Admittedly, it's Brimming with Absurdity, Over-the-Top Hospitality and Psychobabble. However, I Honestly Cherish Meghan's Holiday Special.
No considering the season, it's perpetually hunting season for criticism on the Duchess of Sussex's Netflix series, With Love, Meghan. Critics, from seasoned journalists to online pundits, have hardly ever agreed so completely as when gleefully ripping the program's initial installments apart. The common opinion was that a greater royal outrage had never been witnessed than the much-discussed snack re-labeling incident.
Presently, as a festive rebel, she is back once again with a "Christmas Special" (also known as a Christmas special). Yet now, it's different. The standard components audiences anticipate – psychobabble word salads, overzealous entertaining – persist, but framed of a holiday show, suddenly it all makes sense. The elements have slid together; it's a ideal seasonal storm.
At this stage, Meghan has become the oddball family member at the typical holiday get-together – offering 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 a bit of a character, but her presence is familiar and strangely comforting. And she looks happy enough; she's not doing a bit of damage.
She understands her each tiny facial movement, syllable and glance will be analyzed and scrutinized, but manages to seem relaxed and too blessed to be stressed.
Perhaps this is the initial instance in history where that well-worn saying – "Ignore them, they're just jealous" – may well be true. The reason is, in all honesty, everything in Meghan's Holiday Celebration truly is delightful. Granted, it's all painfully excessive, nonsense and extravagant – but doesn't that represent just what Yuletide is all about? And the words she speaks might be laughable, but the walk she's walking seems authentically shop-bought.
Anything she turns her beautifully manicured, diamond-adorned hand to, she accomplishes with style. Her cooking looks scrumptious, the festive decoration she makes is stunning, her presents are practically too exquisite to open. Nothing is ordinary or aesthetically displeasing – including the way she secures her apron is creative and fashionable. She doesn't toss a dish in the microwave, it "goes for a spin", and she wraps gift 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 won over, filled with seasonal cheer and left with a deep longing for personalized Christmas crackers or a crudites platter where greens is arranged in the likeness of a festive circle?
Meghan used to pretend for a living, of course, but despite that, after the level of scrutiny she has endured from the moment she became involved with Prince Harry, the love child of Meryl Streep and Judi Dench would find it hard to appear this authentically. Her decision to modify or even tone down her shtick, despite it being so relentlessly, globally mocked, is oddly heartening. In our uncertain world, here is one thing we can depend on: Meghan will be like this, come what may. We will consistently know what to expect with her.
If you're remaining skeptical of her message, a reminder that will undoubtedly come as a reassurance: you don't have to. The UK has abolished the draft these days, and should it be reinstated, it would be doubtful to include streaming With Love, Meghan: Holiday Celebration. If, conversely, you decide to tune in and are overcome with jealousy about her idyllic Christmas, there is hope either. If you are a royal or a office worker, hardly any child fully understands the time and energy their parent puts in in December. So you can take heart by imagining the young royals' faces when they unfold a beautifully scripted letter that says, 'I love you because you are brave,' from a handcrafted holiday countdown, in place of a candy.
