Years ago, when I first moved into a small cottage by myself, I was in self imposed austerity, adjusting to a simpler, and less expensive lifestyle. WIth no cable television, I made use of various pirated sites where I could find shows to watch. It wasn’t ideal certainly as there was lots of buffering and occasional missing episodes, but I made do. I don’t recall how I came across Downton Abbey, but I enjoyed it very much.
Recently, I came across it again on Amazon Prime and decided I’d try to watch an episode to see if I could enjoy it a second time. It would be a far better experience if I could, since I could watch it straight through without the inconveniences brought on by having to forage through the darkness of the internet and fending off popup ads.
After two or three episodes I knew I would watch all the way through and I just watched the series finale. I’d guess I averaged 2 episodes each night, but on occasion I’m sure I watched a third. It is truly a wonderful piece of storytelling with fabulous characters, splendidly acted and visually stunning. I don’t know that I would be considered the typical audience for such a program, but it suits me just fine as I enjoy watching things that make me feel good.
I was first traumatized by The Exorcist when I was a teenager. Platoon destroyed me in my twenties, Pulp Fiction repulsed me in my thirties and the 20 minutes or so of Saving Private Ryan I saw in my forties disturb me to this day. So for the most part, I avoid feeling this way voluntarily preferring instead to see something that warms the heart, or stimulates the mind. Downtown did a bit of both as it drove me to the internet to research WWI, the British aristocracy, the Russian Revolution and the Spanish Flu, while providing stories of kindness, empathy, tradition and honor.
The Dowager Lady Grantham, played flawlessly by Maggie Smith, was by far my favorite character. The Lady Mary Crawley would be a close second, and then it’d be a horse race for the third spot with Carson, Mrs. Hughes, Mr. Mosley, Anna and even Mrs. Patmore all creating memorable portrayals of common folk living a life in service to a royal and wealthy family.
There was plenty of sadness, heartache and misery to go around, but that’s the nature of life is it not? Watching Lady Sybil die in childbirth was excruciating. She was a wonderful character with a kind heart and a sharp mind, and death at 24 is too tragic to contemplate. The argument among the doctors and the confusion for the family was among the more relatable high tension moments in the show.
I have such an appreciation for British humor, filled as it is was irony and sarcasm, I sometimes think I should have been British. I will very much miss my evenings at the Abbey, but cherish the time I spent there. Thanks to the modern world we live in, I can revisit the Crawley’s in the early 1900’s whenever I feel the need.
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