Admittedly, it's Brimming with Gibberish, Extreme Hosting and Self-Help Jargon. But I Do Adore Meghan's Festive Episode.
No matter the season, it's always fair game for scrutiny on the Duchess of Sussex's Netflix series, With Love, Meghan. Reviewers, expert and amateur alike, have seldom found such common ground as when enthusiastically shredding the program's initial installments to shreds. The common opinion held that a more egregious regal scandal had hardly ever taken place than the much-discussed pretzel re-packaging incident.
Presently, like a merry renegade master, she is back once again with a "Christmas Special" (or a Christmas special). But this time, things have shifted. The familiar ingredients viewers are accustomed to – meaningless jargon salads, intense hospitality – persist, but set of a holiday show, the purpose becomes clear. The pieces have fallen into place; it's a flawless festive blizzard.
By this point, Meghan has become the quirky relative at most festive family gatherings – dispensing 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 quite a personality, but her aura is known and unexpectedly soothing. And she appears content; she's causing the slightest hurt.
She is aware her every micro expression, utterance and gaze will be picked apart and judged, but still appears unburdened and serenely untroubled.
It could be this is the first occasion in history where that old chestnut – "Pay no mind, it's only envy" – could actually be true. Because, in all honesty, each element in Meghan's Holiday Celebration is lovely. Yes, it's all awkwardly over-the-top, silliness and extravagant – but doesn't that represent just what Christmas is for? And the talk she's talking might be absurd, but the example she sets appears to be beautifully curated.
Whatever she turns her beautifully manicured, diamond-adorned hand to, she executes with style. Her cooking looks delicious, the festive decoration she crafts is gorgeous, her gifts are nearly too beautiful to tear into. Not a single thing is mediocre or aesthetically displeasing – even the way she secures her apron is creative and fashionable. She doesn't throw a meal in the oven, it "takes a twirl", and she creases wrapping paper like an paper-folding expert. She also seems to be genuinely relishing herself from start to finish. How could any cynical observer not be charmed, overcome by festive joy and left with a powerful yearning for crafted festive snaps or a vegetable display where greens is organized in the form of a festive circle?
Meghan used to pretend for a living, obviously, but even so, after the level of attention she has endured ever since she started dating Prince Harry, the love child of Meryl Streep and Judi Dench would find it hard to appear this genuinely. Her unwillingness to change or even tone down her routine, despite it being so relentlessly, widely parodied, is oddly heartening. In our uncertain world, here is one thing we can count on: Meghan will remain herself, no matter what. We will forever know what to expect with her.
If you're not yet convinced by what she's selling, a reminder that will certainly come as a reassurance: you are not obligated to. We don't have the draft anymore, and should it be reinstated, it would be unlikely to include viewing With Love, Meghan: Holiday Celebration. If, conversely, you willingly check it out and are gripped with envy about her idyllic Christmas, you can take solace either. Whether you're a royal or a data administrator, few children fully understands the dedication and labor their parent does in the holiday season. So you can take heart by envisioning the young royals' faces when they open a calligraphy note that says, 'I love you because you are brave,' from a homemade Advent calendar, in place of a sweet treat.
