What I’m Watching: Downton Abbey

Downton Abbey: Season 4, Episode 2 (B+)

I made the mistake last week of only watching part of the premiere, and so this review will tackle the second hour or so of episode one and the entirety of episode two (they air differently in England, which makes it confusing). As things progress, it’s becoming clearer and clearer that Mary, mistress of riding side-saddle, is going to make a name for herself and not let her father keep her down, with the hearty encouragement of Tom and Violet at every turn. Robert seems increasingly irritable, not eager to entertain a visiting opera singer and content to shut down the hopes and dreams of both of his living daughters by demeaning their opinions and avoiding getting to know their new men, respectively. Gregson managed to win the hour by gifting his winnings back to their original owners, and maybe that means Edith could actually have happiness for once after all. Rose made a major misstep by going into town and getting to know a member of the help who then sought her out at Downton, but that appears to be rectified for the moment. Anna, on the other hand, suffered a truly miserable and heinous fate, a dark occurrence which hasn’t yet been felt on this show. I trust Mrs. Hughes to be diligent in taking care of Anna and helping her to hide the truth from Bates, but that should prove difficult, especially since Bates got so angry about Anna playing around with her future assailant. It’s about time Mrs. Patmore suffered a heart attack, and I’m glad to see that she appears to be okay, with a prescription for a less stress as her medicine going forward. Edna is proving to be nothing but trouble, and let’s hope Tom doesn’t self-destruct his new status by engaging in an all-too-public affair with her. Molesley is a great source of comic relief, and it’s good to see him popping up a lot lately, even if it is for jobs that seem horribly embarrassing, at least according to his and Carson’s standards. The funniest moment of the episode was Violet calling Mary out for trying to use her as an excuse not to dance, a wonderful reminder that, however small her role may be, Maggie Smith knocks every scene she has out of the park.