Admittedly, it's Full of Nonsense, Over-the-Top Hospitality and Self-Help Jargon. Yet I Truly Adore Meghan's Holiday Special.
No concerned with the time of year, it's perpetually open season for commentary on the Duchess of Sussex's Netflix series, With Love, Meghan. Commentators, from seasoned journalists to online pundits, have rarely been so united as when gleefully ripping the lifestyle show's first and second seasons to shreds. The prevailing view held that a greater royal outrage had seldom occurred than the much-discussed snack re-labeling incident.
Now, in the spirit of a holiday maverick, she has returned for another round with a "Christmas Special" (aka a holiday episode). However on this occasion, the dynamic has changed. The usual elements we've come to expect – meaningless jargon salads, overzealous entertaining – remain, but within the context of a yuletide episode, it all clicks into place. The puzzle has come together; it's a perfect snow storm.
Now, Meghan is like the quirky relative at most festive family gatherings – dispensing unasked-for guidance, 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 company is customary and oddly reassuring. And she looks content; she's inflicting any harm.
She understands her each tiny facial movement, utterance and look will be analyzed and judged, but still appears unburdened and serenely untroubled.
It could be this is the first occasion in history where that well-worn saying – "Don't listen, it's pure jealousy" – may well be true. Since, in all honesty, all aspects in Meghan's Holiday Celebration honestly feels delightful. Yes, it's all cringily ultra-extra, silliness and extravagant – but doesn't that represent exactly what Christmas is for? And the talk she's talking might be laughable, but the walk she's walking appears to be impeccably styled.
Anything she attempts, she accomplishes with style. Her cooking looks tasty, the festive decoration she creates is stunning, her gifts are almost too pretty to tear into. Not a single thing is mediocre or visually unappealing – including the way she ties her kitchen garment is stylish and elegant. She doesn't bung a dish in the oven, it "takes a twirl", and she wraps wrapping paper like an craft master. She also seems to be completely savoring herself from start to finish. How could any hate-watcher not be charmed, bursting with seasonal cheer and left with a intense desire for personalized Christmas crackers or a crudites platter where broccoli is organized in the shape of a wreath?
Meghan used to pretend for a living, obviously, but even so, after the degree of scrutiny she has weathered from the moment she started dating Prince Harry, the love child of two legendary actresses would find it hard to appear this authentically. Her decision to change or even tone down her persona, despite it being so constantly, widely parodied, is weirdly comforting. In our uncertain world, here is one thing we can rely on: Meghan will be like this, no matter what. We will consistently know what to expect with her.
If you're still not buying her message, a point that will certainly come as a relief: you are not obligated to. There isn't national service anymore, and if there were, it would be unlikely to include watching With Love, Meghan: Holiday Celebration. If, however, you willingly check it out and are gripped with longing about her flawless Christmas, there is hope either. If you are a duchess or a data administrator, no kid completely grasps the effort and hard work their parent does in the holiday season. So you can console yourself by envisioning Archie and Lilibet's faces when they reveal a calligraphy note that says, 'I love you because you are brave,' from a DIY festive calendar, instead of a candy.
