All Six Seasons of Downton Abbey RANKED!
Downton Abbey is one of my favorite TV shows! I love the immersive period piece, slice-of-life story it tells! Every season has something different to offer, with the first dealing with the heir to the estate, the second dealing with the drama of World War I, the third dealing with many emotional relationships and the aftermath of World War I, the fourth and fifth coping with the drama of various subplots, and the sixth wrapping it all up in a pretty little bow (until the movies, of course). But, as usual, I like some seasons of the show better than others. Now, without further ado, I, Brighton Nelson of The Reel Ranker, present to you... All Six Seasons of Downton Abbey RANKED!
6: Series 5 - B Tier
The Reel Ranker Score: 64%
Year: 2014
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 100%
Metacritic Score: 75
This is the only season of Downton Abbey that I actively disliked at any point while watching it. I'd give it a lower score, but with how good the characters, setting, and production are, I couldn't give this a lower score than a B Tier. But I digress. Every single plot point in this season is just diluted mediocrity carried over from Season 4 that needed to be resolved before the bombastic final season. I still enjoyed the Marigold subplot and the Mr. Green subplot, as well as the minor subplots regarding Mrs. Patmore's late nephew and the new footman, Andy. I also found the late-season revelations of Tom Branson moving to the United States and Carson proposing to Mrs. Hughes rather interesting. Literally every other thing about this season, though? It is an absolute bore in every single way of the word. It took me over a year to pick up the motivation to actually watch Season 6 because of how much of a sour taste this season left in my mouth. Ultimately, I had an alright time watching this season because of the characters, but the narrative was almost offensively awful, easily securing this season in last place.
5: Series 4 - A Tier
The Reel Ranker Score: 72%
Year: 2013
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 66%
Metacritic Score: 72
In my opinion, this is easily the second weakest season of Downton Abbey, but still a considerable step up from Season 5. It still has many fantastic moments, but some moments fall very flat. I'll start with the positive and then move into the negative, as usual. Firstly, Lady Mary's mourning of Matthew is done in a very fantastic and touching way. Secondly, Lady Mary taking on a more active role in running Downton was a really great place to take her character. Thirdly, Lady Edith's plotline with Michael Gregson and Marigold was one of my favorite plotlines of the entire show. Fourthly, Anna and Bates's plotline with Mr. Green is equally heartbreaking and intriguing to watch. Fifthly, I love Rose's plotline with Jack Ross, as it tackled the deplorable treatment of black people at the time—I was so sad when it was broken off, and she moved on to Atticus instead of Jack.
Unfortunately, there was as much bad as good in this season. Everything regarding Edna was idiotic, and I'm grateful the excellent Mrs. Baxter replaced her. Even worse is that Ms. O'Brien left, as her villainous presence always added a certain edge to the show that was missing from that point on. Mr. Molesly being booted and rehired at the end was largely unnecessary. Every single time Lord Gillingham and Charles Blake were ever on the screen? I groaned at the torturous agony that was their lack of W-rizz. The whole last episode was full of boring filler, and Sarah Bunting's character was endlessly frustrating. The whole Sampson scandal was 100% boring the entire way through. There's much more here to complain about, but I don't want to be too much of a negative Nancy. Ultimately, this season has significant highlights, but it has many flaws that hold it back from being anywhere higher on this ranking.
4: Series 1 - S+ Tier
The Reel Ranker Score: 84%
Year: 2010
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 80%
Metacritic Score: 91
This is an impeccable introduction to this brilliant show, but I'm not fond of it quite as much as most Downton fans are. This season tackles the implications of the sinking of the Titanic, which leads to the Crawley family and their servants trying to find who the new heir to the estate would be. The overarching plot here is simple but much stronger than the scatter-brained narratives of the fourth and fifth seasons. The real highlight here is how well each character is introduced—it's bloody brilliant! Mary and Matthew's blossoming relationship is also exciting to watch, and Cora's pregnancy adds quite a bit of tension to the show. The end-of-season cliffhanger also blew me away, greatly exciting me for the show's second season. While I enjoy the complex web of relations and plotlines provided by some later seasons more than the concise narrative here, the simplicity and lightning-in-a-bottle nature of this show's first season sets it apart as an above-average first season as one of my favorite shows.
3: Series 2 - S+ Tier
The Reel Ranker Score: 86%
Year: 2011
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 100%
Metacritic Score: 85
This season focuses on Downton Abbey's affairs during the First World War and the aftermath of the war. Downton Abbey's transformation into a convalescent home for the wounded was an exciting development, and seeing different characters react to the war was very interesting. Of all the seasons, this one is best at being a period piece and looking at the society at the time in interesting ways, making it the most immersive and contemplative season of the show. However, outside of the war and the Matthew/Mary and Sybil/Branson romances, this season doesn't have the masterfully executed subplots that make me love the next seasons in this ranking more than this one.
2: Series 6 - The Reel Tier
The Reel Ranker Score: 91%
Year: 2015
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 91%
Metacritic Score: 76
Finally! The show dropped the awful subplots of yesteryear and made for a masterpiece of a Downton Abbey season! No more stupid Mary love triangles with Lord Gillingham and Charles Blake's nonsensical tomfoolery. No more overdramatic Mr. Bates stuff that dramatically overstayed its welcome. No more Cora and Lord Grantham drama. No more awful love interest of the Dowager Countess. I could go on and on and on about all the massive improvements this season made over the fifth, but I wouldn't want to bore you. So let's move on to the overwhelming positives of this season and forget Season 5 ever existed.
Edith's storyline here was my favorite part of the entire show. And I'm not joking. Seeing her finally get an overwhelmingly happy ending after the grime events of her previous relationships and careers was just joyful as all creation, especially since her own family usually treated her like crap. The Henry Talbot and Mary relationship was a bit more rushed than I would've liked, but Talbot was a perfect match for Mary, and while he's no Matthew, he's still a great character. I liked seeing the changing times of the world and how Downton is having struggles staying afloat in a new era. I loved the bantery, traditional marriage of Mr. Carson and Mrs. Hughes, and how they kept roasting each other's cooking inabilities. I loved Branson and Talbot's friendship and business venture. I loved the car racing scenes. I loved Thomas in this season in pretty much every way, especially his relationship with the kids and teaching Andrew how to read. I loved the hospital subplot and how it affected the relationships of many characters. And all that with almost nothing bad to say! This season was exceptional in practically every way and a huge step up from seasons four and five.
1: Series 3 - The Reel Tier
The Reel Ranker Score: 92%
Year: 2012
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 80%
Metacritic Score: 83
This season is frankly beautiful and heart-breaking, with the deaths of Sybil, Lavinia, and Matthew all being some of the most emotional and saddening moments of the whole show. Each of these moments was done so beautifully and are major contributing factors to why this is my favorite season of Downton Abbey. I also found Edith's subplot interesting (as always), the investment plotline intriguing, and the romance best of any season of the show! While this is a simple season that only focuses on a few things, it is the most emotional season of the six, which, if you know me, is more than enough for me to cite it as my favorite season of of the show.
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The Verdict
The Reel Ranking:
6: Series 5 (64%)
5: Series 4 (72%)
4: Series 1 (84%)
3: Series 2 (86%)
2: Series 6 (91%)
1: Series 3 (92%)
Common Critic Consensus:
6: Series 4 (69%)
5: Series 3 (82%)
4: Series 6 (84%)
3: Series 1 (86%)
2: Series 5 (88%)
1: Series 2 (93%)
Common Audience Consensus:
6: Series 5 (81%)
5: Series 4 (83%)
4: Series 3 (85%)
3: Series 2 (85%)
2: Series 6 (87%)
1: Series 1 (90%)
