Downton Abbey

Downton Abbey (2010-present, creator Julian Fellowes) is a British period drama taking place in the 1910's and centering on the lives of all the occupants of a large English manor house, from the Earl of Grantham (Hugh Bonneville) and his family to the servants and staff members. It feels very much like a classic novel adaptation, only it's an original story. The major themes are the end of an era and the changing of the times as World War I and the changing technological landscape of the 20th century push aside the family's rather Victorian way of living.

The story opens in 1912 when the heir to the estate dies in the Titanic disaster, and a distant relative, Matthew Crawley (Dan Stevens), becomes the new heir. (The Earl only has daughters.) Nobody likes the arrangement at first--Matthew would rather continue being a lawyer than get mixed up in upper-class politics--but as the family endures hardship together, they are brought closer together. Romantic tension between Matthew and eldest daughter Lady Mary (Michelle Dockery) is one of the major centerpieces of the first two seasons (all that have aired as of this writing), and the two are constantly coming up with reasons it would not be honorable to be together. Remarking on all this with her trademark wit is the Earl's mother, the Dowager Countess (Maggie Smith). On the servant side, the first episode also introduces a new valet for the Earl, the mysterious Mr. Bates (Brendan Coyle), who seems to have enough secrets from his past to fill as many seasons as necessary, and who spurs the ire of the fan-favorite scheming butler Thomas (Rob James-Collier).

Downton is a difficult type of show to "Key Episode," as it's a slow-moving, character-centric, episodic soap. Episodes are not so much self-contained story units as installments, and each one is designed to contain a fair amount of story and to be watched sequentially. Many episodes contain time skips. Because time and pacing are major elements of the show, the most honest way to get a taste for it would probably be to watch any three episodes in a row, rather than skipping around.

However. I have a job to do. And I am here to do it.

Top 5 Key Episodes (So Far)

1.3 "Episode Three": The first two episodes set up important story elements, particularly w/r/t the central Matthew storyline, but most of what you need to know is in the above summary. This is the first episode in which major, surprising events happen which set in motion the conflicts and scandals that will be hidden, uncovered and referenced throughout the rest of the series. Lady Mary becomes involved with a dashing Turkish visitor; modern-girl-stuck-in-the-past Lady Sybil (Jessica Brown-Findlay) encourages a maid to become a typist; Mr. Bates tries to cure his own limp.

1.6 "Episode Six": Everyone seems to have something character-typical to do here. An important Matthew and Mary episode, as they finally bond after episodes of hating and snubbing each other, but rumors about the scandal from episode 3 abound. The Dowager Countess and Mary's mother Cora (Elizabeth McGovern) form a rare alliance to try to convince Mary to entrap Matthew before he finds out, but this goes against Mary's conscience. Meanwhile, Sybil gets involves in a women's suffrage demonstration which turns violent; overlooked middle daughter Edith (Laura Carmichael) flirts with an older man; Thomas schemes and schemes.

2.5 "Episode Five": Everything turns upside-down in season 2 as World War I transforms the world. Most of the young men go off to war and return in various states of ill health (one servant has PTSD; Thomas purposely gets himself shot to come home) and Downton is turned into a temporary convalescence home. Lady Sybil becomes a nurse, Lady Edith becomes a tractor driver, and everyone else pitches in in their own way. This is the episode in which Matthew and batboy William (Thomas Howes) return in terrible condition. This is a tear-jerker episode, one of the most melodramatic ever. Meanwhile, Mr. Bates's evil ex-wife tries to prevent his remarriage by blackmailing him with Mary's scandal, and Mary begs for help from a powerful ally (Iain Glen, aka Ser Jorah from Game of Thrones).

2.8 "Episode Eight": In the season 2 finale, almost all the major plotlines from the first two seasons are wrapped up in one way or another. I'm not a fan of all the plot twists, but I'll refrain from editorial comments. Matthew's fiancee is ill; Lady Sybil runs off with the chauffeur; and Mr. Bates is suspected for the murder of his evil ex-wife.

"Christmas Special": Occurring after season 2, the special further wraps up the season with tense courtroom drama involved Mr. Bates and a cheesy beyond-the-veil reaction to Matthew and Mary's continued I'm-convinced-it's-wrong-now flirtation. Plus, a Christmas dance!

Bonus Episodes

The rest of them. There are only sixteen total episodes so far, and they all move along the plot at a pretty rapid pace.