Call the Midwife 3.05
In which we meet a new recurring character, a crisis makes buried resentments resurface and the case of the week is something that hasn't happened on this show yet. Incidentally, I can review this episode on schedule because I'm in Britain, whereas Elementary has to wait until I get back.
Other than the fact she's a redhead, went to school in a Catholic convent and disliked the nuns there and apparantly is very competent, there's not much yet one can say about new midwife Patsy. However, while the episode introduced her it was focused mainly on Sister Evangelina, Shelagh, Chummy & Peter, and of course the case of the week.
Sister Julienne collapsing from all the stress and needing a week or two of quiet retreat as well means Shelagh helps out at Nonnatus House with administration. And that in turn means Sister Evangelina, who is simultanously going through a crisis because of her younger brother the alcoholic tramp returning, repeatedly lashes out at her verbally; the first indication is that she calls her frostily "Mrs. Turner" (the only one to do so; Sister Julienne switched immediately from "Bernadette" to "Shelagh", and the other midwives did as well), but it gets worse before it gets better, with digs about "some of us taking our vows seriously" and then the "you are the last person to tell me anything about the religious life". Now one reason is that Sister Evangelina feels guilty and torn about her brother and is venting at a convenient target - once she's shared her secret about her brother, she's friendly towards Shelagh again and offers well-meant and good advice re: Timothy - but at the same time, I think there was some real enough resentment in her towards Bernadette/Shelagh leaving the order for a while, which grew and waited to burst out. Whereas Sister Monica Joan voiced her distress about Bernadette leaving immediately but once it was voiced got past it completely, and Sister Julienne supported her from the start. I think it's realistic, given that the numbers of the nuns are dwindling and Sister Evangelina has always been of a soldierly onwards, comrades mind frame, that she'd be the one to see Bernadette becoming Shelagh as a desertion, and to hold a grudge about that while trying not to. (BTW, it's also worth noting that Shelagh, who still instinctively sits down with the nuns rather than with the lay midwives at the table and sings mass, did not lose her own temper or was guilt tripped by Sister Evangelina's digs, partly perhaps because her own emotional insecurities are currently focused on whether or not she can be a good mother to Timothy, but partly, imo, also because she's now secure enough in having made the right decision and in the awareness that Sister Evangelina's temporary lashing out doesn't mean her old community rejects her.) (She was also confident in her ability to fill in for Sister Julienne as a temporary administrator, justifiably so.)
At the same time, this is the episode where we find out a bit about Sister Evangelina's pre-clerical existence, and even her original name, Enid. That her younger brother, Vincent, was both the first baby she saw born (and who made her become a midwife) and a homeless alcoholic who while occasionally recovering so far also has always relapsed reminded me a bit about last week's Elementary with the revelation about Joan Watson's mentally ill bio dad; that situation where you can't not care but also are aware that you can't really help (beyond the material level like food and shelter). The episode ended with a tentative note of hope as far as Vincent was concerned as he came together with all the other adult and young people whom Sister Evangelina had delivered as a midwife to her Jubilee, which I thought was just right; there was no promise he'd be able to stay sober from now on, but he was there for her on that day, together with all the others who thanked her, and that gave her joy and comfort.
In the case of the week, we had a woman with Down Syndrome turning out, to the horror of her parents, being pregnant. Now I have no knowledge about Down Syndrome whatsoever, and none about the condition Jacob was suffering from, either, but I thought the episode dealt with an extremely tricky subject delicately. On the one hand, it was an affectionate relationship, on the other, can a woman in this condition give meaningful consent? The room for exploitation is just too big, and so the decision of the matron to have Jacob transferred was understandable. No one was vilified. Mind you, the episode got around another obvious problem by letting the baby be miscarried, because otherwise: who would care for a baby of two very handicapped people, one of them so mentally handicapped that even the concept of pregnancy was hard to grasp and the other so physically handicaped that he couldn't drink on his own? The grandparents, presumably, but they weren't getting any younger.
Lastly: this is the second episode or so in which the new Reverend was intermittendly showing up in helpful ways. Methinks he'll end up becoming someone's new love interest.
This entry was originally posted at http://selenak.dreamwidth.org/964174.html. Comment there or here, as you wish.
Other than the fact she's a redhead, went to school in a Catholic convent and disliked the nuns there and apparantly is very competent, there's not much yet one can say about new midwife Patsy. However, while the episode introduced her it was focused mainly on Sister Evangelina, Shelagh, Chummy & Peter, and of course the case of the week.
Sister Julienne collapsing from all the stress and needing a week or two of quiet retreat as well means Shelagh helps out at Nonnatus House with administration. And that in turn means Sister Evangelina, who is simultanously going through a crisis because of her younger brother the alcoholic tramp returning, repeatedly lashes out at her verbally; the first indication is that she calls her frostily "Mrs. Turner" (the only one to do so; Sister Julienne switched immediately from "Bernadette" to "Shelagh", and the other midwives did as well), but it gets worse before it gets better, with digs about "some of us taking our vows seriously" and then the "you are the last person to tell me anything about the religious life". Now one reason is that Sister Evangelina feels guilty and torn about her brother and is venting at a convenient target - once she's shared her secret about her brother, she's friendly towards Shelagh again and offers well-meant and good advice re: Timothy - but at the same time, I think there was some real enough resentment in her towards Bernadette/Shelagh leaving the order for a while, which grew and waited to burst out. Whereas Sister Monica Joan voiced her distress about Bernadette leaving immediately but once it was voiced got past it completely, and Sister Julienne supported her from the start. I think it's realistic, given that the numbers of the nuns are dwindling and Sister Evangelina has always been of a soldierly onwards, comrades mind frame, that she'd be the one to see Bernadette becoming Shelagh as a desertion, and to hold a grudge about that while trying not to. (BTW, it's also worth noting that Shelagh, who still instinctively sits down with the nuns rather than with the lay midwives at the table and sings mass, did not lose her own temper or was guilt tripped by Sister Evangelina's digs, partly perhaps because her own emotional insecurities are currently focused on whether or not she can be a good mother to Timothy, but partly, imo, also because she's now secure enough in having made the right decision and in the awareness that Sister Evangelina's temporary lashing out doesn't mean her old community rejects her.) (She was also confident in her ability to fill in for Sister Julienne as a temporary administrator, justifiably so.)
At the same time, this is the episode where we find out a bit about Sister Evangelina's pre-clerical existence, and even her original name, Enid. That her younger brother, Vincent, was both the first baby she saw born (and who made her become a midwife) and a homeless alcoholic who while occasionally recovering so far also has always relapsed reminded me a bit about last week's Elementary with the revelation about Joan Watson's mentally ill bio dad; that situation where you can't not care but also are aware that you can't really help (beyond the material level like food and shelter). The episode ended with a tentative note of hope as far as Vincent was concerned as he came together with all the other adult and young people whom Sister Evangelina had delivered as a midwife to her Jubilee, which I thought was just right; there was no promise he'd be able to stay sober from now on, but he was there for her on that day, together with all the others who thanked her, and that gave her joy and comfort.
In the case of the week, we had a woman with Down Syndrome turning out, to the horror of her parents, being pregnant. Now I have no knowledge about Down Syndrome whatsoever, and none about the condition Jacob was suffering from, either, but I thought the episode dealt with an extremely tricky subject delicately. On the one hand, it was an affectionate relationship, on the other, can a woman in this condition give meaningful consent? The room for exploitation is just too big, and so the decision of the matron to have Jacob transferred was understandable. No one was vilified. Mind you, the episode got around another obvious problem by letting the baby be miscarried, because otherwise: who would care for a baby of two very handicapped people, one of them so mentally handicapped that even the concept of pregnancy was hard to grasp and the other so physically handicaped that he couldn't drink on his own? The grandparents, presumably, but they weren't getting any younger.
Lastly: this is the second episode or so in which the new Reverend was intermittendly showing up in helpful ways. Methinks he'll end up becoming someone's new love interest.
This entry was originally posted at http://selenak.dreamwidth.org/964174.html. Comment there or here, as you wish.