[ SECRET POST #2260 ]

[case]

⌈ Secret Post #2260 ⌋

Warning: Some secrets are NOT worksafe and may contain SPOILERS.

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Notes:

Secrets Left to Post: 04 pages, 080 secrets from Secret Submission Post #323.
Secrets Not Posted: [ 0 - broken links ], [ 0 - not!secrets ], [ 0 - not!fandom ], [ 1 2 - too big ], [ 1 - repeat ].
Current Secret Submissions Post: here.
Suggestions, comments, and concerns should go here.

Comments

[(Anonymous)]

Yes. Far from perfect and still almost as manipulative as Thomas but nowhere near as selfish or mean.

[fauxkaren]

Pretty sure O'Brien is more manipulative than Thomas.

[(Anonymous)]

I don't think so, but I don't feel so strongly as to disagree. She isn't anywhere near as selfish and she has a much better heart, which carries a lot of weight with me.

[fauxkaren]

Well the thing is though.

Thomas ain't that bright.

lol. Like back in series 1, he'd be like "GRRRR I HATE THAT BATES!"

And it'd be O'Brien who was like "hm... maybe you should steal something of Lord Grantham's and try to frame Bates?"

And Thomas would be like "GR8 IDEA!"

Thomas really isn't all that manipulative because he's not as good at scheming as he'd like to think he is, lol.

[(Anonymous)]

Oh we're only looking at the first series? My mistake. I was looking at the characters as a whole across all three series.

[fauxkaren]

lol. Ok.

Here's a couple of other examples of O'Brien being manipulative. In series 2 she manipulated Cora to get Dr. Clarkson to have Thomas assigned to work at Downton Abbey. In series 3 she manipulated Thomas to believe that Jimmy had a thing for him. She also manipulated Alfred to go to the police about what happened with Jimmy and Thomas.

I mean like. idk. Most of Thomas's manipulation stuff was from series 1 - like the way he toyed with Daisy to mess with William.

[inkdust]

If you look at series 3, I'm pretty sure all of those strings lead back to O'Brien.

[(Anonymous)]

In series 3 her manipulations are all reactions to things Thomas did and began with her protecting her nephew and his position. She is far from faultless or blameless but she isn't anywhere near as self serving.

[(Anonymous)]

O RLY?

"Her Ladyship's soap."

[(Anonymous)]

Series 1, as has been pointed out before. AYRT is talking about series 3.

[(Anonymous)]

AYRT

Meh, true. Here I was, thinking there was (or ought to be) consistency in the characters. WHAT WAS I THINKING??

[(Anonymous)]

Ehh, no. She's a pretty rubbish person. She was willing to utterly destroy the life of someone who had been probably the closest thing she had to a friend, just for the chance that her nephew might shoot up the ladder more quickly, even though he's not that good at his job.

Thomas has his reasons to. And while they're more focused on himself, the idea of getting Out and being his own man is a more noble goal than hers.

Plus, again, the way she goes about things is way, way worse.

Thomas makes stupid, selfish decisions, and nine times out of ten, the person who is worst affected by them is him. O'Brien spins and manipulates like a spider and destroys people's lives, or does her level best to.

She is a mean, horrid person.

[(Anonymous)]

+1 This, all of this.

[aubry]

I'd agree with fauxkaren's take on the dynamic though. I mean look at the S2 Christmas Special. O'Brien gives Thomas advice on how to get into Lord Grantham's good books, and then sort of can't believe his epic stupidity when he follows through by stealing the damn dog.

And S3 was a hot mess in terms of O'Brien and Thomas's relationship, but while her trolling at the start had a clear scheme to it, his was just idiotic.

[(Anonymous)]

I completely agree about this. At least she has a conscience and cares about Cora (...even if she did cause the miscarriage :/)

[fingalsanteater]

What? No. She doesn't care about Cora. She cares about being needed. Her kind of "caring" is selfish and causes pain to others.

[(Anonymous)]

DA - I must have been watching something else then because I agree with AYRT

[(Anonymous)]

da

yep so do I

[fauxkaren]

I think O'Brien only really cares about Cora because she feels so guilty about causing the miscarriage in series 1. Before that, I don't think she cared that much. But now her guilt causes her to be protective of Cora.

[inkdust]

That's plausible. I saw her initial regret and attempt to undo it as the realization that she had gone too far, not really relating to actually caring about Cora, but I can believe that the impact of it has created a new sort of attachment, whether truly good or not.

[truxillogical]

This exactly. Before she got to take pride in being a Lady's Maid and how that made her better than the other maids. But her actual kindness towards Cora only started with the miscarriage. And heck, as of the end of season 3, it looks like she'll still gladly jockey for position elsewhere.

Basically, she is as horrible as Mrs. Hughes is wonderful.

[(Anonymous)]

http://www.nypost.com/p/entertainment/tv/brien_maid_to_leave_abbey_9kctBQqvk07FcIrtmBILOP

[inkdust]

Hmm. I spend most of the time going back and forth between which one I find worse.