Julian Fellowes is a right wing tory lord who eschews realism in favor of a rose-tinted view of that great time when the aristocracy oppressed the rest of the population and uneducated boys were hired to bathe and carry their sewage around all day. There is also an incredibly sanctimonious depiction of WWI and how noble and brilliant that all was. There is a gay servant, who never finds love but only misery. JF is also a terrible writer; DA sucks.
I think your view is a little harsh Ritsuka -though of course you're entitled to your view and I respect that.
Firstly, a criticism of the writer himself is hardly a basis for criticizing the show -surely it should be judged on it's own merits. All through history, some great works have even been produced by mad-men -by saints and sinners alike. If one has a negative view of a writer, it does not necessarily follow that what he writes or creates is bad.
"...WWI and how noble and brilliant that all was" -well actually the war was depicted as something heart-wrenching and awful. So not sure where you're coming from on that front.:?
"There is a gay servant, who never finds love but only misery" -I would say that's realistic. Many many gay people at that time would not have found much happiness. Hell, it's hard enough for many even nowadays to find happiness. What I would say is that the gay servant in DA goes through a journey and along the way both he and those around him are seen to explore some gay issues. I don't want to get too specific or introduce spoilers, but there is a point where another straight character who initially seems to hate him and has no appreciation for what it means to be gay in the very early 20th century, comes to admire him and eventually enemies become friends.
To some extent yes a "a rose-tinted view" is presented, but there is a lot more to it than that. In fact, strong criticism is currently being levied at Julian Fellowes for making the show too harsh, and for moving away from the rose-tinted view of things. It seems he is ' damned if he does and damned if he doesn't '.
Thanks for your views though, people having different views is what makes life interesting.
