Bridgerton Season 3: Review
By Sioph W. Leal
Bridgerton Part 2 picks up with Penelope Featherington (Nicola Coughlan) and Colin (Luke Newton) are officially engaged, and while it should be the happiest moment of their lives, they must contend with Eloise’s (Claudia Jessie) dislike of their union and the looming presence of Lady Whistledown. This is the season of engagements, and with Francesca Bridgerton (Hannah Dodd) and John Stirling (Victor Alli) eager to marry, they are not without their own troubles. While they are besotted with each other, Francessca must convince her mother, Lady Violet (Ruth Gemmell), that this is indeed a love match.
Part one of the new season garnered mixed reviews because of the lack of chemistry between the leads, and many hoped that part two would see that friends-to-lovers relationship bloom now that Penelope and Colin are engaged. However, that does not happen. At one point, Francesca beautifully laments to her mother about how not every love must be dramatic and hard-fought. Many fans of this season's leading couple used similar arguments to switch the narrative and turn a lack of chemistry into a sweet familiarity, but it does not work for Colin and Penelope. We are constantly told how close Peneleope is to the rest of the Bridgertons and how long her friendship with Colin has been, but we have seen nothing to warrant this in the past two seasons. The familiarity works in the secondary characters of Francesca and John, who instantly have an ease about them despite spending a small amount of time together. It also works for Benedict and new inclusion Paul Suarez (Lucas Aurelio), who only have two scenes together, but the draw is there. Thompson proves, again, that he has chemistry with anyone, but it’s Suarez’s presence that helps elevate their fleeting scenes. Suarez and Thompson have more chemistry than the leading couple. Bridgerton indeed proves that love can be quiet and still have palpable sparks, just not with its leading couple. One of the problems seems to be the leads themselves not having any chemistry—friendship or romance. As friends, they aren’t believable, and as lovers, it dilutes any hint of friendship. The series keeps trying to gaslight its audience into believing it has been building up.
A major aspect of the first half of season three was how chemistry can be taught, but this season proves it cannot. As Penelope, she is more emboldened when she is out of Colin’s vicinity. Penelope and Colin are supposed to bring out the best in each other; instead, Penelope is reduced to a quiet, timid voice whenever she is around Colin. She is not the resourceful woman viewers have seen in the first two seasons; instead, Penelope is always on the verge of panic. Penelope has, supposedly, spent two seasons being utterly in love with the boy next door, that is Colin Bridgerton, and viewers are supposed to believe that Colin has finally opened his eyes to see Penelope’s worth. This could have been believable had Colin not been forced to tell Penelope that he loved her with the help of his older brothers, Anthony (Jonathan Bailey) and Benedict (Luke Thompson). It makes Colin’s romance lacklustre and surface-level, something that is unfortunately heightened whenever Luke Newton has to make one of his two grand declarations of love. Not only is Colin lacking in the charm of a lead, he is easily led and manipulated by all that works, given the hollow performance and writing.
The Featherington’s have always been a comic relief to the series, yet this has had a dramatic u-turn. Portia Featherington (Polly Walker) finally sees the error of her ways in terms of her treatment with Penelope and does everything she can to rectify this, and while it can be heartwarming to see, there is no respite to the overdramatics of the second part of the season. Walker is, as always, fantastic in her delivery, but not all of her scene partners are on the same level. The Featherington’s distance was a great comparison to the closeness of the Bridgerton family, but the latter part of this season has these two families at odds internally with one another.
For the past two seasons, we have been delightfully watching the Bridgerton siblings interact with each other; sadly, this was one of the weaker parts. The Bridgerton family seems more fractured than ever, with Violet considering John a lesser match for Francesca and not sharing in her daughter’s delight, and Colin emotionally manipulating Eloise and exploiting her loneliness for his own needs. The Bridgerton family is no longer a joy to watch.
Lady Danbury (Adjoa Andoh) has previously had a hand in the main storyline, offering a more mature and experienced view of London’s polite society, but now Andoh’s talents are wasted on the sidelines until episode five. Andoh isn’t given much to do this season, but with one speech, viewers are supposed to understand the complexities of her past. Given the success of Queen Charlotte, episode five cemented that Lady Danbury deserved her own prequel series; at least then her story could have been given some justice, potentially leading onto a plot line that book fans would know.
Period dramas are beloved by many and can be a form of entertainment and escapism, and while Bridgerton has never claimed to be historically accurate, it has always leaned into it with its make-up, hair, and costumes. Season two’s costumes were not historically accurate, but they looked as if they could have belonged. Season three, on the other hand, has thrown out any sort of anchor to the genre with its bold red lipstick, acrylic nails, and smokey eye shadow; it feels disjointed from the genre. Cressida Cowper suffers more than most in this, with the over-the-top sleeves and giant bow formed by her hair distracting from a brilliant performance, probably one of the best in the latter part of the season. Cressida’s only viable match intends on stripping Cressida of any joy and literal colour, a similar wardrobe tactic the costume department used on Kate Bridgerton (Simone Ashley) in an attempt to dull her natural sparkle. However, Cressida’s gall is able to pull off these adventurous costumes, most notably the red dress she wears.
While the lead characters as individuals and a couple lack any development, growth, or anything of interest, it is Cressida Cowper who effortlessly falls into a leading role with a natural intrigue and coherent writing that is lacking for the season's leads. Jessica Madsen brings sympathy and a dramatic flair this season, as well as carrying Cressida’s turmoil with excellence and fun to the role that is lacking in the rest of the season. We see her about to be forced into a marriage with an old, horrid, and miserable man who wants to strip her of all she enjoys. Her actions, unlike those of Penelope, are not for power but for her survival and freedom, and this is the true feminist story the writers wanted to tell with the leading lady but fell short at every turn.
For seasons, we have been led to believe Cressida is a villain when it is clear, although not the writer’s intention, that Penelope is the true villain with her nasty and spiteful thirst for power. She forgoes her supposed love for Colin because she sees the attention of the Ton drift from her engagement (even though they didn’t seem too bothered aside from one montage) to another. It doesn’t seem that she loves Colin but his family and their influence, but despite her sharp wit and lethal nature with a quill, she is unable to face consequences and hides away at any turn. There is nothing to root for this season other than that it ends and improves on the next leads and writing.
Splitting the season in two had a clear impact on the pacing, and by adding a mid-season break, that broke apart the much-needed urgency needed to keep the story going and give it any hope of substance. While there was a slightly more serious tone to the latter part of the season, having a romantic leading couple that lacked chemistry and writing that had no clear or cohesive structure has ensured that the third season of Bridgerton is its weakest. Fans of the series already know it has been renewed for a fourth season. One can only hope that the writers and showrunner have learned from the many mistakes of the third season.
The remaining four episodes of Season three of Bridgerton airs on June 13th 2024.