Indeed, it's Full of Nonsense, Extreme Hosting and Psychobabble. Yet I Truly Cherish Meghan's Festive Episode.
No considering the season, it's constantly fair game for criticism on the Meghan Markle's televisual offering, With Love, Meghan. Commentators, expert and amateur alike, have rarely been so united as when enthusiastically shredding the lifestyle show's initial installments apart. The general consensus held that a more egregious regal scandal had seldom occurred than the now-infamous pretzel re-packaging incident.
Currently, like a merry renegade master, she makes a comeback once again with a "Festive Special" (aka a yuletide episode). But this time, things have shifted. The standard components we've come to expect – psychobabble word salads, intense hospitality – remain, but framed of a yuletide episode, suddenly it all makes sense. The elements have slid into place; it's a flawless festive blizzard.
Now, Meghan has become the eccentric aunt at most festive family gatherings – dispensing unasked-for guidance, and delivering the occasional strange exclamation. ("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 strangely comforting. And she seems pleased; she's not doing any harm.
She is aware her all subtle gestures, utterance and glance will be picked apart and scrutinized, but still appears carefree and serenely untroubled.
It could be this is the only time in history where that clichéd phrase – "Ignore them, they're just jealous" – might be true. The reason is, let's face it, each element in Meghan's Holiday Celebration honestly feels delightful. Granted, it's all awkwardly over-the-top, foolishness and flamboyant – but isn't that just what Yuletide is about? And the talk she's talking might be absurd, but the life she leads appears to be beautifully curated.
Whatever she attempts, she executes with panache. Her cooking looks delicious, the wreath she crafts is stunning, her gifts are nearly too beautiful to open. Not a single thing is average or aesthetically displeasing – including the way she secures her apron is creative and fashionable. She doesn't bung a meal in the oven, it "goes for a spin", and she folds gift paper like an craft master. She also seems to be genuinely relishing herself the entire time. How could any cynical observer not be won over, filled with seasonal cheer and left with a powerful yearning for handmade crackers or a vegetable display where broccoli is organized in the likeness of a festive circle?
Meghan was once an actress for a living, obviously, but nonetheless, after the degree of scrutiny she has faced since she started dating Prince Harry, even a hypothetical offspring of Meryl Streep and Judi Dench would find it hard to appear this genuinely. Her refusal to modify or even soften her shtick, even though it being so persistently, widely parodied, is weirdly comforting. In our uncertain world, here is something we can count on: Meghan will be like this, no matter what. We will consistently know where we are with her.
If you're remaining skeptical of her brand, a point that will undoubtedly come as a reassurance: you aren't required to. There isn't national service in this country, and should it be reinstated, it would be unlikely to include watching With Love, Meghan: Holiday Celebration. If, however, you decide to tune in and are gripped with envy about her flawless Christmas, you can take solace either. Whether you're a royal or a everyday person, hardly any child fully understands the time and energy their mother puts in in December. So you can console yourself by envisioning her children's faces when they unfold a calligraphy note that says, 'I love you because you are brave,' from a homemade Advent calendar, rather than a chocolate.
