![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
I have decided that I want to be Maggie Smith when I am old
CAN WE PLEASE TALK ABOUT HOW PERFECT DOWNTON ABBEY IS? OKAY.
OMG JULIAN FELLOWS. PREEMINENT BRITISH PERIOD DRAMA WRITER. LOVE THAT MAN. The writing for this is so crisp and wonderful and you get to know so very many people. I'm amazed at the way he juggles everyone. Amazed.
Favorites:
+ Anna and Mr. Bates. GOOD PEOPLE IN LOVE MAKE MY HEART SWELL. She's so sweet and he's so good, and I love both of them on their own and together. I've found that I'm extremely fond of Brendan Coyle--I loved him in North and South, too. I love good people. I just love them. Especially when they're good but not shallow or flat--good but complicated. Love.
+ Lady Sibyl. FAVORITE DAUGHTER. Budding suffragette! How adorable is she? Too adorable. Yes, she probably pushed Gwen a little too much, living vicariously through her, but she has such a good heart and it worked out well in the end. Plus, someone NEEDS TO TELL ME THERE IS SIBYL/BRANSON FIC. Because their love would be so revolutionary! He already has a crush and she should fall for him because I love the idea of the rebellious aristocratic daughter falling for the Irish socialist chauffeur. Basically, they would be adorable and they should happen. OMG DO WANT. I think they'll probably fall for each other but then he'll have to go to war and he will DIE and I will SOB. (Also, she reminds me of Anna Popwell.)
+ Lady Violet and Mrs. Crawley. OLD LADIES FTW. Maggie Smith is, always, peerless in the Maggie Smith role. I wonder if she ever gets tired of being the crusty old lady, but she's so marvelously good at it that I can't imagine so. And I will always think of Mrs. Crawley as Harriet Jones, MP. Watching the two of them snip at each other could seriously fill an entire show with awesomeness. Too great.
People I hate:
+ Thomas. There is not one good bone in his body. I hatehatehatehatehatehate him. And I hate knowing that he'll probably be the only one to come through the war alive, because people like that always survive. Appalling.
+ I would have added Mrs. O'Brien to this list, and honestly, I don't like her still. But she did show that there were lines she wouldn't cross--that one line where she looked at herself in the mirror and said, "This isn't you," was flawless and made her so much more interesting as a character, I think.
People I have complicated feelings on:
+ Lady Mary. At first I hated her, but I came to understand her. She's chafing against a life that won't let her be what she wants to be, if in a very different way than Sibyl. She doesn't know her way and she's scared. That was the thing that first made me get her. She's terrified. And I get that. I don't agree with lots of her choices, and she's never as kind she should be, but she's complicated and fascinating, and I can't wait to see where they take her.
+ Lady Edith. I do feel sorry for her. It can't be easy being the middle daughter and the unattractive one, especially because Mary can be a bitch. But I lost a lot of sympathy for her when she did what she did to Mary--writing that letter crossed a line for me. NOT COOL. SISTERS SHOULD NOT ACT LIKE THAT EVER. Still, I felt bad for her again when Mary ruined her prospects.
People I like just fine but don't have a lot to talk about:
+ Lord Crawley and Lady Crawley. I like that they married for money but ended up genuinely loving each other. And they're decent people, if very privileged.
+ Matthew. He's a good guy, and I did strangely ship him with Mary there at the end, but I can't work up tons of feelings about him.
+ Carson and Mrs. Hughes. Both adorable ("Mr. Carson, Lady Mary Crawley does not deserve you." OMG SO PERFECT) and lovely.
+ Mrs. Patmore. HILARIOUS. I was thrilled beyond words when she got her eyes fixed. Now if she'd only be a bit more patient with Daisy....
+ Daisy. She makes me headdesk a dozen times an episode. But at least she finally apologized to poor William.
+ Poor William. He's a sweetheart, and I want things to work out for him. I also clapped and cheered when he finally punched Thomas.
+ Gwen. So cute and sweet, and I squealed out loud when she got the job. YAY GWEN I WAS ROOTING FOR YOU!!!!
I love that this show manages to be so smart and funny and moving and just...everything. It is perfect AND I CANNOT WAIT FOR MORE. World War I breaks my heart more than any other war, because the waste of it is so catastrophic. Every war is tragic, but this seems so much more tragic to me, and trench warfare is, I believe, the single ugliest thing humanity has ever devised. There will be some great stories to tell in the next series. CANNOT WAIT.
OMG JULIAN FELLOWS. PREEMINENT BRITISH PERIOD DRAMA WRITER. LOVE THAT MAN. The writing for this is so crisp and wonderful and you get to know so very many people. I'm amazed at the way he juggles everyone. Amazed.
Favorites:
+ Anna and Mr. Bates. GOOD PEOPLE IN LOVE MAKE MY HEART SWELL. She's so sweet and he's so good, and I love both of them on their own and together. I've found that I'm extremely fond of Brendan Coyle--I loved him in North and South, too. I love good people. I just love them. Especially when they're good but not shallow or flat--good but complicated. Love.
+ Lady Sibyl. FAVORITE DAUGHTER. Budding suffragette! How adorable is she? Too adorable. Yes, she probably pushed Gwen a little too much, living vicariously through her, but she has such a good heart and it worked out well in the end. Plus, someone NEEDS TO TELL ME THERE IS SIBYL/BRANSON FIC. Because their love would be so revolutionary! He already has a crush and she should fall for him because I love the idea of the rebellious aristocratic daughter falling for the Irish socialist chauffeur. Basically, they would be adorable and they should happen. OMG DO WANT. I think they'll probably fall for each other but then he'll have to go to war and he will DIE and I will SOB. (Also, she reminds me of Anna Popwell.)
+ Lady Violet and Mrs. Crawley. OLD LADIES FTW. Maggie Smith is, always, peerless in the Maggie Smith role. I wonder if she ever gets tired of being the crusty old lady, but she's so marvelously good at it that I can't imagine so. And I will always think of Mrs. Crawley as Harriet Jones, MP. Watching the two of them snip at each other could seriously fill an entire show with awesomeness. Too great.
People I hate:
+ Thomas. There is not one good bone in his body. I hatehatehatehatehatehate him. And I hate knowing that he'll probably be the only one to come through the war alive, because people like that always survive. Appalling.
+ I would have added Mrs. O'Brien to this list, and honestly, I don't like her still. But she did show that there were lines she wouldn't cross--that one line where she looked at herself in the mirror and said, "This isn't you," was flawless and made her so much more interesting as a character, I think.
People I have complicated feelings on:
+ Lady Mary. At first I hated her, but I came to understand her. She's chafing against a life that won't let her be what she wants to be, if in a very different way than Sibyl. She doesn't know her way and she's scared. That was the thing that first made me get her. She's terrified. And I get that. I don't agree with lots of her choices, and she's never as kind she should be, but she's complicated and fascinating, and I can't wait to see where they take her.
+ Lady Edith. I do feel sorry for her. It can't be easy being the middle daughter and the unattractive one, especially because Mary can be a bitch. But I lost a lot of sympathy for her when she did what she did to Mary--writing that letter crossed a line for me. NOT COOL. SISTERS SHOULD NOT ACT LIKE THAT EVER. Still, I felt bad for her again when Mary ruined her prospects.
People I like just fine but don't have a lot to talk about:
+ Lord Crawley and Lady Crawley. I like that they married for money but ended up genuinely loving each other. And they're decent people, if very privileged.
+ Matthew. He's a good guy, and I did strangely ship him with Mary there at the end, but I can't work up tons of feelings about him.
+ Carson and Mrs. Hughes. Both adorable ("Mr. Carson, Lady Mary Crawley does not deserve you." OMG SO PERFECT) and lovely.
+ Mrs. Patmore. HILARIOUS. I was thrilled beyond words when she got her eyes fixed. Now if she'd only be a bit more patient with Daisy....
+ Daisy. She makes me headdesk a dozen times an episode. But at least she finally apologized to poor William.
+ Poor William. He's a sweetheart, and I want things to work out for him. I also clapped and cheered when he finally punched Thomas.
+ Gwen. So cute and sweet, and I squealed out loud when she got the job. YAY GWEN I WAS ROOTING FOR YOU!!!!
I love that this show manages to be so smart and funny and moving and just...everything. It is perfect AND I CANNOT WAIT FOR MORE. World War I breaks my heart more than any other war, because the waste of it is so catastrophic. Every war is tragic, but this seems so much more tragic to me, and trench warfare is, I believe, the single ugliest thing humanity has ever devised. There will be some great stories to tell in the next series. CANNOT WAIT.