RECAP: ‘The Other Bennet Sister’ Episode 5

The Other Bennet Sister Episode 5 marks the halfway point of BritBox’s charming Pride and Prejudice sequel series. In a story reminiscent of Jane Austen’s own classics, Mary Bennet’s (Ella Bruccoleri) quest for self-discovery continues to thrive in London, even when an unexpected enemy returns.

Miss Baxter (Varada Sethu) insists an upcoming ball is the perfect place for Mary to find a husband. Miss Baxter resolves to make Mary look and feel her best for London society. By making Mary her protégée, Miss Baxter serves as this story’s Emma Woodhouse, with Mary as her Harriet.

While teaching Mary the art of confidence, Miss Baxter says she envies Mary, who still has the early days of romance ahead. Miss Baxter says that eventually, the feelings of people in love become so ordinary that they forget how they felt at the beginning of their romance. This is a super weird thing for Miss Baxter to say in the moment, given that in The Other Bennet Sister Episode 2, she was excited about her future engagement to Tom (Dónal Finn).

Miss Baxter and Tom exhibit odd behavior despite an upcoming engagement.

At the ball, Miss Baxter suggests that Mary and Tom dance to show all of London society that Mary is an eligible bachelorette. Tom looks happier at the idea of dancing with Mary than he does at seeing Miss Baxter at all. He’s being weird, too, and it’s all very odd behavior from people who are supposed to be formally engaged soon.

Tom and Mary’s conversation while dancing is awkward, but both have a longing in their eyes that each tries to hide from the other. It’s a classic Jane Austen yearning situation. They’re totally into each other when they shouldn’t be; it’s like Elinor and Mr. Ferrars in Sense and Sensibility. Mary and Tom’s dance is so full of yearning that The Other Bennet Sister Episode 5 instantly joins the ranks of great period drama yearning scenes.

After dancing with Tom, Mary runs into Ryder (Laurie Davidson), who’s very pleased to see her. Watching single women at the ball look around for eligible bachelors, Ryder comments that society puts too much emphasis on marriage. “For some people, that is their only means of survival,” Mary retorts. Ryder says she might be right. “I know I am,” Mary says confidently. Miss Baxter’s lessons in confidence are working.

Mary bonds with Ryder, seeking a friendship despite watchful (judgmental) eyes. 

Ryder invites Mary to dance, and it’s less awkward and more carefree than the dance with Tom. As they make conversation during the dance, Mary confesses her love of reading true crime stories. It’s not considered appropriate reading for a young woman of Mary’s social status, but Ryder finds this endearing.

They have a great time while dancing, and people take notice, especially Tom, who’s visibly stressed out. What secrets does he know about Ryder? Or is he just jealous Ryder’s free to pursue Mary? It seems like he does nothing in The Other Bennet Sister Episode 5 but stare at Mary and look bothered by her friendship with Ryder.

Miss Baxter warns Mary that Ryder is vain and uninterested in social rules. Mary says she hasn’t noticed Ryder’s handsomeness and that there’s no way Ryder’s romantically interested in her. She feels like they can be friends because they’re not interested in each other.

Miss Baxter asks Tom to dance. Tom almost turns her down, saying he’s too tired, but agrees as soon as he sees Mary and Ryder continuing to chat. For the millionth time, what is going on between Tom and Miss Baxter? They seemed so happy in The Other Bennet Sister Episode 3.

The Other Bennet Sister Episode 5 brings Caroline Bingley to the forefront.

Just then, a familiar but unwelcome face appears: Caroline Bingley (Tanya Reynolds). Caroline reminds Mary that she still remembers Mary’s bad singing and mood-killing piano-playing at the Netherfield ball in The Other Bennet Sister Episode 2. Ryder invites Mary to a dinner party, and Caroline snidely suggests Mary should sing there, too. Mary almost cries from embarrassment.

Ryder drops off some true crime pamphlets for Mary at the Gardiners’ house. Mary tries to back out of the dinner party because Caroline will be there. Mrs. Gardiner (Indira Varma) suspects Caroline is hiding behind her own insecurities by being mean to Mary and encourages Mary to attend the dinner party anyway.

At the dinner party, Ryder tries to tell Mary that he read something that reminded him of her. Before he can say more, Caroline interrupts to comment on a portrait of Lady Catherine de Bourgh. While Lady Catherine has yet to appear on The Other Bennet Sister, Austen fans will remember that she is Mr. Darcy’s (Victor Pilard) aunt and Mr. Collins’ (Ryan Sampson) patroness.

Caroline whisks Ryder away to look over the seating arrangements for dinner. She seats Mary far away from everyone she knows—instead, Mary’s next to Mr. Hurst (Fergus Craig), who’s not very conversational. Tom and Miss Baxter are next to each other, but Miss Baxter keeps looking at a handsome guest across from her.

Mary holds her own against Caroline’s verbal taunts.

After several failed attempts at conversation, Mary finally gets Mr. Hurst talking by discovering his love of horse racing. Everyone at the table takes note of Mary’s kind, polite interest in her dinner companion. Caroline’s visibly annoyed that her attempts to isolate Mary among strangers have failed.

After dinner, Caroline mentions that Lady Catherine de Bourgh recently commented that Mary is not as beautiful or interesting as her sisters. Caroline insinuates that Mary and Ryder are interested in each other. “It seems you do all you can to please him,” Caroline says, when Mary insists otherwise. Caroline suggests that Ryder would reject Mary.

But Mary has her own blow to deliver. Mary asks Caroline if she’s had experience with rejection, and Caroline immediately knows what Mary’s talking about, since it’s about when Caroline was once in love with Mr. Darcy. Livid, Caroline turns away in a huff. The growth Mary’s had across The Other Bennet Sister strongly culminates here, as Mary has the backbone to stand up to Caroline in this gently scathing way.

Tom compliments Mary on her success with Mr. Hurst. He smiles more at Mary in this conversation than he does at Miss Baxter in all of The Other Bennet Sister Episode 5. As he warns Mary about Ryder’s impulsiveness, it’s clear that he wants to get in the way of Ryder’s interest in Mary while still protecting Mary’s feelings. Mary once again insists she’s not drawn to Ryder, and Tom’s relief is clear.

The Other Bennet Sister Episode 5 ends on a cliffhanger while promising more self-discovery.

Caroline rudely announces that Mary wants to sing for the other guests. Miss Baxter and Ryder, unaware it’s a setup to humiliate Mary, are delighted. Caroline coaxes the guests into begging Mary to sing. Mary turns bright red, looking for a way out of it. Bruccoleri’s performance is masterful, showcasing Mary’s gentle bloom into confidence and her instant devastation at Caroline’s attempts to embarrass her.

Before Mary can do anything, Mr. Gardiner (Richard Coyle) bursts through the door, looking for her. He’s received a letter from Mrs. Bennet (Ruth Jones) saying that she’s gravely ill at Pemberley and needs Mary to come to her at once. As Mr. Gardiner whisks Mary away, Tom looks devastated to see Mary leave, and the episode closes with a shot of Tom dejectedly watching her go.

The Other Bennet Sister Episode 5 builds on Mary’s flourishing journey of self-discovery. Her charming adventures in London have been an excellent watch so far. Even though there’s a love triangle between Mary, Tom, and Ryder, the show’s ultimate goal is to follow Mary as she finds her own voice. It’s delightful and refreshing, and an instant period drama classic that easily joins the likes of Jane Austen’s own work.

The Other Bennet Sister Episode 5 is now streaming on BritBox.

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