Downton Abbey 6:5 Review

I never thought there’d come an episode where Downton Abbey decided to go full on Exorcist. The genres just didn’t seem to line up. And yet here we are, discussing what can only be described as a Downton/Alien/Exorcist mashup.

At least all this “internal discomfort” of Lord Grantham has finally paid off in something entertaining. (I’m heartless. I know.)

Let’s get right to the play by play:

  • I watched this a day later than the rest of you, and as such, I’d seen a bit of chatter about “something bloody” on Downton. The whole episode, I kept watching, wondering what the bloody thing would be. At first, I thought it might be another car crash. Memories of Matthew oozing blood out of his ear weren’t pleasant. Surely they wouldn’t go there again, right? Right. So then it was looking for a moment like it might be Anna losing the baby. Surely the writers wouldn’t do that to us, right? Right. And so at last it seemed clear: Lord Grantham was going to have something happen to him with his ulcer. Bing! I still wasn’t expecting things to get quite that . . . eruptive. Still, they’ve gone there before on Downton, with Sybil’s death. I do believe these sort of things happened more often in days of yore. Which makes me ever so glad not to have lived then.
  • Thomas really truly seems to have turned over a new leaf. He’s trying to help Pig Boy out, and I actually kind of like Thomas for the moment. Which makes me think Donald Trump really ought to hire Thomas’s publicist. Just saying.
  • Did anyone else realize that Baxter fixes Chewie’s arm in The Force Awakens? That just hit me.
  • Speaking of Baxter, what’s up with the bait and switch? This whole time, we’re gearing up for a big courtroom showdown, where we finally get to see Mr. Bad, and right before it happens, the rug’s pulled out from under us, and the writers are all just “Psych!” Thanks a lot, writers. Way to waste our time.
  • Daisy is getting all territorial over grandpa, meanwhile, and heaven forbid Mrs. Patmore take a shine to the old man. I swear. Daisy is one of the most boorish characters on the show. Whenever something idiotic or lame is about to happen, you can bet she’ll be the cause of it, somehow. (Maybe she sabotaged Matthew’s car back in the day? I wouldn’t put it past her.)
  • Edith, on the other hand, is taking a page out of Thomas’s new book and is actually (gasp!) an interesting character for once. I wonder if she’ll make a habit out of it? Whatever she does, she needs to get out of Downton’s shadow and go do her own thing.
  • Spratt vs. Denker. A battle for the ages. And it seems like Denker’s got the upper hand at last. I was really rooting for her to get the boot. Alas, I can’t have it all, it appears.
  • Carson has now proven himself to be kind of a tool when it comes to the domestic life. Though maybe I should try out his approach in my marriage. On the other hand, maybe not. I really don’t want my last words to be “Denisa, why don’t you go get a few baking tips from ________ next week while I’m out of town? Your casseroles have really been–” Know what I mean?

Anyway. A fun episode, even if it went all horrorshow at the end. 4/5 from me. What did you think?

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