Downton Abbey 5.7 Review

Yes, I have a slew of other posts to report on, but Downton does not wait in line. Downton elbows its way through the line and demands to be written about *right away*. So here I am with my gut reactions to this week’s happenings at Downton.

This week was actually another fairly solid outing for the show. Things happened, and they were things we generally care about. What a concept! Although for some random reason, the writers have decided even pets are fair game when it comes to Downton. (Either that, or they realized that in dog years, Isis was getting up there in age.)

• I didn’t think it was possible. Surely, no character on earth could possibly make me want Schoolmarm to come back to Downton for dinner. And then he happened. Larry. You wouldn’t expect a guy with a name like Larry to pass muster at Downton. Perhaps that’s why he’s got a chip on his shoulder the size of an entire bag of Doritos. Or maybe he’s just disappointed he can’t drug any of the Crawley family this time (as opposed to last time he appeared, when he slipped drugs into Tom’s drink.) Why in the world Lord Merton thought he should let his sons out in public is beyond me, but I almost cheered out loud when Tom spoke up, and for a moment–one fleeting moment–I wanted to see Schoolmarm boldly rush into a cage match with Larry. I was a tad disappointed no one punched Larry, but I’m used to disappointments and Downton.
• Daisy continues her campaign for “Most Easily Manipulated Person at Downton” this episode. Let’s face it. If Daisy were a Muppet, she’d be Elmo. She’s got all the smarts of a first grader.
• Isobel’s gettin’ married, and I enjoyed Violet’s remarks about the change. Nice to see her show some ooey gooey filling for once.
• Lady Mary has fully reverted to Season 1 condition. All traces of ooey and gooey have been hunted down and murdered in cold blood. Seriously. She’s bringing “self absorbed” to a whole new level of zen. I’m surprised when people were worried about Isis, she didn’t snark something to the tune of, “Who cares about the beast? What about my hair?” Seems like they’re overcompensating with her character, but fine. I’ll take this version over the bed hopping one any day of the week.
• Rose seems to finally have made the transition from “Character We Use to Introduce Bizarre Conflicts to Downton” over to what she’s always clearly been: “Character to Replace Sybil.” Bravo, Rose. Bravo.
• Bates and Anna shared a few happy scenes in this episode, which must mean they’re about to have some crushing death blows delivered in the near future. Otherwise, they’d violate what seems to be Rule Number One of Downton: No characters can ever be happy for long. Particularly not Anna.
• Edith and Co. come up with a new convoluted excuse to get her daughter to Downton. Why this one should work and the other didn’t is beyond me–they both relied on the foster mother being cool with the plan. But whatever. I’m just hoping we can put this storyline to rest. In other news, is it just me, or did Edith actually look like a competent, thinking person when she was at the magazine offices? Why doesn’t she just stay there? #baffled
• Why did Anna go all tattle-taley on Edith? That seemed really out of character for her. Dislike.

One more episode, and then we get the Christmas episode. Just be glad the show doesn’t operate on an American schedule. Imagine the filler episodes we’d be stuck with then . . .