They say the Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away. Well, this also applies to Lord of West Stafford DL, better known as Downton Abbey creator Julian Fellowes. (SPOILERS AHEAD) Last night he did both to Lady Mary, giving her the son she's so long pined for and then taking away her husband just before the final credits rolled.
It's a move that scandalized the UK when this episode played on Christmas Day there. And with PBS finally airing the episode last night in the US, Americans are caught up and dully outraged. I mean, just think of what we've gone through!
We saw Mary and Matthew's tense introduction, their initial distaste for each other, the spark of romance. That brewed into a passion they couldn't ignore—even if it hurt the painfully sweet Lavinia! But life with Matthew would mean life without children because of his war injury…but maybe not? Then finally, they are married and trying for a baby in the face of all they suffered, which included the recent death of Mary's sister Sybil in childbirth. The fates seemed kind to Mary and Matthew for the first time, giving them a newborn son with no signs of trouble. But then, Matthew up and died.
We've already told you the real-world why of this decision. But to see how Americans took to this shocking plot twist, we took to Twitter. Below we offer a selection of our favorite reactions:
