The Wild Blog in the West

Last time on  Downton : Matthew died horribly in a car crash in the last seconds of an otherwise dull Christmas Special because Dan Stevens did not want to make a cameo in Series Four.  Fans roared and swore that they were through with the show.  And then they gave Series Four, Episode One the largest audience  Downton Abbey  has received yet -- at least in the United States. So what has been happening with our clan since we last saw them?  I'll confess that I didn't wait for PBS to start airing the episodes before I filled myself up with spoilers, but I'll be kind enough to keep them to myself.  The PBS first episode was two hours, containing the first two episodes that aired in the UK.  The first half was better than the second half, though both were decent. Plot Synopsis Six months after Matthew's untimely demise, it is clear that Julian Fellowes still does not know how to write prominent characters off of the show.  For it opens with the news that O'Bri

While I sit here in the United States waiting for Downton Abbey 's Series Four -- not at all  reading episode spoilers or looking for places to download the episodes -- I have been thinking about the show's appeal to Americans.  Part of it is no doubt due to the fascination with British history, its aristocracy, and the pretty-pretty that comes with it.  But another reason could be the nostalgia for our country's past. Not that everything was so great in the U.S. from 1912 to 1922.  After World War I, there were greater tendencies toward xenophobia and isolationism.  "Lost Generation" writers like Gertrude Stein, Ernest Hemingway, and F. Scott Fitzgerald rejected post-war American culture.  Life was still significantly worse for anyone who was not a white male of Anglo-Saxon descent. Yet at the same time, the U.S. was taking center stage for the first time.  Woodrow Wilson introduced the idea of the League of Nations, which was unsuccessful, but paved the wa

Queen Victoria, date unknown.   PD-US Her Majesty's a pretty nice girl But she doesn't have a lot to say. Her Majesty's a pretty nice girl But she changes from day to day . -- Beatles, " Her Majesty "* Before I leave Downton Abbey  for good until Series Four, I wanted to write a post that I had hinted at writing earlier  about one of history's most misunderstood women.  Well maybe I shouldn't go quite that far, but there are definitely some preconceived notions about Queen Victoria that should be put to rest.  That she was a dull, pious person who always said "we" and who spent 40 years mourning her husband.  Well, that last one was true. But she was also passionate, astute, and remarkably progressive for her time.  And where she wasn't progressive, her five daughters were.  In short, she was awesome. First, a quick history of Queen Victoria.  She was born in 1819 to King George III's third son, Edward Duke of Kent, a

Matthew who? You're still thinking about this show?  It's been a whole two weeks since Matthew Crawley's death.  Time to move on.  There are newer and shinier objects out there. Okay, maybe that's not the way people think, but in the world of television, one show quickly takes the place of another.  My thoughts are already straying toward  Game of Thrones and Mad Men .  Still, I can't let Downton Abbey go without first speculating about what the last episode means for Series Four.  Here are my thoughts at random: The Viewership Numbers Will Remain Strong.   I've read many posts where people complain that after Sybil and Matthew's death, they are "done" with the show.  That is their prerogative, though there is reason to believe that come the start of Series Four, they will tune in, however reluctantly.  After all, we want to see how the Crawleys are reacting to Matthew's death, especially Mary and Isobel.  And how will Branson pick up t

Maybe "gently" was not the best choice of words, but you know what I mean. Damn the gap between airings in the UK and the rest of the world.  Otherwise, I wouldn't have been spoiled about Matthew's death since practically the beginning.  The spoiler that told me about Sybil also tipped me off to Matthew's demise.  Matthew's was less of a surprise because I knew that Dan Stevens would be leaving the show, although initially I thought he would be getting some remote civil servant post that forced him to be away most of the year.  Also, to my chagrin, I realize that I had a hand in leaking the spoiler when I linked to an article about Dan Stevens in one of my earlier posts.  I'm so sorry -- I hope that I didn't spoil Series Three for anyone. In any event, now everyone knows, and I'm sure there will be much to talk about before Series Four.  Hopefully the U.S. airings will not lag behind the UK next time. Plot Synopsis Matthew's death is

For whatever reason, Masterpiece Theatre  has again merged two episodes of Downton Abbey to create one super-sized episode.  Maybe it was because they were damn determined to make sure there were only seven episodes per series, or maybe they were worried about competing with Oscar night.  Regardless, we are looking at the Series Three finale -- or what UK viewers know as the Christmas Special -- next week. Plot Synopsis Count on Downton to deliver generous doses of WTF? each year, as well as completely unbelievable resolutions to problems.  In the first half of the episode, we see Bates emerge from prison looking quite dapper in a three-piece suit.  Anna has been waiting for him in a car, but when she sees him, she bursts out and they share a tender moment.  If there is any sense that their relationship has changed, we don't see it in this episode.  I'm so happy that the prison storyline is over with, I'll squelch any impulse to complain about the unrealistic speed wi

The times are a-changin'.  Suddenly it's cool to not humiliate people from lower classes and different religions. Watching this episode, I felt as though Julian Fellowes were somehow responding to all of our fan criticisms about Series Three, even though that would be impossible.  It felt more satisfying than an episode of Downton Abbey had for a very long time, and was the second strong episode in a row. Plot Synopsis In the aftermath of Sybil's funeral, feelings are still quite raw.  A visibly shaken Branson tells the Crawley family that he doesn't intend to stay at Downton forever.  "K thx," says Lord Grantham, but Edith and Matthew try to convince Branson to stay longer.  They discuss the baby's christening, and Branson states that he not only wants to name the baby Sybil after her mother, but also intends to have her christened as a Catholic.  Both choices upset Lord Grantham greatly, especially the latter one.  He invites Reverend Travis to d

Okay, so the song doesn't quite apply, since I'm mainly looking at two things.  Oh well.  It's catchy. So where does a twerp like me get off thinking that she can criticize the historical accuracy of the great Downton Abbey ?  I'll confess that I'm not the most qualified person.  While one of my degrees is in history, I specialized in a different time period.  I have been an amateur historian of the Victorian period (1837-1901) for well over a decade, and recently spent a year doing some intensive research into Victorian reforms and social customs.  But Downton Abbey isn't set during the Victorian period -- it's not even set during the Edwardian period (1901-1910).  From Series One to the present, it has been set during the reign of George V (1910-1936). However, despite the occasional reminders that "the world is changing!", Downton Abbey  seems to be stuck in a time warp.  It's still 1912 on the estate, which might as well be 1892.  In