My Journey to Sanditon

SPOILER ALERT: Have you watched all eight episodes of Sanditon yet? If not ... why not???? It's AMAZING. But you should know that there will be some discussion about some pretty important events of this series. If you don't want to know what happens, you'd probably better stop reading now.

In the past I've used this little blog for some easy self therapy. As I write down the jumbled thoughts of my head I can usually find some sort of clarity in my understanding of my journey through life. It's been nice. But it's been awhile since I regularly took time to do this. Life gets busy, you know? But here I am today ... because of a television show. Yeah. That's right ... a television show. We live in a world of chaos with so much craziness around us, but I'm here to work through my feelings about a show. So here goes ...

I love Jane Austen. Actually, I should probably say I LOVE JANE AUSTEN!!!! So much. When I was first introduced to the 1995 BBC production of Pride and Prejudice (on VHS ... yeah, I guess I'm that old) I watched it over and over and over again. Give me Darcy and Elizabeth sparring all day every day and I'd be a happy lady. But I'm not limited to just P&P. Mr. Knightley from Emma is my jam, my absolute favorite Austen hero (someday I'll explain why). I cheered with Marianne Dashwood in Sense and Sensibility when she says "to love is to burn, to be on fire." I got her passion, but I still cheered when she found true enduring love with Col. Brandon. Persuasion, Mansfield Park, Northanger Abbey ... I loved them all for different reasons. I don't think there is a book in the world that Jane Austen could create that I wouldn't love.

With all that, somehow I had reached the ripe old age of [redacted, haha] without having ever heard of Sanditon. What was this book? How had I never heard of it? When PBS started advertising about the Masterpiece series beginning in January I was intrigued. I'll admit that I had some doubts. If this was really that good of a story, how come I'd never heard of it. Oh, I found out that it was an unfinished novel, so the writers had to finish it themselves. Sooooo ... Austen fanfiction? I was worried. I've read a few Austen fanfiction sort of books that bombed. It turns out that Jane Austen is hard to imitate effectively. Was this going to happen here? I had fairly low expectations, but the one ray of hope in this project was that Andrew Davies would be involved in this project. He was a master in my beloved 1995 P&P adaptation. Surely he could swing this one. I decided to watch.

For those of you who are megafans of this show, please stick with me on this journey. I'm one of you! I promise. But when I saw the first episode I had mixed feelings. I could see little elements of Jane Austen in the episode, but this story felt really different to me. I thought the music overpowered the dialogue in spots (to be fair after watching this series another 10 times I don't notice this as much, so I think I was just feeling skeptical that day). I knew that Sidney was meant to be our hero, but he seemed kind of mean-spirited to me, or maybe it would be more accurate to say he was just almost too angry. I get that some of our Austen heroes have a less-than-stellar introduction. Look at Mr. Darcy. But Sidney didn't impress me at first. I couldn't figure out how I felt about Tom or Arthur or Lady Denham. And then there were Clara, Edward, and Esther. Their story was shocking, to say the least. You don't see that sort of story line on screen in typical Austen adaptations. It turns out that this story shows on screen what Austen only hints at occurring behind the scenes in her books. What was I watching here?

But I continued to watch. I had faith that this was going to turn out okay in the end. I would not give up on it. I decided that I was going to stop comparing this story to other Austen adaptations. I would look for the good in this one. And I found good. Oh, man, did I find a story to love! With each week and each successive episode I found myself drawn further and further into this story. Every single character had depth that I wanted to explore. I fell in love with Charlotte and Sidney and invested in them finding a way to a Happily Ever After. I never doubted that they would find one. This is Austen, right? But along the way I was happy to root for Esther and Babbington to find a HEA of their own, too. Bonus!

I was floating through the series feeling all the feels. My heart was bursting with happiness. So many swoony little moments. So much sweetness. I was falling in love with Sanditon along with the characters on screen. That dance in episode six! Be still my heart. And then the boat scene in episode seven. I was ready to run out and buy my very own canoe so that Herman and I could recreate that scene in real life. haha And then Sidney's declaration at the end of the episode. Perfection. I'm not ashamed to admit that I watch that scene on repeat sometimes just to feel those feelings all over again.

But wait! There was one entire episode left to go. What could they possibly have to talk about in another hour? I know how Austen stories go. Hero opens up his heart and declares his love for the heroine. They get married. They kiss. (Or sometimes they kiss and then they get married. It all works out). That doesn't take an hour. Surely Sidney wasn't going to take an hour to get things done. Surely.

So now episode eight arrived. Oh episode eight, how I love you! And how I hate you! My family had not been watching the series with me, but my husband offered to be supportive and watch the end with me. I wouldn't let him. I said that he needed to see all the stuff leading up to the episode in order to appreciate it. So I went down to our basement television room and sat alone to experience what I expected to be an epic finale to a story that had captivated every bit of me for the past seven weeks. And for a bit I was in heaven. Sidney wastes little time in moving this relationship out of the friendzone. That walk along the cliffs was delightful. Their awkwardness ... can't we all relate to that? And then the kiss! What an amazing kiss! I have to say that that ranks number one among all Austen adaptation kisses of all time. Number one. Small complaint ... why didn't American audiences get the same kiss that the UK viewers got? In that version Sidney does this little squeezing of his eyes at the end that was simply lovely. It was like his face said "Finally!" as he finished. The pan out in the US version is not quite as cool, but it still rocked, in my opinion.

 But there is still 35 minutes left in this episode. That's a long time to plan and execute an Austen wedding. What could possibly be left to show? Oh, yeah ... another dance. Hooray! It was a bit frustrating to watch this dance play out. Why couldn't they just get a chance to dance? But watching them look to each other across the room while they were separated was lovely in its own way. They just seemed so happy. Everything seemed to be working out perfectly. Finally ... finally, they can be alone together, and Sidney's words were just lovely. (Am I using the word lovely too much in this blog? I can't help it. It was lovely). Okay, so this was the moment. Finally, there would be a proposal. Until ....

Edward! You selfish little cad! You ruined EVERYTHING! The moment was lost. But there was still 25 minutes left in the show, right? Enough time to fix it, I think.

That's when my world completely fell out of whack. As the fire was going on I started to really get confused and worried. This was a pretty major event. It's not the sort of event that shows up with 20 minutes left to go in an Austen story. This is the sort of event that happens in episode six when there is still time to fix everything. How could this be fixed in 20 minutes?????  There was no way.

And it only got worse. Tom, how can you be such a short-sighted idiot? How can you not think of others ever? Why do you let Sidney take on the total burden of fixing your dumb mistakes? Why????

So Sidney leaves for London. 15 minutes left to go. This is not making any sense to me. How can this story be tied up in a nice pretty bow with only 15 minutes left? Again, there was no way. I was feeling REALLY on edge.

And that's when the bottom fell out of this series. Ten minutes left to go, and Sidney saves the day ... and ruins Charlotte's future happiness forever. What the what??????? What just happened? This does not happen in an Austen book. It. Does. Not. Happen. Everything falls apart. Everything. I was freaking out. At this point in the story I still sort of thought that maybe they might be able to pull out a HEA ending. Maybe. But if it did happen it was going to be sudden and probably not very satisfying. They were going to have to wrap things up too quickly. There were too many loose ends. How could this happen? But I was going to be okay. As I saw Sidney race up to Charlotte's carriage as she left town I thought I could be okay with a rushed ending as long as they ended up together. But did they?

NO!!!!!!!

No. No. No. No. No. They did not end up together. The final scene has Sidney with a look of total despair on his face while Charlotte's is full of tears. That's it. The end. It's over.

I was devastated. My family heard my roars of anger from the basement. I raced to the internet to see when the next season would be available only to find that it was not picked up for continuation. NOOOOOO! More cries of anger. My poor family had not idea what was going on. Why was sweet mom in so much despair? What could they do to fix it? Well, at that point the only solution I could see was for us to win the lottery and start a production company so that we could finish the story ourselves. Weirdly, my family was not quite on board with that plan.

How in the freaking world could anyone who loved Jane Austen think that it would be okay to end one of her stories in such a manner? It defies all logic. I have become quite an internet stalker when it comes to all things Sanditon since that final episode, and I have seen some people connected with the production trying to pretty this ending up. I think I saw that Rose Williams (love her!) said that this was not so bad of an ending because this story was a story of female empowerment. Charlotte didn't need a man for her future happiness. She could survive without Sidney. Ok, yeah. I get it. We don't need to have a man to have worth. But, come on! People don't watch/read Jane Austen because they want to see the women survive without the man. They watch for the HEA. We want the wedding at the end. And I don't think that Charlotte's worth or dignity would have suffered one bit simply because she was now attached to Sidney. The two of them TOGETHER would be their best selves. No, I don't buy the explanation that this ending is okay because it shows a more powerful woman at the end.

I also don't buy the explanation that this ending is perfect because we don't always end up with our first love. Yeah, that may be true. It may be true that all of us have our own "carriage ride of despair" after a relationship ends. But, again, I don't watch Jane Austen stories so that I can see a replay of the stinkiest moments of my life. I watch to see the fairy tale endings. I want the HEA. I expect the HEA.

And then, today, the scuttlebutt on the internet is a Theo James interview where he says that he thinks the ending was great. He says that it is powerful as it is. In his opinion, if Sidney and Charlotte had come back and made things right it would be a weaker ending. Really? Really, Theo? Would it have been a better Pride and Prejudice if it had ended when Elizabeth looks out in despair and says, "I shall never see him again" after Darcy finds out that Elizabeth's family might be ruined? Does it really harm the story when Darcy saves the day and then comes back to her, proposes a second time, and then gets married in the end? Would it have been better if Marianne had just died of a broken heart after Willoughby treated her terribly in Sense in Sensibility? Is the story weaker because she gets better and gets to marry Col. Brandon? Is it? Sorry. I don't buy it.

I get that everyone involved in this production is trying to make the best of the situation. What can they say other than that they are happy with what they have produced? I don't blame them. I just want it to be made right. When you advertise a Jane Austen story we expect a Jane Austen story. No tears at the end, unless they are tears of joy. No terrible tragedies. Just a nice and tidy Happily Ever After. That's all. This has to be made right. As it is, this series does not feel complete. We need some closure.

So with that long rant, I have one more thing to add. Here are my reasons why Sanditon deserves some sort of continuation, either as continuing seasons or a movie special:

1. The most important reason ... Sidney and Charlotte NEED to be together.

You can't string us along for an entire eight episodes, leading us to believe that these two are meant to be and then end it with Sidney married to Mrs. Campion. You can't. Nothing in the previous episodes makes this make any sense at all. I don't care that in real life in the 19th century this would be a mroe realistic ending. Jane Austen's heroes and heroines always find a way to make it work. Always. I know that there is a way to make this right. They just need some time to work a plan.

2. More Young Stringer. And a Happily Ever After ending of his own.

I love Sidney, and I wish for his HEA ending, but there is no denying that Young Stringer is the real deal in this story. He is such a good friend to Charlotte, and if it weren't for Sidney I would be wishing that he could have his wish to be with her. I have to admit that in real life I would encourage friends and family members to go for the Stringers of the world, not the Sidneys. He is so good. He deserves more than the tragic ending these first eight episodes gave him.

3. A better story line for Miss Lambe.

How can you introduce the world to the first woman of color to have a significant role in an Austen story and then let her spend a good portion of it sulking while holed up in her room? In my opinion, this was a great injustice. Miss Lambe has so much potential in this story. She has wealth and wit. She obviously has some sort of back story that has not been adequately explained. She is more than just an angry young ward of Sidney. We deserve to see her get the chance to shine. This could be a groundbreaking sort of Austen story, but they just dropped it. She needs more.

4. Arthur!!!

I wasn't sure how to take Arthur at the beginning of the series with his hypochondria and silly comments. But, oh how he grew on me! I love this character! So much. It is easy to discount his conversations because he seems so silly at times, but Arthur could cut through the haze and get to the point of a matter better than almost anyone in this series. His comments about Mrs. Campion to Sidney were spot on. And then his interactions with Miss Lambe in the final episodes were lovely. My favorite scene was seeing them dance together in the final dance. They had so much joy, and Miss Lambe rarely got to show that level of joy in her life in Sanditon. When she bent down to kiss his hand it made my heart flutter. I don't know if they would be heading into romantic sort of relationship territory, but I do feel like Miss Lambe loved and appreciated the fact that Arthur treated her as a friend instead of an object of curiosity. I loved that. I want more.

5. More dances!!

Speaking of dances, I would love to see more of them. Dances are an integral part of Austen stories. That was the case in this one as well. The three dances in this series were all perfect in different ways. In the first dance I was really happy that Sidney didn't let Charlotte stand there alone after everyone else had been asked to dance, but he did all he could to avoid really looking at her during the dance. He seemed as if he would rather be doing about anything else in the world. But then there is that second dance. What a beautiful dance! It is unlike any other dance I have ever seen in an Austen adaptation, but it was absolutely perfect for this story. I've never felt my heart flutter like that during an on-screen dance. That's another scene I watch on repeat. And then the fun and optimism of that last dance. There is so much hope in the room during that dance. The series can't end there. These characters deserve more dances, and I have a feeling that Sidney is going to need a few of them to make his disastrous decisions at the end of this season right.

6. More Esther smiles.

They were few and far between, but seeing the Esther smiles made the journey worth it. Esther was a fascinating character in this adaptation. She may be the most complex and interesting of all the characters. At the beginning she seems so cold and calculating. It was hard to see much to love in her. But she has a difficult and complicated back story that slowly comes to the forefront. She was slow to unwind, but as she does it is simply lovely. Her bedside scene next to Lady Denham was masterful. Charlotte Spencer should get high marks for her acting in this role. Sure, she got the beginning of her HEA, but there is still so much more to know about this character. Plus, we'll get more Babbington, and he seems like he has more people to rescue in this struggling little seaside resort town.

7. Tom needs a chance to redeem himself.

I can't quite work out my feelings about Tom. He's like that brother that you have who you know you should love and support because he's your brother. But he does such boneheaded stupid and awful things that you sometimes have to talk yourself into that love. I feel like Tom is basically a good man, but he just can't see two inches in front of his face to see how his actions affect the people around him. I'm pretty ticked off at him right now. Sidney's life is ruined. Charlotte's life is ruined. Or at least their chances for love. But the workers in Sanditon are also ruined. His family is at the brink of ruin. And it is ALL HIS FAULT. All of it. Does he see this? Surely he does. But right now he is a total schmuck in my eye. I think he deserves to have his story further told. He might just get the chance to redeem himself. He rescued Sidney once. Maybe he can get it together and rescue him again.

8. What about Edward and Clara?

Yeah, they are a pretty skeevy duo in this story. It's hard to feel much compassion for them. I could go a whole lifetime without having to see their scene on the drawing room floor again. I'm not rooting for any relationship here. But I do think that the two of them are pretty fascinating "villains." Clara obviously has some backstory that could explain some of her current actions. I didn't get the impression that her story was over yet. And Edward might have a fascinating future story line now that he has been disowned and had to watch his sister find true love without him. He's a weirdo, but maybe there's more to him than we had the chance to see. I'd be interested in seeing that in a second season.

9. Let Lady Denham rise from the ashes.

As far as rich elderly Austen characters with lots of money and even more attitude, no one will ever beat Lady Catherine de Bourgh from Pride and Prejudice. But I still thought that Lady Denham played her part perfectly for this story. She could be humorous while cutting the people down all around her right and left. She has been ripe for memes created using her excellent quotes. She makes a confusing decision at the end of this season, threatening to put Tom and his family in the poorhouse because of his terrible financial management of the Sanditon construction. I get her anger, but it seemed over the top. And after her subtle references to Charlotte finding happiness at the last dance, I feel like she would not allow Sidney to do what he did. I don't know. I just feel like she has more to contribute to this story. Her manipulation of the people around her is not finished. She must live another day to step into this world and craft it to her liking.

and finally ...

10. Lady Susan has to save the day!

Lady Susan has a small part in this story, but it was an important one. There is no way that she'll let this tragic ending stand. There is no way that she will let Mrs.Campion get the guy. No way. The only thing preventing her from saving this train wreck from taking place is the fact that the story ended half-way through. She needs a chance to make things right.

I will say this ... having this story end like this is a travesty. I made a comment yesterday when talking to my husband and wondered if this was all intentional from the beginning just to increase audience online activity. I know that I have never interacted online about any show before this one, but I feel driven to do it now because they can't end it this way. They probably didn't do this on purpose. I have to believe that they had every intention of continuing the story. How could they do otherwise? But if this was just the beginning of a series, I do think that we could see the beauty in the ending of the first season in such a way. The tie to the beginning when Sidney asks Charlotte to tell him that she doesn't think badly of him was absolutely beautiful ... and heartbreaking. She had asked the same of him and got a hurtful answer in return. But now after so much had happened between them she answers him in a very different way. Like I say ... beautiful. At the half-way point in a story this could be appreciated. But as the ending it just left me feeling empty and angry and robbed.

I'm just one person. I don't have any pull in this world to make this happen. But in a world that already has enough sadness and despair, couldn't we take some time to bring happiness and hope to this little community? They deserve it. We do too.