Humdinger

I wish the writing for Sybil/Tom had been a little different in S2. A lot of their scenes were repetitive IMO. They talked about politics, but if I remember correctly Sybil didn't have much to add yet she was seeing the effect of the war on individuals all day. I wanted Sybil to voice her doubts about the necessity of the war (I think Tom would've loved that too). Maybe she did and I've forgotten...

ScarletCourt

ITA! I think a lot of the S/T scenes were wasted between 2x02 and 2x06. I think that Sybil's voice was missing during most of it because there must be other things to talk about other than whether she was in love with him or not.

L i N d $ @ y

I still loved Sybil in S2. She was still a force to reckoned with but the writing was more enjoyable in S1, undoubtedly.

And a lot of issues were pushed under the rug and resolved very nicely which I'm having trouble to comprehend. I don't know if JF meant for it to be that way or because they only have 8/9 episodes to deal with.

Corrsfanre

Hey guys! Finished this season and I have to say I preferred season 3.

I think season 2 was very much like a soap opera :bono:

L i N d $ @ y

There were lots of complaints about S2, specifically the pacing. And especially the never-ending deus ex machina SLs (which still escalated in S3).

I may have preferred S2 more inspite of it being soapy only because there were no major character deaths.

RebekahJP

Question about season 2 ep 7:

The war is over, the soldiers have gone home, and Robert Grantham is no longer in love with his wife, in fact he can't stand her. Why? I missed whatever happened between them to cause such intense feelings.

Imzadi

I would really like to know more of the show. can someone the essentials of it and what she show is about?

ediedoyle

Just in case you didn't see it -- I replied to you about this on the s2e7 thread.


Quite hard to summarize... Essentially follows life at Downton Abbey, the English manor/estate belonging to the Earl of Grantham (Robert Crawley) and his family. The show begins when Robert's nephew and heir, who was also engaged to his eldest daughter in order to keep the estate in their direct family line, dies on the sinking of the Titanic in 1912.
Things get complicated when we learn that Mary and her 2 sisters cannot legally inherit the estate because they are women. The next male in line turns out to be a distant relative from Manchester with a middle-class background, named Matthew. They invite him to the Abbey. All kinds of drama ensues.
We also follow the drama of the servants -- "downstairs" staff headed by the butler Mr Carson and housekeeper Mrs Hughes.

There is a Downton wiki page, btw, which has a chart of the main characters.
Hope that helps! Not sure how much you care to know or if you want to avoid major spoilers on s2-4.

Imzadi

thank you for that and the show is from england right? and its old fashioned back when women didnt have all kinds f rights and so on. I just know that Maggie Smith is in it and I adore her

L i N d $ @ y

Yes Suz, Dame Maggie is on the show and she's wonderful. The best lines on the show are spoken by her of course. If you love period dramas you'll like this show. Admittedly I didn't watch any period dramas before D.A. and I just got hooked since.

I hope ediedoyle has answered your question on the S2E7 thread.

HeartOfTheOcean1912

Anyone out there who remembers this season?

I'm glad to know that not everyone loved the second season. It was a huge disappointment compared to the first. I can't understand how Cora and Robert are a happily married couple, and yet he cheated on her with a servant... Also, I think it should have focused a little more on Bate's arrest and trial, just to see how each of the servants reacted to it. Including Anna. How did the servants stand by her through all that?

Few of the things that I liked, though, is the fact that Sybil and Branson are finally, officially together Also, I expect something to happen between Mary and Matthew, now that Lavinia has passed away and the abusive behavior of Mary's fiance is finally known.

L i N d $ @ y

I agree with you about your comment on Robert & Cora's relationship this season. We all hate the fact that Jane was around only because Robert felt conflicted in his marriage and she happens to be there. I didn't like it one bit. Theirs was a happy marriage so why destroy it?

And ditto about knowing how the servants reacted to Bates' arrest and how they stood by Anna but perhaps that will be addressed for the next season? On the side, I thought Brendan & Joanne were stellar in the finale. Great acting from both.