# The Gilded Age on HBO Max (open spoilers)

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-gilded-age-on-hbo-max-open-spoilers/958668>\
**Category:** Cafe Society\
**Tags:** tv-shows-scripted, hbomax-wb-dc\
**Created:** [January 31, 2022, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-gilded-age-on-hbo-max-open-spoilers/958668 "2022-01-31T02:38:23Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 20\
**Page:** 8

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**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\
**Post date:** [December 12, 2023, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-gilded-age-on-hbo-max-open-spoilers/958668/141 "2023-12-12T18:22:16Z")

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I don’t think Daisy was the one with the typewriter. One of the housemaids in an early season learned to type and left service for a job at the telephone company. I think demonstrating the shift to office work.

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**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\
**Post date:** [December 12, 2023, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-gilded-age-on-hbo-max-open-spoilers/958668/142 "2023-12-12T20:23:03Z")

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I feel bad for Oscar. One nitpick, how was Miss Beaton getting invitations if she had a fake address? Good on Jack, it would be hilarious if he’s able to give everyone a return on their investment and leave Armstrong out cold.

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**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\
**Post date:** [December 12, 2023, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-gilded-age-on-hbo-max-open-spoilers/958668/143 "2023-12-12T20:35:31Z")

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So if Agnes loses all the family money, how does this affect the marriage of Marion to her cousin? I don’t recall if he had much money at all.

IMO, they are clearly setting up a situation where Marion dumps the new fiancee’ and winds up with the Russell son. The Russells have plenty of money to keep Gladys in her home if need be, but man would she have to choke back a lot of class snobbery.

Or in a typical Fellowes’ turn, Aunt Ada will find out that her newly-deceased husband had a massive fortune that he ignored, and she’ll be the moneyed person that has to look after Gladys.

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**Author:** ![zbuzz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e19b73/32.png) [@zbuzz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zbuzz)\
**Post date:** [December 13, 2023, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-gilded-age-on-hbo-max-open-spoilers/958668/144 "2023-12-13T00:13:39Z")

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> [@Sam\_Stone](#):
>
> So if Agnes loses all the family money, how does this affect the marriage of Marion to her cousin? I don’t recall if he had much money at all.

I don’t know if he has Van Rhijn-type money, but he seems pretty well-off. He laid out a $50 bet at the tennis match, anyway.

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**Author:** ![Slithy\_Tove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slithy_tove/32/18248_2.png) [@Slithy\_Tove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slithy_Tove)\
**Post date:** [December 18, 2023, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-gilded-age-on-hbo-max-open-spoilers/958668/145 "2023-12-18T02:57:12Z")

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You know, Oscar Van Rhijn always reminds me of Dan Backslide from the [Dover Boys](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=2bHevLuJ0qI&pp=ygUKZG92ZXIgYm95cw%3D%3D)

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**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\
**Post date:** [December 18, 2023, 3:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-gilded-age-on-hbo-max-open-spoilers/958668/146 "2023-12-18T03:06:34Z")

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Classic Fellows; I knew that was going to happen as soon as Ada mentioned the confusing paperwork. 😉 It’ll be _so_ much fun watching her and Agnes next season.

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**Author:** ![liirogue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/dbc845/32.png) [@liirogue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/liirogue)\
**Post date:** [December 18, 2023, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-gilded-age-on-hbo-max-open-spoilers/958668/147 "2023-12-18T17:16:00Z")

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I’ve really enjoyed this show. Beautiful costuming, low-stakes drama (can you _imagine_ not being able to get a box at the Academy?!) and solid acting make for a great break. It’s been long enough since I’ve watched Downton Abbey that I don’t remember all of the recycled plot lines so that hasn’t bothered me.

I do hope this gets renewed for another season. While the last episode of season 2 did a good job of wrapping up some major plot lines, I’m assuming because they were concerned it might get cancelled, but it left plenty of runway to continue if given the chance.

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**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\
**Post date:** [December 19, 2023, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-gilded-age-on-hbo-max-open-spoilers/958668/148 "2023-12-19T19:15:56Z")

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> [@Sam\_Stone](#):
>
> in a typical Fellowes’ turn, Aunt Ada will find out that her newly-deceased husband had a massive fortune that he ignored, and she’ll be the moneyed person that has to look after Gladys.

Called it. Julian Fellowes can be pretty predictable.

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**Author:** ![zbuzz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e19b73/32.png) [@zbuzz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zbuzz)\
**Post date:** [December 20, 2023, 10:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-gilded-age-on-hbo-max-open-spoilers/958668/149 "2023-12-20T10:10:51Z")

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Small sample size for comparison, but I think there was considerably more horse shit on the street in front of the Scott pharmacy than we’ve seen elsewhere. I’d really like to know if I’m just seeing horse shit everywhere, or if that was purposeful commentary on how the black areas of town would have more horse shit on the streets.

Also, congratulations to Julian Fellowes for winning The First Annual James Horner Award for Outstanding Achievement in the Field of Self-Plagiarism.

Seriously, if Fellowes was ever marooned on a desert island where food was plentiful, I think he would cannibalize his own body parts first.

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**Author:** ![commasense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/commasense/32/3017_2.png) [@commasense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/commasense)\
**Post date:** [December 20, 2023, 11:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-gilded-age-on-hbo-max-open-spoilers/958668/150 "2023-12-20T11:28:00Z")

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I’ve been thinking that once Dashiell finds out that Marion is involved with a colored (gasp!) school, he’s going to dump her, leaving the way clear for Larry Russell.

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**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\
**Post date:** [December 20, 2023, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-gilded-age-on-hbo-max-open-spoilers/958668/151 "2023-12-20T13:24:22Z")

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Are you up to date in watching this show?

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**Author:** ![commasense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/commasense/32/3017_2.png) [@commasense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/commasense)\
**Post date:** [December 20, 2023, 1:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-gilded-age-on-hbo-max-open-spoilers/958668/152 "2023-12-20T13:34:03Z")

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It looks like we are one episode behind. We haven’t watched the finale.

We were wondering why we could watch ep. 7 before 9 pm on Sunday.

Thanks for the tip.

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**Author:** ![Misnomer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/misnomer/32/14897_2.png) [@Misnomer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Misnomer)\
**Post date:** [December 20, 2023, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-gilded-age-on-hbo-max-open-spoilers/958668/153 "2023-12-20T19:10:05Z")

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> [@zbuzz](#):
>
> congratulations to Julian Fellowes for winning The First Annual James Horner Award for Outstanding Achievement in the Field of Self-Plagiarism

I believe Aaron Sorkin beat him to it by more than a decade: [Fellowes’s writing credits](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Julian_Fellowes#Writing_credits) start in 2001, while Sorkin has been cannibalizing himself since the late '80s. 😁

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**Author:** ![liirogue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/dbc845/32.png) [@liirogue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/liirogue)\
**Post date:** [December 29, 2023, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-gilded-age-on-hbo-max-open-spoilers/958668/154 "2023-12-29T21:16:28Z")

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It has been [renewed for a third season](https://variety.com/2023/tv/news/the-gilded-age-season-3-hbo-1235849122/). It’s consistently showing up in the top 10 shows list on HBO so I’m glad they’re going to get to continue.

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**Author:** ![LVBoPeep](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/858c86/32.png) [@LVBoPeep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LVBoPeep)\
**Post date:** [December 29, 2023, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-gilded-age-on-hbo-max-open-spoilers/958668/155 "2023-12-29T21:31:13Z")

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I’m glad, I roll my eyes at some of the Downton Abbey soap-y drama but I thought this season was stronger than last. I liked the opera drama and especially liked Ada sticking it to Agnes when it became obvious that even the servants knew that the tables had turned. Agnes & Mrs. Russell are my favorite characters though and my only complaint for this season is how wasted Matilda Lawler (who played young Kirsten in Station Eleven) was in her boring, any girl role.

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**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\
**Post date:** [December 29, 2023, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-gilded-age-on-hbo-max-open-spoilers/958668/156 "2023-12-29T21:40:06Z")

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I’m glad as well. I enjoy the bits of real history and inclusion of real people. Googling the most recent season took place in 1883 so I wonder who will be featured next? Perhaps we’ll see Thomas Edison?

As long as it’s not as silly about including historical figures as Murdoch Mysteries is.

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**Author:** ![Quimby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/22d042/32.png) [@Quimby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quimby)\
**Post date:** [January 18, 2024, 11:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-gilded-age-on-hbo-max-open-spoilers/958668/157 "2024-01-18T11:19:08Z")

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I was way behind on this but finally caught up. A few comments:

The whole “He’s going to spoil the sauce!! Nope, he’s caught.” Was so sudden and easily dispatched that it almost seemed like parody. Dispatching the soup spiller worked a bit better but also seemed silly.

About the horse poop, Downton Abbey is almost thirty years later so they definitely would have less horse poop on their streets. I didn’t notice the Scott’s pharmacy had a lot in front but maybe it was a comment on the racism of the era that street in front his shop was not kept clear.

About the troops. I was pretty sure they took orders from George because they worked for him. They were private security, not federal troops (but I could be wrong).

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**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\
**Post date:** [January 18, 2024, 12:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-gilded-age-on-hbo-max-open-spoilers/958668/158 "2024-01-18T12:20:30Z")

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> [@Quimby](#):
>
> About the troops. I was pretty sure they took orders from George because they worked for him. They were private security, not federal troops (but I could be wrong).

Except, I assume private security wouldn’t be allowed to just shoot a pack of strikers??

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Quimby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/22d042/32.png) [@Quimby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quimby)\
**Post date:** [January 18, 2024, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-gilded-age-on-hbo-max-open-spoilers/958668/159 "2024-01-18T13:30:58Z")

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It was a different time…lots of people died during the labor movement.

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Dorjan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dorjan/32/12440_2.png) [@Dorjan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dorjan)\
**Post date:** [January 18, 2024, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-gilded-age-on-hbo-max-open-spoilers/958668/160 "2024-01-18T13:38:05Z")

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The late 1800s and early 1900s were a particularly violent era of the labor movement. There were several incidents of outright gun battles between unionists and police/militia/federal troops/private security.

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