Oh sure, there are a lot of things I could say about the fifth season finale of Downton Abbey. Like, I can’t believe we still don’t know who killed Mr. Greene. And I’m worried that Matthew Goode may cheat on Alicia Florrick with Mary. And seriously—isn’t Larry the worst?
But nothing else really matters because Mrs. Hughes and Mr. Carson are getting married! Wasn’t that scene just the best? Those two have been quietly pining for each other for five long seasons in the most repressed way possible. But then when Mrs. Hughes confesses that she cannot buy property with Mr. Carson because she doesn’t have any savings, Mr. Carson buys the house and puts both their names on it and proposes in his awkward way. “Of course I’ll marry you, I thought you’d never ask,” Mrs. Hughes tells him. Love them.
Shrimpie has tracked down Princess Kuragin and brought her to England. Turns out the Princess is even more unpleasant than Violet has let on. She’s a miserable person made even more miserable by her circumstances. Even though the Prince is reunited with his wife, he still makes a play for Violet who tells him, “I’m surprised you think there is still a decision to be made” before sending him on his way. “I will never again receive an immoral proposition from a man,” she laments to Isobel. But Isobel and everyone else wonders why Violet has gone to such lengths to help the Princess given that she is so wretched. Finally Violet confesses to Isobel that years ago in Russia, she was set to run away with the Prince and the Princess physically stopped her. The Princess, Violet explains, saved her from ruin, the loss of her children and a life in the shadows. “She saved me and I saved her,” Violet says.
Isobel is equally unlucky in love. She tells Lord Merton that she’ll only marry him if he can get his children to come around. She doesn’t want to spend her final years caught between her husband and his sons. But Larry won’t budge and sends Isobel a letter saying as much, so Isobel breaks off her engagement. As Violet points out, the only person who can possibly be happy with this outcome is Dr. Clarkson.
While all this is going on the rest of the family is off at a shooting party at Brancaster Castle, at the invitation of Rose’s father-in-law Lord Sinderby. Lord Sinderby is still awful and has refused to invite either of Rose’s parents because they are getting divorced. He cannot abide divorce. He can, however, abide having a child out of wedlock with his mistress. When the mistress arrives unexpectedly with her son in tow, Rose covers for him, saving him from embarrassment and Lady Sinderby from humiliation. “Rose, my dear, you are clever, kind and resourceful,” he tells her. So basically, “save me from my mistress, welcome to the family!”
Lord Sinderby’s butler Stowell is also awful, and he is up to date on all the Grantham family gossip. Stowell refuses to serve Tom because Tom was once just a driver. Mary implores upon Mrs. Baxter to get Thomas to “come up with something.” First Thomas just gets the butler to serve Lord Sinderby the wrong meal but when Lord Sinderby yells at him, Thomas ups his game —hence the unexpected arrival of his mistress.