Downton Abbey - Series 5 Finale - Recap: A Far More Dangerous Motive
Recap and review of Downton Abbey - Series 5 Finale:
I've occasionally nagged Downton Abbey in the past for trying to do too much in a single episode. But finales and specials are different. The extended runtime of these episodes allows for the show to do more without feeling overstuffed. Storylines still get a chance to breathe, and nothing feels particularly rushed. This is why I loved the series 5 finale so much.
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So now we begin the tiresome process of clearing Anna's good name, as Fellowes aims to create a certain symmetry between Anna's situation and that of Bates, who knows a thing or two about being wrongfully imprisoned. The show has been building up to this development since early in the season, but I was dreading it all the while, if only because I'm a bit tired of Anna and Bates getting the wrong end of the stick. It's as though they exist for no other reason than for terrible things to happen to them, and while that can be compelling once in a while, it's a continuous cycle with these two that is just incredibly off-putting. However, part of the reason I was okay with what happened tonight is because, once again, I'm ardently committed to the notion that it's all just a setup for Anna's exoneration in the Christmas special. Because, really, we're going to need something genuinely festive worth celebrating, since the Christmas specials in recent years have been lacking in anything as celebratory as Mary and Matthew's engagement back in series two. Then again, it's not like Downton Abbey hasn't had Christmas specials end in tragedy before.
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But even without the unpleasantness with Anna and Bates, the episode had plenty of scandals to keep things interesting. I admit that I groaned audibly when the blackmail plot was introduced, as Atticus (Matt Barber) is framed for adultery with staged pictures, in an attempt to get Rose (Lily James) to call off their wedding (which I wasn't about to stand for, since I love me a Downton wedding -- you know, other than Edith's). But this was another case where I ultimately came to really enjoy the storyline, largely because the characters are immediately savvy to what's happening. Yes, Rose gets upset when she sees the photos, but it doesn't take long for Branson (Allen Leech), Edith (Laura Carmichael) and Mary (Michelle Dockery) to deduce that Atticus is being setup by someone who doesn't want the wedding to happen. So instead of becoming a story about a relationship in freefall, this instead becomes a mystery centered around the identity of the person framing Atticus. And that's a far more interesting story than a protracted tale of Atticus trying to prove his innocence. It even results in a fairly stirring series of scenes, as Atticus confronts his father, accusing him of trying to disrupt the wedding over his objections toward Rose's religion.
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Atticus defends Rose against his father's bitterness, leading to a father-son argument that immediately made Atticus feel like a more fully-realized, three-dimensional character. And a lot of that has to do with Barber, who plays Atticus with a fierce conviction that makes him feel real, even as we might suspect he's too-good-to-be-true. I love the character from what little we've seen of him. Too often, the show will introduce a handsome guy and then peel back the layers to reveal he's either rotten (Mr. Green) or entitled (Gillingham) or worse. But Atticus seems to be a break from that mold so far, thankfully. He is revealed to be a stand-up guy, in much the same way Shrimpie (Peter Egan) is once again illustrated to be a stand-up father: he discovers that it was Rose's mother, Susan (Phoebe Nicholls), who set Atticus up. In a gripping little scene, she explains she did it for love, claiming that by marrying a Jew, Rose would be made to feel an outcast. And this, after all she's lost already, since the MacClare family fortune is gone, and a divorce is already under way. Nicholls is so good here that it's almost possible to feel sympathy for Susan, but it's hard to come all the way around on her, since she's still a pretty lousy person the other 90% of the time. Even if her rationale makes a certain kind of sense, it's as the Dowager Countess (Maggie Smith) says, "Love is a far more dangerous motive than dislike."
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There were so many other developments in this finale that it's almost hard to keep track of them all: when revealing to Mrs. Patmore (Lesley Nicol) that he had a private memorial commissioned on behalf of her late nephew, Robert (Hugh Bonneville) sees Edith playing with Marigold and finally deduces the truth. Cora (Elizabeth McGovern) is able to convince him to let Edith continue to have this secret to herself for a little while longer, but it's not that inconceivable that the truth will come out sooner rather than later. This is mostly because seismic shifts in the status quo are already taking place at Downton: Branson has confirmed that he's moving to Boston and taking Sybie with him, which devastates Mary. Although Branson promises to stay through Christmas, his mind is pretty well made up. And if this really is the end of Branson, then I guess I'm a lot like Mary, in that I'm actually surprised by how much I'm going to miss him. Branson hasn't always been the most likable character, but Allen Leech has grown into the role so splendidly, and has portrayed Branson as an honorable man doing his best to get by in a world where, for all intents and purposes, he probably doesn't belong. It's one of my favorite portrayals on the show, and even though Branson hasn't always had very much to do in the wake of Sybil's death, Leech has done a great job at making Branson into one of the more likable figures in the ensemble. And his unexpectedly poignant friendship with Mary is a highlight, as it makes Mary more likable by association. For her part, she's trying to move on from Gillingham (Tom Cullen), who runs into her at Rose's wedding and wishes her the best for the future (although with a seeming hint of bitterness), prompting Mary to wonder if she'll ever find happiness. This dovetails into one of the lovelier scenes of the episode, as Carson (Jim Carter) assures Mary that she'll win out, in the end. Man, I wish Carson had a little more to do this season than arguing with Mrs. Patmore about the war memorial.
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Of course, not everything is necessarily as moving as Carson and Mary's brief scene, although some of it was equally satisfying. I loved seeing Thomas (Rob James-Collier) help take down Denker (Sue Johnston), the shifty lady's maid to the Dowager Countess, who'd taken to extorting money from a temporary footman hired for Rose's wedding. I also really enjoyed the Dowager Countess coming around on her objection to Isobel's wedding to Lord Merton. When Prince Kuragin (Rade Šerbedžija) proposes to her, Violet suddenly understands where Isobel is coming from, recognizing that you need to fight for happiness, particularly at their age, since it's uncertain if happiness will ever find them again. Maggie Smith, for me, has been the absolute highlight of this series, and even in small doses like this, she still makes an unmistakable impression on the narrative. I think she has an even better case for the Emmy this year than last, and I say that as someone who feels there have been more deserving nominees/winners in recent years. The downstairs happenings this week were interesting as well, as Daisy (Sophie McShera) contemplates handing in her notice in order to live in London, a story that really illustrates how central the relationship between Daisy and Mrs. Patmore has been, as Mrs. Patmore breaks down and instantly makes this one of the more affecting developments of the episode. Daisy agrees to temporarily stay on after seeing how it affects Mrs. Patmore, which seems like a bit of unintended emotional manipulation on Mrs. Patmore's part (since she tried not to let Daisy see how much she was hurting), but it should create some interesting drama, since I would imagine this would change their relationship considerably. Maybe Daisy gets bitter about her lack of advancement in life, or maybe Mrs. Patmore begins to feel guilty for holding Daisy back? Either way, it should create a storyline these actors can actually sink their teeth into, which is more than they've actually gotten to do in some time.
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Ultimately, I like not knowing what's in store for the Christmas special, beyond (hopefully) ending this entire wrongful imprisonment with Anna so they can put the Green business behind them once and for all (Seriously, PLEASE, Uncle Julian). We could have Violet agreeing to Prince Kuragin's proposal to live alongside him as friend and lover, we could have Isobel (Penelope Wilton) finally tying the knot, we could even have the departure of Branson, and the reveal of Edith's secret. Any number of things could actually happen, and that's exhilarating, considering so much of this season seemed stubbornly committed to having nothing really occur. Granted, plenty happened, but man did it take a long time to actually get there. Luckily, Downton Abbey is a show with such a vibrant, vivid world that it can be enjoyable simply getting to spend time in this place, with these characters. And that's what I'm looking forward to this Christmas, as series five is properly concluded.