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<p>No, he’s just a man of his times. The state of medical knowledge was pretty low back a hundred years ago.</p>
<p>Ok, WHAT is the Christmas Special? Did I see that?</p>
<p>Also, and I hate to say this, but does Elizabeth McGovern (Lady Grantham) have just ONE facial expression? I mean, every line she says seems interchangeable. Could she get a drama coach?</p>
<p>Lastly, I’m kind of afraid Shirley McLaine is going to roll right over all the actors, except for the Dowager. She’s pretty intense. What does everyone think?</p>
<p>**<em>Love</em>love<em>love</em> the show</p>
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<p>Yes. A complete dud IMO, and I adore the original.</p>
<p>I think Sir Richard is an interesting character, very much a man of the new century. He’s complex. I hope he’s developed more next season. Would like to see him marry. Also – am I the only one who suspects Sir Richard actually killed Mrs. Bates (a “hit” job)? Yes, I do think Bates will eventually get off.</p>
<p>Sybil/Branson – perfect timing for the Irish vs English thing to impact their storyline in a big way, and he being a journalist in Ireland. </p>
<p>I like Matthew. I think he’s darling, and I’m glad he and Mary are engaged. Wedding shows always draw high ratings – DA is not going to miss an opportunity for a fabulous blowout wedding show. But I think Mary could be part of a really good storyline, showing her not content to lead a dull lady of the manor life. She may decide she wants to vote.</p>
<p>Lady Edith is ripe for a good storyline. Maybe “Patrick” will come back, and she will staunchly support his claim to the place as heir, and become his intended. That would pit her nicely against Mary, her old nemesis.</p>
<p>Samuck - I am American and wish some TV shows would be shorter. This whole 22 episode thing means that there will be some filler. Mad Men does 13 episodes or so and does it amazingly. Same with Breaking Bad, Shameless and Homeland. </p>
<p>I know Homeland is long but I ask you to stick with the show. It is one of the best shows that have aired on TV this year. Claire Danes is phenomenal and complete hits everything out of the parks. Damian Lewis (a Brit who can do the American accent so well) acts very subtly but he does it so well that you don’t really know where he is going to go. Both of them will get nominated for a lot of awards in the future and the show will too. It picked up Best Drama and Best Actress at the Golden Globes, AFI named it one of the best programs of the year, and picked up Best New Series and an award for writing of one of the episodes at WGA Awards last night. </p>
<p>I just gave you a lot but I have convinced like 4 people to watch this show and they have all loved it. </p>
<p>Skyhook - I agree with you so much. Tom and Lorenzo (two gay guys who comment on fashion and do TV recaps) have said times before about pictures from different events of her making the same face.</p>
<p>I was happy to see Edith’s almost-fiancee return and their frank discussion as to what happened. It looks like she will be trying to win him back next season.</p>
<p>I’ve always thought Matthew a bit stolid but he proved otherwise by declaring that Mary did not need to seek his forgiveness for l’affaire Pamuk. Quite the evolved man! Remember Matthew was in the house that night although I’m not sure that he slept there. </p>
<p>Have to think that it would be quite unusual for an idealistic man circa 1920 to get over that bit of news about his beloved so easily. So bravo Matthew.</p>
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<p>How did Edith ever find out what Mary said to the almost-fiancee? Was it in the dialogue somewhere and we missed it? Did Mary and Edith have some frank exchange about who did what to whom? Maybe.</p>
<p>^ That’s what I surmised. Mary and Edith have definitely worked out many of their conflicts.</p>
<p>I too think the imposter Patrick will return, perhaps he and Edith’s almost-fiancee (I can’t remember his name) will compete for her. And if he is Patrick, then he could still take Matthew’s place as the heir.</p>
<p>I must be alone in thinking that life as the lady of the manor would be anything but dull. :)</p>
<p>Did we Americans ever see that first Matthew/Mary kiss in season 1? I don’t remember it either. Could that have possibly been cut?</p>
<p>I don’t think Vera killed herself. Why would she? I suppose Matthew or somebody could find some evidence next season that she had just gotten a diagnosis of some soap opera disease that would kill her in the next two weeks, and she evilly plotted to implicate Bates in her death…</p>
<p>But if Bates didn’t do it, I think the next likely culprit is Sir Richard. She threatened to spill the beans about Pamuk, so he offed her. Now he’s sorry. But I hope it’s not Sir Richard. I kind of like him. A Richard/Mary marriage could have been interesting if there were no Matthew.</p>
<p>Hilarious synopsis: [Downton</a> Abbey: A Very Crawley Christmas | Tom & Lorenzo](<a href=“http://www.tomandlorenzo.com/2012/02/downton-abbey-a-very-crawley-christmas.html]Downton”>http://www.tomandlorenzo.com/2012/02/downton-abbey-a-very-crawley-christmas.html)</p>
<p>Ah, so this last episode was called the Christmas Special? Oh, duh.</p>
<p>Some of the plot lines that were left hanging, I got the feeling were there to connect stuff that didn’t get connected. Like I thought Daisy would wind up “donating” her unwanted widow’s pension to the unwed mother. But then that didn’t happen (hope I’m not doing an unwitting spoiler of what is going to happen in the next series). I think O’Brien killed Vera, and that will be used as a vehicle for her to get her come-uppance. Or maybe she’ll confess in some kind of grand, redemptive flameball of contrition.</p>
<p>Remember when Sybill was protesting something and is was a big crowd? Matthew came to the rescue and got her and took her back to Downton. Shortly after Mary and Matthew had this dinner since everyone had already eaten. After that they kissed. Followed by that was Mary telling her mom that Matthew proposed </p>
<p>I didn’t watch S1 on PBS so I have no clue if this is relavent.</p>
<p>The Dowager Countess had such a great line in last night’s Christmas episode. When she was greeting Lady Rosamond’s suitor and recalling that she knew his father well, back in the day, she tossed off this famous French line of poetry: “Mais ou sont les neiges d’antan?” It was just in a quiet voice (for her), so not as notable as some of her other zingers “(Do you promise?”) </p>
<p>The French line in its best-known translation means “but where are the snows of yesteryear”? It is invoked when remembering some bittersweet event or relationship of one’s youth. I have loved this line ever since I read it a few years ago, and there is Lady Violet quoting it in passing. </p>
<p>LOVE this show and love Lady Violet too. DA forever!</p>
<p>^^Bookiemom- I actually wondered what was said. I barely heard that line, but don’t speak French. Merci !</p>
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<p>I think they will overdo the feisty English granny vs feisty American granny thing and ruin it in the process. Plus, I think Shirley McLaine will come on so strong that the character will get lost. We’ll we won’t be able to see her as anything but Shirley McLaine playing a role. </p>
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<p>Mary scuttled Edith’s chances, I believe, at the garden party in which the outbreak of the war is announced. The suitor suddenly gets cold feet and rushes off making lame excuses to Edith. Edith knows she has been done in somehow and looks forlornly around the party. Mary, smiling triumphantly, catches Edith’s eye and raises her champaign flute slightly in a subtle toast of revenge, signaling to Edith that she was the author of her undoing.</p>
<p>I think the entail was abolished in 1925, leaving all sorts of openings for new story lines. But I hope Lord Grantham survives for many more seasons. He is one of my favorites.</p>
<p>You all are going to think I’m crazy, but I think Anna did it! Obviously she had the motive, and the way she presses Bates to marry her… Here’s the kicker, I think Bates knows she did it and is okay being in jail instead of her because he feels like it’s his fault she was driven to do it. Tune in next year and find out I guess! :)</p>
<p>I keep thinking of Shirley MacLaine in Steel Magnolias as Ouiser (I had to look up how to spell that). Ouiser vs. Lady Violet! I think it will a delightful counterpoint. Just think of the wedding arrangements: the two grandmothers, Lady Cora, and Isobel.</p>
<p>Some of my predictions:
Lady Edith will have two suitors: Lord OneArm and Patrick. Perhaps she will pick Patrick if he seems to be the real heir, even though she loves Lord OneArm? Then Patrick will be shown to be an imposter and she can return to Lord OneArm. She does seem to have grown into better values though. Maybe Edith will have a more major role in season 3 since her sisters are now spoken for.</p>
<p>Lady Sybil and Tom: I heard from my sister (also a fan) that there is supposed to be a “Catholic angle” in season 3. Tom, being Irish, is most likely Catholic. Did Sybil convert? Perhaps Cora’s family was originally Catholic, thus she named her oldest D Mary? The Catholic/Protestant gulf was big at the time. </p>
<p>Banna (Bates + Anna): of course Bates will be freed somehow. Matthew will help with his appeal. I think O’Brien did it to atone for her “evil soap” slip-up.</p>
<p>^^hint: Shirley McClaine’s character is named Martha Levinson…</p>
<p>Carry-on…hehe</p>
<p>Since the Brits bet on everything, I wonder when it will start on who killed Vera. Closer to September, I guess.</p>
<p>I’m sticking with my feeling of O’Brien.</p>
<p>Also, I never thought Elizabeth McGovern was a good actress, and I still don’t.</p>
<p>coureur, I hope you are wrong about the two grannies.</p>