Dearest Gentle Reader, Let’s Talk About Bridgerton!

Don your top hats and ball gowns, dear reader, for we are about to delve into the dazzling world of Bridgerton.

Bridgerton, with its dazzling costuming, scandalous plotlines, steamy chemistry, and avant-garde musical score, made its fabulous debut in 2020. With the world deep in the throes of the COVID-19 pandemic, Bridgerton made for a perfect, tantalizing distraction. The world was hooked, and Bridgerton was an instant phenomenon. So, let’s dig deeper to understand how Bridgerton became the tour de force it is, and what they can do better.

Bridgerton, a historical romantic drama set in the 1800s, revolves mostly around the lives of the alphabetically named Bridgerton siblings and their various romantic exploits. Season one follows Daphne, the eldest Bridgerton daughter, in her quest to find a suitable husband. Season one gives us a glimpse into the glitzy world of balls, promenades, gossip, and romance.

In season two, the focus shifts to the scion of the Bridgerton clan, Anthony, as he clamors to find himself a suitable wife. We also spend a little bit longer getting to know the other siblings, notably Eloise, and several other characters are given their due in subplots and screen time.

Finally, season three follows Colin Bridgerton, the third sibling, and his contentious love affair with Penelope Featherington, a Bridgerton regular since season one. Season three branches out a lot more and has multiple parallel storylines, including those about the Bridgerton siblings, Benedict and Francesca among others.

A Bridgerton spin-off about Queen Charlotte - a regular on Bridgerton since season one, and a character of much note and prominence was also released in 2023, with too much fanfare and an adulating reception.

The Bridgerton series is an adaptation of a book series of the same name by author Julia Quinn. Adapted to the screen by notable American producer Shonda Rhimes, there are many things Bridgerton gets right, making it such a huge success and pop culture phenomenon.

Bridgerton arrived when the pop culture scene was saturated with superhero movies, macho franchises, and a string of movies that took themselves too seriously. Thus Bridgerton, with its fancy costumes and fluffy low-stakes plotlines, came as a massive breath of fresh air. While historical romances and rom-coms enjoyed their popularity for much of the 2000s and early 2010s, the latter parts of the decade saw the demise of romance in favor of superhero stardom and sardonic wit. With the pandemic and the stress and isolation it caused, Bridgerton served as a perfect form of escapism.

Another revolutionary (and controversial) aspect of Bridgerton was its color-blind casting. Bridgerton is set in an alternate universe where King George marries Queen Charlotte, a woman of color, leading to people of various races living in perfect harmony in 19th-century England. Thus, we have Regé-Jean Page, an actor of color, playing the Duke of Hastings, who is the romantic leading man of season one. Season two has its leading ladies, played by Simone Ashley and Charithra Chandran, both Indian actors. While some appreciated the color-blind casting for allowing actors of various ethnicities to assume leading roles in historical dramas, which were earlier reserved only for white actors, others criticized the lack of in-story explanation for the casting and considered it just tokenism. Some are also of the opinion that showcasing a fairy tale world devoid of racism in early 19th-century England diminishes the very real historical conflict and pushback against the vitriolic hate that was shown to people of color in that era.

Another reason for the popularity of Bridgerton is that it doesn’t shy away from steamy scenes to highlight their leads' sizzling chemistry. Bridgerton, an adaptation of a series of adult romance novels, commonly known as “bodice rippers,” certainly shows a lot of bodices getting ripped. While many were fans of these scenes, some found them unnecessary. Showmakers probably took notice because seasons 2 and 3 toned down the spice.

Bridgerton has been massively popular, taking the internet and social media by storm. One reason for its massive fanbase on Instagram and TikTok could be due to its season's notification. Romance fans on Instagram and TikTok are huge fans of trope-y romances such as those of enemies to lovers or fake dating. Season one, centered around Daphne and Simon, encapsulates the trope of fake dating, where Simon and Daphne pretend to be together to serve their interests, but they ultimately end up falling for each other. In Dearest Gentle Reader, season two, Anthony Bridgerton and Kate Sharma’s spirited romance is reminiscent of the enemies-to-lovers trope. Whereas season three focuses on old friends, Colin and Penelope, as they finally get together, much like the childhood friends to lovers' trope. Even the spin-off, Queen Charlotte, encapsulates the trope of two people being forced into an arranged marriage who end up deeply in love with each other.

While Bridgerton’s costumes are certainly not historically accurate, they are exquisitely designed and beautiful to look at. Another novel facet of the show is the background score, consisting of instrumental versions of modern-day pop songs by artists like Ariana Grande and Taylor Swift. Another unique feature is the narration style and exposition offered by Lady Whistledown, an anonymous gossip writer, who provides the ton with scandal and us with world-building details.

Bridgerton gets a lot of things right, but it isn’t completely devoid of criticism. A dodgy plotline in season one involving a non-consensual sexual encounter has been rightfully criticized. Another drawback of the show is since each season is centered around a central couple that the audience comes to adore, it is pretty jarring when they are replaced by a new central couple in the next season, with characters from the previous season nowhere to be found.

Despite its drawbacks and unserious plotlines, Bridgerton has single-handedly managed to put the historical romance genre back on the map. With a diverse cast of characters, queer representation, and swoon-worthy romances, Bridgerton absolutely deserves its position as a pop cultural mainstay.