Who's the Glamorous Pirate: Why I'm Team Gillingham

Warning: Contains Downton Abbey spoilers.

So a few days ago I wrote a blog about my predictions for Season 5 of Downton Abbey and, in the blog I mentioned that I hope Mary marries Lord Gillingham. Since I know that's a controversial opinion for a lot of people, I wanted to take a few moments to justify myself.

To start with, A lot of people argue that Mary should marry Charles Blake because he is more like Matthew. That is precisely why I think Mary shouldn't go for Blake. I mean, she has said many times that she wasn't the same person she was when she met Matthew.

I think that's true; Matthew certainly changed Mary. So, maybe, what Mary needs at this point in her life is not another Matthew. Mary mellowed a lot when she was with Matthew, she became a lot nicer and more considerate. I'm not saying that Blake isn't nice, it's just, I could see him with season 1 Mary much easier than I could see him with season 4 Mary.

Season 4 Mary seems to do well with Gillingham and he seems to do well with her. Tony Gillingham is sweet, kind, good natured, and patient. I think that's exactly what Mary needs at this time of her life when she's trying to heal and reassess herself as a person. I think he'd be good for her: genuine, loving, accepting. I also think he would be a good step father to George, which is important. Again, that's not to say that Blake is a kind and loving person, but Gillingham is exceptionally so. He just seems like such a lovely person.

Also, I believe that Mary is at heart a conventional person. She wants to spend the rest of her life in Downton, carrying on the aristocratic way of life in the way it's always been lived. It's not that I don't think she can handle social change and that sort of thing, but she certainly has a soft spot in her heart for tradition. And Gillingham seems to be much the same. Although Blake is not exactly the 'enemy' of big estates like Downton, I think that, in the end, they would have too many conflicts about the estate's future and modernism, etc. Again, this isn't necessarily a bad thing, but given Mary's goals at this point in her life, I think Gillingham is the natural choice.

And, well, he's just so good looking. Like, no wonder Lord Grantham called him 'the glamorous pirate', he's probably the tannest person any Crawley has ever set eyes on! Compared to all the pale, dour-faced people they usually hang out with, he's straight out of Treasure Island. Not to mention that he is without a doubt, the most attractive man (upstairs, anyway) to come anywhere near this show since the infamous Mr. Pamuk.

Let's hope that this romance ends a little better.

Just sayin'