Return to Cranford: An Unanswered Question

Contains mild spoilers. My Mom and I pondered on this:

What happened to the Buxton’s plot device, er, I mean dog, Napolean?

Some theories:

1) Master Harry’s family killed it for food while the baby cried and cried and cried.

2) Lady Ludlow’s son and his Italian mustache boyfriend took it back to Italy with them where they all lived happily ever after.

3) The elder Mr. Buxton stabbed it to death with a ceremonial dagger in an elaborate ritual to make Peggy’s greedy idiot brother his son instead of William.

4) The Old Biddies smothered it with their lace to punish Peggy and William for their public depravity, having been shocked at how she allowed him to brush crumbs off her skirt. I can hear Miss Mattie’s sister saying that one does not permit one’s husband to brush one’s crumbs, even in one’s private bedchamber, until after one year of marriage, if at all, ever. “That is the way here in Cranford.”

5) The pastor accidentally ran it over with his carriage and felt bad until he recalled his humiliation when the dog interrupted his church service.

6) It died unexpectedly of (fill-in-the-blank).

7) Handsome Peter got bored of Cranford and took it back to India with him. Disappointing Peter is an actor he hired to fool Mattie & the Old Biddies.

Return to Cranford

Like Cranford, also watched with my Mom, Grandma Sloth.

If Cranford was like being welcomed for a fortnight Return to Cranford was like being rushed through tea. Very much a sequel but still full of charm and people unexpectedly dropping dead. The humor & characterization is a bit broader, a beloved character from the first series is barely featured, and events more contrived, yet there is still humor, (rushed) romance for young and old alike, adorable youngsters in peril and Old Biddies who dither about in their bonnets.

I must single out Imelda Staunton. Whether sharply warning her fellow biddies to avoid looking out a moving train’s window lest it fray their optic nerve or getting twitterpated by a traveling magician (the always magnificently hammy Tim Curry) she made Grandma Sloth & I just howl.

The acting is still top notch, with new additions like Jonathan Pryce with an unfortunate beard, young’uns would know him as Governor Swann from the Pirates of the Caribbean series. Also Tom Hiddleston AKA Loki, who shows up with blonde curly hair so we know he’s not evil but his Cranford character has Daddy issues too.

To continue with this hair theme some dude showed up with fluffy Fabian hair and an outrageous mustache. He was supposed to be Italian. I mention him because he threw up and had no lines. All the poor dear had was his crowning glory.

Most distressingly, however, is that there was an exceedingly distinguished and attractive (by any standard) older gentleman introduced at the end of the first series named Peter. In this series he is played by an ?attractive? (even by British standards) random dude as zany comic relief. What the frack, Cranford?Grandma Sloth & I were not satisfied with this new Peter. One should not switch Peters mid-series.

We were very satisfied with Emma Thompson’s real-life husband Greg Wise, who played the dashing Willoughby in Sense & Sensibility. He had a small role in this series but was very diverting when on screen. Brava, Emma!

Yes there were younger women in this & they were wonderful but this is my review so that’s all I’ve got to say about them.

I do so much enjoy these BBC productions. I think in another life I was some old biddie back in the day saying things like ‘poor dear,’ doing my sewing, and listening to the men talking in their accents which I may have mentioned before I could happily do all day long.