So, this is the season where Lord Grantham reveals himself to be a bullish oaf, eh? Sad, sad stuff with Sybil, but I was left wondering about so many of the character dynamics there. Mary and Edith still have "issues"? Really, because Fellowes hasn't shown any of it really at any point since season 1. There's so little growth in the characters to me--part of that's the growing familiarity with the characters, but Fellowes doesn't seem to have as much inspiration here.
At least Mary and Lord Grantham's headstrong nature is returning, even if it's to the detriment of their happiness.
Meantime, I just read a spoiler about the Christmas episode (link here). That's... an interesting development. It'll be curious to see what Season 4 does with it. As it stands, I want to know that Fellowes has a clear endpoint in mind.