Tear Jerker / Authors of Our Own Fate

• First off the bat, there's Matthew reawakening from his death, going into a panic and a distress on having a life of hope and privilege, only to find that nobody could believe it.
• On a similar note, Sybil's internal monologue on how distressed she was in dying, especially because she only got to see her baby for a little bit.
• Mary's frustration that she can't bring herself to hate Matthew anymore, feeling like she lost track of what she wants in her life and not knowing how to get back.
• The tragedy of the start of the war. Matthew prepared for two years, trying to ensure that the Downton family doesn't experience the horrors that World War I had in store. But unfortunately, this personal preparation can't change who Robert is, and everything falls apart in the blink of an eye.
  • Matthew is filled with anger and horror at seeing Robert falling into the rhetoric of war without understanding how much war has changed. Lashing back at his ignorance, and practically getting him exiled from Downton.
  • Isobel in turn storms out, in full support of her son.
  • Mary goes straight to Calling the Old Man Out, insisting that she'll marry Matthew regardless of this perceived slight. And when Robert threatens to cut her off in response, she goes straight for the jugular, removing her aristocrat's pearls, and storming out in response.
  • Edith in turn, having her self esteem repaired by Matthew's new actions, removes her pearls in solidarity.
  • Sybil then drops her pearls at Robert's feet, giving a Death Glare so intense it finally shakes him partially out of his anger.
  • Thomas then quits on the spot.
  • Lady Violet sums up the mess perfectly.
  Violet: Robert, What have you done?
• Downton Abbey after the Time Skip is a mess because of the war, the family rift, and the continued delusions of their Earl.
  • The staff is a mess, with high turnover and the remaining staff struggling to hold together.
  • The butler is frozen in a self paradox of loving both Robert and Mary, and unable to reconcile needing to take a side.
  • Cora is nearly broken, trying to understand how to get back, and angrily bitter that she missed her eldest daughter's wedding.
  • But worst of all is young Lillian Crawley. Growing up without the happy house her elder sisters had, and knowing something's wrong but not knowing how to handle this, thus creating a child far too stoic for her age.
• Robert finally gets it into his head that he's looking at the war in a flawed way. Not understanding how far his children have come, until he finally sees how the rest of the aristocracy has lost something in the war. No Glory, only sorrow.
• William's death. Despite everything Matthew tried to do he failed to save William.
  • The fact that in this reality William died a meaningless death. His commander was Larry Gray who went mad due to failures on the battle field and commanded his men to march on the British lines. William tried to stop them and was mortally wounded.
• While it does end with Original Timeline Mary merging with New Timeline Mary it is clear that OT Mary is utterly broken by the loss of Matthew.
  • The fact that OT Mary quietly tells NT Mary that she hopes Matthew loves her as much as he clearly loves NT Mary.