lassothemoon

[QUOTE=carrie.suze;78847133][QUOTE=L i N d $ @ y;78846740


Very nice scenes between Edith & Tom, I still wish she'd tell her about Marigold. Again, I'm in the minority here that felt Mary's sincerity about Tom leaving. He's always been so kind to her and Tom was right, she certainly has done a 360 on him ever since he became a part of the family. Had a laugh at Mary saying "I suppose Edith can come too" and when the police didn't give a damn about who she is. HA! And it was nice to see all 4 of them out for lunch which doesn't happen often.




yes, I liked that scene with the 4 of them too Lindsay, I'm hoping Mary and Edith might even be friendly towards each other one of these days. stranger things have happened.

Tom always brings out the best in Mary, as unlikely as it is, I'm tempted to put them together, but I think friendship is as far as they'll ever go.
I'd like Edith to confide in him as well about Marigold, at least before he leaves, which obviously I'm hoping he'll change his mind about.[/QUOTE]

That's such a great observation. Tom does bring out the best in her and I hope he stays.

ClaireK80

I also really enjoyed this episode.

My favourite moments:
- Violet's reaction to Kuragin's proposal
- the scenes between Mary / Tom and Mary / Carson
- The memorial service, Mrs Patmore at her nephew's commemorative stone and the characters talking while returning home (Robert/Cora, Carson/Hughes, Tom/Edith)
- the ladies' outfits (especially Rose's wedding gown)
- "let's all go to dinner, even you Edith", LOL
- all the kids now calling Robert "Donk"
- Lord Sinderby declaring at dinner that he strongly disapproves divorce and the embarassed reactions of the Crawleys
- Thomas being kind to that footman - "Next time you ask your uncle Thomas"
- Robert finally behaving like the decent man he is
- weird moment of the night: for the whole episode I expected Robert to realise that Marigold looked like Edith, so when he said that she reminded him of Gregson I was like "WTF, what??? How can you say it??"

My least favourite moments:
- Denker's storyline: it wasn't that bad, I just thought it was a waste of screentime for the final episode
- Anna being arrested was waaaay too similar to Bates' storyline in the season 2 finale. Come on Fellowes. TBH I'm curious to know who killed Green, but I'm not looking forward to seeing Anna in prison, Mary and Bates helping her, the police investigating again etc. And yet I guess most of the CS will once again be devoted to this storyline.
- IDK why, but I find Daisy sooo irritating. I'm sorry for Mrs Patmore but I'd really like to see Daisy go and find a job in London.

aggiemom09121416

Whhatt?? No one is missing Isis?? the poor thing hardly got a mention on the show.

Enjoyed last night's episode! Agree with everyone's likes.

Am getting weary of the 'Bates on Trial' (is that kind like 'girls gone wild'?lol, bad joke, but geez........)


And we need to start a game, saying 'you know you watch to much DA when'....
1. you immediately recognize the background in the scene of Batxer, Daisy, and Mosely when they are walking through the park (same walk area as when Rosamund is asking Mary why she wasn't getting any callers)...
2. in the bar scene, the piano music is the same as what William was playing at DA.

LOL

It was so sweet when 1) Robert admitted why he wanted to sell the painting, and 2) he figured out Marigold's parentage.

And I think Mary's in love with Tom. There, I said it.

HarshBench

I don't think she's in love with him. She loves him and she'll miss him. Mary was feeling lonely this episode. Rose is leaving, Tom is leaving, Tony is getting married. She didn't want him but it was still a bit hard to see that door closed forever. She looked wistful. Now she'll be stuck with Edith who she regards as the enemy for some reason. I really don't know why.

She talked about her "allies" (Sybil, Tom, Rose) being gone. She doesn't love many people or feel close to them so it's hard to lose all of them. That's where I think that was coming from. And Tom has been very supportive too, someone with whom she can talk. Like a brother. They're close so why shouldn't she be sad he's leaving? And Edith said she'd miss him too. Doesn't mean she's in love with him.

I thought this episode was OK. Not great. The Daisy story was nice, as was the Patmore story. The wedding stuff was interesting but I really don't even know Atticus so I find it hard to care that much about it. I do like his mother. His father? Well, he was stern and stiff but he does have a point. It is not as easy as Atticus seems to think it is, the religious difference. And maintaining the faith/culture/people is very important to Jewish people. He worked hard to preserve it and pass it on to his son and now his descendants might end up losing it altogether. It's a loss for him.

Not to say I am not on their side (Rose and Atticus) but there is more than one side to the issue.

And yes, WTF was with Robert saying Marigold looked like Gregson? He only met the guy a few times and the last time was a few years ago. And the kid looks like Edith! He doesn't notice that but he notices a resemblance to Michael? That was just silly.

The Thomas story was kind of funny but I found Drunk Denker rather random. And I am not feeling the Violet/Kuragin thing AT ALL. The guy is greasy to me, with that shaggy hair. Merton and Isobel worked so much better. YMMV.

I just can't rest until I know Tom is staying. Because if he leaves I leave. And if he leaves Sybbie with them while he goes to America? No, just no. Maybe for a few months but that's it. That would be character assassination. He seemed very sure about going, not in the least bit conflicted. So if he changes his mind it has to be something big I think. He has had time to consider every angle by now, so they'd really have to throw a wrench into things to make it believable that he would stay.

lassothemoon

I agree. And not only that, but Tom reminded her of Sybil because like Sybil he was one of the very few people who thought her to be good.

carrie.suze

Robert mentioned Isis when he was talking about having a stone commemorated for her, but you'd expect him to.


Mary loves Tom, I'm sure, but whether it's anything more than a sisterly love I wouldn't like to speculate, and there'll always be reminders of Sybil for both of them.
I did love that scene between them, I really need to watch it again.

Deep down I'd be quite happy if they got together romantically, but whatever the case, she's really going to miss having him around, if he decides to leave that is, will someone please change his mind for him.

Lucresiare

Probably a rivalry dating from childhood. This is very common between siblings, especially when they are less than 2 years apart. Mary may have been jealous when Edith was born, and this kind of rivalry between siblings may last a lifetime. I think Edith was the unloved one, compared to her sisters. Mary may have felt guilty about that, and someone who feels guilty can react by being aggressive and hateful. I would like the show to explore the psychological side of things, but the show never approaches this kind of theme, though in the 1920's, Freud's work was already well known among educated people.

I have loved Violet and Kuragin. It is nice to know that Violet is able to live a passionate and forbidden love.

I thought Rose and Atticus would be totally boring, but 'thanks' to Susan we had some fun in the process.

It was nice to see Donk playing on the floor with Sybbie. He's more and more relax ! We see times are changing.

I hope Tom will stay but will have something interesting in the show next season.

Lauren60

I thought this episode was good not great…

Robert was fantastic in this episode:

Sitting on the floor playing a game with Sybbie

Selling the painting not because it reminded him of all that happened with Simon Bricker but because it reminded him that he had wrongly mistrusted Cora

Arranging for the special memorial plaque for Mrs. Patmore’s nephew and personally convincing her to attend the ceremony.

Calmly accepting the news that Marigold is his granddaughter and predicting that he will love her

- There was too much time spent on the Sinderbys, Flintshires and Rose/Atticus – I’m just not invested in this much too rushed romance.

- Disappointed that there was no return of O’Brien. They wriggled out of it by having the Flintshires too poor to afford servants. I was hoping Susan’s return would also mean O’Brien’s return. I really wanted to know if she has the same hairstyle (hopefully not).

- I’m glad Tom is hearing how much he’ll be missed if he leaves for America. I definitely don’t want Tom to leave and I strongly believe he won’t. What would be the point? So I’m seeing this as a major false alarm that will all work out fine.

- I can’t get too excited over Anna’s situation. It’s just a matter of time for her to be cleared. It’s interesting that the witness identified her as being near the scene of Green’s death. In an earlier episode, the undercover agent saw her visit the site where Green died. We questioned back then how she knew exactly where Green met his demise. This story has my interest. I just hope all the buildup pays off with a satisfying ending.

- It was nice to see Thomas helping the young footman get his money back, doing a good deed. Thomas looked exceptionally handsome in this episode. He’s recovered very nicely.

- Glad to see that Isobel is strongly considering fighting for Lord Merton. It would be a shame if those horrible sons kept them from being together.

- Mary lamented that she’s been losing all of her allies. She mentioned Sybil, Rose and Tom. I was surprised and disappointed that she didn’t mention Matthew. He’s been her biggest loss of all and I would say he was her biggest ally. She was quite melancholy in this episode yet she never mentioned him.

- The interiors of Grantham House were stunning. I especially liked Susan’s bedroom. The drawing room where they gathered was gorgeous too.

ClaireK80

I'm not feeling either of these couples very much TBH.
I've really enjoyed some of the Violet/Kuragin scenes, but mainly because Maggie Smith's acting was great in them, she showed a completely different side of Violet. But I don't see much chemistry with Kuragin, who is too caricatural with the long hair and the weird accent. I just can't see them as a couple, and I just can't see Violet (who's always so proper and hates scandal) becoming the lover of a disgraced Russian prince.
Isobel/Merton are better, and I liked his proposal, but I still think he's too boring and stiff for her. And honestly, even if I felt sorry for Merton when his son insulted Isobel and when he implied that Larry has taken after his late wife, he didn't really defend her during the dinner and didn't even apologise for Larry's behaviour. IDK.

L i N d $ @ y

Will reply to some more posts tomorrow.

I kind of don't want to actually.

Sometimes she makes me laugh: "Really, sometimes I think my life has no possibility at all."

And that music playing during the Carson/Mary scene was the same music playing during the S1 finale when Matthew broke it off with Mary.

Me too. There's something about his soul and how he lived his life away from Violet that makes me root for him. And there are still many untold stories between them that needs to be addressed. I think Isobel feels that there's something between them and that's why she's always asking about him. Although I do have to agree that my liking them has a lot to do with Maggie Smith and how she's taking on this character.

aggiemom09121416

JF certainly knows how to get the fans worked up and staying interested....have a series end with a beloved character (Tom) wanting to leave for America. He's just messing with us,lol...

And as far as Anna having done the 'push and shove', I'm going to go WWAAYYYY out on a limb and say she DID do it...but since he was a serial rapist, she's going to be justified in what she did. Go Anna!

Idk, when Mary was telling Tom she'd miss him, you can hear her voice crack and she almost shows some emotion ... I'm still thinking she loves him, it may not be a love like she had for Matthew, (and vice versa for him and Sybil), but it would clean up both of their storylines.

Andorra

I'm almost sure JF is just messing with us and won't destroy my Christmas by sending Tom to America, but I won't be completely relaxed until I've watched the CS.

BTW, I think Mary does love Tom. Wether it is romantic love or not, I'm not so sure, but unlike many here, I'm not completely averse to the idea. I do think there's a visible difference in the relationship between him and Mary and between him and Edith. I think, while feeling brotherly affection for Edith, he feels closer to Mary.

I also don't know what to make of the many, many scenes we see with Tom and Mary having deep conversations. We don't see those scenes with anyone else. Even though Edith likes him for example, she doesn't confide in him in the same way as Mary does. She didn't tell him about Marigold, but Mary told Tom about Tony. We had 2 suitors this series and yet there was never a moment where Mary showed one of them her vulnerability, but with Tom she opens up in a way she only did with Matthew before.

It would be weird though, if they end up with "Brary". So I don't know what is going to happen. It might only be a very close friendship, but I still won't rule it out.

aggiemom09121416

I read this morning on the official DA Facebook site that JFK promises no one dies in the Christmas special! Yea!
Now mentioning that, I know there's probably a thread to ask my question, (but good golly it would take forever to find, lol)- so saying all that, what was it like A few years ago on Christmas Day, after spending a lovely day with family and good food and gifts, to finally sit down to watch the anticipated special- to see Matthew and Mary become parents, then here came the bakery truck....
I was a late comer to DA, so I knew-- but what was that like?

carrie.suze

'And I am not feeling the Violet/Kuragin thing AT ALL. The guy is greasy to me, with that shaggy hair. Merton and Isobel worked so much better. YMMV.'


This quote I'm agreeing with, just not feeling them as a couple at all, as much as I like Violet/Maggie, I tend to tune out whenever he's speaking.

You just got me all excited with that possible spoiler Andorra.

It is true Mary opens up more with Tom, I love their relationship, whether it's just platonic, or develops into something else.

Andorra

Well, for my part I can say, that I was sure Matthew was going to die that evening, so I wasn't shocked. It became more and more clear in the weeks before the CS aired that Dan Stevens was going to leave the show.

Very early on (in April I think) there had been rumors that Jessica Brown Findlay, Dan Stevens and Siobhean Finneran had not signed new contracts.

For a while fans hoped that it was just a rumor or that they would just sign the contracts later, but when Sybil died in 3.05 it became clear that those rumors had been right. Sybil's death was a complete shock to me. I had never, EVER expected this and sat down to watch a beautiful, merry episode where we knew we would welcome Baby Branson and then this! I was truly shocked and I cried for hourse. I think I didn't spleep for a whole week.

Knowing though that Sybil had been written out and knowing that Dan Stevens had a lot of projects coming up that fell into the time Downton was supposed to be filming, I was very sure he was going to die. The question was only how and some fans even prognosed a car accident, because of the car Matthew bought in episode 2.

So when it happened on Christmas eve, I wasn't shocked and I didn't cry. It was more like "Oh, that's how they've done it".

But I must also add that I wasn't a Mary/Matthew shipper. I liked them and I liked Matthew as a character, but I was never as emotional involved in their story as I was in Sybil and Tom. So naturally Sybil's death was a 100 times worse for me anyway.