All but one welcome Downton's prodigal servant Mr. Bates back home with open arms! His return places interim valet Mr. Thomas Barrow in an untenable position and he must give way and let Mr. Bates return as Lord Grantham's valet. This situation is quickly overshadowed by a sexual scandal that could taint the reputation of the estate as Miss O'Brien's plotting to ruin Thomas comes to fruition when her nephew Alfred catches him making sexual advances at footman James late at night in his bedroom. Intervene was the key word of last night's episode as help from unexpected sources arrived to save some, and condemn others. Mary and Matthew have (thankfully) ended their bickering over money and joined sides in Matthew's plan to modernize Downton. He is very definite about her being on his team now and she did not object as she has in the past. Lady Violet, Dowager Countess Grantham, was in fine form and as Machiavellian as ever manipulating the family and staff into convincing Isobel Crawley that Ethel would be much happier living a new town where no one knew of her past. How she orchestrated obtaining a new position for Ethel by using so many different people to remove the source of scandal was disturbingly brilliant. I never thought I would see Mr. Bates teaming up with Thomas to thwart Miss O'Brien, but he did-and was able to accomplish his goal with one fact from Thomas against her, "her ladyship's soap." There were many other instances of characters helping those in need or upsetting plans, but I was most moved by family outsider Tom Branson. As the widow of Lady Sybil, and the new estate manager, he has the unique position of not being deeply entrenched in family dynamics so he can say the obvious to Lord Grantham The Oddest Plot Twist Award of the season goes again to poor Lady Edith and her working girl adventures in London. I am encouraged that they are allowing her to "do" something besides her grandmother's suggestion of watercolors and charity work.