Yes, it's Full of Nonsense, Extreme Hosting and Psychobabble. But I Do Love Meghan's Holiday Special.
No concerned with the season, it's perpetually hunting season for criticism on the Duchess of Sussex's TV show, With Love, Meghan. Reviewers, expert and amateur alike, have rarely been so united as when eagerly tearing the series' initial installments apart. The common opinion was that a greater royal outrage had hardly ever taken place than the now-infamous pretzel-bagging incident.
Currently, in the spirit of a holiday maverick, she is back with a new offering with a "Holiday Celebration" (also known as a Christmas special). Yet now, the dynamic has changed. The standard components we've come to expect – vague self-help platitudes, extreme hosting – remain, but within the context of a Christmas special, the purpose becomes clear. The puzzle has come into place; it's a flawless festive blizzard.
Now, Meghan has become the eccentric aunt at most festive family gatherings – offering random tips, and contributing 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 a bit of a character, but her company is customary and unexpectedly soothing. And she appears content; she's not doing the slightest hurt.
She knows her every micro expression, word and look will be picked apart and criticised, but still appears unburdened and remarkably at ease.
Maybe this is the first occasion in history where that clichéd phrase – "Don't listen, it's pure jealousy" – might be true. The reason is, you know what?, all aspects in Meghan's Holiday Celebration honestly feels lovely. Admittedly, it's all cringily ultra-extra, foolishness and flamboyant – but isn't that exactly what the holiday season is all about? And the talk she's talking might be absurd, but the life she leads seems authentically impeccably styled.
Whatever she turns her beautifully manicured, diamond-adorned hand to, she executes with style. Her culinary efforts looks tasty, the holiday arrangement she creates is breathtaking, her presents are almost too pretty to unwrap. Nothing is ordinary or aesthetically displeasing – including the way she ties her apron is artful and chic. She doesn't bung a meal in the microwave, it "has a moment", and she folds gift paper like an origami guru. She also seems to be genuinely relishing herself the entire time. How could any hate-watcher not be convinced, filled with holiday spirit and left with a powerful yearning for crafted festive snaps or a crudites platter where greens is positioned in the likeness of a festive circle?
Meghan used to pretend for a living, of course, but even so, after the degree of attention she has endured from the moment 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, despite it being so relentlessly, globally mocked, is oddly heartening. In our uncertain world, here is something we can count on: Meghan will remain herself, come what may. We will forever know what to expect with her.
If you're still not buying what she's selling, a thought that will undoubtedly come as a comfort: you don't have to. There isn't the draft anymore, and were it to return, it would be doubtful to include watching With Love, Meghan: Holiday Celebration. If, on the other hand, you willingly check it out and are consumed by longing about her flawless Christmas, there is hope either. Be you a duchess or a office worker, few children truly appreciates the dedication and labor their mum does in the holiday season. So you can take heart by picturing her children's faces when they open a handwritten message that says, 'I love you because you are brave,' from a DIY festive calendar, in place of a sweet treat.
