Mild spoilers ahead:

I'm onto season two of Downton Abbey (no making fun of me for watching it...), and while the show is often enjoyable, it's unfortunate that it's such a soap opera. Why can't at least one relationship be stable? But no, everyone's unfaithful in their marriage, or loves someone besides the person they're supposed to be marrying, or loves someone but not the person they're marrying, etc., etc. No one seems to be happy with their marriage, though the reality is that many, if not most, people are able to have a fairly happy marriage without cheating and ruining it. Maybe it's just because the show deals with the aristocracy and that's the norm, but when, for instance, Edith helps out a farmer, why does she have to end up kissing him and being overly familiar, straining the relationship between the farmer and his wife?

Much of what I'm complaining about seems to be shoehorned into the story and out of character for the characters involved. It seems that whoever wrote the episodes felt it necessary to add things like Lord Grantham kissing a maid just for shock value, since it serves little purpose in the story and doesn't jive with his established character. It was foreshadowed a bit, but still managed to feel forced.

Anyway, I realize it's just a show, but I think it would be far stronger and more enjoyable without the above-mentioned aspects of it.