Downton Abbey SPOILER THREAD

Awesome. I have a lot of catching up to do. I started watching the show on Wed and am all caught up. It was such fun not having to wait a week to see what happens next.

One thing that really surprised me was that Robert had those moments of lust with the maid. What a fool!!! I wonder if that will come back to haunt him. I wouldn't doubt it.

I love the story line with Bates and Anna and am so glad that they got married. I think my favourite characters in the show are these two. I can't wait to see what happens with them next. I haven't seen tonight's eppie because I was out ministering to a hurting friend. Will have to watch it tomorrow after work, but that's ok. I won't peek here til after I watch it.

This is going to be FUN!!

Wow, so sad. I forgot how to spell it. But the disease Sybil had was E. (If, anyone remember the name of it. Please write it down.) I hope, they medicine for the E disease today. Do you think Mr. Bates will be free from prison or stay prison longer? It's a girl. I wonder, what their gonna name her? This was really good episode.

When Sybil was laying there dead in bed. I saw the actress chest moving up and down.

LIWnut wrote:

One thing that really surprised me was that Robert had those moments of lust with the maid. What a fool!!! I wonder if that will come back to haunt him. I wouldn't doubt it.

That shocked me, too. I didn't buy it. The actor tried to explain it, saying Robert was in a confusing time of his life. He wants to support the war effort, but is told he won't be going. It just seemed out of the blue for the character.

I wonder, too, if O'Brien causing Cora's miscarriage will ever come back to haunt her.

And speaking of maids. I REALLY...REALLY...SERIOUSLY dislike Edna.

Oh - and, Marilyn, I love Anna & Bates, too! I love the way he looks at her...there's no doubt that he's completely in love with her. What woman wouldn't want that? *swoon* And of course, the opposite is true - there's no doubting Anna's feelings for him, either.

Lisa wrote:

And speaking of maids. I REALLY...REALLY...SERIOUSLY dislike Edna.

I haven't seen her yet, but based upon what I found on the Internet, I won't like her either. She's coming back for Season 4.

Which maid is Edna? I'm trying to get all the characters right.

Ya, who is Edna? Do you mean Ethel?

Wow, poor Sybil! I didn't expect that. I will miss her.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/downton-abbey/9830943/Downton-Abbey-takes-top-prize-at-Screen-Actors-Guild-Awards.html

Award winners!

LIWnut wrote:

Ya, who is Edna? Do you mean Ethel?

No, I didn't mean Ethel. (Although I really disliked her from the first episode she was in, too. I feel sorry for her now.) No, Edna is a new maid later in season three, and I CAN'T STAND her.

LIWnut wrote:

Wow, poor Sybil! I didn't expect that. I will miss her.

I didn't expect it, either. It was a horrifying scenario, and heartbreaking to watch.

How have you seen the rest of season 3? The dvd comes out tomorrow.

Buttercup, Sybil was diagnosed with preeclampsia, high blood pressure of a pregnant woman. It is life threatening and the only treatment is the delivery of the baby. In Sybil's case tho, they waited too long and it caused her death even after the birth of the child. They should have listened to the family dr and taken her to the hospital. I'm surprised that the dr knew what it was back then. I wonder how many mothers and babies died from this problem back in the 1800's.

Thank you, Marilyn for explaining it more.

This article says that doctors knew what it was back then, but it would be a decade later before they knew how to treat it.

http://news.yahoo.com/lady-sybils-death-highlights-killer-eclampsia-203906158--abc-news-health.html

I talked a little bit about this episode today at my blog: http://www.thebusymomsdaily.com/2013/01/dark-days-ahead-at-downton-abbey.html I try to be vague in case some haven't seen it yet. I'm truly disappointed in the direction they are taking Robert's character.

Lisa wrote:

Okay - here's the thread where you can say ANYTHING about Downton. Fair warning to Downton newcomers: It will be full of spoilers, so if you don't want to know ahead of time what's going to happen, DO NOT read this thread.


Let the spoilers I mean discussion begin.

Oh, what a great idea, Lisa! We'll have to be extra careful though, since you and I have seen all of season 3---we'll have to be mindful of which episode has aired on PBS each week, and then it will be fair game to discuss ALL of season 3 once it's all been aired.


Marilyn, I can't believe you want to be spoiled on all the upcoming stuff though!! Season 3 is SOOOOOOOO good! It makes me sad for you that you already even know about Sybil! What episode are you on now? I am doing a watch-through (lol, I just HAD to start over from the beginning!), and I just started season 2 again.


I liked your article, Cheryl. There are definitely dark days ahead for the Crowleys. Can't wait until alll of season 3 has aired, because there is SO much too discuss!!

Maggie Smith's one liners, I have to say, are better than ever this season. She's just amazing. I'd have to say the most dramatically changed character, for me, has been Tom. I didn't like him that much in the beginning, and now I actually really really like him and admire him. He has come a long way. In season 3, I came to love Mrs. Hughes more than ever as well...always the voice of reason, and such a compasionate person. And the person I'm ROOTING for more than ever before is Edith. She is finally coming into her own, developing her own sense of self worth, and I just hope that Robert will see her attributes and give her a WEE bit of encouragement in the future.

That's all I've got for now!

Amy wrote:

I liked your article, Cheryl. There are definitely dark days ahead for the Crowleys. Can't wait until alll of season 3 has aired, because there is SO much too discuss!!

I'd have to say the most dramatically changed character, for me, has been Tom. I didn't like him that much in the beginning, and now I actually really really like him and admire him. He has come a long way.

Thanks Amy. I try not to give too much away while I talk about the show, but it's hard because I really love it and would love to explore it more deeply, especially from a writing perspective.

What made the difference for me in Tom is how he felt as events in Ireland unfolded. As he discovered, planning violence is a lot different than seeing it acted out. He realized that it might not be for him, despite his strong beliefs. He'll have a tough road ahead of him now that Sybil is gone. He can't return home. He probably will carry some resentment towards Robert over his wife's death, which will complicate their relationship even further.

I hope Cora doesn't forgive Robert too easily. It will need to happen, but not right away.

Amy wrote:

Oh, what a great idea, Lisa! We'll have to be extra careful though, since you and I have seen all of season 3---we'll have to be mindful of which episode has aired on PBS each week, and then it will be fair game to discuss ALL of season 3 once it's all been aired.

Thanks! And YES! I hadn't realized that Edna *was* introduced so much later in the season, and then I felt bad when I realized that some didn't know about her. I know this is a spoiler thread, but I don't want to BE the spoiler. You know? But at least I didn't spill the beans about anything outside of the fact that she's a new maid.

And I just started season 2 again, too, Amy!

And yep - Tom is one who I really disliked at first, as well. Disliked a lot. I felt like he was intentionally causing trouble just to prove that he wasn't "one of them". He seemed to try to make things difficult. Now he's a little older, and a little wiser - and he still holds true to his beliefs, but he's able to see that being a jerk about it isn't necessary. And I LOVE Mrs. Hughes. I really do. She's kindhearted, and wise, and speaks the truth without being blunt or cruel.

And it's funny how differently people can view things, Cheryl! I was hoping that Cora would be able to forgive Robert, and that the two of them could lean on one another to bear the agony. I know that the loss of my four kids wasn't death - but I'll tell you, the mourning was just as severe. And when you go through something like that you need someone you love to be able to lean on. The pain is too much to bear alone. I found myself hoping that she would be able to forgive, because that kind of pain can lead to deep bitterness and completely destroy a person otherwise.. . . Plus, I like their relationship and I get SERIOUSLY ticked when the writers mess with it. I don't mind the normal relational tiffs, but I don't like to have them do any serious messing with their relationship.

Amy wrote:

Marilyn, I can't believe you want to be spoiled on all the upcoming stuff though!! Season 3 is SOOOOOOOO good! It makes me sad for you that you already even know about Sybil! What episode are you on now? I am doing a watch-through (lol, I just HAD to start over from the beginning!), and I just started season 2 again.

I'm all caught up and I am going to buy Season 3 on dvd tomorrow. I would have gone today but I missed my chance for a ride to the store. I had a DA Marathon on the weekend, it was WONDERFUL!!!

Lisa wrote:

And I just started season 2 again, too, Amy!

Oh, how funny!! So you whipped right through Season one again too, huh? I tell ya, this show is addicting!!

LIWnut wrote:

I'm all caught up and I am going to buy Season 3 on dvd tomorrow. I would have gone today but I missed my chance for a ride to the store. I had a DA Marathon on the weekend, it was WONDERFUL!!!

Yay!! Even unintentionally, a DA viewing ends up becoming a DA marathon! I totally can relate!



Wish I had more energy to reply now to all the comments here. Maybe tomorrow! Wish I had my laptop back!

Lisa wrote:

And it's funny how differently people can view things, Cheryl! I was hoping that Cora would be able to forgive Robert, and that the two of them could lean on one another to bear the agony. I know that the loss of my four kids wasn't death - but I'll tell you, the mourning was just as severe. And when you go through something like that you need someone you love to be able to lean on. The pain is too much to bear alone. I found myself hoping that she would be able to forgive, because that kind of pain can lead to deep bitterness and completely destroy a person otherwise.. . . Plus, I like their relationship and I get SERIOUSLY ticked when the writers mess with it. I don't mind the normal relational tiffs, but I don't like to have them do any serious messing with their relationship.

Our own experiences are certain to impact how we feel about things. I can only imagine what you've gone through.

If he hadn't been such a stubborn ox, I would feel differently. While I agree that they need each other, I can't imagine it will be easy for her to forget that she wanted Sybil to go to the hospital and Robert felt it wasn't necessary based on information from a know-it-all fancy doctor who had never met Sybil before. Knowing how they come to reconcile eventually, I'm even more disappointed. I don't want to spoil it for those who don't know, but I can't believe how it happens.

I have an idea, let's see how many people think it is a good one.

I would love to review all of the episodes from the beginning and comment on them together. I know that I've missed a lot of chat that I would really love to catch up on. We could maybe watch an eppie or two a week and then comment.

Would you all consider starting a DA Yahoo group where we could all chat? If you know other friends, you could invite them. It would be a private group so that only the members could post. I suggest this so that Cheryl would have a place to post any DA fiction that she might come up with. The Divas have a site and it works really well for posts, pictures, fiction etc. A facebook group would be ok but I think Yahoo might be a bit better.

Just some ideas. I really want to hear your thoughts of the show, starting at the beginning.

I bought Season 3 today but I am going to TRY HARD to only watch the episodes when they appear on tv. I'm still trying to find Seasons 1 and 2 together, to save some $$. Everywhere is sold out, grrr.