Dearest Gentle Reader, Here’s What Bridgerton Season 3 Says About Love and Society

The first four episodes of Bridgerton‘s third season premiered on May 16th to mostly positive reception. Critics and viewers continue to compare its representations of love and the Regency era to those of the previous two seasons. How do Penelope and Colin measure up to the massive success of their predecessors?

This season of the beloved Netflix series primarily follows Colin Bridgerton and his realized affection for his childhood friend Penelope Featherington. Meanwhile, Eloise Bridgerton is reeling from the reveal that Penelope, her (former) best friend), is the infamous Lady Whistledown. This universe’s Gossip Girl that is. Other plotlines involve the debut of Colin’s sister Francesca and the Mondrichs’ struggle as new members of high society.

Our Love Story

Colin and Penelope spearhead this season’s plot intrigue and thematic messaging. Where we last left off, Colin fervently denied any possibility of their courtship, leaving Penelope to resent her own “inadequacy” in the marriage mart. This resentment carries into this season when Colin returns from a trip to Paris with a newfound rakish persona.

In her third year out in society, Penelope seeks a change. Bridgerton has consistently and effectively utilized visual styling as a reflection of the changing focus each season. Penelope has been styled quite childishly with bright, unflattering pinks and yellows, but this season, she insists on a wardrobe of rich blues and greens that illustrate her maturity and help her stand out. However, it is not her appearance that holds her back. It is her shyness and wallflower tendencies. This is something I appreciate about Penelope’s arc; while characters may bodyshame her, the narrative considers her as beautiful as Nicola Coughlan truly is. (Some viewers could catch up.)

With this inadequacy comes an abject desperation to be wanted that we have not seen so much of in previous seasons. Coughlan delivers a heartbreaking speech about fearing she might die without being kissed, which kickstarts Colin’s acceptance of his own feelings toward her.

What works about this progression is that we believe their connection, whether romantic or platonic. They have a history, and without Eloise, Colin is all she has. Two seasons’ worth of unrequited pining leave us with the same anticipation as Penelope in her state of marital limbo. On that note, while this show takes a fantastical approach to societal structures of the era, it does not shy away from the unfortunate limitations of women’s prospects in life. If Penelope does not marry soon, she will be shunned as a spinster.

Colin and Penelope in Context

Only four episodes are out, and the two leads have already confessed their feelings to one another. Compared to other stories, this is rather fast—and viewers have noticed. However, I argue that that two-and-a-half seasons of build-up make up for the pacing, especially considering that the previous two couples met in their respective seasons. I think it’s refreshing to see a love interest stop waffling in his affection and instead embrace it thoroughly.

Another common critique concerns Colin’s strange characterization and sudden shift. Some viewers found his rakish personality startling and uncomfortable, wishing that he’d at least made up for it with a stronger confession (and a bit of groveling). But, as Penelope herself wrote in one pamphlet, this persona is fake. It is his mechanism of fitting in, similar to Pen’s new outfits. I appreciate this unspoken connection but can also resonate with the discomfort. Part of it might be Luke Newton’s portrayal. But mostly, it’s how this could have been an opportunity to withhold the scenes of casual sex and promiscuity. The previous two male leads were already known for their lack of commitment and/or presence at brothels and such. Colin’s new persona could have been represented without this, giving room for more scenes between the leads.

This takes us to yet another critique about the amount of screen time spent on the main story. Personally, I did not register this as a glaring issue as many others did. The seasons of Bridgerton gather more and more subplots as new characters appear and existing characters have more to do. Season 3, and even Season 2, has set a precedent for narrative structure in future seasons. I actually found the first season relatively dull, as the main couple did not grip me enough to remain the focus throughout.

The Subplots of Bridgerton Season 3

The storyline about the Mondrichs and their newfound place in society was, while interesting, not fleshed out enough to warrant its screentime. If anything, I appreciated being able to see a family of color have a story of their own, mostly unrelated to the white leads. On the other hand, the Featheringtons and their attempt for heirs led the humor this season and kept my attention. They had the strongest connection to the main story, as Portia’s character balances absurdism and sincerity as the desperate matriarch who demeans Penelope at every turn.

While many were deeply uninterested in Francesca’s character and subplot, I found both rather refreshing. Until now, Eloise was the only character with a distaste for the love most women appear obsessed with, but it often reads as naive and privileged. Though this is realistic for a character her age and with her background, I enjoyed Francesca’s quiet indifference. I found her awkwardness and subtle romance with John Stirling endearing, if a little underdeveloped.

The only subplot I didn’t care for in the slightest was Benedict’s sudden flirtation with a random woman. Sure, her interest in engineering is nice to see, but they contributed nothing as a pair.

Now, we must discuss the most significant subplot. Having fallen out with Penelope, Eloise clings to Cressida Cowper, the mean girl of the ton. This is a reactive betrayal, as Cressida has been cruel to Penelope in previous seasons, but Eloise is beginning to notice that there is more to her. I appreciate the depth given to Cressida in light of this theme of women’s limitations.

However, sometimes a character is simply mean. I understand her desperation to marry, and I can admit that I often felt for her and even enjoyed her relationship with Eloise. But I am simply not interested in where Cressida ends up in Part 2. I only anticipate how Eloise and Penelope might recover from Pen’s lies and Eloise’s chronic (and intriguing) selfishness.

The Fall of Lady Whistledown

Our main couple has gotten together. Surely, they will now get married and live happily. Unfortunately, there remains an important thread hanging from the tapestry of Penelope and Colin. And that is the issue of Lady Whistledown.

As we know, Penelope is the mysterious columnist who unearths and exposes the whispers of the ton. Everyone either abhors or admires her. Eloise once fell on the latter side, but last season Penelope exposed Eloise’s forbidden romance with Theo in order to ward off suspicion that Eloise was Lady Whistledown. Eloise found out, all hell broke loose. This season, we learn that Colin is decidedly on the side of abhorrence and resolves to unmask Whistledown once and for all.

Thus emerges the main conflict of Part 2 and what I believe to be the main reason the writers “rushed” the romance. As cliché as it is, viewers love dramatic conflict as much as they love gossip. Bridgerton traverses this intersection beautifully.

But that is far from the main draw to a show like this.

Why Do We Care About Bridgerton?

The obsession with the setting of the Regency era is nothing new, tracing back to the rise of Jane Austen. Julia Quinn, the author of the Bridgerton novels, “has cited Austen as inspiration and even been compared to her.” This fixation with the so-called “Austen-esque” marks a desire to escape into the aesthetic, if not realistic, promises of an earlier time. With its orchestral renditions of modern music, it is as much fantasy as it is a period piece. (Regency London was not so egalitarian.) In the realm of Bridgerton, men fall to their knees for the women they love.

Season 3, in particular, continues this accessible messaging of womanhood and the desire to feel seen. Penelope represents something intrinsic to many women who struggle with confidence while possessing enough wit and talent to be confident. On the other hand, Francesca represents those who are content in their introversion and assured in their disposition, even if others don’t understand it.

Despite the impending fallout of Lady Whistledown, this season is quiet in its drama and dramatic in its quietude. This season captures the burgeoning and the budding. Colin and Penelope confessed to one another not in anger but in desperate joy.

However imperfect, Bridgerton Season 3 fulfills the glittering, idealistic promises it has presented from the very beginning. I remain optimistic for its future as the face of Netflix every two years.

Part 2 of Bridgerton Season 3 comes out June 13th.