We [statewide PBS station] had two preview events Friday and Saturday and more than 800 people attended! People love their Downton Abbey!
This has to rank as one of the best BBC series. The production values are astounding, as is the acting, directing and editing.
So sorry to see that
Thomas will be back in the neighborhood.
And I do wish that Mary had spoken up.
Does anyone know what the plan/date is for showing the “Christmas Special” here in the USA? Or was it shown and I missed it?
Oh, and the white feather girls should’ve been thrashed. What a heinous stunt!
Tasteless maybe. But in the norms of the times not exactly heinous. It was a culture where Patriotism was a virtue and it was considered the duty of everyman to defend his country, as in “we are at war, why are’nt you at the front lad”. A lot like America today actually.
Ok, new SOP. Blame Britain for all of the US’s quirks.
Yes, but not all handicaps/medical issues are immediately obvious. Why torture the poor guys? If they’re able, they’ll be called up byt he authorities, and if they’re unable, surely the certification process is humilitation enough.
>>Ok, new SOP. Blame Britain for all of the US’s quirks
Not sure what this refers to, but can offer the reassurance that they are all considered to be entirely the fault of the Puritans alone, never Britain in general. 
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That is very true, and indeed I have read of men who were on leave (in civvies) or who had been invalidated out (due to some injury which was not readily apparent) being so treated.
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My point is that if when people (usually Continental Europeans) ask why is US/Americans like/behave/have attitude like this, you can often times say that because the Mother Country of 250 years ago had it or did’nt. The US either copied it or made it a point to do the opposite.
There was an episode of *The Duchess of Duke Street *(a much better series than Downton Abbey) where Louisa hands a man in civvies a white feather, and he tells her he lost his leg at the Somme–was *her *face red.
PBS will show the Christmas special in February, at the end of this series.
Thomas is the guy who joined the medical corps, thinking it would be a cushy job, right? Now that he’s back and seeing what others went through, I was kind of hoping he would change his ways, but no, I don’t think so.
Mary did not speak up because she saw how truly devoted Miss Swain was, and I feel sorry for her, but respect her for it. Except: Did I detect that there’s another blackmail scheme pending from the guy who asked Mary to marry him? What a creepy guy.
My on-tenterhooks thoughts for the week: Will Mr. Bates get out of the clutches of the evil wife? What’s Lavinia’s secret?
So, is there anyone yet who is *not *being blackmailed? It’s only a matter of time before two blackmailers try to blackmail each other and Dame Maggie has to untangle them…
Elizabeth McGovern’s voice/accent is like nails on a chalkboard for me. I’m not sure whether that’s just the way she speaks or if it’s an affect put on for this show, but it’s awful.
Other than that, I liked the episode. I can see why it isn’t as well received as last year’s episodes, but it isn’t horrible, it was just not-as-good.
Well, IMHO it was ambiguous. He seemed to sincerely commiserate with the blind patient, have a real interest in his care, and take his suicide quite badly. On the other hand, as soon as Thomas entered “downstairs” at Downton Abbey on a visit, he was his good ole’ asshole self from [del]Season[/del] Series 1.
In the same vein, O’Brien was a jerk to Bates at least partially due to his war wound – or, to be a little fair, how she thought it would affect his ability to work – but seemed to honestly warm up to and sympathize with the new butler because of his. Mind you, this was explained by O’Brien: her brother suffered PTSD/shell shock as the new butler clearly did. Still, the contrast is striking.
She’s supposed to be an American from a wealthy northeastern family who has been living among the English aristocracy for decades. I think her accent sounds right for that role. McGovern herself grew up in Illinois and Los Angeles, I believe, and has been living in London for some time, performing onstage. I suspect her real accent now might be a melange similar to that of Cora’s.
I find it difficult to reconcile in my mind though that this magnificent, noble woman is played by the same actor that played the cutie pie in She’s Having a Baby. I love them both, though.
Was Thomas just sympathetic to the blind patient or was he in love with him? Because in the first series, the fact that he was gay was a big part of his storyline but less so (or not at all?) in the second series.
The voice doesn’t bother me at all. The horrific lipstick color and the resulting Joker-esque smile are Creepy Valley though.
ETA: I also thought that Thomas and the blind patient were falling in love. I thoguht that ws giving the guy hope that life could be good again, and felt the impending seperation was the reason for the suicide.
Could have been love, yes. But my point was that Thomas was clearly showing some kind of sincere positive emotional reaction to someone rather than being either overtly or covertly malicious. The only person he seemed to actually get along with in the first series was O’Brien, and that’s when they were being malicious together. 
Both. Thomas manages to both become an even bigger arsehole over the series and show some character growth. He comes up with several schemes that bite him in the ass.
It’s an ITV series, not the BBC.
My wife would like to see the full-length UK episodes. Where can she do so online?
Thanks all.
I got the full first season on Itunes. I’m expecting that the second season will be available before too long.