Gentleman Jack Re-watch - S1E1 - I Was Just Passing
Three minutes into the episode and we’re reminded that Anne’s father and Aunt both know what Anne ‘gets up to’ and deliberately avoid processing that information further than they need to.
They know something went south with Anne’s arrangement with Miss. Hobart in Hastings and you can tell from their voices they suspect what it was, but again...they aren’t going to speculate in front of company.
Company: Why is Anne coming back to Shibden?
Jeremy & Aunt Anne: Obviously she got dumped again. We just don’t know the details.
It’s not long after Anne arrives home when Aunt Anne goes looking for the story.
Aunt Anne has already had the thought of placing Miss Walker in the direct path of her lady-loving niece but it’s here she decides to plant the seeds, so to speak and “ship it” for her niece’s sake.
At the time Anne is still upset about Miss Hobart and is like, ‘yeah, whatever Aunty’, but later on Aunt Anne tries again and suggests one of the Lister sisters should befriend Miss Walker and be a “companion”. She stops short of doing a “nudge nudge, wink wink” because they didn’t do that in 1832, but she might as well have. Anne catches on this time. And oh, just in time too because it’s announced that Miss Walker and her nosy cousins are downstairs!
Cue Anne’s epiphany and her master class in how to woo a lady in the 1830’s (or anytime in history).
Pleasant greeting of others, saving the target of wooing for last
Greet enthusiastically, as though there has never been a more wonderful person to see again
Sit close enough to cause a slight fluster
Take control of the conversation by presenting a well-informed opinion
Include her in said conversation even though she has zero interest and/or knowledge of the topic, and knowing that, masterfully steer her back out of the conversation while making it seem as though she somehow contributed
Observe how she shuts down when a man attempts to woo her and immediately have him yeeted
Blatantly flirt with her while she melts while her cousins look on with their ‘gals being pals’ goggles on
8. Ignore sister rolling her eyes at the performance
So the game is on for Anne at this point. She’s going to get Shibden Hall fixed up, look into the coal mining business, and get herself a wife!
The end of the episode is a dream many of us on Tumblr have had...a capable lesbian speed walking showing up on our doorstep to woo us.
(Honestly, Suranne Jones has taken this role and thoroughly owned it)
One last break of the fourth wall before she goes to get her girl..
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