more each week!

She's wonderful. My question is where/how did she develop gaydar? She knows what she saw, but it's a bit of a leap from friendship (which is what most would have thought) to figuring out they were lovers. 

Edited April 10, 2017 by Sarah 103

[MissLucas]

3 hours ago, Sarah 103 said:

She's wonderful. My question is where/how did she develop gaydar? She knows what she saw, but it's a bit of a leap from friendship (which is what most would have thought) to figuring out they were lovers. 

She's probably spent a good deal of her life among women only - in female boarding houses etc. plus she's a nurse with a lot of life experience meaning she's seen it all.

[Calvada]

I agree, I think Phyllis knows what's what. 

Timothy hasn't been perfect; he's grumbled about some things expected of him.  But I think the death of his mother probably forced him to grow up, so he's a bit more mature than other 15 year olds.  As well, he's surrounded by people who are constantly thinking of others, doing for others, so it's not surprising some of that has rubbed off on him.

[BusyOctober]

I love this show and all the characters and all the stories.  I enjoy the costumes and music from the period, the medical and social history...it's a great show.  I'm going to take the unpopular stance and speak up for Sister Ursula.  Yes, she harsher and more austere compared to Sr. J, but she has been tasked to run and maintain a vital service system with very little money.  The resources are stretched thin as it is, so keeping to a tight schedule and tighter budget are going to help Nonantus House serve more people.  If the nurses and midwives are spending extra time doing personal chores for patients, other patients may suffer from lack of attention. And as Sr. Ursula pointed out, Poplar is a tight knit community.  Maybe the staff of Nonantus House could start an organized volunteer program within the neighborhood to provide some of the extras instead...shopping, child care, a food bank, etc.  Anyway, I'm trying saying I don't think Sr. Ursula is being a bitch just because she is the boss.  I don't think she is unsympathetic or blind to the needs around her.  I think she is coming from a place of "work smarter, not harder" & "do more with less". 

We've seen Fred in both episodes so far, but where is Violet?  I hope she shows up soon; I like those two as a couple. And is Chummy coming back at all?

[Mermaid Under]

Quote

I don't think she is unsympathetic or blind to the needs around her.  I think she is coming from a place of "work smarter, not harder" & "do more with less".

Sister Ursula's stance reminds me of what happened after "managed care" insurance started impacting US hospitals in the mid to late 80s.  No matter what the insurance companies put in their advertising slicks, patient care suffered from the very first minute it was implemented.  And it has continued to suffer for 30 years or more, except that now this poorer level of care is considered normal.  No one remembers or expects it to be human or personal. 

And there was a brief scene where it seems like Sister Ursula is starting to slip.  Maybe mental illness or addiction?

[AZChristian]

1 minute ago, Mermaid Under said:

And there was a brief scene where it seems like Sister Ursula is starting to slip.  Maybe mental illness or addiction?

I crochet while I watch, so I sometimes miss visual clues (totally missed the bare-chested guy).  Could you please be more specific about her "slip"?

[StatisticalOutlier]

On 2/23/2017 at 1:17 AM, vesperholly said:

(and don't they cast some of the most adorable looking newborns! All that hair for little Bobby!)

Another stellar newborn.  I spoke about the casting in last week's thread, but I'll say it again:  The casting process for a newborn can't be terribly drawn out, after all, but they keep getting amazing ones.   And the woman playing the blind guy's wife had the perfect look for that role.

 

12 hours ago, jschoolgirl said:

I watch with captioning to help understand the accents, and I love the captioning for the music! "[Soft inspiring orchestral music]" ... or "sad," "contemplative," "joyful," and others. I've never seen such descriptions on other shows.

Each one was "[adjective] [adjective] orchestral music."  I watch everything with captions and there are often descriptions of music, but these were in a league by themselves.  The "contemplative" one was the icing on the cake.

And, Phyllis FTW!  Just last week I realized she was my favorite character, as in the person I'd most like to hang around with.  Then this episode, she shook Patsy's hand instead of hugging her.  I've been wanting to stop hugging people but can't figure out how to do it, but leave it to Phyllis to manage it.

Of course the cruel irony is that Phyllis is one of the only people I'd actually like to hug, and she wouldn't be having it.

[Ohwell]

38 minutes ago, BusyOctober said:

I love this show and all the characters and all the stories.  I enjoy the costumes and music from the period, the medical and social history...it's a great show.  I'm going to take the unpopular stance and speak up for Sister Ursula.  Yes, she harsher and more austere compared to Sr. J, but she has been tasked to run and maintain a vital service system with very little money.  The resources are stretched thin as it is, so keeping to a tight schedule and tighter budget are going to help Nonantus House serve more people.  If the nurses and midwives are spending extra time doing personal chores for patients, other patients may suffer from lack of attention. And as Sr. Ursula pointed out, Poplar is a tight knit community.  Maybe the staff of Nonantus House could start an organized volunteer program within the neighborhood to provide some of the extras instead...shopping, child care, a food bank, etc.  Anyway, I'm trying saying I don't think Sr. Ursula is being a bitch just because she is the boss.  I don't think she is unsympathetic or blind to the needs around her.  I think she is coming from a place of "work smarter, not harder" & "do more with less". 

I agree with all you've said about Sister Ursula.  However, as time goes on,  I hope that she can lighten up a bit regarding small things, like the pregnant women eating cookies, for example.  I actually think she would feel more comfortable and lighten up if she felt more welcomed by the staff. 

I think the idea of the Nonantus House starting a volunteer program is a great idea.

[AuntiePam]

42 minutes ago, BusyOctober said:

If the nurses and midwives are spending extra time doing personal chores for patients, other patients may suffer from lack of attention.

This is true -- and maybe we should blame the writers for not showing this.  Sister Ursula wouldn't have been assigned to Nonnatus House willy-nilly -- there would have been a reason.*  If everything's hunky-dory at Nonnatus, there's no need for change.  The change would have worked better if we'd seen some issues with patient care, but all we've seen is almost super-human effort from these women.  It's unrealistic.  Oh, we've seen them with personal issues -- anxiety, fear, lack of confidence -- but the patients have never suffered because a nurse was tired or too busy or wasting time doing personal chores for a patient.  (Except for that one time Tixie was tipsy, and even then no one was hurt.)  So since we've seen everything being run perfectly, of course we won't appreciate Ursula.  

*Maybe the reason is that no other house wanted her, but that's unlikely.

[Mermaid Under]

Quote

Could you please be more specific about her "slip"?

What I thought I saw in the preview was Sister Ursula sitting alone at a table (without her wimple) with what looked like an anguished look.

[zoey1996]

I am always impressed with the clothing choices and that the characters are allowed to appear tired, disheveled, etc.  But the makeup last night was amazing!  Both the cesarean birth and the man blinded in the fire were so realistic, it was painful to watch.  I also like that even with less-than-completely-happy endings, it's still a very upbeat, positive show.

Loved the poem from Phyllis this week, and the words of Julian of Norwich last week.  I've wanted to visit her cell at Norwich, but haven't yet been able to.  Maybe next year... 

I hope Patsy is able to reach her father before he dies.  Did we know about her mother and sister before?  Or why they were POWs?  I don't recall.

Edited April 10, 2017 by zoey1996

[AZChristian]

7 minutes ago, Mermaid Under said:

What I thought I saw in the preview was Sister Ursula sitting alone at a table (without her wimple) with what looked like an anguished look.

Ok - I saw that.  I just thought it was something in this episode.  Thanks!

8 minutes ago, AuntiePam said:

This is true -- and maybe we should blame the writers for not showing this.  Sister Ursula wouldn't have been assigned to Nonnatus House willy-nilly -- there would have been a reason.*  If everything's hunky-dory at Nonnatus, there's no need for change.  The change would have worked better if we'd seen some issues with patient care, but all we've seen is almost super-human effort from these women.  It's unrealistic.  Oh, we've seen them with personal issues -- anxiety, fear, lack of confidence -- but the patients have never suffered because a nurse was tired or too busy or wasting time doing personal chores for a patient.  (Except for that one time Tixie was tipsy, and even then no one was hurt.)  So since we've seen everything being run perfectly, of course we won't appreciate Ursula.  

*Maybe the reason is that no other house wanted her, but that's unlikely.

I've seen lots of situations where someone was put into a position "willy-nilly" with no apparent reason other than it fit the purposes of whoever wanted to get rid of them in their last position.  Even in religious institutions, pastors and priests are moved to different locations to cover up inadequacies or moral failings, and people in the new assignment aren't told why.  It's just how things are in the real world.

Edited April 10, 2017 by AZChristian

[jschoolgirl]

1 hour ago, BusyOctober said:

The resources are stretched thin as it is, so keeping to a tight schedule and tighter budget are going to help Nonantus House serve more people.  If the nurses and midwives are spending extra time doing personal chores for patients, other patients may suffer from lack of attention.

And as the Pill takes greater hold, there will be far fewer births. It will be interesting to watch that dynamic.

[Kohola3]

Quote

Did we know about her mother and sister before?  Or why they were POWs? 

Yes, they were discussed when Patsy first came on board.  The Japanese occupied Singapore and a large number of women and children were held as POWs for the duration of the war.  Conditions were horrific.

[jschoolgirl]

12 minutes ago, zoey1996 said:

I hope Patsy is able to reach her father before he dies.  Did we know about her mother and sister before?  Or why they were POWs?  I don't recall.

We did know about them. They were in an internment camp. Her father was either a diplomat or in the military. Her mother and sister died of typhoid fever; that is how Patsy realized a patient had it. Her sister was only nine.

Edited to remove wrong country of captivity.

Edited April 10, 2017 by jschoolgirl

[BusyOctober]

17 minutes ago, Kohola3 said:

Yes, they were discussed when Patsy first came on board.  The Japanese occupied Singapore and a large number of women and children were held as POWs for the duration of the war.  Conditions were horrific.

In the 80's my dad worked for a UK-based company in Malaysia. I spent 3 summers there when I was in my teens. My dad and his wife were the only Americans, but I met many ex-pat Brits and Australians.  One couple I met had experienced the horrors of the Japanese occupation of Malaya and Singapore.  The wife had been a child POW (like Patsy) and developed rickets and other issues due to malnutrition. Her older sister was raped and beaten, then "disappeared one night".  Her husband's father had been a British soldier and was decapitated by the Japanese in front of his family.  At the time when I met these people, the only thing I really knew about WW II in the Pacific was Pearl Harbor & the Bataan Death March. 

[AuntiePam]

41 minutes ago, AZChristian said:

Ok - I saw that.  I just thought it was something in this episode.  Thanks!

I've seen lots of situations where someone was put into a position "willy-nilly" with no apparent reason other than it fit the purposes of whoever wanted to get rid of them in their last position.  Even in religious institutions, pastors and priests are moved to different locations to cover up inadequacies or moral failings, and people in the new assignment aren't told why.  It's just how things are in the real world.

That's true, but if Ursula is there because she failed elsewhere, why put her in charge? 

We'll probably be given a reason to sympathize with her, eventually.  Then we'll feel bad for criticizing her. 

[MaryHedwig]

Quote

Was the bit with the flowers cut from the U.S. airing?

The flower scene was cut for the episode that I saw. Is there anyone out there who could summarize it for us?

[jschoolgirl]

I wish there was more of a build-up to why Sister Mary Takeover had to be installed.

What, if any, inefficiencies or cost overruns were present? Who would've reported them? The NHS? An auditor from the religious order, if any? And Sister Mary Takeover is apparently neither nurse nor midwife.

I mean, I know it's drahmah for the tee vee, but it seems to have come out of nowhere.

[Al Lowe]

  Quote

Was the bit with the flowers cut from the U.S. airing?

The flower scene was cut for the episode that I saw. Is there anyone out there who could summarize it for us?

Sister Julienne was arranging flowers (not fancy ones, probably a gift from someone's garden) in a vase when Sister Ursula came in and basically said Nonnatus House didn't have time, and was not the place, for such frivolities from now on.

[jschoolgirl]

11 minutes ago, Al Lowe said:

Sister Julienne was arranging flowers (not fancy ones, probably a gift from someone's garden) in a vase when Sister Ursula came in and basically said Nonnatus House didn't have time, and was not the place, for such frivolities from now on.

Ursula is clearly a profoundly unhappy woman.

I hope her situation is resolved soon and we can lose this downer aspect to the show. Isn't this the last season?

[txhorns79]

Quote

Sister Julienne was arranging flowers (not fancy ones, probably a gift from someone's garden) in a vase when Sister Ursula came in and basically said Nonnatus House didn't have time, and was not the place, for such frivolities from now on.

Jeez, did she follow that lovely scene up by finding a puppy to kick?  I actually think it's a legitimate concern to worry about the nuns and nursing staff becoming too emotionally involved with their patients, but it's like they have Ursula do everything in the meanest, least helpful way possible.  

Quote

I mean, I know it's drahmah for the tee vee, but it seems to have come out of nowhere.

I feel the same way.  There was no build up to this, and it's entirely unclear to me why Sister Julienne was removed.

Edited April 10, 2017 by txhorns79

[AZChristian]

17 minutes ago, jschoolgirl said:

Ursula is clearly a profoundly unhappy woman.

I hope her situation is resolved soon and we can lose this downer aspect to the show. Isn't this the last season?

I saw an article yesterday about something happening next season, so it's NOT the last season.  YAY!

Edited April 10, 2017 by AZChristian
Took out potential spoiler.

[Driad]

It was not clear to me whether the midwives were helping neighbors etc. during their free time (which IMO is OK) or when they were expected to be on duty (not OK).

Achondroplasia can be diagnosed at birth (nowadays before birth) from body proportions etc., so the baby girl probably was what would now be called “average size.”

Phyllis Crane has her own thread too, here.

[zoey1996]

2 hours ago, Kohola3 said:

Yes, they were discussed when Patsy first came on board.  The Japanese occupied Singapore and a large number of women and children were held as POWs for the duration of the war.  Conditions were horrific.

 

2 hours ago, jschoolgirl said:

We did know about them. They were in an internment camp. Her father was either a diplomat or in the military. Her mother and sister died of typhoid fever; that is how Patsy realized a patient had it. Her sister was only nine.

Edited to remove wrong country of captivity.

Thanks to both of you!  I do sort of remember that now., thanks for jogging my memory!

[LuciaMia]

Loved the Reeds, but the husbands hair style….uh, no.  Does it have a particular name?