S02.E01: A Soldier's Daughter

[Moxie Cat]

On January 15, 2018 at 2:30 PM, atlantaloves said:

My mom smoked and had cocktails throughout her pregnancies, hey, it was a little before the Mad Men Era.  My Dad just waited in the waiting room with his cigars to give to other men, anybody remember that tradition?

I am a child of the '70s but have now seen so many posts around the interwebs about the accuracy of Mad Men's childbirth episodes....I would advise anyone to watch the eps where Betty has baby Gene and Trudy has Tammy for apparently accurate depictions of childbirth in the early '60s. It's pretty depressing that so little changed in over 100 years. IIRC, however, Victoria used ether long before anyone else did, which I hope is eventually covered on this show. Along the same ridiculous lines of purification, women were not supposed to use painkillers during childbirth because their pain was considered "God's will" and "woman's curse."

On another note, obviously Diana Rigg is on this show because someone is a huge Game of Thones fan who loved the Queen of Thorns. She's basically playing the same character (albeit maybe a little less crafty).

[CousinAmy]

4 hours ago, iMonrey said:

To be fair to Philip, I'd say he did have ambition but it was all geared toward his naval career. I'm not sure what he could have done to better the lives of ordinary citizens the way Albert did. I'm not sure royalty today have much opportunity to do anything but put their name on things and sponsor charities. 

I kinda have to stand up for real-life Philip here (just briefly because it's off-topic) but he had a bad start with the "last name" kerfuffle, then MIL moved into the Palace ("You'll hardly notice I'm here") seemingly to preserve the Windsor traditions. Phil was a forward-thinker, but was ground down by the gears of the monarchy. But he was interested i science and educational projects.

Albert and Victoria seemed to have a much more robust love life; both were strong-willed but I think they learned to work it out. I know Vicky was pregnant almost constantly throughout their marriage; did Albert take advantage of that down time to move forward on some of his pet projects? 

[LittleIggy]

3 hours ago, Moxie Cat said:

 

On another note, obviously Diana Rigg is on this show because someone is a huge Game of Thones fan who loved the Queen of Thorns. She's basically playing the same character (albeit maybe a little less crafty).

I don’t think they are the same character. The Duchess is no Queen of Thorns.

[tennisgurl]

Very happy to see this show again! I found the conflict between Victoria and Albert to be quite realistic, and I was sympathetic towards both of them. Victoria is absolutely right to want to know whats going on in her own country, and deserves to be treated like a person to be respected, even though she has a baby now. But, I dont think Albert meant any harm, or wanted to try to take over the throne at all. He really was worried that Victoria was going to get hurt working so hard right after having a child, and thought he was helping her. And, maybe Victoria is a bit sensitive to Albert getting close with politicians and working towards his pet projects, even if its just a tiny whisper in her head. Even when they fight though, I still feel like they love each other, and have a lot of real passion for each other. 

As others have said, I dont think Albert wants to be King, he just wants to do something and make some kind of positive difference. In that way, he and Victoria are a lot alike, and its one of the reasons they fight, but also end up getting back in a good place pretty quickly. They are both energetic go getters who want to work hard to get things done, and help the country to the best of their abilities. 

[Kohola3]

5 hours ago, tennisgurl said:

But, I dont think Albert meant any harm, or wanted to try to take over the throne at all. He really was worried that Victoria was going to get hurt working so hard right after having a child, and thought he was helping her.

And, in his defense, the belief at that time was that women were delicate creatures and were to be coddled after childbirth since there were so many postpartum fatalities back then.

[chitowngirl]

I know Victoria did not enjoy being pregnant, but did she really hate being coddled and want to get back to "Queening"? Or is that a 21st Century thing that is being projected to fill the "strong, take charge woman leader"?

[Kohola3]

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I know Victoria did not enjoy being pregnant, but did she really hate being coddled and want to get back to "Queening"?

I think she had chafed under her mother's "protection" for 18 years, found power to be intoxicating and didn't want to go back to that school girl existence and again.  A month of people tucking pillows under your feet and shawls around your shoulders? That would certainly drive me bonkers.

[Zella]

In my personal experience, people who have had really controlling childhoods tend to either grow into adults who feel uncomfortable without having their life controlled by another person or they are absolutely opposed to anything that seems controlling, even if it isn't intended that way. I think Victoria definitely falls into the latter category. 

[Moxie Cat]

19 hours ago, LittleIggy said:

I don’t think they are the same character. The Duchess is no Queen of Thorns.

Oh no, I completely agree - but I think someone loved Olenna Tyrell in GOT and thought "let's put Rigg in Victoria!" And there is some similarity in the IDGAF-style quips.

[seacliffsal]

A couple of posters have noted the beautiful horses, with which I agree!  However, let's not forget the adorableness that is Dash...

My two favorite characters are Lord M and Dash.  I guess that says a lot about me...