ONE
The title card says May 1914. Time is passing between episodes.
TWO
Sybil is in the crowd at some rally. Oh, I see Mrs. Crawley in the background. I think it’s a women’s suffragette meeting, although it’s a man giving the speech. Men in the crowd throw things at him. Branson in chauffeur’s uniform comes up behind Sybil to protect her. Isabelle comes to Sybil and tells her it’s time to go home. Branson would lose his place if anything happened to you. Good argument!
As he drives her home they speak about politics. He respects Lord Grantham but believes he’s part of an oppressive class. Bold words. Sybil is not offended.
Carson and Hughes talk in his office. In the background we hear Patmore railing at Daisy. The doctor has confirmed she has cataracts. She’s scared. But she can’t keep treating Daisy like that. Carson holds a letter that seems to disturb him. No information yet, though.
Sybil comes through the kitchen. Her whirlwind disturbs William who disturbs Thomas. Bates puts in his two cents, and the staff area becomes tense for everyone. It’s just tension, with no idea of a specific Trouble.
Still contemplating his mysterious letter, Carson is late for his duties. Hughes has to come in and remind him.
Bates dresses Robert for dinner. They discuss politics throughout, and Bates mentions that Branson was at the rally. Ha, now Bates is stuck. He’s forced to tell Robert that Lady Sybil was also there.
THREE
At dinner Robert raises the issue with Sybil. He’s quite calm considering how outraged he was upstairs. And . . . there comes the explosion.
FOUR
He jumps to blaming Branson, the “Irish radical”. Cora speaks up. She asked Branson to take Sybil. Ha, Carson and Thomas listen but pretend not to. Granny sides with Robert, Mary sides with Sybil, and Robert scores a point by saying they all hid it from him. There will not be a next time.
Carson approaches Cora with his letter. It’s from someone in service who has heard the Turkish ambassador discuss scurrilous rumours about Lady Mary.
O’Brien and Thomas plot: the only way to get Bates fired is if he steals something. We tried that. Let’s blame him for something actually stolen. The wine that you took. We’ll get to Carson first with the accusation.
Robert and Cora in bed discuss the need to get Mary settled. We know why Cora is so urgent. Carson may not know that the rumors are based in fact, but Cora does.
And here’s Cora bringing Sir Anthony over to visit again. He’s got a car and wants to go driving, but Mary’s already dressed to ride her horse. Edith asks to go instead. We’re not sure what Anthony thinks of this, although he’s impeccably polite.
Carson confronts Bates about the missing wine issue, but Bates won’t defend himself.
Edith and Anthony drive, chatting about politics and his late wife. His affection as he speaks seems to give Edith hope. He’s really just a very nice man. Older, but nice.
Meanwhile, Mary walks her horse — it’s lame — and William offers to help. We’re introduced to the notion of his family and their ambition for him. Groomsman wasn’t good enough; footman is much better.
Oh, gawd, now we have Thomas and O’Brien and Daisy talking to Carson about Bates’ crime. Earlier Daisy had told Thomas she’d do anything for him. (Ack.) Now she’s clearly here, trying badly to lie, as a result.
Sybil catches up with Robert in the library. She convinces him to let Branson drive her to town to a very innocuous meeting.
Ah, first Matthew sighting this episode. Mary sits on a bench and sees him wandering the grounds looking for Robert. They discuss Sybil’s liveliness. He wants to see more of Mary, which fairly contradicts his gloominess last episode, but whatever.
Cora visits Violet, who shows a letter that again implicates Mary. When Violet asks, “Is any of this true?” Cora can only look at her. Yes! Get the Dowager involved! Cora confesses everything (and most of it was in the letter, anyway). Oh, nope, Violet reacts judgmentally and Cora leaves.
Bates and Anna sit outside in the evening and discuss the accusation against him. She’s a lion, ready to defend him, but he’s hurt that any of this could be believed by anyone who knows him. He’s worked here for two years, after all.
SWITCH
Sybil, dressing to go out, talks with Gwen. She’s given up on the secretary dream, while Sybil is still upbeat. Gwen basically presents an impassioned statement about privilege: You can stay positive because people in your social class usually win. Sybil just kind of rolls over the complaint: Your dream is my dream now, and I’ll make it come true.
FIVE
O’Brien and Thomas fret that nothing’s been done yet about Bates. William goes to Daisy in the kitchen and asks for stale bread for a poultice for Mary’s horse. William comes from a loving family, which doesn’t seem part of Daisy’s life experience. When he says, “There are no lies in our house,” Daisy is particularly struck.
Isabelle joins Cora and Mary strolling the grounds. Oh, dear. The hospital is treating William’s mother, the person he just spoke so lovingly about, and has forbidden them to tell William she’s ill. The two older women will respect her confidence, but Mary overrides them. She’ll tell William, rules or no.
Branson drops Sybil off at her meeting, but she had lied. It’s a highly charged political rally, and Branson is worried for her safety.
As the rest of the family waits for dinner, Sir Anthony unexpectedly comes in. He’s got two tickets for an upcoming musical concert. Aargh! Which daughter does he intend to ask? Cora obviously assumes Mary. Yes, it’s Edith! Heh heh. Cora, to her credit, shifts very quickly and easily.
In the kitchen Patmore appears to be instructing Daisy, not just ordering her around with menial tasks. Daisy’s distracted, though. She watches William take the serving tray. I think he represents for her honesty and goodness. Ugh, please let the Thomas spell be broken.
Back at the political rally, there’s Sybil again in the thick of it. Branson wants her out of there. Whatever’s being said (It’s a report of the parliamentary vote count for women’s suffrage?) the crowd is dangerous. Rowdies are unloading from a truck wagon, ready for a fight. Matthew, coming from his office, hears the rumble and finds Sybil. She won’t see the danger. Both men are punched and Sybil is knocked unconscious. Branson carries her out.
At home, Branson finds Mary and asks her to come to Crawley House. Isabelle tends Sybil’s head wound and Mary kneels beside her. You’ll have to stick up for Branson, because Papa will skin him alive. Before Mary leaves she asks Isabelle about William’s mother. She’s home, one more attack will kill her, and she’s adamant that William should know nothing about it.
Carson and Hughes in his office. Is it this Bates business that troubles you? No. Carson’s patience on this is wonderful. Something else is bothering him. It’s Mary, of course. While he and Hughes are trying to understand each other Daisy enters and declares she had previously lied to him.
Mary and Matthew bring Sybil home. Branson is so worried.
SIX
From the door closing on his concern we cut to Robert absolutely furious with Sybil. Matthew waiting downstairs can hear the shouting through the ceiling.
SEVEN
Robert immediately decides to sack Branson, and Sybil threatens to run away if he does so. It’s that childish, the whole thing. But Matthew gets sandwiches prepared for him, so someone gets a snackie.
Carson is ready to press the wine-stealing case. He interrogates Thomas, digging at his story, while all the involved parties watch. It’s pretty obvious Bates is innocent, but how did he know the wine had been taken? He won’t say.
EIGHT
Matthew and Mary, eating, have a companionable moment.
When the interrogation is over, Bates closes the door and asks Hughes and Anna to stay and hear what he’ll say to Carson. Whoa, Bates confesses to being imprisoned in the past for thievery due to drunkenness. He offers his resignation. Oh, Carson is so professional. He will discuss it with His Lordship. No shock (Hughes was shocked for both of them, lol), just the power of the decision that is his to make.
Back to Matthew and Mary as the romance builds. They kiss, the violins swell. We know they belong together, so I appreciate that the story moves there instead of tricking us with some kind of Sybil distraction, which they teased earlier..
Anna comes outside to talk to Bates. They lean in to kiss! Interrupted by a noise.
Mary visits Cora, who’s in bed for the evening. “Matthew proposed to me.” (Really? Where were we during this?!) “Do you love Matthew?” “Yes.” Cora’s so happy. “But I’d have to tell him about Mr. Pamuk.” Cora’s face!
NINE
O’Brien and Thomas, alone downstairs, conspire. They won’t give up.
A new day and Mary is dressed for riding. William checks her horse. Mary asks if he has plans to go home. No, it’s too far. Take a few days now, she says. I’ll fix it for you. Your mother has not been well. How interesting. The show has taken Mary from a fairly unlikable person into this sympathetic, lovable person. Sybil, the Nice One, has become a spoiled brat. And Edith, the pitiable one, is almost machiavellian. Hmph.
The Dowager visits Cora. Violet is on board. She’s thought about Mary’s situation and she would’ve done the same as Cora. You limit the damage, she says. Family, always. Cora tells of Matthew’s proposal, but that Mary hasn’t agreed yet. Violet says, “If she refuses, we’ll take her abroad. You can always find an Italian who isn’t too picky.” It’s a tired joke, but Maggie makes it work.
And that’s the end. The women have a plan.
I’m not particularly happy with the structure of this episode. The Switch is difficult, mostly because the Four and Five are indistinguishable. They have no momentum of their own. The Switch is more about a change in our perception of Sybil, and it works on that level.
The Two is jam-packed, which is typical for Downton we’ve learned. So many Troubles! And the Eight we’re given doesn’t necessarily line up with the Troubles we have at the beginning.
Very interesting Three/Six. Our mirror is: Robert’s pissed at Sybil. This is the angriest we’ve seen him and it happens twice. Well done.
My largest complaint, though, goes beyond this episode. The Matthew and Mary love story is missing some pieces. Maybe this is their Switch, which is why we don’t see his actual proposal. I still think we needed to see that, though. When did he decide to pursue his affection again? Last episode he was rebuffed. A placard One — a bland, static moment to indicate time has passed — is terrible storytelling. Downton always follows many threads. The flurry of characters and plotlines is part of its charm. A story that arcs throughout the entire season, though, such as the Matthew/Mary romance, must have its beats. I fear they missed one.