The wait is over! Everyone's favorite Masterpiece Classic returns for its third season at 8pm CST this Sunday on PBS. Want to know why this period drama from across the pond is one of my favorite shows?

Downton Abbey has it all: romance, comedy, and drama, drama, DRAMA. The series has been a part of the Masterpiece Classic lineup since January 2011. It centers around the Crawley family and their servants, all of whom reside in the Crawley Estate, Downton Abbey, in post-Edwardian England.

Dan Smith as the ever-so-hot Matthew Crawley is just one of many reasons to watch.
Dan Smith as the ever-so-hot Matthew Crawley is just one of many reasons to watch.
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I'm going to be honest here. I had a few friends start watching the show after its premiere, but I wasn't on board. I thought the show was going to be unbearably pretentious and stuffy and, well... boring. I had never really watched Downton Abbey until one day last year.

I was taking a sick day due to a ridiculously awful bout with morning sickness, so I was cuddled up on the couch with some ginger ale and looking for something to watch on Netflix. I saw Downton Abbey was available and thought I'd watch an episode. This was early in the morning. By that evening, I was hooked. I watched the entire first season in a few days. Even my "other half" was addicted, even though he probably won't admit it to his friends. We watched the second season together--every episode.

So. Much. 'Tude.
So. Much. 'Tude.
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I just can't get enough Downton. I adore Dame Maggie Smith; she won an Emmy this year for her portrayal of the absolutely fabulous Dowager Countess. Her attitude and all-around cattiness are my favorite part of the show. She is so fierce I can't stand it.

Then there's the tortured romance of Lady Mary and Matthew Crawley. I have been dying to see these two again since last season's Christmas marriage proposal left me bawling my pregnant butt off. Is a wedding in the works for these two? I hope so. (I know Season Three has already aired in the UK, and I have avoided all spoilers like the plague.)

She's got 99 problems, but being rich ain't one.
She's got 99 problems, but being rich ain't one.
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And then there's Shirley MacLaine. She's joined the Season Three cast as Martha Levinson, the American mother of the Countess of Grantham. From what I understand, she and the Dowager Countess aren't exactly going to get along... translation: cat fights o' plenty, y'all! I. Can't. Wait.

Here's a trailer from PBS to get you hyped about Sunday's premiere. Don't forget to set your DVR! I know I'll be watching on Sunday... I may even have a Downton-themed party in the works with tea and crumpets... Okay, not really: I'll probably be eating Nutella out of the jar while watching the show in my PJ's... But I will be watching!

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