Spoilers for the next two (final) episodes of Downton Abbey

[tzikeh]

This is everything I could find. If you have more, please drop them in the comments!

(BTW this is for the airing going on in Britain, which I have ahemmed. If you have not yet seen Season Two, these are way, way, way ahead-of-you spoilers.)



Matthew and Lavinia reconcile and decide to get married after all.

Violet tells Matthew that Mary is still in love with him.

Matthew has to figure out what the hell to do.

Sybil runs away with Branson to Ireland (your WTF moment.)

Thomas becomes a bootlegger, and through his black-market connections, becomes indispensable to post-war Downton, which means Carson CANNOT GET RID OF HIM.

Anna tells Bates to get it together and fucking marry her now that he's a widower, but NATURALLY, because we have to drag their EPIC LOVE STORY into S3, he is arrested for Vera's murder.

Robert kisses Crush Maid (Jane? I think?) But they don't sleep together.

It's 1918, which means IT'S TIME FOR THE SPANISH FLU!

Carson, Cora, and Lavinia become deathly ill.

When it looks like Cora is going to bite it, O'Brien tries to tell Cora about The Disastrous Soap Incident of Season 1.

When Cora gets better, Crush-Maid Jane decides to leave.

The parents of the dude who got Ethel pregnant want to see the baby, and they tell Ethel the'd be happy to give him a great life--without Ethel. She doesn't go for it.

Branson gets a job as a journalist in Ireland. Robert tries to buy him off and get Sybil back, but does not succeed.

Lavinia catches Mary and Matthew kissing.

Lavinia dies of Spanish flu and Plot needs.

Matthew, wracked with guilt because we have to drag their EPIC LOVE STORY into S3, tells Mary that he doesn't deserve to be with her.

Hit me with anything else you know!

Comments

[dorinda]

What I want to know is, are they actually planning to have Matthew's paralysis just go away? I mean, that scene where Bates is pushing Matthew's chair and he's like, "WHOAH...If I felt...never mind, I'll wait and see"...

I mean, on the one hand, they obviously aren't averse to having very conveniently coincidental things happen (as you say, someone dying of The Flu And Plot Needs). But on the other hand, going *that* far down fantasyland road? Having actual observed spinal cord damage disappear due to Plot And Happy Ending Needs? I don't know, dude.

[tzikeh]

I actually wouldn't have that much of a problem with it, because they knew so *very little* about spinal-cord paralysis, specifically when it came to the difference between a swelling from the tissue surrounding broken vertebrae pressing on the nerves and a severed spinal cord. If it's the former, he might have poorly-knitted lower vertebrae, but the paralysis could easily be temporary. They just didn't have the acute diagnostic tools at the time to judge temporary vs permanent damage in those kinds of situations.

[dorinda]

It's not so much whether it could ever happen in real life--I know it could. I mean, it's not like they're turning to wingfic. *g* It's just that I wasn't pleased with how they seemed to be handling it narratively. And unfortunately, my displeasure was confirmed by this latest ep. Clarkson originally said definitively 'transection of the spinal cord,' no ifs ands or buts. And now suddenly it's "Well, actually, secretly this other experienced guy disagreed, but I didn't say anything or even hedge my bets or give the audience any clues because it would make for more of a plot surprise." I had never seen any sign of that kind of weird pigheaded arrogance in Doctor Clarkson before, so narratively I didn't fully buy it.

I mean, I'm glad for Matthew (and everyone else), and the explanation and recovery is being handled well. It was just not how I prefer my narrative surprises to be doled out--I vastly prefer things not to hinge on someone keeping a giant secret for no good reason. It feels lumpy. I would rather wholeheartedly believe in a big reversal in a Watsonian sense ('oh, the dots are naturally connecting!'), not have to take my Doylist medicine ('well, I guess that's true because the character made a speech insisting it's true.'). There are other great big secrets throughout the show that I think are handled marvelously well--pre-Downton me would never have believed that I could enjoy all of the Mary-and-Matthew backing and forthing without screaming, for instance, but man, the writing took its time and laid down subtle groundwork and got me on board.

[dorinda]

P.S. CARSON'S FAAAAACE WHEN MARY SAID 'THAT WILL BE ALL' AND STUFF. D''':

[dafna]

Oh thank god they're finally doing something with the Branson subplot. I liked Sybil in S1 but this season she's been getting on my nerves; do something already. (I fully predict that it doesn't end well and she comes back in S3; that's fine.) Anyone who didn't predict Bates being suspected of his wife's murder hasn't been watching the show very long, but I'm bored with him so if it gets him off screen for awhile, I'll cheer that. Also, if Robert is going to have an affair with any maid, it should totes be Anna, who is way prettier and more interesting. (Cora totally should have seduced Matthew when she had the chance.) Poor Lavinia, but she was pretty much Dead Fiance Walking from day 1. Has anyone been in a film yet? It seems like that's the next bit of required Costume Drama subplots.