I’m just afraid that that Anna/Mr. Bates/Green storyline is still not over! They never said who actually did it which means they are going to drag it on through the next season. :rolleyes:
and season after that.
Look- Hollywood hates a happily married couple, and Julian is along with that.
To be fair, in this episode he was acting at the behest of Mary.
The ending was a little too sappy for me. All it was missing was Tiny Tim!
Anna and Bates have gotten off murder raps so often I hope they get a spin-off series where they run an upper class boarding/murder house. The police ain’t gong to waste time bothering them since they always beat the rap.
Did it give anyone else pause when Robert said he had an upset tummy? He doesn’t seem like a guy to use the word “tummy.”
Overall I enjoyed the episode - with the exception of the Bates storyline, which I am bored of.
Yeah, I enjoyed the broth subplot a lot more than I’ve enjoyed any of the “Is this character a murderer?!” subplots, although that’s partially because the broth thing didn’t drag on for episode after episode and season after season.
I’m pretty sure neither actor wanted to renew their contracts. Lily James has 3 films being released this year, and she’s in a miniseries. As for Allen Leech; it’s been 2 seasons since Sybil died and Fellowes still doesn’t know what to do with his character. At least neither was killed off so there’s still a chance they could how in a future Christmas Special.
Plus it’s not like they can fire him without hiring someone to kill him at the same time. And he’d come in handy if they the Duke of Kent stops by for a visit. 
I seem to recall that “belly” was considered indelicate at the time, and “abdomen” is just to clinical. “Tummy” sounds silly now, but remember that the character is an older man speaking to a lady (she’s his wife, but there’s still a sort of genteel distance between them), and the setting is not entirely private.
The Demon Valet of Fleet Street (and wife).
What’s the deal with the castle that Lord Sinderby rented for August? Is the family that owns it so broke they’re renting out their fully-staffed estate?
And it’s a little weird that they’re portraying the servants (especially Spratt and Stowell) as more snobbish than the families they work for.
Finally, can we expect Matthew Goode (as Mr Talbott) to return next season as Mary’s new love interest? And I wonder if in the next season we’re going to see whether Robert makes it through the 1929 stock market collapse.
Aren’t we at the Christmas of 1924? Surely they wouldn’t cram in five years in a season.
A nice capper for the season, all in all.
Good to see Carson and Mrs. Hughes finally getting engaged. Awwwwww.
I like Mr. Talbott, Mary’s potential suitor (although still prefer Blake). The lands manager who was chatting up Edith also seemed like he had potential.
Sorry to see Tom go, but it’s been coming for a long time.
Definitely would’ve been nice to see a yellow Lab puppy jumping out of a gift box for the tipsy Earl.
Good to see Thomas using his powers for good and not evil, in messing with Lord Sinderby and his snooty butler.
Rose and Atticus are adorable together; how nice that Lord Sinderby finally appreciates her.
Interesting to see what an upper class shooting weekend would be like.
The Dowager would never accept, and Prince Kuragin shouldn’t expect her to, that he would divorce his just-found wife to run off with her. Not a chance. I half-expected Princess Kuragin to kill herself in despair over her reduced circumstances, and to free him up to marry the Dowager. Even JF balked at that, I guess.
I also didn’t buy that Anna would be released when Bates wrote a confession and then went on the lam. The police are going to release their best suspect when her husband unconvincingly confesses and then leaves the jurisdiction? Anna could then leave for Ireland herself to meet up with him, and one or the other would have (in the police’s eyes) gotten away with murder. In any event, I agree with virtually everyone in being bored with that plotline.
Good on Molesley and Baxter in doing the legwork, checking in York pubs, to provide an alibi for Bates. Lord Grantham should’ve mentioned a hefty Christmas bonus for both.
Have to say: Andy, the new footman, reminds me of Joey from Dennis the Menace:
http://comicskingdom.com/system/characters/avatars/4750/website-Joey300.jpg?1307482634
Crossover potential: Jessica Fletcher is their daughter!
Yes, that was Christmas 1924. I agree about that kind of cramming.
Until they move the operation to America and have a boy named Norman.
Here’s the British viewers’ thread, BTW: Downton Abbey series 5; UK spaced open spoiler thread - Cafe Society - Straight Dope Message Board
They did say their plan was to open a small hotel…
It might not happen until about season 8 or so, but I’m looking forward to the Bates-and-Anna-are-accused-of-kidnapping-the-Lindbergh-baby story arc.
Perhaps they could set up a marquee in Glastonbury and conduct* The Great British Brothing Show.*
[ul][li]The whole “Bates confesses and runs away so Anna will be free” was as lame as lame, but at least the tiresome murder rerun is over. I hope. [/li]
[li]I would have expected Mrs. Hughes to be a little more reluctant to accept Carson - more as if it was a good idea to retire together and she liked him, and less like she has loved him for years from afar. More like an amicable business relationship than a love affair. [/li]
[li]The chemistry between Isobel and the Dowager Duchess is fantastic, and it is great to see them back at it. I could believe the Dowager bragging about her amorous exploits to Isobel, especially after she dumps her fiance due to his hateful sons. Maggie Smith says she’s done after next season - if she dies I will cry.[/li][li]The part where Lord Sinderbie’s mistress shows up with his illegitimate son was fun, but I didn’t quite get why she showed up. Rose immediately taking charge of the situation, and bringing it off, was meant (I suppose) to show her development and maturity - she started out an airhead, but is now capable of mastering an intricate situation and working it out for the best. [/li][li]Mary is a bitch, and completely unlikable. Unfortunately, this makes it hard for me to believe that anyone would consider her as a wife. She makes my smacking hand tingle. [/li][li]The lords and ladies seem to put up with a lot from their servants. The whole broth subplot was entertainingly farcical, but I would have expected the Dowager’s lady maid to have been canned for getting drunk. It was nice of Lady Violet to pretend to like the broth, but I am not sure why she should care. And the business with the butler snubbing Tom was way overdone - I would have shut his mouth for him pretty damn quick, no matter if my guest used to be a chaffeur or not. And not by arguing with him either - just a sharp “I don’t give a tinker’s damn what you think - be rude to my guest again and you will find yourself out on your ear without a reference, old man.” [/li][li]What about Edith’s publishing business? I thought she inherited it from Gregson. And what about his mad wife? Can’t she cause some trouble or other?[/li][li]I agree with you, LavenderBlue - Edith is damn hot with her hair down.[/li][li]The notion that everybody knows about Marigold except Mary is way implausible. Mary may be contemptuous of Edith, but she isn’t stupid. If Lord Robert can figure it out… [/li][li]I am hoping for a truly spectacular blowout between Mary and Edith next season. The foreshadowing where Mary says “but I am a mother so what are you worrying about?” was nice, especially since the governess is doing 90% of the child raising. I am hopeful that Mary will say to Edith “At least I have known the love of a man” and Edith will come back “Actually three, but who’s counting?” and there will be a huge cat fight with hair pulling. [/ul]Now the endless wait until next January 20. Le sigh.[/li]
Regards,
Shodan
Barrow found out about the mistress from the asshole butler. Then he sent her a telegram supposedly from Lord S that said that Lord S would be alone that day and for her to come and visit with the boy.
If the rumors are true that the next series/season will be the last, I’d like to jump ahead to 1929, as the stock market collapse and resulting depression are the biggest events of the next few years (at least as far I remember from history class). So it would be interesting to see who goes broke and who doesn’t.