Polin’s Love Story Gets Sidetracked in ‘Bridgerton’ Season 3

Each season of Bridgerton revolves around a love story. Season one spent time developing and nurturing the romance between Daphne and the Duke. Season two took Kate and Anthony on the long road from enemies to lovers. Season three, on the other hand, quickly reunited Penelope and Colin, then spent most of its time focusing on the lives of others. The previous two seasons of Bridgerton had some minor character arcs, but nothing quite matched the intensity of season three. Not only did we get a season packed with characters and subplots, but the romantic lead herself had a story that was more important than her own. With so much time spent on other characters and stories, Penelope (Nicola Coughlan) and Colin (Luke Newton) didn’t get the on-screen romantic treatment they deserved.

‘Bridgerton’ Seasons 1 and 2 Build Their Love Story Slowly
The first two seasons of Bridgerton take their time introducing and establishing the romantic leads and putting their developing relationship at the heart of the story. Season 1 focuses on Daphne Bridgerton (Phoebe Dynevor) and the Duke of Hastings (Regé-Jean-Page). Daphne enters society, becomes the Queen’s Diamond in the season, and begins to look for a potential suitor. We are introduced to other characters — motivations are explored, but actual plot lines are kept to a minimum. Romantic tension develops between Daphne and the Duke as they go from enemies, to a fake couple, to a real couple. They encounter troubles along the way, and ultimately, in the finale, it becomes clear that their marriage is strong and happy.

Season 2 focuses on Anthony Bridgerton (Jonathan Bailey) and Kate Sharma (Simone Ashley), developing their romance skillfully through the enemies-to-lovers trope. The tension between the pair builds throughout the season, with the love story being slowly and subtly revealed. There are other characters in the mix, such as Kate’s sister Edwina (Charithra Chandran), but again the focus is on Anthony and Kate and their rivalry-turned-love. Towards the end of the season, Eloise Bridgerton (Claudia Jessie) discovers that her best friend Penelope Featherington is the secret gossip columnist Lady Whistledown, but Anthony and Kate remain the focus, rather than any side plots. They finally cement their relationship in the finale. Season 3 is supposed to focus on Colin Bridgerton and Penelope Featherington and their romance developing from friends to lovers. It’s been known from previous seasons that Penelope has unrequited feelings for Colin, and they’ve been friends for a long time, so of course some of that early development could be skipped this season.

But the way Colin develops romantic feelings for Penelope so quickly after apologizing to her and helping her find a husband feels rushed and forced. There’s very little context to explain why he suddenly realizes this, other than the superficial idea that she admires him. They quickly get together before the midpoint of the season and get engaged. They run into trouble as Penelope struggles with her secret identity as Lady Whistledown and seems to yearn for Eloise and her own freedom more than Colin. Although the series is called Bridgerton, it feels like it should have been called ‘Featherington’ this season, as Penelope’s personal troubles take center stage.

Some subplots that should have been saved for future ‘Bridgerton’ seasons
Without really taking into account the runtime, it seems like Cressida Cowper (Jessica Madsen) had more screen time than Colin Bridgerton this season. Too many characters stepped out of the background to have their own emotional arcs, which took away from Penelope and Colin’s time and focus. There are at least three subplots that should have been saved for future Bridgerton seasons, all involving members of the Bridgerton family.

First is Francesca (Hannah Dodd), whose own love story begins to be explored in season 3. She realizes she’s different from her siblings, preferring a quiet life and pursuing marriage to John Stirling. Her actual wedding is shown this season after Penelope and Colin have already had theirs. While John Stirling (Victor Alli) is clearly not Francesca’s “true love” on the show, it could have been saved for its own season so as not to detract from Polin’s own wedding and marriage. Adding another Bridgerton wedding, and in the finale no less, just makes Polin feel less important.