After Far Too Much Waiting . . .

. . . I finally watched the very first episode of Downton Abbey earlier this week. That took much longer than it should for any self-respecting period drama fanatic.

And I was fully satisfied that I made the right choice in just buying the entire first season, trusting the good taste of my friends. ;) It boggles my mind just how well the stage was set for all these characters to go about their various schemes, well-meaning or not-so-well-meaning.

And now I just want a week off to catch up on every single episode! Maggie Smith was magnificent, as expected. Michelle Dockery was sublime, as expected. (I don't know why Mary hated wearing black--her black dress was SPECTACULAR, and suited her very well indeed.) There were some elements I was definitely NOT expecting, though. *cough* An . . . unconventional illustration of why you do NOT dally with a Duke. *cough*

I don't know how I'm going to tip-toe around spoilers on tumblr, though. This is going to be quite the challenge!

Feel free to spam me with GIFs from the first episode--I'm having a hard time finding some amidst all the rest of them!