Yes, it's Full of Absurdity, Over-the-Top Hospitality and Self-Help Jargon. But I Do Love Meghan's Festive Episode.
No considering the season, it's always hunting season for commentary on the Meghan Markle's TV show, With Love, Meghan. Critics, both professional and armchair, have hardly ever agreed so completely as when eagerly tearing the lifestyle show's earlier episodes to pieces. The common opinion held that a greater royal outrage had seldom occurred than the notorious pretzel re-packaging incident.
Now, in the spirit of a holiday maverick, she is back for another round with a "Holiday Celebration" (also known as a holiday episode). Yet now, the dynamic has changed. The familiar ingredients audiences anticipate – meaningless jargon salads, overzealous entertaining – remain, but within the context of a yuletide episode, the purpose becomes clear. The pieces have fallen perfectly; it's a flawless festive blizzard.
By this point, Meghan has become the quirky relative at the typical holiday get-together – offering unsolicited, unnecessary advice, and contributing the periodic peculiar declaration. ("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 appears happy enough; she's inflicting the slightest hurt.
She is aware her all subtle gestures, utterance and gaze will be dissected and judged, but manages to seem unburdened and remarkably at ease.
It could be this is the only time in history where that well-worn saying – "Pay no mind, it's only envy" – may well be true. The reason is, let's face it, everything in Meghan's Holiday Celebration truly is delightful. Granted, it's all cringily ultra-extra, foolishness and extravagant – but isn't that exactly what the holiday season is for? And the words she speaks might be laughable, but the walk she's walking appears to be beautifully curated.
Anything she attempts, she executes with style. Her cooking looks tasty, the wreath she creates is breathtaking, her presents are practically too exquisite to unwrap. Not a single thing is ordinary or aesthetically displeasing – even the way she ties her apron is creative and fashionable. She doesn't bung a dish in the oven, it "takes a twirl", and she creases gift paper like an craft master. She also seems to be thoroughly enjoying herself throughout. How could any skeptical viewer not be won over, filled with holiday spirit and left with a intense desire for personalized Christmas crackers or a crudites platter where greens is organized in the form of a wreath?
Meghan had a career in acting for a living, obviously, but despite that, after the intensity of scrutiny she has endured since she became involved with Prince Harry, even a hypothetical offspring of two legendary actresses would struggle to act this naturally. Her unwillingness to modify or even tone down her routine, regardless of it being so relentlessly, widely parodied, is strangely reassuring. In our unpredictable world, here is one thing we can depend on: Meghan will remain herself, whatever happens. We will consistently know where we are with her.
If you're not yet convinced by her brand, a thought that will surely come as a relief: you aren't required to. We don't have the draft these days, and should it be reinstated, it would be improbable to include viewing With Love, Meghan: Holiday Celebration. If, on the other hand, you decide to tune in and are gripped with longing 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 expends in December. So you can take heart by imagining her children's faces when they reveal a beautifully scripted letter that says, 'I love you because you are brave,' from a handcrafted holiday countdown, instead of a candy.