Small Screen Scenes: Downton Abbey Season Two Episode Five Highly Recommended by Whom You Know Available Now From PBS Distribution
It's not all smiles like in this picture now. And Daisy bears quite a lot of it having led up a garden path with a lot of nonsense. We supply you with these smiles in the review to balance out the Eeyore-like mood of this episode, and this adds a new dimension of reality to Downton Abbey. Edith's rough edges smooth out and she is starting to show genuine concern and a helpful nature is revealed at times, but we can't forget her betrayal from long ago.
Those that pray together stay together, and this episode requires a lot of prayers. We're glad to see Lady Mary's little animal kept someone alive. Loss and tragedy brings many together as well. You cannot put timings on health. And some must be set free. While some marriages are in question, others are hurried along. Serving a family well means certain privileges; it's not who you know, it's WHOM YOU KNOW.
Good god almighty the things people read in newspapers. Asking permission is not some people's strong suit. Who is being tricked? Who has power? Who has none? Who can lock others up?
Haven't you ever made a mistake? Some have and now are paying greatly. And some just don't have a heart, and this time we're not talking about O'Brien or Thomas. People ought to read their letters. And what do you all think of the new maid? Do you think she went to the library by accident...and we learn that real love is helping someone when they are literally sick.
Is this an instrument of communication or torture?!?-Just guess who said that and about what. Sometimes a hard sacrifice must be made for a future worth having.
And what garden is rosy again?
You'll have to watch to find out.
Previously, Whom You Know Highly Recommended Downton Abbey Season Two Episode One:
& Season Two Episode Two:
& Season Two Episode Three:
And Season One Blew Us Away:
Watch them all, in order!
Whom You Know Highly Recommends Downton Abbey Season Two Episode Five!
Join our Facebook group, Downton Abbey is PEACHY
Get your own copy, and start watching:
***
1918
As the war promises to draw to a close, uncertainty still reigns. With its ruined aristocratic houses, rationing, and fallen officers, war's aftermath opens some doors for the present and former servants and slams shut others. Meanwhile, Isobel's post-war plans create an indomitable, if unlikely, alliance. But when a mysterious stranger arrives, Downton faces more turmoil.
Sir Richard is anxious to take not just Downton's most beautiful asset, but one of its most treasured as well. In return and against Robert's wishes, he restores a powerful replacement in its halls. And Vera Bates takes startling action.
Hide full synopsis
Warning: Contains significant plot spoilers
As Mary, now Matthew's practiced caregiver, wheels him around the grounds, Sir Richard Carlisle watches from afar, jealous of their comfortable intimacy. Mary reminds Matthew that she needn't marry Carlisle but Matthew, convinced he is unfit for anyone, would never let her throw her life away with him. Meanwhile, Carlisle informs Cora and Robert of his plans to purchase the nearby Haxby Park and outfit it with all the modern conveniences for him and Mary. What he doesn't tell them, or Mary, is that he plans to bring Carson with him.
Word that peace is imminent circulates and Isobel is ready with post-war plans. Rather than allowing Downton Abbey to return to its former state, she urges Cora and Violet to make it a recovery center after the war; naturally she will run it. Desperate, Violet researches causes that might tempt Isobel away from Downton, finally landing one irresistible to the well-meaning Isobel: helping refugees displaced by the war. Isobel departs and Cora, for once, is immensely grateful to her mother-in-law.
Mrs. Patmore, however, is worried by one aspect of armistice: food rationing. This gives Thomas an idea — worried about his own future after the war, he considers a venture in the black market. The new housemaid, the war widow Jane, encourages Daisy to accompany her to a local organization for war widows, but Daisy refuses, feeling it would be dishonest. She confronts Mrs. Patmore about pushing her into marrying William.
Meanwhile, Sybil is beginning to yield to Branson. She asks him to be patient for a little longer, unwilling to leave while the war is still on and Downton needs her.
Clarkson tells Robert they have received a request from a Canadian major, Patrick Gordon, who has asked to convalesce at Downton because of a family connection. Puzzled, they accept the request and Edith welcomes the officer, who has been burnt beyond recognition. He tells Edith that they spent a great deal of time together during their childhood and is visibly hurt that she doesn't recognize him. Finally, he reveals that he is none other than Patrick Crawley, Downton Abbey's heir who had allegedly perished on the Titanic six years before. Edith is shocked — though Mary had been intended for Patrick, it was she who loved him. She believes the officer, amazed at how much he remembers from their childhoods. He had suffered from amnesia ever since the tragedy, taking his surname, Gordon, from a gin bottle, and only since his injury at Passchendaele has he begun to recover his memory.
Edith reports the revelation to Robert, who doesn't know what to believe and feels it necessary to consult their lawyer. During a family conference, Mary is defiant in declaring Patrick an impostor and Matthew, for his part, seems bitterly reconciled to the revelation. Edith informs Patrick that the lawyer's report is inconclusive and she urges him to carry on in his pursuit of the truth. But she is crushed to discover that he has fled Downton.
Planning his new life with Mary in Haxby Hall, Carlisle asks Carson to come work for them there. The butler is torn, heartbroken at the thought of leaving Downton but resigned to accompany his beloved Mary, who will surely need him. Carson is at odds with Mrs. Hughes, whom he has caught aiding the increasingly desperate Ethel. When he informs Cora, she suggests that Robert might contact Major Bryant to see if he will visit, with a view to convincing him of his responsibilities. Ethel is hopeful until she learns that Bryant was killed at the Battle of Vittorio Veneto.
Carlisle sees Matthew as the true threat to his happiness. Preying on Cora's concern that Mary would never produce children with Matthew, he convinces her to help him return Lavinia to Downton and Matthew's side. When Carlisle brings Lavinia back to Downton, Robert is incensed at Cora's complicity. Only the new maid, Jane, can make him smile, laugh and feel needed as he offers to help her son in his academic pursuits. Carlisle threatens to ruin Mary if she breaks their engagement.
Bates receives a phone call alerting him that Vera has succeeded in stopping the divorce by revealing to the judge that Bates had paid her to end their marriage. Furious, he ventures to London to reason with Vera, but not before Robert cautions him to watch his temper. On his return, sporting a fresh abrasion on his face, Bates confides in Anna that his meeting with Vera was worse than could be imagined.
A solemn gathering of the family and staff marks the end of the war and, in Robert's words, "the dawn of a new age." Indeed, it may be so for Matthew, who experiences a mysterious sensation he is reluctant to share. But the happy occasion abruptly ends when Bates receives a telegram stating that Vera Bates is dead.
1918
As the war promises to draw to a close, uncertainty still reigns. With its ruined aristocratic houses, rationing, and fallen officers, war's aftermath opens some doors for the present and former servants and slams shut others. Meanwhile, Isobel's post-war plans create an indomitable, if unlikely, alliance. But when a mysterious stranger arrives, Downton faces more turmoil.
Sir Richard is anxious to take not just Downton's most beautiful asset, but one of its most treasured as well. In return and against Robert's wishes, he restores a powerful replacement in its halls. And Vera Bates takes startling action.
Hide full synopsis
Warning: Contains significant plot spoilers
As Mary, now Matthew's practiced caregiver, wheels him around the grounds, Sir Richard Carlisle watches from afar, jealous of their comfortable intimacy. Mary reminds Matthew that she needn't marry Carlisle but Matthew, convinced he is unfit for anyone, would never let her throw her life away with him. Meanwhile, Carlisle informs Cora and Robert of his plans to purchase the nearby Haxby Park and outfit it with all the modern conveniences for him and Mary. What he doesn't tell them, or Mary, is that he plans to bring Carson with him.
Word that peace is imminent circulates and Isobel is ready with post-war plans. Rather than allowing Downton Abbey to return to its former state, she urges Cora and Violet to make it a recovery center after the war; naturally she will run it. Desperate, Violet researches causes that might tempt Isobel away from Downton, finally landing one irresistible to the well-meaning Isobel: helping refugees displaced by the war. Isobel departs and Cora, for once, is immensely grateful to her mother-in-law.
Mrs. Patmore, however, is worried by one aspect of armistice: food rationing. This gives Thomas an idea — worried about his own future after the war, he considers a venture in the black market. The new housemaid, the war widow Jane, encourages Daisy to accompany her to a local organization for war widows, but Daisy refuses, feeling it would be dishonest. She confronts Mrs. Patmore about pushing her into marrying William.
Meanwhile, Sybil is beginning to yield to Branson. She asks him to be patient for a little longer, unwilling to leave while the war is still on and Downton needs her.
Clarkson tells Robert they have received a request from a Canadian major, Patrick Gordon, who has asked to convalesce at Downton because of a family connection. Puzzled, they accept the request and Edith welcomes the officer, who has been burnt beyond recognition. He tells Edith that they spent a great deal of time together during their childhood and is visibly hurt that she doesn't recognize him. Finally, he reveals that he is none other than Patrick Crawley, Downton Abbey's heir who had allegedly perished on the Titanic six years before. Edith is shocked — though Mary had been intended for Patrick, it was she who loved him. She believes the officer, amazed at how much he remembers from their childhoods. He had suffered from amnesia ever since the tragedy, taking his surname, Gordon, from a gin bottle, and only since his injury at Passchendaele has he begun to recover his memory.
Edith reports the revelation to Robert, who doesn't know what to believe and feels it necessary to consult their lawyer. During a family conference, Mary is defiant in declaring Patrick an impostor and Matthew, for his part, seems bitterly reconciled to the revelation. Edith informs Patrick that the lawyer's report is inconclusive and she urges him to carry on in his pursuit of the truth. But she is crushed to discover that he has fled Downton.
Planning his new life with Mary in Haxby Hall, Carlisle asks Carson to come work for them there. The butler is torn, heartbroken at the thought of leaving Downton but resigned to accompany his beloved Mary, who will surely need him. Carson is at odds with Mrs. Hughes, whom he has caught aiding the increasingly desperate Ethel. When he informs Cora, she suggests that Robert might contact Major Bryant to see if he will visit, with a view to convincing him of his responsibilities. Ethel is hopeful until she learns that Bryant was killed at the Battle of Vittorio Veneto.
Carlisle sees Matthew as the true threat to his happiness. Preying on Cora's concern that Mary would never produce children with Matthew, he convinces her to help him return Lavinia to Downton and Matthew's side. When Carlisle brings Lavinia back to Downton, Robert is incensed at Cora's complicity. Only the new maid, Jane, can make him smile, laugh and feel needed as he offers to help her son in his academic pursuits. Carlisle threatens to ruin Mary if she breaks their engagement.
Bates receives a phone call alerting him that Vera has succeeded in stopping the divorce by revealing to the judge that Bates had paid her to end their marriage. Furious, he ventures to London to reason with Vera, but not before Robert cautions him to watch his temper. On his return, sporting a fresh abrasion on his face, Bates confides in Anna that his meeting with Vera was worse than could be imagined.
A solemn gathering of the family and staff marks the end of the war and, in Robert's words, "the dawn of a new age." Indeed, it may be so for Matthew, who experiences a mysterious sensation he is reluctant to share. But the happy occasion abruptly ends when Bates receives a telegram stating that Vera Bates is dead.
ONE OF THE MOST PHENOMENALLY POPULAR MASTERPIECE SERIES IS BACK –
“DOWNTON ABBEY SEASON 2”
Available on DVD and Blu-ray from PBS Distribution February 7th
Release Timed with Premiere Airing on PBS Sundays January 8 through February 19
The First Season of “Downton Abbey” Won Six Primetime Emmy Awards
PBS Distribution today announced it is releasing “DOWNTON ABBEY SEASON 2” on DVD and Blu-ray. The second season promises to be as satisfying as the first, with thwarted and rekindled romances, forgotten and fresh scandals, and enough new plot twists to weave a tapestry with Lord Grantham’s family crest. “DOWNTON ABBEY SEASON 2” will be available on DVD and Blu-ray on February 7, 2012. The running time of the program is 544 minutes. The SRP for the DVD is $44.99 and the SRP for the Blu-ray is $49.99. The program comes on three discs.
The returning cast includes Dame Maggie Smith, Elizabeth McGovern, Hugh Bonneville, Dan Stevens, Michelle Dockery, Siobhan Finneran, and many more. The DVD and Blu-ray feature the original U.K. edition of the program and are being released a little less than two weeks prior to the airing of the last episode on PBS. Both the DVD and Blu-ray will include special bonus features.
The first season of “Downton Abbey,” which was released on DVD January 11, 2011, won a host of prestigious awards in the U.K. and was recently honored in the U.S. with six Primetime Emmy awards, one of which was for Outstanding Miniseries or Movie. American critics called “Downton Abbey” “an instant classic” (New York Times), “compulsively watchable from the get-go” (Variety), “the U.K.’s best abbey since Abbey Road” (Entertainment Weekly), and “a quintessential Masterpiece Classic” (TV Guide).
Program Details
Last season opened with the sinking of the Titanic in 1912, which had dire consequences for Downton Abbey. The new season picks up in the middle of another disaster, World War I, which affected every aspect of life in England, accelerating the social change that was already transforming an age-old system of class and privilege.
As the Great War rages across Europe, discord is sown even into the serene Yorkshire countryside. Simmering tensions behind the gates of Downton Abbey are beginning to come to a boil as the men and women of Downton do their part on both the front lines and the home front. What’s more, the brutality and intensity of war seem to inflame more familiar passions – love, loss, blackmail, and betrayal – leaving family and staff alike to struggle in an ever-changing world, against a host of new demons.
About MASTERPIECE
MASTERPIECE on PBS is presented by WGBH Boston. Rebecca Eaton is executive producer. Funding for MASTERPIECE is provided by Viking River Cruises, with additional support from public television viewers and contributors to The MASTERPIECE Trust, created to help ensure the series’ future.
About PBS Distribution
PBS Distribution is the leading media distributor for the public television community, both domestically and internationally. Jointly owned by PBS (Arlington, VA) and WGBH (Boston, MA), PBS Distribution extends the reach of public television programs beyond broadcast while generating revenue for the public television system and our production partners.
PBS Distribution offers a diverse range of programming to our customers, including Ken Burns’s films (Prohibition, The National Parks, The War, Baseball, Jazz), documentaries from award-winning series NOVA (The Elegant Universe, Origins), FRONTLINE (God in America, Bush’s War, Growing Up Online), and American Experience (Freedom Riders, We Shall Remain), dramas from Masterpiece (Downton Abbey, Jane Eyre, Inspector Lewis), films from independent producers (Easy Yoga for Arthritis, The Buddha, The Story of India, Carrier, Journey into Buddhism, I.O.U.S.A.), and popular children’s programming from Dinosaur Train, Super Why!, WordGirl, Cyberchase, Martha Speaks, and Arthur. As a multi-channel distributor, PBS Distribution pursues wholesale/retail sales, consumer and educational sales through PBS- branded catalogs and online shops, and international broadcast and video sales. PBS distribution is also a leader in offering programming through digital platforms including the internet, mobile, and web-connected television.
PBS DISTRIBUTION ANNOUNCES THE
SPECIAL BONUS FEATURES ON THE
“DOWNTON ABBEY SEASON 2” DVD AND BLU-RAY
DOWNTON ABBEY SEASON 2” Available on DVD and Blu-ray February 7th
Premiere Episode that Broadcasted Sunday, January 8th Averaged 4.2 Million Viewers
PBS Distribution today announced the bonus features included on the DVD and Blu-ray releases of the critically-acclaimed series “DOWNTON ABBEY SEASON 2.” “Downton Abbey” fans are clamoring for Season 2, and now they have another reason to be excited with more than 32 minutes of bonus features available on the DVD and Blu-ray. With Season 2 kicking off on PBS just this past weekend, averaging 4.2 million viewers, interest in the series, and everything Downton related, will only continue to increase as the series airs over the course of the next six Sundays. (Nielsen Fast National data, 2.7 household rating.) Descriptions of the bonus features are below.
HOUSE TO HOSPITAL
This eight-minute bonus feature briefly recaps where viewers left the house, a grand venue for evening soirees and garden parties. It is now 1916, times have changed and so has the house. Viewers are given a closer look at the changes that take place within the Downton house and shown how news of war impacts life at Downton and the lives of those that live there. In “House to Hospital,” viewers see how Downton is physically changed into a convalescent home and what this means in terms of the social changes taking place at that time. This special feature delves into the archives of Highclere Castle (which is Downton Abbey in the series) to see how houses of this period offered themselves to the war effort.
Interviews:
Alastair Bruce (historical advisor), Julian Fellowes, Lady Carnarvon (lives at Highclere Castle), Donal Woods (production designer), Hugh Bonneville, Elizabeth McGovern, Jessica Brown-Findlay, Michelle Dockery, Laura Carmichael, Jim Carter, Phyllis Logan and Rob James-Collier.
ROMANCE IN A TIME OF WAR
This 13-minute special feature takes a look at the relationships that blossom in this series and why the war was a catalyst to love. The main focus is on: Branson and Sybil, Bates and Anna, Mary and Matthew, and William and Daisy.
Interviews:
Julian Fellowes, Dan Stevens, Michelle Dockery, Laura Carmichael, Allen Leech, Jessica Brown-Findlay, Joanne Froggatt, Brendan Coyle, Sophie McShera, Thomas Howes, Maria Doyle Kennedy, Zoe Boyle and Iain Glen.
FASHION AND UNIFORMS
This 11-minute bonus feature takes a detailed look at costumes. Costume designer Susannah Buxton takes us on a detailed journey through the changing fashions of 1916. Viewers get an inside look at how the war has impacted fashions and of course introduced military uniforms to the wardrobe. Interviews with the cast explain how each of the key costumes comes into play.
“Fashion and Uniforms” also explores the nature and role of uniforms, and the etiquette involved in their use. The feature shows the changing fashions – talking with both make-up and costume teams about the arrival of “the hobble skirt,” new hairstyles, and the curling irons that were introduced at the time.
Interviews:
Susannah Buxton (costume designer), Anne ‘Nosh’ Oldham (make-up designer), Jessica Brown-Findlay, Hugh Bonneville, Dan Stevens, Rob James-Collier, Elizabeth McGovern and Alastair Bruce (historical advisor).
Program Details
Last season opened with the sinking of the Titanic in 1912, which had dire consequences for Downton Abbey. The new season picks up in the middle of another disaster, World War I, which impacts every aspect of life in England, accelerating the social change that was already transforming an age-old system of class and privilege.
As the Great War rages across Europe, discord is sown even into the serene Yorkshire countryside. Simmering tensions behind the gates of Downton Abbey are beginning to come to a boil as the men and women of Downton do their part on both the front lines and the home front. What’s more, the brutality and intensity of war seem to inflame more familiar passions – love, loss, blackmail, and betrayal – leaving family and staff alike to struggle in an ever-changing world, against a host of new demons.
“DOWNTON ABBEY SEASON 2” is a Carnival/Masterpiece Co-Production.
MASTERPIECE on PBS is presented by WGBH Boston. Rebecca Eaton is executive producer. Funding for MASTERPIECE is provided by Viking River Cruises, with additional support from public television viewers and contributors to The MASTERPIECE Trust, created to help ensure the series’ future.
About PBS Distribution
PBS Distribution is the leading media distributor for the public television community, both domestically and internationally. Jointly owned by PBS (Arlington, VA) and WGBH (Boston, MA), PBS Distribution extends the reach of public television programs beyond broadcast while generating revenue for the public television system and our production partners.
Distribution offers a diverse range of programming to our customers, including Ken Burns’s films (Prohibition, The National Parks, The War, Baseball, Jazz), documentaries from award-winning series NOVA (The Elegant Universe, Origins), FRONTLINE (God in America, Bush’s War, Growing Up Online), and American Experience (Freedom Riders, We Shall Remain), dramas from Masterpiece (Downton Abbey, Jane Eyre, Inspector Lewis), films from independent producers (Easy Yoga for Arthritis, The Buddha, The Story of India, Carrier, Journey into Buddhism, I.O.U.S.A.), and popular children’s programming from Dinosaur Train, Super Why!, WordGirl, Cyberchase, Martha Speaks, and Arthur. As a multi-channel distributor, PBS Distribution pursues wholesale/retail sales, consumer and educational sales through PBS- branded catalogs and online shops, and international broadcast and video sales. PBS distribution is also a leader in offering programming through digital platforms including the internet, mobile, and web-connected television.
DOWNTON ABBEY SEASON 2
Street Date: February 7, 2012
Genre: Drama
Run Time: 544 minutes on 3 Discs
DVD, $44.99 and Blu-ray, $49.99
Format: DVD and Blu-ray
