Thank God for a little resolution. Bates finally knows about Anna’s horrendous rape.

A man of the world, Bates is not fooled by Anna’s insistence that nothing has gone wrong. When he overhears Anna and Mrs. Hughes in the hallway (Anna proclaims she isn’t pregnant—hallelujah), he then coaxes the truth from Mrs. Hughes by threatening to leave Downton should she not tell him what happened. However, Mrs. Hughes swears on her mother’s grave that the culprit isn’t Mr. Green.

In a tender and long-awaited scene, Bates cups Anna’s face and reassures her she is not spoiled. Instead, she has become even more precious to him because of the suffering she endured.

However, all is not well. Bates still has an inkling that the rapist is Mr. Green, and declares, “He’s a dead man.” Despite our desire to see Mr. Green offed, none of us want Bates to end up in prison again.

The Daisy-Alfred saga continues. Alfred wants to pursue his dreams of becoming a chef and there is an opening at the Ritz. Daisy reluctantly “help[s] Alfred to leave” by teaching him to cook.

Daisy sadly watches Alfred packs his bags for London and Carson goes footman-hunting. Before the grocery-delivering Mr. Mossley accepts the insulting position of footman, Alfred returns because he doesn’t make the cut and Carson smugly tells Mr. Mossley the position is no longer vacant.

Among the staff downstairs is a new Lady’s maid – Phyllis Baxter. She seems to be an old friend of Thomas, although much sweeter than the conniving underbutler. We have no idea what past the two shared, but Thomas has the power to order Baxter to relay any information she can from upstairs. What Thomas expects to do with this information is unclear and Baxter evidently has reservations.

Speaking of new hires, Mrs. Crawley has a new sick puppy – little John Pegg. Mrs. Crawley thinks Dowager Countess should hire the boy for her gardening. Of course, the Dowager is less than enthusiastic. “I wonder if your halo doesn’t grow heavy. It must be like wearing a tiara around the clock,” she quips. Nonetheless, she breaks down and takes him on.

When the Dowager finds Pegg watering her plants and discovers that her very expensive paper knife has gone missing, she blames the young gardener.

Upstairs, an ancient tenant of Downton passes away. Mary and Branson propose taking the land and farming it themselves. However, Mr. Drewe, the farmer’s son, begs Lord Grantham for a second chance, leaning on the centuries-old partnership the two families have shared. Without Mary’s consent, he agrees to keep Mr. Drewe, lending him the 50 pounds of debt which Mr. Drewe cannot pay.

When Mary hears of Lord Gillingham’s engagement to Mable Lane Fox, she forces a smile and walks away. However, she sheds a few regretful tears while writing Gillingham a congratulatory note.

Even still, Mary’s chances at love are not altogether foiled. Mr. Evelyn Napier (the same man who brought Mary’s infamous Kemal Pamuk) arrives during a business trip and Mary looks overjoyed to see him.

Anna may have avoided an unwanted pregnancy, but there are hints that Edith might not be so lucky. She goes to London to visit a doctor and we can’t help but wonder if the ever-unlucky Edith will face the consequences for her late-night gallivanting.

Perhaps Edith will have to go to America with Branson, who doesn’t think he fits in and wants to start a new life with Sybbie.  

How do you feel about these new developments?