Yes, it's Brimming with Absurdity, Over-the-Top Hospitality and Self-Help Jargon. Yet I Truly Love Meghan's Festive Episode.
No concerned with the season, it's always fair game for criticism on the Meghan Markle's Netflix series, With Love, Meghan. Critics, from seasoned journalists to online pundits, have rarely been so united as when gleefully ripping the series' first and second seasons to pieces. The general consensus held that a more egregious regal scandal had seldom occurred than the notorious pretzel-bagging incident.
Presently, in the spirit of a holiday maverick, she makes a comeback for another round with a "Holiday Celebration" (or a Christmas special). However on this occasion, the dynamic has changed. The usual elements viewers are accustomed to – meaningless jargon salads, intense hospitality – remain, but within the context of a holiday show, it all clicks into place. The puzzle has come into place; it's a perfect snow storm.
Now, Meghan resembles the eccentric aunt at most festive family gatherings – providing random tips, and contributing the odd random outburst. ("I love spinach!" … "A tradition has to have a beginning." … "A tree is part of my memory and love of the holiday season.") She's a bit of a character, but her aura is known and oddly reassuring. And she seems pleased; she's not doing the slightest hurt.
She understands her every micro expression, utterance and look will be picked apart and judged, but manages to seem relaxed and serenely untroubled.
Perhaps this is the only time in history where that old chestnut – "Ignore them, they're just jealous" – might be true. Since, you know what?, each element in Meghan's Holiday Celebration honestly feels charming. Admittedly, it's all cringily ultra-extra, silliness and over the top – but is that not just what Christmas is about? And the words she speaks might be laughable, but the walk she's walking seems authentically shop-bought.
Anything she sets her mind to, she accomplishes with panache. Her cooking looks scrumptious, the festive decoration she crafts is gorgeous, her gifts are practically too exquisite to tear into. Not a single thing is average or visually unappealing – including the way she secures her apron is artful and chic. She doesn't throw a meal in the microwave, it "takes a twirl", and she folds wrapping paper like an origami guru. She also seems to be completely savoring herself the entire time. How could any cynical observer not be won over, filled with seasonal cheer and left with a deep longing for handmade crackers or a vegetable display where broccoli is positioned in the likeness of a wreath?
Meghan used to pretend for a living, of course, but nonetheless, after the degree of attention she has endured since she started dating Prince Harry, even a hypothetical offspring of Meryl Streep and Judi Dench would struggle to act this genuinely. Her decision to change or even tone down her routine, regardless of it being so persistently, internationally ridiculed, is weirdly comforting. In our volatile world, here is something we can count on: Meghan will be like this, come what may. We will consistently know where we are with her.
If you're remaining skeptical of what she's selling, a reminder that will undoubtedly come as a comfort: you aren't required to. There isn't the draft anymore, and were it to return, it would be unlikely to include watching With Love, Meghan: Holiday Celebration. If, however, you decide to tune in and are gripped with longing about her picture-perfect Christmas, you can take solace either. Be you a royal or a everyday person, few children fully understands the dedication and labor their mum expends in December. So you can find comfort by envisioning her children's faces when they unfold a beautifully scripted letter that says, 'I love you because you are brave,' from a DIY festive calendar, instead of a candy.
