‘Downton Abbey’ Season 4 Trailer: Love, Death and Integration

Downton Abbey will continue to explore modern morals with an antique feel in season 4 as Gary Carr joins the cast as the first black character to grace Crawley House. From the look of the trailer, he’s got some love and music in store.

What will be most interesting is the transitioning phase the story has to go through. After three years, they’ve plowed through WWI, focused on the roaring 20s and chronicled a huge pile of intense (soap operatic) drama. The family seems to face a crushing tragedy or soaring triumph on a weekly basis, and now the original impetus for the show’s existence has faded completely from the rearview mirror.

It’s all especially true after last season’s finale. The show finds itself evolving in more ways than one. Here’s a tease of the ch-ch-ch-ch-changes:

The UK gets it this month, but the US has to wait until January 5th.