{"id":48270,"date":"2022-01-25T17:32:06","date_gmt":"2022-01-25T17:32:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/graziamagazine.com\/us\/?post_type=articles&p=48270"},"modified":"2022-02-08T14:16:27","modified_gmt":"2022-02-08T14:16:27","slug":"gilded-age-who-are-we-shipping-american-downton","status":"publish","type":"articles","link":"https:\/\/graziamagazine.com\/us\/articles\/gilded-age-who-are-we-shipping-american-downton\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018The Gilded Age\u2019: Who Are We Shipping on the American \u2018Downton\u2019?"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Harry
Harry Richardson, Louisa Jacobson and Taissa Farmiga in The Gilded Age<\/i> (Photo: Alison Rosa\/HBO)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The Gilded Age<\/em>, HBO\u2019s gorgeous, splashy new period drama<\/a> from Downton Abbey<\/em><\/a> creator Julian Fellowes arrived last night swathed in silks, buttressed by bustles and simmering with intra-class conflict. The series seems largely preoccupied with the struggles of the nouveau riche\u2014robber barons like George Russell (Morgan Spector) and his social climbing wife Berta (Carrie Coon)\u2014to be accepted by New York\u2019s old guard, as represented by Agnes van Rhijn (Christine Baranski).<\/p>\n

But as any Downton <\/em>fan knows, Fellowes loves to spice up his upper crust soaps with romantic melodrama that is intimately intertwined with the social status of his characters. No bodices were ripped<\/a> in the premiere and no one\u2019s fortune has yet been endangered due to an ill-advised tryst, but it\u2019s clearly only a matter of time before a star-crossed, old money\/new money pairing emerges to pull our heartstrings taught across the class divide. And while Episode 1, \u201cNever the New,\u201d mostly only hinted at the various nascent entanglements ahead, we\u2019ve got some ideas about who should end up with whom.<\/p>\n

\"Blake
Blake Ritson as Oscar van Rhijn in The Gilded Age<\/i> (Photo: Alison Rosa\/HBO)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
Larry and Oscar <\/strong><\/h5>\n

Literally the moment the Russells\u2019 son Larry (Harry Richardson) appeared onscreen, I thought, \u201cOh, here\u2019s the gay.\u201d My initial read on the recent Harvard grad\u2019s notable resistance to his mother\u2019s overbearing interest in his romantic and social life, as well as a certain\u2026delicate sweetness in Richardson\u2019s performance, had me convinced that Larry was harboring secret desires. Then, the next time we see him, Agnes\u2019s own son Oscar (Blake Ritson) shows up all louche and dandyish<\/a> and witty at the same sunny garden party, and I figured these two Manhattan princelings are sure to torturedly bone at some point! That<\/em> is the central romance we all<\/em> want from this show, right?<\/p>\n

Unfortunately, I\u2019m pretty sure Sir Julian and co. are going in the more conventional direction, pairing Oscar\u2019s cousin, country mouse Marian Brook (Louisa Jacobson), with the Russell scion across the street. Thumbs down to that chemistry vacuum.<\/p>\n

\"Claybourne
Claybourne Elder as John Adams in The Gilded Age<\/i> (Photo: Alison Rosa\/HBO)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
Oscar and John Adams<\/strong><\/h5>\n

Fortunately, Oscar is too charming to sit at home all lonely and bitter and sexless \u00e0 la<\/em> Downton<\/em>\u2019s dastardly footman Thomas (Rob James-Collier). He\u2019s already got his own thing going on with none other than John Quincy Adams\u2019s great grandson (stone-cold fox Claybourne Elder). As my friend\u2019s therapist keeps telling him to tell me, two things can be true, and I am fully rooting for both Oscar and Larry and <\/em>Oscar and John Adams. I want it all for Oscar!<\/p>\n

Complicating matters is Agnes, who seems to be maneuvering the brokest Brook (a.k.a. Marian) toward John Adams with an eye toward a matrimonial alliance. Which, like\u2026whatever<\/em>. As long as the devastatingly dreamy Mr. Elder is on this show romancing someone<\/em>, I guess I can live with it.<\/p>\n

\"Louisa
Louisa Jacobson and Den\u00e9e Benton in The Gilded Age<\/i> (Photo: Alison Rosa\/HBO)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
Marian and Peggy<\/strong><\/h5>\n

Ehhh\u2026 I guess we want these two ladies to become the best of besties? I mean, despite their cringeworthy meet cute, when aspiring writer Peggy (Den\u00e9e Benton) springs for Marian\u2019s train ticket to New York. (Oh, thank heavens there was a saintly Black woman here to rescue this tearfully imperiled white lady!) Like, I guess their respective independent natures are supposed to inspire each other, and together they will achieve their dreams and learn about the experiences of people unlike themselves.<\/p>\n

Actually, no, I\u2019ve changed my mind. I want more for Peggy. I don\u2019t want her wrapped up in Marian\u2019s coma-inducing nonsense.<\/p>\n

\"Audra
Audra McDonald in The Gilded Age<\/i> (Photo: Alison Rosa\/HBO)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
Agnes and Dorothy<\/strong><\/h5>\n

Ooh, just get Christine Baranski and Audra McDonald together again. The two are phenomenal on The Good Fight<\/em>, even when their characters are at odds. More! Of! That! Please! I\u2019m imagining both Agnes and Peggy\u2019s mother Dorothy (McDonald) as The Gilded Age<\/em>\u2019s versions of Maggie Smith\u2019s character in Downton Abbey<\/em>, just hanging out and launching bons mots from the sidelines like Statler and Waldorf.<\/p>\n

\"Cynthia
Cynthia Nixon in The Gilded Age<\/i> (Photo: Alison Rosa\/HBO)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
Ada and no one<\/strong><\/h5>\n

\u201cYou were allowed the pure and tranquil life of a spinster,\u201d Agnes exposits to her sister Ada (Cynthia Nixon<\/a>) at the show\u2019s outset. \u201cThe pure and tranquil life of a spinster\u201d is my new motto, or mantra or whatever. It sounds amazing, and it\u2019s all I want for Ada. Contrary to what the right honorable Lord Fellowes did in the final season of Downton<\/em>, every single character in a story doesn\u2019t need to be paired off. Some people are more than satisfied just having their own lives to themselves; some don\u2019t have a choice, and that needn\u2019t be a tragic outcome. I\u2019d love to see Ada\u2019s storyline upend the myth of the lonely spinster not by giving her some treacly late-in-life romance, but by showing her as a fully realized woman with, perhaps with some regrets, but also with a full and fulfilling life of her own.<\/p>\n

Alas, I fear milord Fellowes has some plummy old codger up his sleave to foist upon poor dear sad old Ada before The Gilded Ague <\/em>comes to an end.<\/p>\n

\"Carrie
Carrie Coon in The Gilded Age<\/i> (Photo: Alison Rosa\/HBO)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
Bertha and a lit match<\/strong><\/h5>\n

After being epically snubbed by New York\u2019s society matrons, Bertha is ready to burn the place to the ground, and I am here for it!<\/em><\/p>\n

More Gilded Age <\/em>Matchmaking and Shipping New:<\/strong>
\n\u2018The Gilded Age\u2019 Introduces Another Man for Marian!<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":29097,"featured_media":48277,"template":"","format":"standard","categories":[38,16,3925],"yoast_head":"\n\u2018The Gilded Age\u2019: Who Are We Shipping on the American \u2018Downton\u2019?<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"No bodices were ripped in the premiere of HBO's The Gilded Age, but we\u2019ve got some ideas about who should end up with whom.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/graziamagazine.com\/us\/articles\/gilded-age-who-are-we-shipping-american-downton\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"\u2018The Gilded Age\u2019: Who Are We Shipping on the American \u2018Downton\u2019?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" 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