Anyone who watched episode 5 of the British period drama, "Downton Abbey", would have slept fretfully. After all, it is never pleasant to see someone vomit blood at a dinner table and even less pleasant to watch it happen before you rest your eyes. Although the residents of the estate crawled into their bed after a terrifying night, the question that begs to be asked is: will Lord Grantham (Hugh Bonneville) be alive till the end of the season?
To be sure, the benign dictator of the Crawley family underwent a gastrectomy to treat his stomach ulcer in episode 5. Lady Mary (Michelle Dockery) tells her brother-in-law, Tom Branson (Allen Leech) that her father will continue to be under hospice care for a while. Nevertheless, we couldn't help but notice that the Crawleys were unsure when they spoke of Lord Grantham's recovery.
Perhaps it was just nerves.
However, we predict the show's creators might complicate matters for Robert Crawley. The rest of the season's plot might depict him develop an infection, or suffer in a hospital that is inadequate to provide modern medical treatment.
The hospital's shyness to modern medical care has been focused upon since season 1. In fact, it is Isobel Crawley (Penelope Wilton) who helps a poor farmer by giving him an injection and later resuscitates his heart. If Lord Grantham (Maggie Smith) is a victim of lack of adequate facilities, perhaps it might end the feud between the Dowager and her cousin, Isobel Crawley. But fans of "Downton Abbey" will miss a favourite character.
So far, season 6 has depicted a warm friendship between Lady Mary and Tom Branson. In a recent article, The Guardian speculated that the eldest daughter of the Crawley family might fall in love with her brother-in-law.
"Downton Abbey" season 6 episode 6 airs on Sunday, 9pm on ITV.
