Downton Abbey blog: Episode Eight

"You know your trouble, milord, you're like all of your kind – you believe you have the monopoly of honour."

Oh, Branson, burn. And, also, true. Because, of all the ridiculous things that happened in this second series of Downton Abbey, Lord Grantham's personality transplant is possibly the most ridiculous of them all. I find it hard enough to believe that the Robert of series one would fall in love with anyone other than Cora, but I certainly couldn’t buy that he’d go all dopey over someone as dull as Jane.

But, with the exception of Lord Grantham’s lady love and Ethel's yawn-inducing quest to sort out a life for Major Moustache Jnr, pretty much everything else in this final episode was a complete joy to watch, and I found myself literally laughing out loud at several points. Of course, some of this laughter was entirely down to my love of cheesy dialogue (“We were a show that flopped...”), but a lot of it came from the first-class acting. My absolute favourite was Mary’s “Seriously?” face after Anna asked if she could keep a secret, which showed some serious comic timing from Michelle Dockery. Once more, you have served your purpose, Mr Pamuk.

Poor Matthew and Mary, star-crossed lovers doesn’t even begin to cover it. And even though Saint Lavinia of Ginger thoughtfully died, doomed from the moment Matthew declared that her case of flu didn’t “seem too serious”, they still couldn’t get it together. With Matthew basically calling them murderers and the declaration that it was definitely all over between them, their final scene was wonderfully melodramatic, although it was given necessary reality by Dan Stevens and Michelle Dockery (in a gorgeous funeral hat). I hope they go through with her marriage to Carlisle, as Iain Glen is brilliantly menacing, and exploring their relationship further could really pay off.

I was almost clapping with glee as Thomas took advantage of Carson’s illness to wheedle his way back into the house, and Rob Collier-James deserves some sort of award for the “what, this old thing?” moment with his livery. O’Brien’s relationship with Cora has been one of the most intriguing aspects of her character, so it was good to see that developed. Maggie Smith was on excellent scene-stealing form. I particularly enjoyed Violet’s scene with Edith, from telling her not to be defeatist as “it’s very middle-class” and complaining that a real necklace would “flatten” Lavinia. Amazing.

And thankfully, Anna finally showed some spirit when it came to her relationship with Bates. For perhaps the first time since episode one of this series, I actually found myself genuinely caring about their relationship as she convinced him to marry her, and their wedding scene was really quite sweet. The less said about their bedroom scene, the better, but the final shot of Joanne Froggatt’s poor quivering lip was enough to make me forgive them for that. Well, almost.

Really, though, I spent most of the episode trying to still my beating heart following the sheer delight of Sybil and Branson declaring their love to everyone. I know they’re idealised and they’ve hardly been given any scenes, but Jessica Brown-Findlay and Allen Leech have enough screen presence and chemistry to make it work despite their lack of screen time. Besides, it was all so delicious that I couldn't resist. The reactions were all brilliantly in character, from Robert’s hypocritical rage and Carson’s disgust to Cora going “all American” and Violet’s ability to adapt, and the shot of Sybil in her fancy dress and Branson in his normal suit facing up to her family was a brilliantly striking image that summed up the central theme of Downton Abbey.

So, if you need me between now and the Christmas special, I’ll be the one scouring the internet for a screencap of Mary’s “Seriously?” face and writing some truly terrible Sybil/Branson fanfiction. And I mean terrible.

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