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| Nothing much has changed on Downton Abbey so I don't feel bad reusing an old picture. |
What is Downton Abbey
about? It seems like such a simple
question: Downton Abbey is about the
people living in a Victorian mansion in early-twentieth century England. Things happen. Characters fall in love, get married, have
kids (not necessarily in that order), and die.
But those things are just plot points; they’re the stuff that happens. Instead, I’m much more interested in what
Julian Fellowes, who has written or co-written every episode, has to say about
this time period and these characters. And
I kind of need to know because, frankly, at this point, none of the “things
that happen” are of any interest to me.
At this point in Downton
Abbey’s run, it’s become pretty clear that Fellowes only has about five or
six plots that he keeps recycling again and again. Oh, Bates might have killed a guy. Did he really do it? Did he not?
Prepare for five or six episodes of back and forth until we ultimately
discover that no, he did not kill Mr. Green.
Thomas is up to his old trick again, blackmailing Mrs. Baxter about her
past indiscretions. People are having
illicit sex and getting caught because nobody on Downton Abbey can have sex without something terrible happening.* Edith is once again making terrible, terrible
decisions that can only end in heartbreak.
And Molesley is trying to become something different only to get crapped
on yet again.
* Off the top of my
head: Cora loses her baby, Mr. Pamuk dies, Sybil dies in childbirth, and Gregson disappears in Germany.
Recycling plots isn’t something new. Lots of shows do it. But this isn’t The Simpsons, with close to 600 episodes to its name. This is only the 35th episode of Downton and already the show feels stale. I actually thought the beginning of last
season showed some promise, at least with the possibility of Mary and
Branson taking over the running of Downton, only to find it recycling the same
“which suitor will Mary choose” storyline yet again. I won’t get fooled
again. Downton has always been a show that is most interesting when its
characters are most progressive, but it is also a show that consistently shies
away from any hints of progressivism. Robert
and Carson spend the first act complaining about the new Liberal government
while Barrow’s schoolteacher potential paramour Sarah Bunting is introduced as
a walking, talking strawwoman for Robert to berate and belittle for her
socialist views. But nothing comes of it. It's just a passing thought or a funny story from dinner. None of it lasts.
What’s most disappointing about what Downton Abbey has become is that it is a show bathed in change it
just can’t embrace it. For two years,
the Crawleys were obsessed with finding a male heir because whatever would
happen if the estate were left to be run by a woman? Well, we found out last year that Mary is
more than capable of running the estate, at least when she’s not getting
distracted by boys again. But this year,
Downton seems to have forgotten all
about money, and pigs, and anything else that mattered so much last
season. Instead, it’s all parties,
romances, secrets, and all the other things we’ve seen over and over again for
four years now.
I return, then, to my initial question and wonder what Downton Abbey is about at this point in
its run. Obviously, this is only the
first episode of the season and things could easily change moving forward, but
if Downton is only going to be
partying and matchmaking, I don’t know how much I’m going to enjoy it. The 1920s were a period of great change, but
something tells me the Granthams will remain largely the same. Robert will be staunchly conservative until
his daughters do something progressive.
Mary will let men get in the way of her doing anything interesting. Edith will continue making bad choices and
Molesley will be the butt of everybody’s jokes.
I’d like to be proven wrong but, as we’ve seen, change is slow to come
to Downton Abbey.
A couple of spare thoughts –
Despite my trepidations about the path of the show’s
stories, it still remains quite funny. “Take
steps, Mr. Molesley” may have been the best line but “I’m going upstairs to
take off my hat” also had me in stitches, intentional or not.
For some reason I find all of the interactions between the
Crawleys and the staff to be intensely uncomfortable. Even
when Sprat is being a dick, he doesn’t deserve to be talked to like a child.
Tyler Williams is a
professional librarian and an amateur television critic. You can reach him at
TyTalksTV AT gmail DOT com or on Twitter @TyTalksTV.
