Can we just take a moment to appreciate this moment for Violet? As decently enjoyable as the last episode was, I do feel like Violet was rather shortchanged in it, and as everyone else paired off (bar Thomas), with on-screen endings that suggested future off-screen happiness, her fate was rather more… well, there was nothing. I had rather reconciled myself to the fact that Kuragin would not be back, but even with that understanding in place, it’s hard to watch the episode and not come away with a sad feeling when it comes to Violet, something which I think is rather summed up in the moment above.
I’m not entirely sure Violet was expecting Isobel to declare her intent to marry Dickie in the scene above. In the back of her mind the prospect was probably there - after all she called out Isobel as being in love with him - but I don’t think she thought an engagement would happen right then and there (and certainly not in the middle of the rescue mission) - I think she thought she had more time to adjust to the prospect again. She seemed momentarily stunned at the news, although to her credit, she very quickly recovered from the shock. And yet despite that recovery, her expression as Isobel and Dickie walk upstairs is so very bittersweet. She’s happy for her best friend, but she knows that everything, in a matter of seconds, has changed for her. She is no longer the centre of Isobel’s life as Isobel is for her. The dynamic can never be the same. They will remains best friends, but things have shifted. In a single moment we see Violet’s loneliness - and, also her growth - she’s putting the happiness of her friend first before her own feelings. I suspect if anyone else had been playing Violet, we never would have got the subtle shift in expression, but Maggie Smith’s gift has always been layering a performance. We see it again in the scene with Cora at the end, when Violet in effect gives up the reigns forever. She’s proud of Cora, but there is also a genuine sadness in her eyes - it’s another thing she’s lost. It’s hard not to come away from the episode feeling like Violet had quietly, and with no fuss, said goodbye to her time and era. Yes, she has the last line, a joke about if only she could turn back time, but that is typical of her - she’s now made peace with her fate, accepted her end is on the way, and that she’s but a footnote now, but she can still joke about it, even if it’s breaking her heart.
pixelskylines
vaporwave
jacobvanloon
theartofmadeline
origamiaround
turnnoffyourmind
