Critical Notes are at the end, after the Enneagram Story and Breakdown.
ONE
A bicycle messenger arrives at Downton. April, 1917. In Robert’s room his new valet arranges his uniform. The message is for William. Carson is still overworking and Hughes is still taking him to task over it.
Robert’s man seems timid, speaking softly, and Robert snaps at him. Ah, he’s named Lang. Robert apologizes. Lang was invalided out of the military. Trench warfare. Oh, Lang feels people look at him and wonder why he’s not serving. Must be an unobvious injury.
TWO
Patmore reads something that upsets her, but we pass on. William’s excited: he’s been called up. He asks Daisy for a picture to take with him. Lol, Daisy doesn’t seem to know what to make of that.
Cora asks O’Brien about Thomas. Oh, haha! These two are fabulous. Cora will talk to the doctor about bringing Thomas home. O’Brien is so humbly grateful, the conniver. I know it’s terrible to see Cora so manipulated by someone she trusts, but, really, their relationship is wonderful.
THREE
The trenches and Matthew. It’s always the same overhead shot, the same set, but it’s evocative. Matthew, walking the line with another, drops the exposition that he’s being transferred back to England to help the war effort.
FOUR
William reports to Cora, and she sends him home to his father for his remaining two days. Carson pouts a bit — one less footman is untidy. Robert says, “You’ve always got Lang,” and Carson stares at him for a beat. Lol, what’s the story? Robert has both footmen gone to war while he stays home. He really hates that.
At the servant’s table O’Brien upbraids Lang for using cleaning fluid just before lunch. Ethel sits there. We see an insert of Lang trying to close the bottle’s lid, but his hands shake. Oh, Molesley’s here. He drops a little passive aggressive line about never having a chance to apply for the valet job. He’s got a book for Anna. The women know Molesley’s making a move (I guess now that Bates is gone).
At Downton Cottage Hospital. The Doctor resists Cora’s effort to arrange Thomas’ affairs. It’s not within his power.
Carson struggles with the cork on a wine bottle. When Anna asks if he’s okay, he snaps at her. I think he’s frustrated to be doing everyone’s job. At the dinner table he’s the only one now serving, which means he wears three hats. The family discusses Matthew’s imminent return. Mary wants to invite this Richard person soon. Carson winces. Eventually the family wonders how they’re to have a party with no footmen. Edith changes the subject to a local farmer whose hand has been called up. Here she comes. The farm needs someone to drive the tractor. Oh, my, haha! The Dowager says, “You are a lady, not Toad of Toad Hall.” Edith insists, and that’s that.
She bikes out to the farm wearing jodhpurs and a nice coat. The family is utterly bewildered at her offer, but they become grateful when they understand. It’s unconventional.
Anna in the kitchen expresses concern about Carson. Patmore shares the news she got in her letter. Her nephew has gone missing, presumed dead. Anna says, ask His Lordship to help find word.
Lang at the servant’s table stitches a jacket while Ethel watches. He’s doing a good job, and O’Brien compliments him. Carson enters and asks Lang to play footman tonight for this Richard’s arrival, and for the Crawleys. He really can’t have maids in the dining room, he says. Lang is not happy, we assume because his shakes will affect serving at table.
Patmore gives Robert the details of her nephew’s last known position.
Molesley finds Anna. She suggests a reading club to discuss the book, and Molesley’s reaction tells Anna what’s really going on.
As O’Brien dresses Cora for dinner Robert pops in. He’s written a note to the Doctor: We pay for the hospital, you will do as Lady Grantham asked. I mean, he’s not that blunt, but that’s the gist. She and O’Brien have this little victory moment that cracks me up. Like I said, these two!
And now it’s Edith on the tractor while the farmer chains a stump at the back. Interesting that he has a piece of machinery on his own property that he can’t operate, but whatever. After successfully yanking the trunk, Edith and the farmer sit in the barn with a mug of fresh milk. I was waiting for cringe, but it’s just a genuine moment.
Exterior shot of Downton. It’s Thomas walking toward the house. O’Brien steps into the courtyard while he has a smoke. In a dramatic pause he takes off his glove to show a fairly gruesome wound. The bullet hole is like a stigmata, and his pinkie finger is a bit mutilated. O’Brien seems really glad to have him back.
In the kitchen he’s his old, snotty self. Ethel flirts with him, which shows we were wise to not think much of her. Carson bustles through and pointedly ignores Thomas.
Here comes the mysterious Richard Carlisle, finally arriving. Good old Aunt Rosamund has come along, too, I think to keep his potential courtship of Mary from being too obvious. Just a friendly house party, don’t you know. My God, the women all wear fabulous shoes! We don’t often get a full shot like this one outside the door. After they go in, Cora returns to ask Branson to fetch Sybil at the hospital and tell her to come home for dinner.
Cut to Sybil saying she can’t possibly come. Isabelle says she’s going, so come on. Thomas (as he enters) you can cover for Nurse Crawley, can’t you? Yes, he can. (Isn’t he helpful already! I think I saw a patient glance over in terror. Heh.) Branson says hello.
Hughes and Anna take a quiet moment. A broken heart can be as painful as a broken limb, says Hughes. Our Anna is strong, of course.
Richard talks to Mary. The way he’s been introduced over the last episode is so strange. He’s some kind of newspaper owner, I think, and he may or may not be interested in Mary. He’s definitely older than her, although so was Sir Anthony. And here come the Crawleys. Matthew’s now a Captain, and Lavinia knows Richard, although she clearly doesn’t like him. Robert hopes Matthew can stay out of danger, and Matthew replies he wouldn’t like that. Duty, I assume. On both their parts, actually. Keep the heir safe.
SWITCH
Carson is falling apart. Lang is very nervous, and Anna helps him with serving tips. Carson must hiss at him and point out his place. Ouch, a spill. Oh, and then Carson collapses. Sybil’s there to help while Isabelle calls the doctor. Meanwhile, Hughes comes in and orders the maids how to arrange things. O’Brien offers to clean up, and when Hughes says that’s not necessary, O’Brien still insists. Wow, she’s become a good egg. It means Lang leaves the room.
FIVE
Robert, ready for bed, comes into Cora’s room with the report. It’s not a heart attack. He must let the maids serve now, though. And what happened to Lang? He seemed so solid, says Robert.
Cut to Lang in his room. We hear shelling and gunfire, over. O’Brien in the doorway startles him. She says she’s seen shellshock before. Her brother. He shouldn’t be working yet, but he can’t stand to do nothing. This is why O’Brien was so helpful. She genuinely sympathizes.
Now we have Mary in the servant’s hallway. Good God, lady, it’s never good when you show up here. Oh! It’s Carson’s room! He’s in bed and she enters. They discuss Richard and Matthew. Whoa. Carson advises her to tell Matthew she loves him. Then if he’s killed (!) she won’t be sorry.
At the hospital Thomas tends to a soldier with both eyes bandaged. This quick scene lays pipe for the effects of gas warfare, but I wish they’d also incorporated something about Thomas’ character. Is he good at his job?
The family walks the grounds. A little wilderness area, probably strolling for exercise. Richard and Mary take a break. Oh, his tweed is too hot, and Mary says it looks more like a tweed for shooting. It’s one of those privilege moments. Richard is new money. Oh, and he wants to learn. He’s interested in Mary for the prestige, it seems. Mary holds her own, though.
Rosamund sits with her mother, the Dowager, as they discuss Mary over tea. We learn that Rosamund made a very similar deal, marry a tradesman and provide respectability, as Mary’s considering. There’s a lot of meow in the middle of the exposition, though.
Thomas reads aloud a letter at the hospital. Ah, it’s for the blinded soldier, only his bandages are removed and his lids are scarred. Is Thomas good at medical treatment? Not answered yet. But he makes a sympathetic listener and a strong advice-giver.
Rosamund strolls the grounds and comes upon Richard threatening Lavinia. How interesting.
Edith hangs out at the farm. They drink beer from the bottle. She’s too familiar, it’s scaring me. Oh, haha! He gushes at how pretty Edith is and gets caught by the wife. Good girl.
Thomas and Sybil help the blind soldier practice walking with a cane. The Doctor enters to tell the man he’s being moved. He’s no longer sick. Thomas is dismayed, and the soldier doesn’t like the suggestion. Doctor’s firm, though. Their hospital is for more acute care, and the bed is needed. And now Thomas is in trouble because he questioned his superior officer. Oops. As he’s being upbraided by Doctor, Sybil enters with all her social standing, and Doctor yells at her, too.
Cut to Hughes visiting Carson in his bed. She’s covering for his household duties, and he hates the disarray.
As Mary undresses, Rosamund in her room asks how Richard knows Lavinia. Unknown. She leaves, though, when Anna enters with the nightgown. Mary wants Anna’s opinion about Carson’s advice: is it best to tell the truth? Without specifics, Anna answers as we expect. She’s honest and open, of course.
Oh, crap. Cut to blood on the hospital floor, pooling. Pan up to show the blind soldier in bed, wrists slashed. Cut to Thomas, crying. He tried to tell the doctor the man was depressed. And he had feelings for him. Sad.
Now to the Doctor with Isabelle and Sybil. He regrets what happened, but wouldn’t change his decision. They have no room for men to convalesce. It’s Isabelle who speaks the solution: Downton. Sybil is one hundred percent on board. Ha, the family doesn’t stand a chance of refusing with these two in tandem.
Train station. Mary says goodbye to Richard. He proposes. He thinks “very highly” of her. Yikes. Mary would like a nod to love, and he speaks of building something strong together. He means a social team, I believe. Mary asks for time. No kiss goodbye, or even a desire for one on either side.
Branson is at the hospital to deliver a food basket to Sybil. Men, many of them, are being admitted. Isabelle is there, and so is Matthew. Branson asks Sybil if she’d ever go back to her life before the war, and she vehemently says no. Never. We can’t tell what he thinks of that.
In the village Mary comes upon Lavinia sniffling in the Crawley garden. She’s worried about Matthew and the war. “If he died, I don’t think I could go on living,” Lavinia says. There it is. Mary won’t tell Matthew of her feelings for him. The decision was evident on her face. She hems and haws, but we already know she won’t speak.
At the house, Molesley waits in the servant’s hall to talk to Anna. He openly asks to “see” her, and she openly says no. Her heart belongs to Bates, whether he’s here or not. Yank that bandaid off quickly, I like it.
Evening, and Edith is still working at the farm. Oh, gross. Farmer’s still gushing. Does Edith know? Is it a case of her thinking she’s one of the boys? Nope, she knows. Look at her. Consensual embrace and kiss. Ah, and there’s wife, watching from a distance.
Patmore yells at Daisy in the kitchen. Well, at least something’s normal, heh heh. Robert in formal wear enters, asking for a word with her. It’s bad news. Worse than being dead. Whoa. Shot for cowardice. Robert calls Hughes into the room for moral support. He tells Patmore her nephew’s dead. That’s all, and no one will know otherwise.
SEVEN
And now we’re with the family as Sybil and Isabelle present their idea. Granny, of course, resists. She forbids it, which earns her a smackdown from Cora. Ha, and Cora was leaning toward a no before that.
SIX
Matthew and Robert have drinks and cigars still at the table. Interesting. Robert asks him what is was like at the hospital. Matthew’s moving response: Men at the front pray to be spared. If that is not to be, they pray to be killed cleanly. The hospital is that prayer not being answered.
EIGHT
Back in the kitchen, William arrives in uniform to say hello. He asks Daisy for a kiss, but Patmore says, “None of that.” As the young innocents talk, Patmore looks at the uniform and tears up. William wanders about and ends up at Lang, who is much more cynical. William’s enthusiasm and genuineness win Lang over, though. God, we know heart break is coming, he’s just too sweet.
Now that the men have joined the women, the whole family is in the parlor. Matthew and Mary speak to one side. “Edith seems jolly.” (Ack.)
Back to the kitchen, as William regales the room. Daisy in a quiet moment with Patmore regrets that William thinks she’s his sweetheart. Heh, Patmore says, “Too late, missy.” Poor, hapless Daisy.
Anna braids Mary’s hair for bed. Mary says, I’m going to accept Richard. Do you think I should? They discuss Anna’s love for Bates. I’ll never love that way again. Mary says, There you are. You’ll meet someone else, second best, but you’ll have a life. No, Anna says, in her gentle way. Most of the shot is Mary’s reflection in the vanity mirror, so we can see the impact of Anna’s loyalty on her.
NINE
Hey, Carson’s back! He serves Robert breakfast. As usual, there’s mail. Robert reads a message from Mrs. Farmer. They’ve hired a man, Edith, and you’re no longer needed. While we watch Edith reel, Robert, over, talks with Carson about how they’ll turn Downton into a hospital. Convalescent home, Mary corrects him. So, it’s decided. Does the Dowager know how instrumental her objection was to changing Cora’s mind, lol? End.
CRITICAL NOTES
The swapping of the Six and Seven is an obvious flaw. Let’s deal with that first. Cora’s decision to open Downton as a convalescent hospital is so momentous, so far-reaching. It affects the entire season and must count as the Seven, regardless of its position in the editing.
Matthew holds the Three beat only because what comes before is the Two and after is the Four. When juxtaposed with the Six, though, it raises itself. In the Six Matthew references the Three. All the hopes for Matthew to come safely home, expressed at the Three, take on a deeper resonance during his speech at the Six. This is a great mirror.
Both of these individual beats, the Seven and the Six, are excellent and well written. It’s only the decision to edit them opposite that is jarring. In terms of the story timeline, they could come in either order. The men are still at table and the ladies have retired from the dining room. Matthew’s Six is very powerful, which is why I assume it was edited close to the Eight. If it had stayed in position before the Seven, before Cora’s decision, it would’ve given her beat a different weight. Instead of the focus being on how the Dowager is thwarted (a more comic tone), the true consequence of the decision would’ve been the focus. The Eight is about William and Matthew, about two beloved characters who are soldiers in danger. Using Matthew’s Six to pull at heartstrings before this Eight is understandable, but the hospital is where our attention should be. Downton is where these boys will land if they’re injured. We need that focus as we go into the Eight. I strongly disagree with this writing/editing swap.
My only other comment is about Mary in the Eight. As I complained at the end of last season, Mary’s character was given short-shrift. Why does she dither about Matthew? This season already makes clear that Mary loves him. I feel manipulated. Mary’s romantic arc needed to be clearer across the seasons so that we can sympathize. All of this flower petal picking — I love him, I love him not — moves me out of the story.