‘Downton Abbey’ season 6, episode 4 preview: Allen Leech’s Tom a new mystery

Anyone who has followed “Downton Abbey” with any regularity over the summer knew that Allen Leech was returning as Tom Branson. In many ways, it was a foregone conclusion that we were going to see him once again on the show.

Thanks to this being more-than-official, we suppose that the larger question here is something along the lines of what he is going to do now. Allen Leech’s character made it clear that the reason he is back at Downton is because he realized while in Boston that he had no future there, and he missed being back at home with some of the people who loved him? Is this really all of the story? That is something we’re going to have to figure out over the course of the coming episode.

One other question that you do have to wonder here is whether or not Tom is going to be able to secure some new work for himself at the Abbey, given that since his departure, Mary has taken over many of the matters pertaining to the estate. He may have to prepare for the notion that he may not actually be needed in any way that he once was there, and he will need to find a new way to feel fulfilled.

Luckily, Tom is a resourceful man, and one who is perpetually ambitious. We know that he has struggled to find out where he belongs thanks to his journey from a servant to a member of the upper class, but hopefully at this point in the run he has started to feel more comfortable in his own skin.

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