A Closer Look at The Lizzie Bennet Diaries: Finale: Episodes 90-100

From the desk of Virginia Claire Tharrington

This week I am wrapping up my look at The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. I can’t tell you how much I have enjoyed watching these videos. They are light, bright and sparkling, just as Jane Austen describes Pride and Prejudice, yet they also have serious modern themes that are relevant today and make the story more accessible to younger generations.

Jane and Bing (Episodes 90-92 & 95)

Bing comes back. He and Jane get a fresh start, yet Lizzie is still unhappy that Jane hasn’t made him beg her to take him back. Bing does try to make amends by bringing Jane snicker-doodle cookies (like she made him right after they broke up). Before their relationship really gets underway again, Jane gets a job offer from New York. Bing finds out about the job offer from Lizzie’s videos and seems hurt that Jane didn’t tell him herself. She was trying to spare both of them the pain that would be cause if he asked her to stay, yet Bing doesn’t ask Jane to stay. Instead he asks if he can go with her. He confesses that he quit medical school several months ago because he was so unhappy, so he too is looking to make a fresh start in NYC.

After Jane and Bing  (Lydia calls them JING!) are happily settled in New York, Caroline (as a replacement for Lady Catherine in the novel) confronts Lizzie and accuses her of plotting to make Bing quit med school and runaway with Jane. Lizzie is shocked by these allegations but turns the tables on Caroline. Lizzie questions her about the “indiscretion” that Darcy saw at Bing’s birthday which caused Bing to break up with Jane in the first place. Caroline came up with a convoluted plan to have another guy kiss Jane right when Darcy was looking. This is what made Bing break up with Jane in the first place and it was all because of Caroline. Caroline also accuses Lizzie of trying to seduce Darcy. Lizzie baulks at this and says that, “Darcy is in charge of his own life and I am in change of mine.”  (It is these lines that give Darcy hope when he watches the videos).

Lizzie and Lydia

Yet again Lizzie and Lydia have some adorable moments in these episodes. In episode 94 Lydia tells Lizzie that Darcy was responsible for the website publicizing the release of her private video with George Wickham being taken down. He bought the company that was releasing the video and shut it down. Lizzie can’t believe what Darcy did. Lydia is not as shocked and replied, “When you care about someone you will do anything for them whether they know or not because you can’t stand to see them hurt.” Lydia was hoping that George was the one who actually took the site down, but when she, “talked to some people,” she found out it was Darcy. Lydia hints that Darcy must still have feelings for Lizzie otherwise he would have no reason to go through all of the trouble of buying an entire company to taking down the video.

Lizzie and Lydia are continuing to get to know each other again. They are very sweet sisters. In episode 100 Lydia even gives Lizzie a new list called, “20 Reasons Why Lizzie Bennet Is No Longer Perpetually Single,” and says, “You are way to cool not to get any guy you want.”  There is a new understanding and appreciation between the sisters that is lovely to watch.

Lizzie and Darcy

After Lizzie finds out what Darcy did for Lydia, she decides to call his phone, yet she doesn’t hear from him for 3 days. He shows up at her house on her 25^th birthday (March 18^th), so he can see her face when he asks her, “Why did you call me?” Their whole interaction is so delightfully embarrassing. She thanks him from her whole family for taking that video down. In reply he says, “I did it only for you.” Darcy then tells Lizzie that he doesn’t want to be just friends and that his feeling are still the same, if not stronger. At that point Lizzie kisses him.

(YOU GO GIRL! Take control and get what you want! Amen to that. I applaud Lizzie for making the first move like that and going in for the kiss). Darcy and Lizzie (Dizzy as fans call them) proceed to kiss a lot more throughout the episode, and it is super adorable.

On Lizzie and Darcy’s one-week anniversary Darcy tries to hijack Lizzie’s videos but ends up being fairly awkward in front of the camera by himself. Darcy says that the week with Lizzie, “…has been the best week of my life.” He also says, (what the viewers already know), “My name is William Darcy, and Lizzie Bennet is amazing.” Lizzie teases him about the first time they met which was, “The most awkward dance ever!” While Lizzie seems to enjoy these memories of their early encounters, she also presses Darcy about when his feelings for her started to change. Darcy says, “I honestly can’t remember. I was in the middle before I knew it has begun.” Lizzie says her moment of realization came when she saw the beautiful offices of Pemberley Digital. These light banters are wonderful. They are straight from Jane Austen’s novel, yet they are in modern speech.

Darcy offer’s Lizzie a job at Pemberley, yet she turns him down. She has decided to start her own digital media company and wants to move to San Francisco after graduation. Darcy is supportive of her move and of her decision to start her own company. He even offers to help her find potential investors, even though her business will be competing with him. I am so thankful that Lizzie did not just go to work for Pemberley. That would have been a let down. Lizzie defends her decision by saying, “I don’t want to be the girl who dates the boss.” I applaud her spirit and her desire to make it on her own and I think Jane Austen would too!

Lizzie and Charlotte

I am so pleased that the series does not end with Lizzie and Darcy. Rather Lizzie shares her 100th  and final episode with Charlotte and Lydia. As much as I love Darcy and Lizzie’s relationship, I love Lizzie’s relationship with her friend, sister and herself more. I think it was a very brave choice for the creators not to have Darcy in the last episode. It concludes the theme that has been running through the series; the relationship between sisters (whether by birth or choice) is one of the most important relationships in a person’s life. I agree completely and applaud The Lizzie Bennet Diaries for their focus on women and female relationships. It was also delightful to watch Lizzie grown emotionally throughout the course of the series. As she started to see her own flaws, and while she still sees the follies of others, she might judge them less harshly or quickly in the future.

The girls’ faces are priceless in this picture

TWO SURPRISES AT THE END (Spoilers)

1st SURPRISE — At the very end of the 100th episode Mrs. Bennet walks into frame so the viewers can just see her torso and says, “Lizzie what are you and dear Charlotte doing in here?” It is an amazing moment since it has been a running joke through the series that Lizzie is trying to keep the videos from her mother.

2nd SURPRISE — As a little postscript after the final episode, the creators released some pictures on twitter of Lizzie, Darcy, Charlotte, Lydia and Ricky Collins hanging out at a bar celebrating Charlotte’s promotion and Ricky’s move to Canada to be with his fiancé. I am glad Mr. Collins makes one final appearance because he is just a fabulous character.

AWESOME LINKS

• WIRED: Lizzie Bennet Diaries: Taking Austen to YouTube
• LeakyNews: We Love LBD Week: Looking Back with the Creators (Part 1)
• MS. Magazine: The Lizzie Bennet Diaries and Women Friends
•  Lizzie Bennet Diaries – Final Credits and Memorable Moments
•  Watch The Lizzie Bennet Diaries
• Visit our The Lizzie Bennet Diaries archives

A giant thank you to Virginia for her insightful and passionate commentary on The Lizzie Bennet Diaries for the last eleven weeks. What a great series. We are looking forward to the production company’s next venture that was announced with a Kickstarter fundraiser:

Welcome to Sanditon

Based on one of Jane Austen’s unfinished novels, Welcome To Sanditon will be a full interactive experience that takes you to the beach town of Sanditon, California as it attempts to revitalize itself into a modern resort destination.

Through Gigi’s videos, you’ll meet the residents of Sanditon as she brings the beta version of Domino to reveal the drama in their lives.  But we’re not stopping there.

In The Lizzie Bennet Diaries, you got to interact with the story.  In Welcome To Sanditon, we’re taking things one step further —  you’ll get a chance to be a part of the story.

We’re busy putting the town together now, and will reveal more details soon.

Welcome to Sanditon will launch in early May 2013.

Images courtesy © 2013 The Lizzie Bennet Diaries; text © 2013 Virginia Claire Tharrington, Austenprose