The Other Bennet Sister, Episode 5 — Recap: The Singing Trap
Opens on: “Dear Mother… I write to let you know that I will not be joining you at Pemberley just yet.”
What happened
The below summary might be viewed as spoilery
The episode opens with Mary doing something we could hardly imagine in episode 1: she says no.
Not loudly, of course. Not rudely. But she writes to her mother that she will not be joining her at Pemberley “just yet.”
For Mary, that is huge. The Gardiners’ governess has returned, so Mary is not needed in the practical sense anymore. She is staying because she wants to stay and because the Gardiners seem to want her there.
We get this fantastic scene of Mary walking with Ann Baxter that clearly contrasts London with Longbourn.
“Someone who was once a friend told me that a woman has two choices in life - marriage or misery.”
Of course, she is referring to Charlotte, who basically showed how good of a friend she is by “stealing” Mr Collins from Mary. We are shown that Miss Baxter might be a truer friend when Mary says: “My mother has always said no one will marry a girl in spectacles,” to which she replies: “Mary, that is nonsense.”
A truer friend indeed. She even offers to show Mary how to become a “star of London society.” This is, of course, followed by a real montage of Ann getting Mary a makeover and preparing her for Lady Winspear’s ball.
At the ball, Ann asks Tom to ask Mary to dance. “It will show how eligible you are.”
The dance feels awkward to watch. She doesn’t appear to be enjoying it or perhaps afraid of enjoying it since Tom is taken. But, we always get this look on Tom that he’s very fond of Mary. Love triangle, anyone?
Then William Ryder appears again. Love square, anyone?
Ryder has a very different energy from Tom. Ryder is easy, teasing, and not very interested in society’s rules.
“All these poor young ladies parading about, bearing the weight of their parents’ expectations. It’s not in the least romantic.”
Mary doesn’t hesitate to point out that for many of them they need to impress, to secure a marriage.
“…doesn’t it seem to you, Miss Bennet, that most people give far too much weight to the idea of marriage?”
Again, Mary answers with such grace and dignity and absolutely on point: “I think you will find, Mr Ryder, that the liberty in such situations tends to be enjoyed by the man.”
“I know I am!” she says when he suggests she may be right.
Great Mary moment.
Mary’s second dance is with William. She starts off as awkward, but William manages to pull her out of her shell. To make her share which books she enjoys, to make her laugh. It clearly highlights the differences in the two gentlemen. Tom serious, William carefree. We even get short clips of Tom while Mary dances with William.
“I cannot say I took much notice of his looks.” She says to Ann. Sure Mary.
“…but he doesn’t think of me in that way, and, actually, that makes this much more enjoyable.”
The show does seem to be setting us up for a very interesting storyline with Mary-Tom-William.
Then Caroline Bingley arrives. That woman can turn a room cold just by entering it.
Aaaand with her arrival we are pulled back to Meryton. The attitude, the “So you are in London for a husband?”, the self-doubt, the cruelty. It’s even noted by Mrs Gardiner, “You have not been yourself since I saw you talking to Caroline Bingley last night.”
Mrs Gardiner continues to prove why she’s one of the best characters on the show. Not only because of her support for Mary, but she dishes out bangers like this on the regular: “We do not run and hide from the Caroline Bingleys of this world.
We stand our ground. For there will always be one.”
Mr Ryder invites Mary to a dinner party. Miss Bingley, Tom, Ann, the Gardiners, and others are in attendance. William immediately showers Mary with attention, excusing himself from a conversation with another lady. They are then interrupted when Caroline Bingley arrives, but it was noted that William did not excuse himself from Mary to say hello to her!
Caroline does her best to steal William away and it’s quite clear she’s intent on not allowing Mary to get more of his attention. She even goes as far as to swap Mary’s seating placement during dinner!
The resulting seating arrangement is quite funny to note. We literally get a triangle with Mary seated directly across from Tom on the far side of the table and William at the head of the table.
Mary shows that she’s not ready to be cowed. She talks to Mr Hurst about horses and racing.
“Right, um…four legs. Cannot vomit!”
The scene is funny and surprisingly charming. Mary is changing. She smiles more. She laughs.
Tom sees it. William sees it. Caroline sees that William sees it. Tom sees that William sees it. Do we have a love pentagon on our hands?
Caroline spots Mary becoming less easy to dismiss and goes straight for the wound.
“Only recently we were talking about your family. And she confessed herself astonished at the great difference between you and your sisters.
She felt that you were not as handsome as Elizabeth, nor as provoking.
Not as beautiful as Jane or as willing as Kitty, and, well, who could measure up to Lydia’s…joie de vivre?”
She continues to be the absolute worst and tells Mary to forget ever getting a man like William Ryder and confine herself to her “…proper sphere.”
But our girl Mary has come a long way and absolutely shreds Caroline back.
“You seem to know a great deal about rejection. Is this a lesson you’ve learned from extensive study?
Or do you perhaps owe it to experience of a more personal nature?”
Then, at the worst possible moment, Caroline tells the room: “You must sing.”
We know exactly what that means to Mary. Netherfield comes rushing back. Her father. The humiliation. The feeling of being put on display and then corrected for failing to please.
And before Mary can even gather herself, Mr Gardiner arrives with an urgent letter. Mrs Bennet is “gravely ill” at Pemberley and Mary has to leave at once.
Overall, this is a painful episode. Mary is not back at Longbourn, but old shame finds her anyway. A ball, a supper, a song, a letter. That is all it takes.