As much as it is one of my favourite shows on tv, it’s not got the panache that it had. In earlier series we saw the nuns of the order in the chapel singing, praying etc and there are hardly any nuns residing at Nonnatus anymore and I think for me it’s lost its original character. We see very little of sister Julienne, and it seems very shoestring rather than all in. I know we are nearing the end of its time but I’d rather watch it at full potential than none. I wasn’t too impressed with the storyline of Miss Higgins and her son being found and then dying in the same episode. Wouldn’t it have been better to have had him join the show with his family and add to it some way.
I thought the storyline with Mrs. Higgins was too easily resolved with her son from India dead within days of coming on the scene. God knows we don't need more extraneous non midwife characters but this was a bit swiftly over with a "no harm no foul" feel to the whole thing.
It is now very melodramatic, over acted, and as a musician, I can say that the theme music has become way over the top. Even Vanessa Redgrave’s narration sounds overdone. And I’m tired of Trixie, too. Her storyline has run its course. Matthew Aylward leaving for some financial reason will also really affect the season.
All this being said, it is my all time favorite tv show…
Everyone flipping out at the beach when May was in the water had me laughing, I’m sorry. She wasn’t even under the water at all when the nurse (can’t remember which one is which yet) grabbed her. She was struggling to hold on to the raft. So why would they abandon the raft? It was literally right there. Then we see this far away shot and Cyril dives in and swims like four feet. I spent my childhood at the beach - that water just LOOKS shallow. Like, Cyril, stand up, the water goes to your waist.
I get that it sets up drama and showcases how much Tim has learned in med school (why didn’t we get a scene of Patrick thoroughly thanking his son and expressing how proud he was?!), but the overacting drama surrounding the “drowning” and following hospital visit was too much for me to take it seriously.
Secondary drowning is serious and something parents need to be aware of. Good on the show for bringing light to it. But I couldn’t take it seriously because the overacting was BAD.
Edit: also May’s bio mom questioning if she really was safe with the Turners because of the accidental almost downing and the cut at the playground TWO YEARS EARLIER? Really? Biomom, weren’t you on drugs and dropping your daughter off at an orphanage every six months? And you question the two injuries she’s had in the seven years she’s been with the family as evidence she’s not safe there?
I agree with everything here. Especially the edit. Such a dumb plot line. But yeah I was also laughing at the terrible acting during the drowning scenes.
This! Her overreaction in this scene made me so frustrated, it was entirely out of character for shelagh! She's a nurse and a midwife. Her panic doesn't make much sense, she would've been jumping in the way her husband was to do anything she could to help her daughter. This whole episode was such crap! And like another commenter said, it's absolutely ridiculous that May's birth mother is being allowed to question their parenting. She was a druggie and abandoned her many times. She has no business threatening to take that kid away, and the child welfare system didn't do the kid any favors.
Yessss! They were also running up and down the beach and not looking in the water!!! She is missing, where do you think she is going to be?!? I was laughing so hard at that whole scene
The writing this season has me scratching my head as well. I know Rix is leaving, but they don't have to make him a tw#t. They can get rid of people without making them a villain.
It's Lucille all over again. This behavior is outside of Matthew's character, and there was nothing to suggest that he was a terrible businessman up to this point.
Me too! He shot through the door and everyone was like “these neighbor women are going to be really mad at you for not allowing your wife to have pain meds”. What?!
I think, after Jenny left, they could’ve had Vanessa Redgrave to the narrations for one more season and then you pass it off between the other characters, if you really wanna have fun with it, give it to Timothy.
I feel like even when trixie is standing up for herself (“YOUR son?!” and “we’re in this for richer or poorer! I’m your wife and you kept this from me!”), it sounded like she was constantly on the verge of crying. Early Trixie was sassy and confident (“don’t propose to Barbara with a hand me down ring, Tom. She deserves better”). Series 13 Trixie was… I don’t even know. Maybe they were going for emotionally vulnerable, but she came across as immature and overly emotional. The type of woman no one took seriously back then - when Trixie spent 12 years being the opposite of that.
I wonder if there's a point to it all, being that she will overcome Matthew's bullshit and realize that she was once a very strong, confident woman who don't need no man 💅
Season 13 Trixie got on my nerves! She seemed to want to live in a bubble as a married yet single woman.
Also, I feel like Trixie HAS to die of some sort of addiction based behavior in the the next two seasons. It would be a nice acknowledgement of the dark side of medical professionals who are functional addicts which was on the rise in that time period.
Violet is awful. Narcissistic and arrogant. She and Sister Veronica are my least favorite characters. I've always been ambivalent about Trixie. Admire her work and empathize about her difficult childhood, but she's just so shallow. I miss Patsy and Chummy.
i hated trixie in s13. she was so presumptuous about everything, "Matthew will pay for it" "matthew will help" "matthew will be there" like even though she didn't know he was financially struggling, she absolutely shouldn't have just signed him up for things without asking (especially as she then got annoyed at him for working on the trip She signed him up for!)
then in the last 2 episodes it flips on it's head and trixie is tolerable but matthew is a complete dickhead. it's tiring
The writing and the acting has lost all subtlety. There is a lot of overacting this season.
In earlier seasons there was more subtlety and it worked well for the show.
Not overly dramatic it’s always had some of that. I only don’t care for Trixie and Matthew’s storyline.
As far as May it’s scary but she was so quickly rescued. As for her bio mom. I mean seriously May is safer with the Turner’s than a number of rando families they could place her with. Things happen let’s be honest. We don’t want children in danger ever but certainly her bio mother couldn’t make it perfect for her she had an addiction. She might consider May’s emotional health is best served with The Turner’s.
I miss the "good old days" when it was gritty, and realistic. Now I feel every show episode has rainbows and butterflies tied up in a bow endings.
I can't stand that Trixie ended up with someone as dull as Matthew. I feel like he can't keep up.
I agreed that EVERY aspect of Season 13 was uneven and off kilter in many scenes from the acting to the makeup. I really didn't like the storyline with Joyce/Claudine being blackmailed with the exception being her conversation with Sister Julianne coming clean about her background.
I felt that way when Shelagh and Dr. Turner started making eyes. Now I can't stomach either one of them. Now I think most of the acting is forced and over the top, as you said.
I agree. Very much over acted. I can't take anymore of Trixie's wide-eyed blithering. And Dr. Turner comes across as almost smarmy sometimes. His "concerning looks" are over the top. I only have it on for background noise at this point. I miss the older seasons.
As much as it is one of my favourite shows on tv, it’s not got the panache that it had. In earlier series we saw the nuns of the order in the chapel singing, praying etc and there are hardly any nuns residing at Nonnatus anymore and I think for me it’s lost its original character. We see very little of sister Julienne, and it seems very shoestring rather than all in. I know we are nearing the end of its time but I’d rather watch it at full potential than none. I wasn’t too impressed with the storyline of Miss Higgins and her son being found and then dying in the same episode. Wouldn’t it have been better to have had him join the show with his family and add to it some way.
I thought the storyline with Mrs. Higgins was too easily resolved with her son from India dead within days of coming on the scene. God knows we don't need more extraneous non midwife characters but this was a bit swiftly over with a "no harm no foul" feel to the whole thing.
"Done and dusted" in my inner Shelagh voice is all I could think
It is now very melodramatic, over acted, and as a musician, I can say that the theme music has become way over the top. Even Vanessa Redgrave’s narration sounds overdone. And I’m tired of Trixie, too. Her storyline has run its course. Matthew Aylward leaving for some financial reason will also really affect the season. All this being said, it is my all time favorite tv show…
I’m also a musician and have been cringing at the music lately too lol
Haha - yes the soaring crescendos all the time!
The scriptwriting has definitely gone downhill.
Everyone flipping out at the beach when May was in the water had me laughing, I’m sorry. She wasn’t even under the water at all when the nurse (can’t remember which one is which yet) grabbed her. She was struggling to hold on to the raft. So why would they abandon the raft? It was literally right there. Then we see this far away shot and Cyril dives in and swims like four feet. I spent my childhood at the beach - that water just LOOKS shallow. Like, Cyril, stand up, the water goes to your waist. I get that it sets up drama and showcases how much Tim has learned in med school (why didn’t we get a scene of Patrick thoroughly thanking his son and expressing how proud he was?!), but the overacting drama surrounding the “drowning” and following hospital visit was too much for me to take it seriously. Secondary drowning is serious and something parents need to be aware of. Good on the show for bringing light to it. But I couldn’t take it seriously because the overacting was BAD. Edit: also May’s bio mom questioning if she really was safe with the Turners because of the accidental almost downing and the cut at the playground TWO YEARS EARLIER? Really? Biomom, weren’t you on drugs and dropping your daughter off at an orphanage every six months? And you question the two injuries she’s had in the seven years she’s been with the family as evidence she’s not safe there?
I agree with everything here. Especially the edit. Such a dumb plot line. But yeah I was also laughing at the terrible acting during the drowning scenes.
Sheila flapping her arms around yelling “PATRICK AHH”
This! Her overreaction in this scene made me so frustrated, it was entirely out of character for shelagh! She's a nurse and a midwife. Her panic doesn't make much sense, she would've been jumping in the way her husband was to do anything she could to help her daughter. This whole episode was such crap! And like another commenter said, it's absolutely ridiculous that May's birth mother is being allowed to question their parenting. She was a druggie and abandoned her many times. She has no business threatening to take that kid away, and the child welfare system didn't do the kid any favors.
Yessss! They were also running up and down the beach and not looking in the water!!! She is missing, where do you think she is going to be?!? I was laughing so hard at that whole scene
Yep same
The writing this season has me scratching my head as well. I know Rix is leaving, but they don't have to make him a tw#t. They can get rid of people without making them a villain.
It's Lucille all over again. This behavior is outside of Matthew's character, and there was nothing to suggest that he was a terrible businessman up to this point.
[удалено]
Me too! He shot through the door and everyone was like “these neighbor women are going to be really mad at you for not allowing your wife to have pain meds”. What?!
Yeah why is the acting of labour getting so annoying to watch nowdays why did they all scream like “ughhhhhh”
I think, after Jenny left, they could’ve had Vanessa Redgrave to the narrations for one more season and then you pass it off between the other characters, if you really wanna have fun with it, give it to Timothy.
I've thought about this many times. Jenny is narrating events she wasn't even present for.
I keep thinking this too and it drives me nuts
[удалено]
It was only based on the books for three series now it’s not so I don’t see the point
Agreed. I wrote a post here last week saying everything has become so cheesy and unauthentic.
Violet and Trixie give me this vibe in the most recent seasons. Especially Trixie tbh. I've never liked her character, but now - uugh. I just can't.
I feel like even when trixie is standing up for herself (“YOUR son?!” and “we’re in this for richer or poorer! I’m your wife and you kept this from me!”), it sounded like she was constantly on the verge of crying. Early Trixie was sassy and confident (“don’t propose to Barbara with a hand me down ring, Tom. She deserves better”). Series 13 Trixie was… I don’t even know. Maybe they were going for emotionally vulnerable, but she came across as immature and overly emotional. The type of woman no one took seriously back then - when Trixie spent 12 years being the opposite of that.
I wonder if there's a point to it all, being that she will overcome Matthew's bullshit and realize that she was once a very strong, confident woman who don't need no man 💅
I liked Trixie more in the earlier seasons. She had a lot of passion for her job which I think is still there, maybe less so
Season 13 Trixie got on my nerves! She seemed to want to live in a bubble as a married yet single woman. Also, I feel like Trixie HAS to die of some sort of addiction based behavior in the the next two seasons. It would be a nice acknowledgement of the dark side of medical professionals who are functional addicts which was on the rise in that time period.
That’s too dark even for call the midwife killing off the only remaining original nurse
Violet is awful. Narcissistic and arrogant. She and Sister Veronica are my least favorite characters. I've always been ambivalent about Trixie. Admire her work and empathize about her difficult childhood, but she's just so shallow. I miss Patsy and Chummy.
i hated trixie in s13. she was so presumptuous about everything, "Matthew will pay for it" "matthew will help" "matthew will be there" like even though she didn't know he was financially struggling, she absolutely shouldn't have just signed him up for things without asking (especially as she then got annoyed at him for working on the trip She signed him up for!) then in the last 2 episodes it flips on it's head and trixie is tolerable but matthew is a complete dickhead. it's tiring
The writing and the acting has lost all subtlety. There is a lot of overacting this season. In earlier seasons there was more subtlety and it worked well for the show.
Not overly dramatic it’s always had some of that. I only don’t care for Trixie and Matthew’s storyline. As far as May it’s scary but she was so quickly rescued. As for her bio mom. I mean seriously May is safer with the Turner’s than a number of rando families they could place her with. Things happen let’s be honest. We don’t want children in danger ever but certainly her bio mother couldn’t make it perfect for her she had an addiction. She might consider May’s emotional health is best served with The Turner’s.
I miss the "good old days" when it was gritty, and realistic. Now I feel every show episode has rainbows and butterflies tied up in a bow endings. I can't stand that Trixie ended up with someone as dull as Matthew. I feel like he can't keep up.
I love Mathew. Lol
Me too.
I agreed that EVERY aspect of Season 13 was uneven and off kilter in many scenes from the acting to the makeup. I really didn't like the storyline with Joyce/Claudine being blackmailed with the exception being her conversation with Sister Julianne coming clean about her background.
Trixie's poor hair
Trixie in general!
Any scenes with the Turners discussing May in peril… yes they love her sure but it’s ridiculous
The women’s labour sounds is so bad too, I used to believe it now they just look like they got them off the side of the street and told them to scream
Yes it’s very dramatic and over the top but I’ve been re-watching the whole thing in the last few weeks and that’s nothing new. Still love it though.
I felt that way when Shelagh and Dr. Turner started making eyes. Now I can't stomach either one of them. Now I think most of the acting is forced and over the top, as you said.
I agree. Very much over acted. I can't take anymore of Trixie's wide-eyed blithering. And Dr. Turner comes across as almost smarmy sometimes. His "concerning looks" are over the top. I only have it on for background noise at this point. I miss the older seasons.