Again, SPOILERS. After the jump.
I knew before this episode started that something big was going to happen. It's my own fault for daring to read anything on the internet this morning after I knew the episode had already aired in the US. I managed to look away quickly from one friend's fb post that I saw included an OMG and lots of !!!!. Then my dad sent an email labeled "spoiler-free" that also said this episode was "a bit much." After those two close calls, I stayed the heck away from Twitter and fb for the rest of the day until I could gather my wits about me and watch the episode myself (with Jeremy).
Well, was it a bit much? Maybe. But you know what? As Granny herself said, women die(d) in childbirth all the time, so this storyline was not on the par of unlikely ridiculousness with, say, the mummy-bandage guy who came back from the war and claimed to be the heir to Downton last season. According to this article, maternal mortality in England in the 1920s was somewhere around 45/1000, so it definitely happened. The same article talks about "hundreds" dying from pre-eclamptic or eclamptic convulsions during the 1920s.
(Side note: how maddening was it that while Sybil was upstairs being ripped in half by contractions, a room full of men were deciding what was best for her? Argh. I was hopeful when I heard one of them suggest, "oh, but this isn't up to us, shouldn't we ask--" but then they said "Tom" instead of "Sybil." Sigh. Again, I guess it was in keeping with the times.)
So it was a dramatic turn of events, but I don't find it especially soapy or unlikely. And it is sad. Sybil, I will miss you and your fabulous hair and sexy smoky voice, even if you were kind of spineless lately when it came to your husband and/or future wishes for your child. Now any time I re-watch season 1 or 2 I will be filled with a sense of foreboding every time she comes on the screen. Poor thing.
Also, I have to wonder how the real-life actress feels about being cut out of what must have been an increasingly great role for her career.
Speaking of the real-life actresses, there was one scene in this episode that was either so well acted that it seemed real, or else it just showed how it really is - the scene where Edith walks into the room and greets Maggie Smith. Edith's enthusiasm seemed so genuine and it made me think about what a joy it must be to walk into a room and greet Maggie Smith of an evening. Sigh.
Re: other plots. I don't know exactly who O'Brien is playing a slow-burning joke on, Jimmy or Thomas, but it cracks me up. Cranky Daisy also cracks me up. And could there have been anything more awkward about this episode than the extremely veiled discussion about Matthew's, er, "everything else" working properly? Granny might disagree with me and say the most awkward part was when the doctor dared to say the word "urine" out loud in polite company.
Anyone want to guess what they name the baby (if they mention it at all during this season)? I'm guessing Sybil, or maybe something ultra-Irish like Saoirse or Shauna.
PS: I should note that Jeremy and I watched about six full minutes of Season TWO Episode 5 before we realized our error. We thought maybe it was some kind of elaborate flashback that would shed new light on William's death or Matthew's paralysis. A really long, elaborate flashback.
I knew before this episode started that something big was going to happen. It's my own fault for daring to read anything on the internet this morning after I knew the episode had already aired in the US. I managed to look away quickly from one friend's fb post that I saw included an OMG and lots of !!!!. Then my dad sent an email labeled "spoiler-free" that also said this episode was "a bit much." After those two close calls, I stayed the heck away from Twitter and fb for the rest of the day until I could gather my wits about me and watch the episode myself (with Jeremy).
Well, was it a bit much? Maybe. But you know what? As Granny herself said, women die(d) in childbirth all the time, so this storyline was not on the par of unlikely ridiculousness with, say, the mummy-bandage guy who came back from the war and claimed to be the heir to Downton last season. According to this article, maternal mortality in England in the 1920s was somewhere around 45/1000, so it definitely happened. The same article talks about "hundreds" dying from pre-eclamptic or eclamptic convulsions during the 1920s.
(Side note: how maddening was it that while Sybil was upstairs being ripped in half by contractions, a room full of men were deciding what was best for her? Argh. I was hopeful when I heard one of them suggest, "oh, but this isn't up to us, shouldn't we ask--" but then they said "Tom" instead of "Sybil." Sigh. Again, I guess it was in keeping with the times.)
So it was a dramatic turn of events, but I don't find it especially soapy or unlikely. And it is sad. Sybil, I will miss you and your fabulous hair and sexy smoky voice, even if you were kind of spineless lately when it came to your husband and/or future wishes for your child. Now any time I re-watch season 1 or 2 I will be filled with a sense of foreboding every time she comes on the screen. Poor thing.
Also, I have to wonder how the real-life actress feels about being cut out of what must have been an increasingly great role for her career.
Speaking of the real-life actresses, there was one scene in this episode that was either so well acted that it seemed real, or else it just showed how it really is - the scene where Edith walks into the room and greets Maggie Smith. Edith's enthusiasm seemed so genuine and it made me think about what a joy it must be to walk into a room and greet Maggie Smith of an evening. Sigh.
Re: other plots. I don't know exactly who O'Brien is playing a slow-burning joke on, Jimmy or Thomas, but it cracks me up. Cranky Daisy also cracks me up. And could there have been anything more awkward about this episode than the extremely veiled discussion about Matthew's, er, "everything else" working properly? Granny might disagree with me and say the most awkward part was when the doctor dared to say the word "urine" out loud in polite company.
Anyone want to guess what they name the baby (if they mention it at all during this season)? I'm guessing Sybil, or maybe something ultra-Irish like Saoirse or Shauna.
PS: I should note that Jeremy and I watched about six full minutes of Season TWO Episode 5 before we realized our error. We thought maybe it was some kind of elaborate flashback that would shed new light on William's death or Matthew's paralysis. A really long, elaborate flashback.