The second season of Sanditon has reached its penultimate episode with the romantic and personal drama increasing as another event is about to happen.
The Parkers are set to hold a ball, but the shopkeepers are refusing to supply the event until the army pays their debts. Alison plans to leave Sanditon after finding out that Captain Carter had been lying to her. Georgiana grows closer to Charles Lockhart as he paints her portrait. Whilst in the Denham house Edward has been poisoning his stepsister so she would be declared mad and he would become Lady Denham’s heir.
This episode was one where many of the relationships get to express their feelings for each other with passion of the lips. Georgiana finally kissed Charles during their painting sessions. Georgiana could finally be herself around Charles because that’s what he wanted to see. Charles commented on Georgiana’s hairstyle and she said her mother gave it to her. Charles was drawn to Georgiana because of her passion and political radicalism, not her money.
The Haywood sisters were both in the middle of love triangles. Alison was left embarrassed and humiliated by Captain Carter and his lies. This put Captain Fraser in a delicate position since he was in love with Alison and Captain Carter was his friend. Fraser counselled his friend to be honest with Alison. Yet, Fraser and Alison got to interact during the ball and danced with each other, leading to Carter’s displeasure. It seems like the final episode is going to set up a clash between the officers.
Charlotte was caught in the middle of a feistier rival. Colonel Lennox was successfully able to drive a wedge between Charlotte and Colbourne at the end of the previous episode. Lennox was able to get Colbourne to snap and made him seem like a dominating man. However, Charlotte finally hears Colbourne’s side of the story. This started when Colbourne’s housekeeper tells Charlotte that she doesn’t know the full story. After an unpleasant interaction with Lennox, Colbourne finally opens up about his past and shows his vulnerable side.
Lennox’s dark side finally gets exposed in this episode. Tom had to admit to his wife and brother that he was £100 in debt to the army officer. Lady Denham had heard stories about the regiment’s conduct in other towns. They go around town, racking up debts, and then flee before paying anything. On the romantic front, Charlotte also suffered from Lennox’s real character because he was a man who took what he wanted. Charlotte’s storyline has gone down a traditional route for a Jane Austen story where appearances are not always what they appear.
Throughout the series, Tom had been ignoring advice from Arthur. He dismissed Arthur as the foolish younger brother with no serious ideas. Tom’s arrogance was his downfall and he finally sees the error of his ways.
The storyline involving the Denhams takes a dark turn due to Edward’s poisoning of Esther. Edward’s plot goes from trying to inherit Lady Denham’s estate to him physically and psychologically torturing his stepsister. He wanted revenge for Esther’s perceived betrayal. He already isolated Esther by intercepting her husband’s letters and the poison made Esther detract from reality.
Clara had reservations about Edward’s plan. She had a conscious and disagreed with Edward’s scheme since it goes beyond becoming wealthy. Clara was caught in the middle of three plot strands. She had a rapprochement with Esther after Esther supported Clara in the previous episode, whilst marriage with Edward would give her son legitimacy. Finally, Clara needed to protect her son. All of this helped make Clara the most interesting character in the series.
Due to the episode leading up to the ball, it felt similar to the previous episode. That episode led up to Lady Denham’s garden party and also had romantic drama for Charlotte, Alison, and Georgiana. It felt a bit too much like the series was repeating the same structure. Fans of regency set series will like the costumes and dancing at the ball, although some of the dancing didn’t seem like it belonged in the 1810s.
This episode offered more of the same that fans of the series would want. The characters were still enjoyable and the penultimate episode sets a lot of stories that need to be resolved for the finale.
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