Top Ten Lines from Downton Abbey, Episode 6

Well now, wasn’t that fun?

I’m finally catching my breath after a “crazy-busy” weekend (just had to throw in that phrase for certain family members who may be reading). And then there was all the Valentine’s Day baking I needed to do. Oh, and the small matter of a job I had to go to yesterday.

All that to say, I didn’t get to watch Downton Abbey until last night. And a two-hour episode at that! I’m exhausted.

Just in case you didn’t know how things went down in the UK when this was first aired, last Sunday’s episode was, I think, two separate episodes originally (I don’t know why they put them together here this week), and that was the end of Season 2. Those poor folks had to wait several months before they got to see the Christmas episode which will air, I believe, next week here.

So, if you were living in the UK, watching Downton Abbey for the first time, you were left with plenty of unanswered questions about Jane, Mr. Bates, M&M, and even Sybil (but really, who cares much about the Sybil storyline?). What a drought that would have been!

Thankfully, we’ll get some answers next week. I hope.

But for now, we get to ponder some of the best lines in television. You just gotta love that dry, British humor. I am loving the subtlety and the irony and the sarcastic put-downs.

And because I’m loving the banter so much, and because the episode we saw in the US was originally two episodes in the UK, and because it’s Valentine’s Day, I’m giving you a treat.

Oh yes, gentle reader, you’ll not only get my FIVE favorite lines from this week’s DA episode, you’re getting my top TEN lines.

I know you’re thrilled, so let’s get started.

Number 10. Wow! What a debacle in the dining room, huh? I thought Carson was going to blow a gasket up there when Edith showed up with the baby. He couldn’t get rid of her fast enough.

Carson: "Edith, how did you get here?"

Edith: "I took the bus and walked up from the village."

Carson: "Then could you reverse the process as quickly as possible?"

Number 9. Sir Richard was up to his tricks again this week and because of his shenanigans Carson declined his offer to come help with Mary after the wedding. (How dare he?) Mary is back to her Season 1 self when she says to Carson, “So you think you’d be uncomfortable working for a . . . spy master? How disappointing of you. And I always thought you were fond of me.”

Number 8. Speaking of Mary . . .

Sir Richard: "Are you still in love with Matthew Crawley?"

Mary: “Of course not. Would I ever admit to loving a man who preferred someone else over me?”

Seems to me she didn’t really answer his question, did she?

Number 7. 

Lord Grantham (after learning that Matthew can stand): “My dear chap, I cannot begin to tell you what this means to me.”

Matthew: “Well, it’s pretty good news for me too.”

See what I mean about that dry humor?

Lord Grantham was having quite a night, wasn’t he? I hardly know what to say about his Edwardian mid-life crisis. As one of my girls said, “The most disgusting mid-life crisis ever.” But that was kind of central to the plot this week, so I think I have to add a couple of Lord G. quotes.

Number 6. Lord Grantham (to Jane): “I’m a foolish man who’s lost his way and don’t quite know how to find it again.” Then the kiss.

I’ll tell you how to find your way, Lord G. Get a job!

And while we’re on the subject, here’s one more pathetic, whiney quote from the angst-ridden Lord himself:

Jane: “Will you be happy?”

Lord G. : “I have no right to be unhappy, which is almost the same.”

Poor you.

Moving on.

Number 5. How about the scene where Anna tells Mary that she and Mr. Bates are getting married?

Anna: “Can you keep a secret?” Mary gives her a wry glance, harkening the viewer back to the Mr. Pamuk escapade. “Well, I know you can.”

Number 4.

“I, John Bates, take you, Anna Mae Smith, to be my wedded wife.” 

*swoon*

But did anyone else find it creepy when he called Anna “Mrs. Bates” on their wedding night? (“Well, Mrs. Bates, you’ve had your way with me.”) I mean, Mrs. Bates, in my mind, is Vera who is now dead and who, by the way, is still wreaking havoc in their lives.

I think he should just leave Mrs. Bates out of this.

Number 3.

Violet to Edith: “Don’t be defeatist, my girl. It’s very middle class.”

Ah, Violet, I will love you till the day I die.

So, of course, she gets top billing yet again this week for these gems.

Number 2. After much celebration over Matthew’s sudden recovery from some “spinal bruising,” Lord G. asks his mother to stay for dinner.

Lord G.: "Mamma, will you stay?"

Violet: "Oh certainly. All this unbridled joy has given me quite an appetite."

Number 1. My favorite line of the night which will, I’m sure, remain in my lexicon for quite a while, was Violet’s marriage advice to Matthew:

“Just let me say this one thing: Marriage is a long business. There’s no getting out of it for our kind of people.”

With that, I bid you a Happy Valentine’s Day!

Now tell me, what was YOUR favorite line from Downton Abbey this week?

Linking this post with Oh Amanda's Top Ten Tuesday. Jump on over there to read more!