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rosemary_joy's review against another edition
4.0
“Downton Abbey” meets “Lost” meets an Intro to Political Thought class. Weird mix? Yes. Still a fun read? Definitely yes!
erdufylla's review against another edition
2.0
I'm sure I'm not the only one to have had this thought, this seemed like a nice template for a story, but certainly not a very full story in and of itself. There's absolutely no depth. And yes, I understand that it's supposed to be a comedy (of sorts) and that comedic works don't always have to be as deep as more serious works, but... there wasn't really anything to this story.
We're told that Mary is a spoiled aristocratic snob at the beginning of the play, and I suppose that's shown clearly enough. But we're also told that she morphs into a caring woman of some substance after spending 2 years on the island, and we're really not given any evidence of that other than the narrator's word on the matter, and the fact that Crichton has fallen in love with her.
I won't bother going into the others' situations, but it's essentially more of the same. We're just supposed to take for fact that they've changed, and then they're saved, and everything goes back to normal. Other than Mary refusing to bad-mouth Crichton, we're given no evidence that she actually loved him (and maybe she didn't), nor are we given any evidence that Crichton actually loved Mary (other than the fact that he's asked to leave service, but that's not really very substantial.)
What I'd really like is to see a full-length novel of this bare-bones plot -- something that actually digs deep into each of the characters' stories and motivations. A real love story. Not that I'm not fine with the ending -- but let's treat it as something actually tragic rather than just a flippant "oh, we're back in the real world, so ta-ta, it's been nice."
If such a book exists, please someone tell me, because I really would like to read it. It's not that the story doesn't have merit, it's just that this was, well... poorly executed. It's like an abandoned fanfic or something.
We're told that Mary is a spoiled aristocratic snob at the beginning of the play, and I suppose that's shown clearly enough. But we're also told that she morphs into a caring woman of some substance after spending 2 years on the island, and we're really not given any evidence of that other than the narrator's word on the matter, and the fact that Crichton has fallen in love with her.
I won't bother going into the others' situations, but it's essentially more of the same. We're just supposed to take for fact that they've changed, and then they're saved, and everything goes back to normal. Other than Mary refusing to bad-mouth Crichton, we're given no evidence that she actually loved him (and maybe she didn't), nor are we given any evidence that Crichton actually loved Mary (other than the fact that he's asked to leave service, but that's not really very substantial.)
What I'd really like is to see a full-length novel of this bare-bones plot -- something that actually digs deep into each of the characters' stories and motivations. A real love story. Not that I'm not fine with the ending -- but let's treat it as something actually tragic rather than just a flippant "oh, we're back in the real world, so ta-ta, it's been nice."
If such a book exists, please someone tell me, because I really would like to read it. It's not that the story doesn't have merit, it's just that this was, well... poorly executed. It's like an abandoned fanfic or something.
livres_de_bloss's review against another edition
2.0
This was... okay. Kind of silly and a bit flat.
I also didn’t find it funny like so many others seemed did; instead, it was more... ridiculous?
I also didn’t find it funny like so many others seemed did; instead, it was more... ridiculous?
minxtte's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
4.0
lgpiper's review against another edition
4.0
Philip, the protagonist in Of Human Bondage, didn't have a lot of friends when he was young, so he spent a lot of his time reading. One of the things he read was The Honorable Crichton, which I discovered was by James M. Barrie, the guy who came up with Peter Pan. Then I discovered that The Honorable Crichton is actually a play. Well, I thought I'd not read a play since college, but realized that I was actually in a couple of plays, musicals actually, after I'd settled down and begun having children. So, I must have read those "plays". Whatever, I figured that one of these days, I should read a play or two, and now I have.
So this play is about an upper-class British family that has an oh-so proper butler, Crichton (sort of like Jeeves, I suppose). He knows his place, which is below the titled family members, and above the footmen and scullery maids. All works like clock work in the household. But then, they go off on a sailing trip and become stranded on a desert island. Once the party finds themselves in a state of nature, the natural order changes. And so forth. Basically it's a light comedy, and not at all bad. I spent a lot of time casting the play with the various regulars involved in my town's community theater. Unfortunately, the ideal actor for the role of Crichton died a year ago.
So this play is about an upper-class British family that has an oh-so proper butler, Crichton (sort of like Jeeves, I suppose). He knows his place, which is below the titled family members, and above the footmen and scullery maids. All works like clock work in the household. But then, they go off on a sailing trip and become stranded on a desert island. Once the party finds themselves in a state of nature, the natural order changes. And so forth. Basically it's a light comedy, and not at all bad. I spent a lot of time casting the play with the various regulars involved in my town's community theater. Unfortunately, the ideal actor for the role of Crichton died a year ago.
slferg's review against another edition
4.0
A comic play not Barrie. Amusing with a twist at the beginning although the ending was a bit predictable. But still an amusing read.