Sign in to follow this  
empika

Downton Abbey

Recommended Posts

Heard good things from a bunch of sensible people, and also mentioned on the podcast numerous times. Just wondering what people think about this show?

 

Just started watching it and finding it fairly enjoyable. For me it's like a good Pride and Prejudice, full of intrigue adn romance, except I'm no longer 13 and don't think it's shit (yes, that bbc series was in 1995).

 

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Ok, I get it now after watching the 4th episode. It's like the dramatic intimacy of TNG or Firefly or something, but in an english country house... with better acting.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Downton Abbey starts out really good (first season), but then painfully quickly dwindles into soapiness, in my opinion. The first season foremost, and the second a tiny bit, feel like they're actually heading towards something, but then I started to realize it doesn't. At this point (end of season three), to me the series feels like 'let's see what more we can pile onto these characters, for no other reason than that we have to continue the series'. Events get increasingly random and overly dramatic.

The atmosphere and everything is grand, and the moment to moment scenes and writing are good (the dowager countess is always good for a chuckle), but I feel the promise of the show has not been met, which is to me: bringing a relevant historical tale with purpose to it.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Frankly, Downton Abbey is terrible.

 

I agree with everything Rodi said, but there is an even more fundamental problem with the series, as I see it.

 

The show exists, as far as I can tell, to whitewash not only the British class system but also to portray most of the major social conflicts of the 20th Century as just a series of giant misunderstandings. As the show would have it, virtually every problem could have been solved if only someone had had the foresight to tell Lord Grantham about it and then have a brief heart-to-heart chat.  Characters rarely object to the social changes occuring around them with more than a minor tantrum before deciding that "Oh well, perhaps I was in the wrong after all."  (If only people could be persuaded of their complicity in injustice so easily!) 

 

The effect is twofold: First, the struggles of the past are erased by portraying gradual social change as inevitable and always positive.  There are never any winner or losers, hold-outs or stalwarts! No one ever fights tooth and tail against or for change, it just sort of happens in consensus. It is a viewpoint that flatters the former oppressors (making it seem as if they were not nearly as active as oppressors) and also renders invisible those who fought and took real risks - not just a mild scolding from Lord Grantham - for their causes. 

 

But the second, more insidious, effect is to pat the viewer on the head for having the "correct" opinions on all the social issues that arise in the show ("correct" is defined by the show as "whatever views are mainsteam and moderate in the early 21st century" - views that will likely be seen as bigoted and wrong-headed in all new ways fifty years hence.)  It's flattering to society as a whole, both past and present, in a way that is, well, wrong.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Near the end of the second series and pretty much agree with both of you now. First series was enjoyable, now it's just very soap-ey. And also yes, all political stuff is junk. Although, what did I really expect from an ITV series?

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I find the difference between the UK and US audience hilarious. It is pretty much aimed at middle-aged mums here but it seems to have quite the following amongst more discerning viewers in America. Maybe it has something to do with the ITV stigma (which is justified, what a depressing channel) or the ubiquity of that sort of period drama on British TV.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

...it seems to have quite the following amongst more discerning viewers in America. 

This is why I was intrigued to watch it, I think they've mentioned it in passing on the podcast a few times.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Lol! Sorry, ColourfulStuff, but that's simply not true. It may not be aimed at people in their teens, but it's not aimed at middle-aged mums here, either.

 

It's enjoyable schmaltz  but it got too soapy for me in the fourth episode where they were carrying a dead body around the mansion in the dead of night. Before that moment I found it a fascinating portrayal of the differences in classes -- but then it turned into Dallas with butlers.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I didn't say anything about teens. You said it's soapy, soaps are basically the mum genre and ITV is the mum channel. I'm not sure what the target demo is, I just don't think it's Chris Remo or the other Americans I've heard talk about it. It seems like an odd thing for them to latch onto.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Does Downton Abbey really have a bad reputation in the UK? Personally, I don't see how the show is any better or any worse than other period dramas (Mad Men is an obvious comparison). The first season is a perfect mix of great writing/acting and engaging plots that are schmaltzy, but not so bad that you feel silly for watching. The quality definitely takes a dip in the later seasons (although I haven't seen any of Season 3, so maybe things have improved), but I'm not surprised at all that this type of show is popular.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Does Downton Abbey really have a bad reputation in the UK? Personally, I don't see how the show is any better or any worse than other period dramas (Mad Men is an obvious comparison). The first season is a perfect mix of great writing/acting and engaging plots that are schmaltzy, but not so bad that you feel silly for watching. The quality definitely takes a dip in the later seasons (although I haven't seen any of Season 3, so maybe things have improved), but I'm not surprised at all that this type of show is popular.

 

I'm no great fan of Mad Men, but Downton Abbey isn't even in the same league.  Mad Men at least attempts to maintain some consistency within its characters and some faithfulness to the world & time it's drawn from.  Downton Abbey falls back on caricature with a frequency that makes it hard to believe the producers care about much more than pretty scenery and getting zingers out of Maggie Smith.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Does Downton Abbey really have a bad reputation in the UK?

No, it doesn't. CS is exaggerating. ITV isn't the "mum" channel, it's a huge mainstream channel like the BBC. As such, its programming is very mainstream and "safe", but it's not like the Hallmark Channel or anything like that.

 

I think a lot of British people write it off as "yet another period drama" without actually seeing it, and so are surprised when it's well-regarded, but as soon as you watch it you realise it's much better than that.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I'm no great fan of Mad Men, but Downton Abbey isn't even in the same league.  Mad Men at least attempts to maintain some consistency within its characters and some faithfulness to the world & time it's drawn from.  Downton Abbey falls back on caricature with a frequency that makes it hard to believe the producers care about much more than pretty scenery and getting zingers out of Maggie Smith.

 

I agree that Mad Men is a better show overall, but I was trying to use it as a comparison point to show why it's not surprising that another period drama like Downton Abbey became so popular in the US.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
Sign in to follow this