Thus endeth the world's longest pregnancy. [*sniff*]
I knew it the moment they said "puffy ankles and headache." I'm glad they didn't go with one of those amorphous "died in childbirth" scenarios where you never really know what killed her. WHO estimates an annual mortality rate--STILL--from eclampsia and pre-eclampsia at more than 63,000 (and that's in 2005). My niece had post-partum pre-eclampsia, so I was glad to see it get some air time.
I wonder if the baby will be all right.
Well-acted all around, particularly Elizabeth McGovern, and the ever-astonishing Maggie Smith, who can do more silently and with her back turned than most actresses can do with an entire Shakespeare play. I'm probably a fan-girl heretic, but I never really thought her two seasons of bon-mots were worth the Emmys, but this one moment deserves one.
I also enjoyed seeing the human side of Thomas--both in his attraction to the new footman and his breakdown after Sybil's death.
I must confess to being more than a bit weary of the Mary/Matthew tension. The only way they're going to be able to make that plotline interesting to me is if one of them offs the other by impaling him or her on Granny's cane.
The only way they're going to be able to make that plotline interesting to me is if one of them offs the other by impaling him or her on Granny's cane.
Now THAT could really resuscitate my interest in this show. (Impaling always does.) Wouldn't mind Granny impaling the both of 'em, either. ... Here's hoping S4 will mark the turn to Downton Abbey: The Vigilantism Narrative Remix.
I'm probably a fan-girl heretic, but I never really thought her two seasons of bon-mots were worth the Emmys
No, you're absolutely right; I've thought the same. Funny how often that happens -- someone doesn't get anything for a fantastic performance and then wins for something that's essentially a throw-away.
Interesting (and sad) stats about eclampsia. The one person I've personally known who had it did not die. What a scary condition.
Fortunately, in developed countries, where cesarean section is safe and available, pre-eclampsia is rarely allowed to progresses to full eclampsia, and it's rare to have a mother die. Babies are a different story. My niece recovered fully, but two of my acquaintances who had it during pregnancy had profoundly injured babies (one died and the other is severely brain-injured.)
I doubt they'll go down this route on DA, but it wouldn't strain credulity if Little Sybil turned out to have a brain injury, given how severely her mother's body was deprived of oxygen. They also hinted that the baby had intra-uterine growth retardation, which suggests Sybil had been pre-ecclamptic for a considerable time before she became acutely ill.
I knew it the moment they said "puffy ankles and headache." I'm glad they didn't go with one of those amorphous "died in childbirth" scenarios where you never really know what killed her. WHO estimates an annual mortality rate--STILL--from eclampsia and pre-eclampsia at more than 63,000 (and that's in 2005). My niece had post-partum pre-eclampsia, so I was glad to see it get some air time.
I wonder if the baby will be all right.
Well-acted all around, particularly Elizabeth McGovern, and the ever-astonishing Maggie Smith, who can do more silently and with her back turned than most actresses can do with an entire Shakespeare play. I'm probably a fan-girl heretic, but I never really thought her two seasons of bon-mots were worth the Emmys, but this one moment deserves one.
I also enjoyed seeing the human side of Thomas--both in his attraction to the new footman and his breakdown after Sybil's death.
I must confess to being more than a bit weary of the Mary/Matthew tension. The only way they're going to be able to make that plotline interesting to me is if one of them offs the other by impaling him or her on Granny's cane.
I'm intrigued by the O'Brien plotline, though.
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Now THAT could really resuscitate my interest in this show. (Impaling always does.) Wouldn't mind Granny impaling the both of 'em, either. ... Here's hoping S4 will mark the turn to Downton Abbey: The Vigilantism Narrative Remix.
Reply
No, you're absolutely right; I've thought the same. Funny how often that happens -- someone doesn't get anything for a fantastic performance and then wins for something that's essentially a throw-away.
Interesting (and sad) stats about eclampsia. The one person I've personally known who had it did not die. What a scary condition.
Reply
I doubt they'll go down this route on DA, but it wouldn't strain credulity if Little Sybil turned out to have a brain injury, given how severely her mother's body was deprived of oxygen. They also hinted that the baby had intra-uterine growth retardation, which suggests Sybil had been pre-ecclamptic for a considerable time before she became acutely ill.
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