Top Ten ‘Downton Abbey’ Episodes So Far
David Stehman ’17 / Emertainment Monthly Contributor
*Contains Spoilers*
One of the most popular British television shows in the world, Downton Abbey, can be described as a family saga, a workplace drama, a period piece, and a soap opera, and it truly is a perfect combination of all of these. Written by Julian Fellowes, Academy Award-winning writer of Gosford Park, another great British period piece, this character-driven show has countless faces pop in and out the titular house with each as memorable as the last.
Downton Abbey returns to PBS in January for its sixth and sadly final season, but the show has given fans plenty of good memories to savor. And now, take a car into Ripon or a stroll through the gardens and reminisce about the good and the bad. Here are the ten best episodes of Downton Abbey so far.
10. Season Five, Episode Six (The One where Edith Goes Berserk)
This episode is significant because it has many cathartic moments that had been building up for a while. The episode starts with the news that Michael Gregson (Charles Edwards), Edith Crawley’s (Laura Carmichael) lover and father to her baby, was indeed killed by Nazis in the Beer Hall Putsch. In a frenzy, she kidnaps her daughter, Marigold Shore (Sharon Small), from her adopted family and takes the child to London. In the other storylines, Thomas Barrow (Rob James-Collier), who had suffered throughout the season after his close friend and unrequited love, Jimmy Kent (Ed Speleers), was kicked out of the Abbey, is hospitalized after it is revealed that he had been trying to cure himself of his homosexuality by taking a chemical that slowly poisoned him. This is a low point for the tortured yet lovable under-butler fans have grown to care for, and Thomas can only go up at this point. This episode also solved the mystery of John Bates (Brendan Coyle) and Mr. Green (Nigel Harman) with an emotional, long-overdue conversation between John Bates and Anna Bates (Joanne Froggatt) regarding her sexual assault the previous season and how Bates did not kill Mr. Green despite debating whether or not he was going to. Also included is a thrilling steeplechase scene with Mary Crawley (Michelle Dockery) as she tries to end her love triangle once and for all.
Downton Abbey has had its share of controversies, but this episode’s climax is the show at its darkest. Juxtaposing a beautiful opera performance with a horrible rape of Anna by Mr. Green, the finale is haunting and full of consequences. Froggatt steals the show with a harrowing Emmy-winning performance. Also included is Edna Braithwaite’s (MyAnna Buring) seduction of Tom Branson (Allen Leech), a move he would regret in future episodes. This episode is sad but very powerful. It shows just how dramatic the series could go.
This episode is also controversial, with many fans citing it as the show’s worst and most melodramatic episode. However, it works by incorporating a classic soap opera trope, the amnesia-riddled stranger who may or may not be a relative, and incorporates it with historical relevance. There were indeed many soldiers who tried to weasel into rich families, and this episode depicted that with an extra layer of uneasiness. The performance of Patrick Gordon (Trevor White) is creepy and mysterious, adding an air of horror to the show. While many viewers find it strange that the character is never mentioned again, it is necessary for the episode to be a one-off to keep the debatable parts alive.
Kemal Pumuk (Theo James), or at least the circumstances of his death, greatly impacted the series and took the innocence of several characters. This is an episode that keeps viewers guessing and ends unpredictably. It works as character development for the previously virtuous Mary Crawley, who through seduction and force becomes a woman in a scandalous fashion. For two seasons, the events of this episode propels most of the plot that follows. Kemal Pumuk is played wonderfully by a pre-Divergent Theo James, who manages to have an air of grace that contrasts his lustful sexual behavior. And while the post-coital death of Mr. Pumuk does seem a bit outlandish, it is actually based on a true story. Fellowes and the other producers had found a journal describing a similar incident, body-dragging and all. And it is enough to keep audiences hooked.
This is one of the best directed episodes, full of long-shots and great camera techniques. The story is good too; the family deals with sharing the house, Isobel Crawley (Penelope Wilton) and Cora Crawley (Elizabeth McGovern) fight for management, Branson tries — and almost succeeds– at becoming a conscientious objector, and Mr. Henry Lang (Cal MacAninch) deals with shell-shock, bringing out a surprisingly sympathetic reaction from Miss Sarah O’Brien (Siobhan Finneran). And finally, Edith, at last, gets recognition for her kindness. Good for Edith!
The Christmas special of season three is the epitome of Fellowes’s gift of mixing the incredibly happy with the devastatingly sad. It starts with a one-year time jump, which is a startling way to begin a finale. Anna and Bates are sweet as ever, Branson first meets Edna — and almost loses to desire — the downstairs gang goes to a faire and plays a thrilling game of tug-of-war, Patmore (Lesley Nicol) and Clarkson (David Robb) both try and fail at romantic relationships, and Thomas and Jimmy make peace after the former saves the latter’s life. One of the happiest moments of the series is in this episode, the birth of Mary and Matthew Crawley’s (Dan Stevens) son, adding another heir to the line and establishing Mary’s future to inherit. Everything is grand. That is, until the most shocking moment in the series, Matthew’s fatal automobile accident, rips viewers’ hearts out and eats them like a cannibal. A thrilling and overall great finale.
The first episode! This is a great pilot that both opens a window into twentieth century aristocracy and also introduces a memorable ensemble cast. Beginning with the off-screen deaths of Downton’s heirs on the Titanic and ending with Matthew’s prophetic final line. This episode shows viewers many things about the Crawleys and the workers downstairs: the King Lear-esque daughters of royalty, the scheming workers, the crippled valet, the closeted footman, the snappy grandma, and the wild day-to-day lives of everyone living under that roof. It opens the series with so much potential and rarely disappoints.
Sybil Crawley’s (Jessica Brown Findlay) death may have been contract-related, but its execution, figuratively and literally, is perfect. The house is divided over how to save Sybil from a horrible death during childbirth, with each member taking a side over whether or not to perform a C- Section. After much tension, Sybil and Branson’s daughter is brought to life in a beautiful moment, but Sybil’s death is violent and shocking. Incredibly emotional. What makes this episode one of the best is Dr. Clarkson’s redemption. He had made plenty of bad decisions in the past, like misdiagnosing Matthew’s paralysis and failing to save Lavinia Swire (Zoe Boyle) from Spanish Flu, and his case of the boy who cried wolf is what makes everything so dramatic. When he is finally proven to be right about something, it is too late. The grief that follows is awful, hurting everyone including Thomas and Violet Crawley (Maggie Smith). No one is happy at the end of this episode.
This was the first Christmas special, ending the second season spectacularly. The two major highlights in this extended episode are Bates’ trial and Matthew’s proposal. The trial, which recounts several incidents from the second season in regards to Mr. Bates’ late wife Vera Bates (Maria Doyle Kennedy), is hard to watch, and the guilty verdict is heartbreaking. Thankfully, Mr. Bates is spared. Also included in this episode is Richard Carlyle’s (Iain Glen) banishment from the estate. Richard is a good character, but not at all right for Mary. Thankfully, Matthew manages to move on from Lavinia and decide that the one he wants to spend the rest of his life with is his best friend, Mary Crawley. Their proposal and subsequent twirling in the snow is the happiest peak the show has ever reached. The other Christmas specials have not topped this one, and honestly they don’t have to.
Perfect. This episode is perfect. Downton Abbey at its prime. The episode starts with both the aftermath of Franz Ferdinand’s assassination and Lady Sybil’s first debutante in London. Then it gets real. Cora gets pregnant, which causes drama with Mary and Matthew and leaves their engagement ruined. Every subplot is fantastic including Charles Carson’s (Jim Carter) phone comedy, Patmore and Bird’s (Christine Lohr) friction, Gwen Dawson (Rose Leslie) finally getting a secretary position, Thomas saying too much and finally getting punched, Anna discovering Bates’ innocence and gallantry, Edith calling Mary a slut, and Mary ruining Edith’s happiness with Sir Antony Stralland (Robert Bathurst). Poor Edith! All of this escalates to the infamous soap scene in which O’Brien goes too far and deliberately causes Cora’s miscarriage, something the lady’s maid never recovers from. The last scene, the announcement of the start of World War One, is a perfect cliffhanger and a symbol of the aristocratic world crumbling, which is the overarching theme of the series. Flawless!
um, for real, fact check. edna braithwaite did not seduce kieran branson, a character that was in all of one episode in series three. she seduced tom branson, only one of the main characters throughout the shows run. this is the kind of mistake that makes me wonder if the writer even watches the show.