The parties must be exquisite. The writer must be unmasked. The Queen will ensure it.
Bridgerton Season 3’s slow start left me unsure what to expect from the four-part finale. Even so, the plot’s hesitance wasn’t contagious for this author – I completed the new episodes the night of their release and was met with a series of callbacks to Julia Quinn’s fourth Bridgerton novel, a more refined set of side plots and some new twists that book loyalists may not expect.
The engagement of Colin Bridgerton (Luke Newton) to Penelope Featherington (Nicola Coughlan) introduces new branches of romance and drama. Penelope, aware that she must reveal herself as Lady Whistledown to her soon-to-be-husband, grapples with the worry that Colin will not love her once he truly knows her. Her anxiety is perpetuated by Colin’s sister Eloise (Claudia Jessie), who knows her secret and threatens to reveal it to her brother if Penelope isn’t prompt. And now, the Queen Charlotte (Golda Rosheuvel) has offered a reward to the lucky individual who can reveal the identity of Whistledown. Penelope’s time in the shadows is coming to an inevitable close.
I’m sure I’m not alone in the question I prioritize when it comes to Bridgerton: Is it romantic? This season had a lot of work to do after Colin’s cold declaration at the end of Season 2: “I would never dream of courting Penelope Featherington, not in your wildest fantasies.”
Colin needed to win over more hearts than Penelope’s this season. I watched the Episode 1 with a group of women who booed whenever he had the audacity to deliver a line of dialogue. The challenge of Season 3, and especially Part 2, was set by the man himself: Show us our wildest fantasies.
For those on board for the Bridgerton formula, the love and passion delivers, if not to the extent that audiences hoped. This love story is not a straight line, of course. Colin and Penelope’s marriage is rocky from the get-go, and tensions build to an public conclusion that changes their bond and their lives in high society for the foreseeable future. Is the journey worth the destination? Does Colin’s resistance to acknowledging Penelope’s talent, power and experience as a woman do more damage than the relationship they’re left with can mend? A line is certainly walked, but I for one am relatively satisfied with the payoff. The time spent on conflict doesn’t leave enough space for a truly substantial look at the couple’s happily ever after, but I didn’t leave wondering when Penelope might introduce divorce to 19th century England, so I suppose I buy that their love perseveres.
I’m perhaps most torn about the story of Cressida Cowper, played by Jessica Madsen. What was set up as a redemption arc quickly spirals into something more complicated when the introduction of a plot point from the books shapes the course of the show and Cressida’s fate. In previous seasons, the character stood in as an example of the worst parts of high society, an unkind young lady prone to tearing down other woman (with a predilection for tormenting Penelope) and willing to act ridiculous for the pleasure of male suitors. This season placed her actions in context; we were introduced to her cruel father, a suitor three to four times her age and a mother who encourages her to avoid female friendships like the plague. Even as the audience is driven towards compassion for Cressida, her actions continue to bend away from kindness, such that our main cast must continue to battle her as an antagonist. As a feminist and a writer, I’m unsure if I should find her ultimately tragic fate lamentable, cathartic or some amalgamation of both. The brevity of her final moments on screen don’t clarify the tone of her downfall. Season 3 could have benefitted from an epilogue chapter, as is available in every Bridgerton book.
It’s not a perfect season, but it certainly came through on the fronts I’ve come to expect from a Bridgerton love story. Drama? Absolutely. An adorable couple? Check. A group of middle-aged female side characters completely fed up with the patriarchy? Of course. Bridgerton Season 3 remains a good time that foreshadows more new, complex storylines for the Bridgerton family.
