Downton Abbey - 3x5 "Episode 21" Full Reaction
Added 2022-11-19 06:01:45 +0000 UTC
Comments
New patron here; just wanted to say that while this for me is by far the saddest moment in the show and Sybil was my absolute favourite character - I liked how the creators ended her story. Obviously I would’ve preferred it if she could’ve lived happily with Tom but that would’ve either meant forcing the actress to stay on or kicking poor Tom’s actor off the show as well. I would never have been satisfied with the hand-waved disappearance of my favourite character and I don’t think many people argue with that. To keep Tom tied to Downton and in the story and yet remove Sybil leaves the writers with so few options. And while it’s painful and somewhat cliche, there’s also something just tragically mundane and anticlimactic about her death. As the Dowager Countess said; “She, like too many women before her, has died in childbirth.” Her entire character shows the struggles of a young woman at the turn of the century and I don’t think it’s out of place that her final act is to portray this desperate and often heartbreaking reality. TLDR; best option available to the writers to maintain continuity while also providing the audience with closure for the loss of an adored character.
memoir_of_a_daydream
2023-04-12 09:51:28 +0000 UTCThis episode is designed to take the greatest emotional toll possible. And I so agree that this episode hits different and harder now than it did 10 years ago. There is now treatment for preeclampsia but there's no cure for old white man hubris.
Jojo77
2022-11-23 02:58:12 +0000 UTCI sympathize! Sybil was such a bright light on Downton Abbey, that was extinguished too soon!
Suzanne Hunt
2022-11-22 13:58:32 +0000 UTCI have watched Downton Abbey all the way through multiple times. I still can't watch this episode without going through Kleenex by the handful.
Rosanne Stewart
2022-11-22 01:55:31 +0000 UTCShelley,will you please consider reacting to the 2 Downton Abbey movies 🎬 after you finish the series? Thanks 😊
Suzanne Hunt
2022-11-21 10:15:41 +0000 UTCI simply ❤️ Sybil! I think this is best possible storyline for Sybil to leave the show ! She has a daughter and Tom can stick around. It's also very melodramatic and well acted! I cried the first time I saw this episode too, Shelley! All the goodbyes with Sybil's body were excruciating!
Suzanne Hunt
2022-11-21 10:06:14 +0000 UTCI never said she would definitely survive at the hospital. But she’d be no worse off there than she would be at the house, which, as we see, ended with her dead. I’m any event, they went about it all in very much the wrong way. As for her character being gone, neither of the options you present — death or leaving Tom — are the only ones. They could have done any number of other things, such as her getting a job, and simply have her not show up on-screen. She’d be off the show yet alive and well. Instead, they chose a torturous, gendered death that was entirely unnecessary.
Laurel
2022-11-20 02:15:45 +0000 UTCA lot of ifs and maybes in there, there's no proof anything would have changed had they gone to the hospital, if she would even have survived the trip or delivery at all. It's a death, seldom no matter what the circumstances is it fair, or a happy occasion. I agree that it would have been good to talk to Tom, but there might not even have been time. But there's no pleasing everyone, if they had had it be an accident, or even something like that, that would have upset other people, as she likely would have been killed offscreen,(that would be seen as cheap by many) as I doubt they would've shown a gruesome death. I also doubt they would have just had her pass away from a disease because they would think it would be too similar the the situation with Lavinia. So then they would have had to have her just leave, abandoning her family/husband... that's not in her character. And they couldn't just have them move farther away, as that would force the actor for Tom out as well, because why would he still be around w/o Sybil, or in this case the baby. IMO even if it's sad, how they did it was a very possible scenario in that time period and makes sense.
BJ Stephens
2022-11-20 01:02:06 +0000 UTCThis episode breaks my heart. Sybil did so much in life and could have done so much more. She was one of my favourites too. She was such a lovely person too. And my heart breaks for Tom - cut off from his country, now his wife died, and he's not that close with any of the family here (except perhaps Matthew). And Cora, desperately trying to get people to listen only to lose her child because they wouldn't. That scene with her talking to Sybil's body is so sad, and I'm glad they let it be a quiet scene, not dramatic. I agree about how the other stuff in the episode gets overshadowed. Pretty much everyone, me included, is so invested in Anna and Bates, but even they kinda fade into the background here and I would rather it just waited till next episode. Though one of the things that does worry me is Thomas. O'Brien seems to be setting him up to think Jimmy is into him, and with Thomas so affected by Sybil's death, he might not be thinking clearly and might act on that to try to get comfort. And yeah, the string of things this episode that are due (at least in part) to sexism and women having so little chance. Sybil, Cora, Ethel... It's infuriating, especially - as you said - knowing that a lot of things are still present in our culture today, still doing harm (or worse).
StarlitTardis
2022-11-19 17:21:08 +0000 UTCYeah, this episode was brutal. Even worse that it's the last one on the schedule before the holidays. I'm *still* mad about her death and it's been like two years since I watched the episode for the first time. It's so unfair and frustrating. I read that they killed her off because the actress didn't want to do more than three seasons, but it'd have been easy and so much better IMO to make it so she could leave while also still being, you know, not DEAD IN CHILDBIRTH. I know that's what happened to many, many women back then, but that doesn't make it any better. Not the least of which because of all the posturing and ego that was being flung around. Obviously C-sections were risky back then as well, and Sybil may well have died anyway because of it, but at least she'd have had a chance. Insane, too, that not only did they not consult Sybil on any of it (a bit unclear as to when her mind started to wander or if it came in waves or not, but there should at least have been a discussion beforehand of some sort), they didn't even consult Tom, her husband and the baby's father, until it was too late. And as we saw, he would've opted to take her to the hospital like Cora suggested. Ugh.
Laurel
2022-11-19 06:51:05 +0000 UTC
