Victoria season 2 finale review: Drummond’s pain; Vicky’s illness

The Victoria season 2 finale was one with many questions at the heart of it, but one of the biggest ones was rather simple: What will Queen Victoria and Albert do in order to help Sir Robert Peel? The Prime Minister found himself under attack for much of the episode, largely because he found himself in a difficult position where he had the interests of his party and also the people and the Monarch at odds with one another. Peel had the challenge of figuring out how to best care for the people in the wake of the Great Famine, but what he found instead was that he was a subject of mockery for many different reasons.

Take, for one, Albert deciding to attend a session of Parliament, which led in turn to Robert being attacked over needing to have someone from the Royal Family there in order to protect him. Robert didn’t love that, and he had to find a way to recover. This was a different sort of episode for the show for this reason, largely because he had to find a way to keep the government on his side and his legacy cemented.

So did Peel find some success, but in the end it was tragedy that will more define the aftermath of this moment. After all, we saw Drummond shot via a bullet that was originally intended to land in Peel’s direction. This only adds more pain onto what is going on with the Prime Minister.

While Robert was successful in his quest, he also realized that politics were changing and so was he. He opted to step down from the post after what transpired with Drummond, a move that made his new confidante Albert very sad. We saw Drummond’s funeral, coupled with a devastating reminder of the relationship that he had with Alfred.

Struggles at home

Basically, Victoria and Albert’s problems are not just limited to politics. Victoria learned about her daughter’s condition via a doctor tonight, when she really should have heard about it via her husband. Unfortunately, Albert didn’t take a whole lot of time to clue her in on more information in terms of what was going on.

The good news is that young Princess Vicky survived! The fever broke, and the character has a chance now to move forward with the rest of her life.

A little moment of romance — coupled with more sadness.

Hey, Harriet is finally getting a little bit of happiness! The covert nature of this story is probably one of the reasons why it is, in turn, so popular. She and Ernest had a rather nice moment — and we’re sure that many people in the years to come will use the “parasol” line as a pick-up line like no other.

It’s too bad that this happiness was also followed by sadness courtesy of Ernest and that rash. Can anyone be happy on this show in the end?

CarterMatt Verdict

This was an excellent finale, but also very much a sad one at times. There were many exciting things that transpired but plenty others that may have you in tears. This was about stories far bigger than just one Queen, and Victoria has evolved enough over the years to render this possible. The story ended tonight with a preview of the Christmas Special — it was brief, but it gives you something small to be excited about.

What did you think about the Victoria season 2 finale?

Did the episode set the stage well for the upcoming Christmas Special? Be sure to share in the attached comments right now!

Also, be sure to check out one of our first Victoria season 3 articles if you have an interest in looking towards what the future for the ITV series could be. (Photo: ITV.)