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" The Recap of Recaps: In which we parse the various viewings and opinions of the many Downton Abbey recappers across the Internet. Season 3, Episode 2 Rolling Stone: &amp;quot;The camera revolves around [Edith] in a great sweeping circle, a big goofy grin plastered on her face as she watches her servants prepare Downton Abbey for her wedding reception. How does she explain what the day of her marriage means to her? &amp;#039;Something happening in this house is actually about me!&amp;#039;&amp;quot;  Yes, because we&amp;#039;ve all been itching to know what the awkward Crawley girl has been up to. Vanity Fair: &amp;quot;Edith&amp;#039;s wedding (unbeknownst to the servants) will be the very last big party chez Crawley. The house will soon go on sale, listed in the Extra-Starch Gazette as &amp;#039;desirable nobleman&amp;#039;s property,&amp;#039; with photos of the new spa bathrooms and screening room. The plan is to move someplace very sad-sounding, &amp;#039;near Durham,&amp;#039; which they&amp;#039;ve all taken to euphemistically calling &amp;#039;Downton Place.&amp;#039;&amp;quot; The rest of the season will be just like when the Pembrokes didn&amp;#039;t tell Charles they were moving to Seattle before the third season of Charles in Charge. Also, I&amp;#039;m sorry I know that information. NJ-Star Ledger: &amp;quot;Anyone with two eyes and an even basic knowledge of serialized drama knew that Edith was never going to find happiness with Anthony Strallon. I was just surprised the marriage never took place at all. Because the other characters kept focusing on Strallon&amp;#039;s age and infirmity, I was expecting a fatal heart attack as soon as the cake was cut.&amp;quot; You know it&amp;#039;s a bad wedding when &amp;quot;Well, at least your fianc\u00E9 didn&amp;#039;t die&amp;quot; is the good news. The Crawleys are creeping dangerously close to the Kennedys in the unfortunate incidents tally. Vulture: &amp;quot;Poor Edith dissolves into tears on the spot, then goes home and falls apart again, dashing to her room while ripping off her veil, which cascades down the staircase in a visual flourish reminiscent of how Mary&amp;#039;s veil looked floating down those same stairs on a happier wedding day. Listen closely and you can hear Edith&amp;#039;s veil whisper, &amp;#039;Metaphor, metaphor.&amp;#039;&amp;quot; Then poor Edith declares herself a &amp;quot;spinster&amp;quot; and presumably buys fourteen cats. Wall Street Journal: &amp;quot;Meanwhile, Matthew receives a letter from the deceased Mr. Swire. He doesn&amp;#039;t want to read it, so Mary does. The letter says Mr. Swire knew that Matthew and Lavinia&amp;#039;s engagement was over when she died, but he wants him to have the family money anyway.&amp;quot; And, thankfully, Lavinia&amp;#039;s death won&amp;#039;t weigh on Matthew&amp;#039;s conscience anymore. Wired: &amp;quot;Or not. Matthew decides the letter must be a forgery.&amp;quot; Oh, for fk&amp;#039;s sake... Entertainment Weekly: &amp;quot;Surprisingly, Matthew relents\u2026 [He] informs Robert that he is giving Swire&amp;#039;s fortune to save Downton. In a boneheaded response, Lord Grantham almost doesn&amp;#039;t take the money. The two gentlemen then come to an agreement \u2014 they will both be masters of the Abbey. Let&amp;#039;s hope it will be a peaceful co-reign, and no one will have to whip it out and measure anytime soon.&amp;quot; Which would actually be a possible plot line if Downton Abbey was on HBO. Follow The Culture Blog on RSS and on Twitter at @ESQCulture. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.esquire.com/entertainment/tv/a18061/recap-of-recaps-downtown-abbey-season-3-episode-2-14979842/>