“The Gilded Age” returns for a second (and possibly final) season that feels even more conspicuously like “Downton Abbey Lite.” That’s not necessarily bad, as the show remains highly watchable as a finely tailored, lushly decorated soap, with the added benefit of incorporating 19th-century history, like early struggles of the labor movement (timely, given Hollywood’s recent woes) and the opening of the Brooklyn Bridge.
Photo Illustration by Thomas Levinson/The Daily Beast/Getty/HBO(Warning: This post contains spoilers for the Gilded Age Season 2 premiere.)The Gilded Age Season 2 might kick off with a delightful parade of new hats, but make no mistake: Life is as cutthroat as ever in Julian Fellowes’ take on 19th Century New York. As seen in Sunday’s premiere, Bertha Russell (Carrie Coon) is on a mission to replace the Academy of Opera—a prestigious but stodgy organization that refuses to create new box seats t
“The Gilded Age” returns for a second (and possibly final) season that feels even more conspicuously like “Downton Abbey Lite.” That’s not necessarily bad, as the show remains highly watchable as a finely tailored, lushly decorated soap, with the added benefit of incorporating 19th-century history, like early struggles of the labor movement (timely, given Hollywood’s recent woes) and the opening of the Brooklyn Bridge.