#henrietta musgrove

[mametupa]

[rationalseries]

For me there's been none but you.

Episode 17 is streaming now.

[kajaono]

Ben Bailey smith (Charles Musgrove) shared a not yet released picture of his character in Lyme

Guess in the background we can see Benwick

[ljones41]

"PERSUASION" (2022) Review

"PERSUASION" (2022) Review The years between 2009 and 2020 saw a few television and/or movie productions about various Jane Austen novels. Yet, these productions were either sequel, spoofs or other takes on her novels. Then 2020 arrived and two straight up movie adaptions appeared for Austen fans - "EMMA" and "MODERN PERSUASION". Another two passed before the streaming service Netflix released its own straight Austen adaptation, namely "PERSUASION".

Anyone familiar with Austen's works should also be family with the plot of her 1818 novel and this movie. Eight years before the story's beginning, a baronet's daughter named Anne Elliot had fallen in love with a young Royal Navy officer named Frederick Wentworth. However, her godmother Lady Russell, had convinced her to reject Frederick's marriage proposal out of family duty and his lack of social rank and fortune. During the eight years that followed, Anne had become an ignored and faded spinster. When her father, Sir Walter Elliot, finds himself in financial debt, and Anne's older sister Elizabeth move to Bath to live in style with less finances. Sir Walter also leases his estate, Kellynch, to Frederick's older sister and brother-in-law, Admiral and Mrs. Croft. Anne visits her married younger sister and brother-in-law Mary and Charles Musgrove at the estate of the latter's family, Uppercross. During her visit to the Musgroves, Anne becomes re-acquainted with Frederick after eight years and becomes convinced that he has emotionally moved on from being rejected and from her. When I saw the trailer for "PERSUASION", I never thought I would like it. What can I say? I had not been impressed by the film's trailer. It seemed to emphasize the film's worst aspects. And if I must be honest, this version of Austen's 1818 novel, like the other adaptations, had its issues. I did not care how screenwriters Ronald Bass and Alice Victoria Winslow occasionally utilized modern English in the film's dialogue. It felt out of place, and I am thankful that it did not dominate the movie. I rather enjoyed Stewart Scudamore and Agni Scott's natural portrayals of Admiral and Mrs. Croft. This is why I was very disappointed by their lack of appearances in the film's Bath sequence, especially since it was the former who had revealed an important piece of information about his brother-in-law, Frederick Wentworth. I also had a problem with the portrayal of Henrietta Musgrove in the film. I did not have a problem with the actress who portrayed her - Izuka Hoyle. I had a problem with how Bass and Winslow had re-written her character. Henrietta went from a slightly shy and reserved young woman to a more self-assured and forthright personality. Why did they change her personality? Nor did I see the need for a brief scene featuring Anne Elliot preparing to take a piss near some bush before overhearing a conversation between Louisa Musgrove and Frederick. I really did not need to see that. There were other minor aspects of "PERSUASION" that I did not like. I had no problems with Marianne Agertoft's costume designs for the film - with one exception. I did not care for some of Dakota Johson's costumes. With the exception of a few, most of them seemed bland in compared to the costumes for the other female characters. They brought back memories of Sally Hawkins' costumes in the 2007 adaptation. Considering Johnson served as the film's leading lady, I found this particularly irritating. One of her costumes looked as if it was suited for a period drama set in the early 1910s, instead of the mid-1810s. Yes, I could tell the difference. Also, Johnson's hairstyle seemed to be all over the place in some attempt to infuse a loose modern take in her hairstyle. Why? Perhaps the filmmakers wanted to single her out in compared to the other actresses due to her being the leading lady. Or perhaps Johnson did not want a strict early 19th century hairstyle. Whatever the reason, I disliked her hair. I had considered pointing out Cosmo Jarvis' day-growth beard. However, I discovered that the Royal Navy has always allowed its men to wear beards. So, Jarvis got a pass. Almost. I believe he should have worn a full beard or be clean shaven. That day-growth beard looked a bit too modern in my eyes. Many have issued other complaints about the movie. However, I found myself disagreeing with them. I had no problem with Johnson's Anne Elliot breaking the fourth wall every now and then. In fact, this narrative device had been used in the 2007 adaptation with Sally Hawkins, but with less frequency. The same could be said for using Anne as the story's narrator. Again, the 2007 adaptation used narration a lot less than this adaptation did. But I must admit that I found Anne's narration in this movie at times entertaining and rather poignant. Speaking of Anne's narration, many have complained about the character's sense of humor, pointing out that she seemed less like Austen's Anne Elliot and more like the author herself. One, I thought Johnson handled Anne Elliot’s wit with such subtlety that the character did not come off as a Jane Austen 2.0 like the Fanny Price character in 1999’s "MANSFIELD PARK". Even the Anne Elliot character in the 1971 adaptation of Austen's 1818 novel had expressed flashes of wit every now and then. Also, Anne had only expressed her wit in those moments when she broke the fourth wall. I take that back. There were a few moments when she tried to be witty with her sisters, but they tend to either ignore her, criticize her humor or take her words seriously. Although I had complained about the lack of Admiral and Mrs. Croft in the Bath sequences, two other characters from the novel were missing - Anne's old school friend, Mrs. Smith and the latter's aide, Nurse Rook. If I must be honest, I did not miss them at all. I have never liked the scenes featuring Anne with this pair. Only her defiance against accompanying her family to Viscountess Dalrymple's house in order to visit her old friend was the only aspect of Mrs. Smith I liked in Austen's story. But one would point out that Mrs. Smith had served as the catalyst for Anne's discovery about her cousin William Elliot's villainy. My response? Who cares? One of my major complaints about "Persuasion" had been the portrayal of William as a villain. I have always found it unnecessary. And apparently, the filmmakers, along with screenwriter Nick Bass and director Carrie Cracknell felt the same. That is correct, I have never cared for Austen's portrayal of William Elliot as a villain. Nor have I ever saw the need for such a portrayal for the character. I thank God the screenwriters had decided to simply portray William as a roguish man who enjoyed tripping up with his sharp wit every now and then. More importantly, William openly admitted his intent to prevent Sir Walter Elliot from ever marrying Elizabeth Elliot's companion, Mrs. Penelope Clay in order to remain the older man's heir to Kellynch and the baronetcy. One might believe this admission went against William's pursuit of Anne in the story's second half. But William has always been genuinely attracted to Anne - in the novel and in all of the adaptations. If Louisa Musgrove could be a threat to the potential Anne and Frederick reconciliation without being a villainess, surely William could serve a similar role without being the story's villain. For me, the true barriers to Anne and Frederick's romance have always been her rejection of his first marriage proposal and Frederick's long-lasting resentment of her rejection, not Louisa Musgrove or William Elliot. One scene that had never been featured in Austen's novel appeared in this movie. It featured Frederick's attempt to establish a friendship between him and Anne at Lyme. In this scene, Frederick gave a speech to Anne, expressing his "desire" to end the resentment and regret between them and become friends. I thought it was one of the most deliciously awkward moments I have witnessed in a period drama. This scene was capped by one of my favorite lines spoken by Anne: "But a heartbeat ago, there were no two souls more in rhythm than Wentworth and I. Now we're strangers. Worse than strangers. We're exes." In other words, Frederick had just friend-zoned Anne. And it was the film's only moment in which I had no problem with its use of modern dialogue. Aside from my complaints regarding Dakota Johnson's costumes, I had no problems with the film's other artistic and technical aspects. I found Marianne Agertoft's costume designs for the other characters solid and properly aligned to the movie's mid-1810s setting. But I could not think of a particular costume that blew my mind. However, I was very impressed by Joe Anderson's photography. The movie's scenes featured sharp colors and engaging vistas of locations such as Salisbury, London, Lyme Regis and Yeovil in Somerset, and Bath. And I am utterly grateful the movie did not feature dark interior shots that made it difficult for me to see a person or object. I realize I might attract a good deal of flack for this, but I found Carrie Cracknell did a better job in filming Louisa's accident at the Lyme Regis Cobb than any other adaptation of "Persuasion". I kid you not. There seemed to be something about that particular scene that led previous filmmakers to film it in the most awkward manner. As for the movie's performances, I managed to enjoy them. I have already commented on Stuart Scudamore and Agni Scott's warm portrayals of Admiral and Mrs. Croft. The movie also featured solid performances from Lydia Rose Bewley as Penelope Clay, Izuka Hoyle as Henrietta Musgrove, Jenny Rainsford as Mrs. Harville, Nia Towle as Louisa Musgrove, Gary Beadle as Mr. Musgrove, Eve Matheson as Mrs. Musgrove and Edward Bluemel's very outgoing portrayal of Captain Harville. But there were performances that I particularly enjoyed. When I first viewed "PERSUASION", I had judged Richard E. Grant's portrayal of Sir Walter Elliot as a bit over-the-top. Upon my second and third viewing, I finally appreciated how entertaining and hilarious he was as the self-involved baronet. And . . . I thought he had one of the best lines in the film. I found both Yolanda Kettle and Mia McKenna-Bruce's portrayals of Anne's sisters - Elizabeth Elliot and Mary Elliot Musgrove - to be equally entertaining and funny. Ben Bailey Smith gave a very amusing performance as Mary Musgrove's long-suffering husband, Charles Musgrove. Nia Towle's portrayal of Louisa Musgrove struck me as both charming and ebullient. Nikki Amuka-Bird gave a warm and poignant performance as Anne's godmother, Lady Russell. I might as well say it. Henry Golding's William Elliot has proven to be my favorite version of the character. I have already expressed my pleasure at the screenwriters' decision to avoid Austen's more villainous portrayal of the character. But I also enjoyed Goulding's funny, yet sly performance as Sir Walter's heir. Golding had projected so much charm into his performance that he made it easy for me to see why Anne would briefly consider a future with her cousin. Cosmo Jarvis gave an interesting performance as Captain Frederick Wentworth . . . and I mean that as a compliment. I thought he did a fine job of weaving between the charm and wit Frederick directed at the Musgrove sisters, his continuing anger at Anne's past rejection through the occasion sharp barb or caustic criticism of her character. Once Frederick's anger began to dissipate, Jarvis skillfully managed to convey Frederick's awkwardness at trying to hide his love for Anne via friendly dialogue. I was especially impressed by that moment when he tried to place Anne in a friend zone. Many critics and Austen fans have criticized Dakota Johnson's for being too modern and too witty. I have already complained about the movie's use of modern dialogue and Johnson was not the only actress or actor who used it. As for Anne's wit, I have already discussed Johnson's portrayal of Anne's sense of humor. But I also enjoyed how the actress occasionally utilized facial expressions to convey her amusement or any other emotions toward her family and other characters in the story . . . while breaking the fourth wall. I really enjoyed that. Yet, I also enjoyed Johnson's portrayal of Anne's frustrations and despair over the continuing wall between her and Frederick and the possibility of continuing loneliness in her life. I was almost inclined to regard Henry Golding's portrayal of William Elliot as my favorite performance in this film. But you know what? I have to give that honor to Dakota Johnson's performance as Anne Elliot. How can I put this in a nutshell? This new version of "PERSUASION" is not perfect. It has flaws that include some modern dialogue, the transformation of the Henrietta Musgrove character and some of the costumes worn by the leading actress. But despite these flaws, I still enjoyed watching "PERSUASION" very much. I enjoyed it as much as I had enjoyed the 1995 and 2007 adaptations. Only the 1971 miniseries is superior in my eyes. It is a pity that the movie had received so much negative reactions upon its release on Netflix. But I have no control over that situation and frankly, I do not care. I know how I feel about "PERSUASION" and I look forward to many re-watches of it for years to come, thanks to the screenwriters, director Carrie Cracknell and a wonderful cast led by Dakota Johnson and Cosmo Jarvis.

[plainselfraisingflour]

"Charles Hayter exceedingly happy, and they were devoted to each other."

Before this they were kind of a couple, but not really: "between whom there had been a considerable appearance of attachment"; "and Henriette did seem to like him." From this we can see that they are on the edge of becoming a couple, as well as from all thr interest that Henrietta takes I'm Charles Hayter's career prospects.

But - the above quotes are about appearances and not what they actually are. That first one is also a pretty long-winded (I.e., namby pamby) sentence. "[T]hey were devoted to each other" is a phrase much more powerful.

And this mutual devotion is brought about by a break (albeit a short one), and rekindling of the romance.

It's foreshadowing and promise of the strength of Anne and Captain Wentworth's love that stands the test of time and circumstance. Not that anyone, I think, needs testament of their love, but I like it.

[firawren]

Austen siblings: the best of the best

Please vote based on their depiction in the books, not the movies. (I'm looking at you, fans of 2005!Darcy and Georgie!) Other than that, use whatever criteria you want. Sibling goals? Most loving? Most entertaining and fun? Most realistic? Up to you!

These are in alphabetical order by last name, so read the whole list before voting!

I have a worst Austen siblings poll too.

[recycledmoviecostumes]

Susannah Harker first wore this dress as Jane Bennet in the 1995 Pride and Prejudice. The following year, in 1996, it was seen on Samantha Bond as Mrs. Weston in the ITV production of Emma. Eight years later, it appeared on Larushka Ivan-Zadeh Griaznov in the 2004 reality show Regency House Party. It was later spotted in Persuasion, where Rosamund Stephen wore the dress as Henrietta Musgrove in 2007. In 2019 it was worn by Alexandra Roach as Diana Parker in the last episode of the first season of Sanditon.

Costume Credit: carsNcors, Heather, Katie, Martina

Follow: Website | Twitter | Facebook | Pinterest | Instagram

[bethanydelleman]

The more I think about Persuasion, the more I am convinced that Wentworth never should have proposed eight years prior in the first place.

He was broke, unemployed, and staying with his brother. He had no business asking someone to be his wife! It was a rash, impulsive decision and Lady Russell was correct to advise Anne to break off the engagement (even if her motives were suspect). Because Anne should have never said yes either! I guess maybe she would have wanted a long engagement, but her affection overwhelmed her judgement. The best case scenario is that Anne lived at home waiting for Wentworth to return, either married or engaged, but otherwise she’d probably be living in small rented rooms alone in some port city, hoping that Wentworth didn’t die at sea.

We are shown through the novel what could have happened. Admiral Croft and Sohpia had a similar short time of knowing each other and rapid marriage, but he was in already in a position to support her. She speaks fondly of their first home together. Captain Benwick goes through a long engagement and has to suffer through the death of his fiance. Captain Harville is injured and now supporting a wife on disability pay. To be honest, I think Anne and Wentworth would also do well in that situation, but it’s certainly not ideal. But we also have Mrs. Smith, who is the example of what happens when you marry financial insecurity. Wentworth spent freely, Anne doesn’t know if he can save in the future or not. Mr. Smith’s reckless spending made his wife extremely vulnerable upon his death. (and yes, Mr. Elliot influenced Mr. Smith, but people tempting you into more spending will always exist.)

Charles Hayter and Henrietta Musgrove show us the prudent option, one that Wentworth even suggests himself at the end of Persuasion. Hayter has a temporary living, but some good prospects for the future. That would be very similar to Wentworth, “with a few thousand pounds, and was posted into the Laconia”. Charles and Henrietta had to wait, and go through some trials, but their love is strong enough in the end. And we know that Anne was faithful enough to wait!

All of this is to say, the blame is usually focused on Anne for breaking the engagement and Lady Russell for encouraging her to do so. I think more blame needs to be assigned to Wentworth, for proposing to a woman when he could not properly provide for her. His proposal was unfair to her, as was his anger at her rational choice to break it off.

Is this because we have trouble understanding in modern times that Anne cannot work, and even if she did, the wages are far too low to support a family? Wentworth needs to be the provider in the society in which he lives.

(I do still find his resentment very human and natural, but I’ve always had the feeling that Anne said something like, “Not now” and he heard, “Not you.”)

[cottagecore-raccoon]

Not accounting for fortune, rank, other family members, or any other variables...

(And yes, I wrote them all with their maiden names to make my life easier)

[smolfangirl]

I'm nothing but a cheater so here's a poll that I could decide on

[mametupa]

[rationalseries]

Siblings in Rational Creatures

[fake-elizabeth-bennet]

NETFLIX focussed so much on portraying Anne as "she is not like other girls" that they forgot that "she likes other girls". She likes Lady Russell, Henrietta, Louisa, Mrs Croft, Mrs Musgrove, Mrs Harville, Mrs Smith and doesn't really hate Mary and Elizabeth. She likes (at least accepts) everybody the way they're and that's why she will never mock others or use sarcasm or pass smirk or say anything ridiculous at inappropriate time to make everybody uncomfortable.

I don't know how long will it take for the wounds created by this adaptation to heal so that I'll stop flinching everytime I hear of it..............

Apparently Netflix adaptation is Captain Wentworth and we are Louisa Musgrove and we were foolish enough to expect Netflix's adaptation to prevent our hopes from crashing on the ground.

P.S. - I don't know who suffered more pain? Louisa or all the book fans?

[eurekavalley]

I'm trying to tease out why I love this little sequence so much, which starts with Anne eavesdropping while Louisa tries to persuade Henrietta to make amends with Henry Hayter. I think it's the stealth protagonist energy that it gives the Musgrove girls while Anne lurks in the bushes. The actress who plays Louisa in particular feels so right - she's fresh-faced and strong-minded (and I keep trying to pick out whether or not it's really her in the Mad Men pilot too? - she has so few credits), but not silly or callous.

I love that the film lets these scenes just kind of roll out of their dynamic. Louisa advocates for Henrietta and her happiness - which no one (Elizabeth...) ever did for Anne - but of course her success means that Wentworth is left for her. The two pairs of sisters in the scene have their own particular dynamics of dependence, dysfunction, control, and care.

I keep reading that Persuasion is impossible to translate to a modern setting because Anne doesn't have agency and seems passive. (Especially sketchy after reading critical interpretations of how Austen purposefully wielded *Wentworth's* inaction and passivity in the Bath chapters!) But imo it's more interesting to think about Anne's agency in relation to how Louisa acts, that they are stretched along an axis of what was possible for youngish women of their station at the time, along with Henrietta, Mary, and even Elizabeth and Sophia, along with all of us. We catch Anne at a particularly low point, but we see how Henrietta is influenced first by Mary, then by Louisa, until it's not certain what she really wants - echoes of Anne's story and how it's not always possible to *know* what the outcome of a choice will be. I think what we (the modern 'we') don't like to engage with, is the idea of Anne's seemingly lost window of opportunity to make her life what she wants, because it still applies more than we like to acknowledge in our era, although it wasn't and isn't absolute.

On top of that, the walk to Winthrop contains a reveal of Anne's agency to Wentworth. Her refusal of a highly respectable match with Charles is a huge strike in favor of herself and her own interests - the core question of the life she wants and the choices she is willing to live with. Anne does not say anything so dramatic here as the speeches Louisa makes to Wentworth, but her choice says, "I'd rather risk living in genteel poverty than commit myself for life to a man I don't love and close off any hopes of my own." (It's the beauty of the storytelling in the novel that we don't know what Wentworth makes of this revelation - whether he takes the Musgrove supposition about Lady Russell to heart or understands that there is more to Anne's choice - until the end of the book, where we learn that he has been living with that very question.

Thank you to Louisa for planting that seed.) So in this, Anne and Louisa are actually more alike than not, like the dark side and the light side of the moon.

I really like the sense of Anne in these scenes as one among many, playing against the ways she stands out to the reader and the moments when Wentworth singles her out with his attention and later with his praise. It brings out the romance in the story - that it's not necessarily virtue or character in the end that is the key to Anne moving on from her situation, she's not being rewarded for anything and there's no moral victory in it, it's just love and communication.

[delphinidin4]

So, I watched the new Netflix Persuasion last night. I was bracing myself for something awful, because all the reviews online were SO negative. Having braced myself... I actually enjoyed it. lol

Some notes, in no particular order (spoilers):

Racial diversity ftw we love to see it

omg Mr. Eliot really WAS a ten

Anne was also gorgeous

I want to hear Admiral Croft's magnificent voice waaaaay more than we had the chance to

Good depiction of Mary's kids

Lovely actors chosen for Henrietta and Louisa!!

Perfect casting for Sir Walter, 10/10, no notes.

One of my FAVORITE things about this adaption is Mary Musgrove. She is just HILARIOUS. To Austen's original audience, Mary would have resembled people they knew, and they would be laughing and rolling their eyes at the accuracy and ridiculousness. In most dramatic adaptations I've seen of Persuasion, Mary is just fucking annoying. So by updating her to the kind of annoying person WE know in 2023, they made the character funny again.

The ways that they modernized it were really interesting. Having people know that Wentworth and Anne were exes added some layers of subtlety to the social interactions, which was interesting. I don't care for cringe humor, so I wasn't fond of that the couple of times it came up (saying that Charles had wanted to Mary her was SO cringe that I fast-forwarded lol). Yeah, the direct address and self-deprecating humor could get a little precious, but it really didn't bother me.

The changes were interesting in general, and really change one's interpretation of the story. Like Louisa making sure Anne was okay with Louisa going after Anne's ex, or Mr. Eliot being upfront about trying to stop Sir Walter from marrying --- and then nobody at all having a problem with him ending up with Mrs. Clay. (I also like that Wentworth got a jab in to Mary about being a snob when they were visiting the Hargroves.)

I will tell you the one thing that annoyed me the most about this adaptation, and I'm not sure it's one that the reviews really talked about: Wentworth was only semi-good-looking and every time he talked he sounded like he was on the verge of either tears or a belch. Not attractive. Go for Mr. Eliot, Anne. He's a 10.

[chocolatepot]

Watching Persuasion (2022) ... It's as bad as promised. Overall, my feeling is that it's a soulless, algorithmically-determined production meant to attract fans of Bridgerton. It doesn't go hard enough in any artistic direction to justify the problems and just isn't a fun watch.

The opening flashback feels like they think the viewer is stupid and won't be able to imagine them having been in love if they don't actually see them on the screen.

Of course he hasn't written, they're not allowed to write if they're not engaged! Her lying around crying and bathing and drinking wine and looking through the box of things he gave her makes her seem pathetic, like she has no life apart from her regret.

Mary's letter ( :( ) made me laugh, okay. But they're ramping up the family's cruelty toward her, which is frustrating - the thing in the book is that she's overlooked and they're thoughtlessly unkind, they don't go out of their way to insult her.

Anne smiling and giggling with Mrs. Croft over Frederick ... what the fuck ...

Why does she always carry around this rabbit?? WTF??

I actually like the Fleabaggian asides as a concept, it's a good one for Austen, but what Anne actually says in them is too sharp. Same as what everyone says.

Henrietta and Louisa being like Anne's gal pals is frustrating, she's effectively an older generation than them even though there's only a ~10yr age difference. They shouldn't be trying to set her up with Wentworth, they consider her too old to get married and want him themselves, what the fuck! There's making changes in interpretation of characters and then there's ... decimating the entire point of the story?

Charles Musgrove is cute 😍

Yelling out the fucking window?!?! What?

Oh god the jam-on-the-face scene, this is so painful and """relatable""" and I hate it. Your life does fucking lack purpose, Anne, you do nothing except think about him and lie around.

Having Anne initiate avoiding Frederick is like ... I just don't understand the characterization.

Ugh Louisa why are you dissuading the marriage talk, this is what you should want.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGH ANNE VOLUNTEERING THAT CHARLES WANTED TO MARRY HER FIRST WHAT THE FUCK that was SO painful

This is not dance music. I will give them points for doing the over-the-head waltz pose rather than just a basic anachronistic Playford country dance, though.

"He was so distant last night" you fucking ran away from him! Screaming into her pillow for him to love her - then why are you avoiding him?

Obligatory running in the woods scene, can't be considered "modern" and "relatable" if you don't run in the woods. Um, the English were not super into the French Revolution, I realize this makes her politically palatable to the audience but ... she's basically encouraging them to play at being the people trying to kill Wentworth.

"The boy could have been hurt" the boys were hitting her with sticks while she crouched on the ground!

Mary is actually the best thing about this adaptation. She is genuinely funny.

"Don't I?" Anne no you don't seem interested in him at all. (Also, she has the Turn-Down Collar of Relatable Modernity.)

Aw, we're losing the little fight over Henrietta going to see Charles Hayter. Because that would mean she was competing with Louisa for Wentworth and we can't depict women competing over a man because that wouldn't be Relatable, I guess.

ANNE IS FUCKING PEEING AGAINST A TREE WITHIN LISTENING DISTANCE OF LOUISA AND FREDERICK OH MY GOD

I don't generally use the term "virtue signaling" because it's mainly used by total assholes, but the extent that this production is going out of its way to make Louisa and Henrietta have a Positive and Healthy Relationship with Anne, Women Supporting Women, etc., I would have to call it virtue signaling. It is actively detrimental to the story!

Anne being eloquent and telling Wentworth off at dinner kind of came out of nowhere. It also feels like a bit of a replacement for the "fine ladies" bit that's been cut out.

In general, I don't hate the modern talk, but it would be better if that were just how the characters spoke. It jars because most of the time they speak reasonably like it's the Regency and then suddenly you have "sorry, Agamemnon joke" or "5 in London, 10 in Bath" or what have you.

Having Wentworth stand there glaring at Mr. Elliot for talking to Anne is just awkward, feels like they're trying to layer a Darcy/Wickham thing over their relationship.

Anne and Wentworth really speak too much in this. Together, I mean. What is the purpose of this conversation between them on the beach? I guess it's meant to show that he still has concern/regard for her but like, that comes through very well in the novel.

Being friends is a step up, you idiot! You are expected to be friends with the person you marry. Why are you walking into the sea?? Oh, of course she can swim very well, she's Modern and Relatable.

Louisa has been made so sensible that the jumping scene now makes no sense. And the whole point of the scene is that Anne finally takes a more active role and actually exchanges words with Wentworth so ... that's a dud now as well.

They share a whole carriage ride alone together from Lyme to Kellynch????

Oh FFS I was 🤔 enough at Lady Russell being made a wholly positive person, but she talks about sex with Anne and says she goes on European tours to have lovers? It's nice for Anne that she has all of these confidants and people who support her, but that's just ... not the story of Persuasion!

I hate hate hate the trend of dressing all of the characters except the heroine in reasonably accurate clothing and then being more artistic and stripped-down and modern with the heroine. It just isn't that clever. Like, sure, the first time, but it just looks like the designer got lazy and pulled everyone else's costumes from a bin. Lady Russell gets the same treatment which imo is making her too much on Anne's wavelength.

Uh ... so Mr. Elliot is just admitting his whole plan right out to Anne, basically?

Not enough Richard E. Grant in this.

Okay, the gold teacup is a bit funny. Not the slurping but the ostentation. Oh no Anne what the fuck are you doing what is this dream this is so painful and insane

More turn-down collars of modernity ... I hate this trope

Anne is talking up Elliot to Wentworth. This is ... the exact opposite of the book scene, the point of which was that they were starting to come together but were interrupted by Elliot. Anne using her cousin to make Wentworth jealous is just gross behavior.

Mrs. Clay's cleavage is so anachronistic, but I'll allow it. For personal reasons.

Anne's all pleased and surprised at Mr. Elliot's proposal. Um, that's not Anne. She knows she doesn't want him the whole time. And that damn rabbit again!

ANNE DRINKS SO MUCH. What is this obsession with making her a wine girl?

Whoa, having Anne discover Elliot and Mrs. Clay making out in public is uh quite a thing. Wraps that up without the need for Mrs. Smith, I guess.

Looking at all the couples in the church ... stealing from Pride and Prejudice '95, hm? But lol, like all these people would have come to the wedding of Mr. Elliot and Mrs. Clay. It would have been at least semi-scandalous and he doesn't have any money (although I guess he is rich in this one). This ending also feels like stealing from '05.