The Gilded Age Returns for a Fourth Season

Julian Fellowes’ high-society period drama, The Gilded Age, has returned for a fourth season. The production, which has previously secured Emmy recognition, continues to center on the lives of New York’s wealthy elite and their domestic staff, though the latest episodes lean heavily into familiar tropes. It can only mean one thing: Brownstone Abbey – AKA Julian Fellowes’ Revenge, AKA What Did We Do to Deserve This?, AKA The Gilded Age if you insist on its official title – is ba, when this many cliches assemble so quickly. She’s not having a stroke – Grover Cleveland is indeed due to be hosted at Brownstone Abbey. So do hold on to your hats, all signs point to it being the equivalent of the opera house wars from season one.

The season opens with a medical emergency as a doctor rushes to a stately home to treat Gladys, played by Taissa Farmiga. She is married to Hector, the 5th Duke of Englandshire (Ben Lamb), and is currently in labor. The scene is marked by heavy-handed dialogue, including the doctor noting she is hemorrhaging, a statement that adds little to the immediate tension established by the maid’s earlier observation. Meanwhile, the wedding of Oscar, played by Blake Ritson, and Enid, portrayed by Kelley Curran, takes place in a church. Agnes, played by Christine Baranski, expresses her approval of the match, unaware that the marriage is one of convenience for Oscar, who is a dedicated homosexual. According to a doctor with a fully qualified moustache races up a carriageway towards an immaculate stately home. “I fear we should have sent for you sooner!”, The lady who greets him on the doorstep as the screams of a woman in. Oh, ya think? is not Dr Moustache’s reply. Daughter of the nouveau riche Russells of Fifth Avenue and now married to Hector (Ben Lamb – I’m sorry, actors, it’s Guardian policy to identify you), 5th Duke of Englandshire and living in England Hall in England after some plot last season. “She’s bleeding!” cries an astute maid, staring at a blood-soaked bed. “What’s wrong?” cries someone crackingly stupid. “She’s, the labouring woman is Gladys (Taissa Farmiga). According to “At last my son is married!”, Agnes, for viewers who have just watched the wedding but still need a bit of help. “And to a fine-looking woman with enough money for them to live well. Meanwhile, back in America, the costume budget is assembling in church for the wedding of Oscar (Blake Ritson – again, I’m sorry but I don’t make the rules), scion of the old-money Van Rhijn family, and Enid (Kelley Curran), wealthy widow of Mr Winterton and former lady’s maid to Bertha Russell (Carrie Coon). Enid has mastered the constipated diction of the US aristocracy enough to fool Oscar’s mother, Agnes, into thinking that she is a suitable wife for Oscar. (Agnes is played by Christine Baranski, whom one imagines praying nightly before a shrine to Maggie Smith, the patron saint of actors’ retirement funds, begging for a sign that she has done the right thing.). He is a dedicated homosexual; theirs is a marriage of convenience and much the healthiest setup of the bunch.

Elsewhere, plot threads continue to weave through various social entanglements. Cynthia Nixon’s character, Ada, remains significantly wealthier than Agnes following the death of her husband, the reverend. Her niece, Marian, played by Louisa Jacobson—the daughter of Meryl Streep—finds herself in an awkward situation after being forced to stay overnight in a hotel with the Russells’ son, Larry, portrayed by Harry Richardson, following a carriage accident. Their interactions are framed by predictable weather-related drama. And soon I shall entertain the president of the United States. Since her rich reverend died, but she remains in constant facial rictus, a smile-thing happening beneath a permanently wrinkled nose so she looks as though someone has stuffed a slowly rotting rat up her bustle, cynthia Nixon’s Ada is wealthier than Agnes now.

Financial and personal struggles dominate the other storylines. George Russell, played by Morgan Spector, remains embroiled in business difficulties involving oil transportation and his railroad ventures. He is also attempting to identify the individual who shot him prior to the Newport ball in the previous season. His business concerns are frequently highlighted by urgent, expository dialogue regarding financial survival.

In the servants’ quarters, Bridget, played by Taylor Richardson, continues to grapple with her Irish accent while pining for Jack, the young inventor portrayed by Ben Ahlers. Jack is currently promoting a new electric mixer, hoping it will replicate the success of his previous alarm-clock invention. The season also continues to track Peggy, played by Denée Benton, and her engagement to William, played by Jordan Donica, while addressing the interference of his mother, Phylicia Rashad.

Despite the show’s continued production and critical accolades, its reliance on specific plot devices and dialogue—such as Gladys experiencing a medical issue involving her uterus—has drawn sharp criticism. The narrative remains consistent with previous seasons, maintaining a focus on class distinctions and social maneuvering that some viewers find increasingly exhausting.