‘Downton Abbey’ season 5 teaser: Jim Carter’s Carson narrates first promo

“I feel a shaking of the ground I stand on. The nature of life is not permanent, but flux. Things are changing.”

This is the line narrated by Jim Carter’s Mr. Carson in the latest promo for “Downton Abbey” season 5, which looks (at least superficially) to be one of the darkest seasons yet of the ITV show. Death has always been a concern with this series, especially when you look at who we have lost already in Matthew and Sybil. Could another passing be upon us? It is always possible, but you have to worry about the death of an era just as much as the death of a person.

Society in many ways is one of the leads for this show. It is a choosy person, demanding and constantly disinterested in anything other than the best of the best. It has allowed Downton to remain a top-class establishment despite the tough circumstances around it, and it has also allowed the characters to continue living in ways that most would be envious of.

However, all things must come to and end, and we are getting near the death of the estate era with each passing season. We continue to be torn when it comes to what exactly we want to see from the series as it approaches its final days. There is admittedly a rather large part of us that wants to see the family struggle and have to figure out a new way for itself; but, much of this show has also been a part of an ideal. Why end it with the notion of that crumbling? We do not believe that ending the show with a reasonably happy family and their servants changes the fact that the estate will eventually start to wither. It simply comes down to what we see on the screen.

What do you think about this teaser for the series, and is there any hint you take from it? Let us know below, and you can head over here to see our latest “Downton Abbey” news.

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Photo: ITV