Bridgerton In Media: Bodice Ripped From the Headlines

[Scarlett45]

2 minutes ago, anamika said:

I mean, the guy is allowed to just see her as his friend!! It’s not some great crime that he is not as attracted to her as she is to him. If the tables were turned and it was the guy pining after the girl would we criticize her for not reciprocating?

I don’t think Colin is a bad guy or friend for not seeing Penelope as a romantic prospect (we have never seen him be disrespectful to her or treat her badly); BUT I do criticize him for failing to NOTICE that she has such strong feelings for him. 
 

Usually if we are friends with someone we know has a bit of romantic interest in us, and we don’t reciprocate, we are a touch sensitive to their feelings- no need to stick the knife in the wound because they are our friend and we care about them. 
 

Colin just seems OBLIVIOUS that Penelope is even a woman who’s of courtship age, much less that she’s crazy about him. That’s a touch odd to me.  

6 minutes ago, anamika said:

Nicola Coughlan needs to do the same. The writing for this show is not always great and I think both Nicola and Luke Newton need to bring their A game next season. I think it can be done. It should be done.

I agree with you. And I think she can. I don’t doubt HER acting ability- Luke? He will have to prove it to me. 

[anamika]

24 minutes ago, Scarlett45 said:

I don’t think Colin is a bad guy or friend for not seeing Penelope as a romantic prospect (we have never seen him be disrespectful to her or treat her badly); BUT I do criticize him for failing to NOTICE that she has such strong feelings for him. 
 

Usually if we are friends with someone we know has a bit of romantic interest in us, and we don’t reciprocate, we are a touch sensitive to their feelings- no need to stick the knife in the wound because they are our friend and we care about them. 
 

Colin just seems OBLIVIOUS that Penelope is even a woman who’s of courtship age, much less that she’s crazy about him. That’s a touch odd to me. 

Characters being oblivious seems to be the trend for this show. Look at Edwina!!

I don't know if anyone has seen My Mad Fat Diary here but Penelope needs a classroom lesson from Danny Two Hats on how to get out of the friendzone 😂!

There was this post on reddit about how oblivious Colin is during the wedding sitting next to Daphne and Violet who both seem angry that Anthony is getting married to Edwina while Colin was probably looking forward to the cake.

Edited May 17, 2022 by anamika

[andromeda331]

I don't like Colin. He mostly comes off as naive and idiot. I'm fine with him not in love with Penelope or seeing her as anything more than a friend. Just because Penelope's in love with him doesn't mean he has to love her back (except that comment to his friends was crappy of him). He's clearly not interested in her. He's also still really hung up on Marina. I don't think at this point he should be with any woman until he gets over that. I still don't buy him figuring out Lord F. I can't see him ever forgiving Penelope for what she wrote about his family and Marina. I'd rather Penelope find someone else.

[Door County Cherry]

19 hours ago, katha said:

Hopefully it will cut down on the tiresome Featherington subplots that always had to be shoved in to keep Pen prominent. And I guess they will really move to an ensemble structure proper with setting up Francesca's first marriage and perhaps introducing Sophie for Benedict. Kate and Anthony can settle into married life while Eloise deals with her break ups from Pen and Theo.

I don't think all the Featherington stuff was to keep Penelope prominent.  She was prominent because of her connection to Eloise and her secret identity.

I think the Featherington stuff was there to beef up polly walker's role.  She's too good of an actress to be relegated to the side yet she's needed for Penelope's story.  The only thing I ask is that next season, Penelope being discovered is the focus of Mama Featherington's story.  Let the drama be centered there instead of creating a whole new subplot to keep her busy. 

6 hours ago, SonofaBiscuit said:

I hope Regé is not returning - only because I would like Daphne to disappear, LOL.

I hadn't heard about Simon returning but I'm pretty sure Daphne will. 

7 hours ago, DkNNy79 said:

Include me in the group not sold on Colin and Penelope as a couple.  They just don't give off romance vibes/chemistry to me.

Sometimes knowing what you're going to get and letting things build is a good thing.  But sometimes, it's not.  It either creates anticipation or dread. 

I don't really see a ton of chemistry between the actors.  Penelope needs a redemption story. If the chemistry were, then maybe it could happen off of the back of a person whose family she hurt but since it's not, I would have preferred a character we didn't know. 

So I'm not exactly looking forward to next season.  I can only hope they introduce Francesca's beaus into the narrative and hope for the best.  

[iwantcookies]

Since it’s ff 1 year maybe something traumatic will push P and C together. 
 

 

It’s not been confirmed if Simon is coming back. I vote for no.

[katha]

The problem with Colin so far has been that they don't write well for him at all. Yeah, he has scenes. But nothing so far has made him interesting or distinct. And yes, perhaps that's also on the actor not elevating the material, but tbh the material he is getting has been such a dud, it's probably difficult to make any of that work.

Penelope: She's well acted and interesting. But agree that this show often has difficulty holding its characters accountable. I don't trust them to come to satisfying terms with the fact that Pen has been deliberately hurting people and ruining lives as LW. They also seemed to think that Daphne assaulting Simon because she wants babies is just hunky dory. They have a bit of a history of not quite understanding what they are putting on screen...

I do think the second season resonating is also tied to the fact that no one pretended in show that Anthony and Kate are perfect. And they themselves are always ready to take responsibility for mistakes. And as a viewer you could have sympathy for these two control freak micromanagers have their lives thrown asunder by each other because the show didn't pretend that they hadn't made a mess of things. I'd even go as far as to say that Kate getting constantly berated or berating herself started to get uncomfortable the longer into the season they went and the clearer it got how little she values herself and that she thinks that she's not entitled to want things of her own.

Contrast that with Penelope and Daphne. I know the show doesn't want to dwell on race as a topic. But I find the difference in presentation contrasting Kate with Daphne and Pen a bit striking.

[anamika]

31 minutes ago, katha said:

I do think the second season resonating is also tied to the fact that no one pretended in show that Anthony and Kate are perfect. And they themselves are always ready to take responsibility for mistakes. And as a viewer you could have sympathy for these two control freak micromanagers have their lives thrown asunder by each other because the show didn't pretend that they hadn't made a mess of things. I'd even go as far as to say that Kate getting constantly berated or berating herself started to get uncomfortable the longer into the season they went and the clearer it got how little she values herself and that she thinks that she's not entitled to want things of her own.

Contrast that with Penelope and Daphne. I know the show doesn't want to dwell on race as a topic. But I find the difference in presentation contrasting Kate with Daphne and Pen a bit striking.

Agree.

Even in season one Anthony was held accountable for his actions with respect to Daphne and Berbrooke. He realized he was wrong, learned from it and when the Prince wanted to propose left it upto Daphne on whether she wanted to accept. That's some nice character growth.

There is nothing empowering or feminist about Daphne's sexual assault or Penelope's writing which hurts other women in a patriarchal society. Marina almost killed herself!

Meanwhile Kate is written as feeling remorseful all the time and Marina turned into a Polin Shipper - cheer-leading for the girl who screwed up her life.

2 hours ago, Door County Cherry said:

I don't think all the Featherington stuff was to keep Penelope prominent.  She was prominent because of her connection to Eloise and her secret identity.

I think the Featherington stuff was there to beef up polly walker's role.  She's too good of an actress to be relegated to the side yet she's needed for Penelope's story.  The only thing I ask is that next season, Penelope being discovered is the focus of Mama Featherington's story.  Let the drama be centered there instead of creating a whole new subplot to keep her busy.

Agree. As much as I love Polly Walker (Atia of the Julii will always be a fave), there was just so much cousin Jack and Featherington plot because they needed to give the actress something to do. Unfortunately this meant that Mary, Mary's relationship with Kate and Kate flashbacks got shafted. In Kate's season her family should have been the focus not another white family in the Featheringtons.

I think that is partly a lot of the frustration I am seeing with this announcement for Polin season 3. Penelope and the Featheringtons ate up so much time in season 2 that could have been used for Kate and the Sharmas, when Featherington drama could have been done in season 3 which was coming up next anyway.

I think the show can make up for this by giving Kate more story time, including delving into her past,  in season 3.

I am looking forward to seeing the Violet/Kate dynamic the most.

Hoping we are done with the Featheringtons next season. I will miss the hilarity of Prudence and Portia, however it should be enough if they show up in guest spots after season 3. Moving forward hopefully the female love interests ( not referring to Penelope who already has a ton of development) - also get fleshed out and given flashback backstories like the male love interests.

More tidbits:

[marina to]

4 hours ago, katha said:

I'd even go as far as to say that Kate getting constantly berated or berating herself started to get uncomfortable the longer into the season they went and the clearer it got how little she values herself and that she thinks that she's not entitled to want things of her own.

Contrast that with Penelope and Daphne. I know the show doesn't want to dwell on race as a topic. But I find the difference in presentation contrasting Kate with Daphne and Pen a bit striking.

The problem is that Kate putting everyone else before herself is a core of the character. She was always going to contrast Penelope and Daphne in this way no matter who played her. 

[bijoux]

The only "announcement" of Rege's return I've seen was on April Fools and that's been disputed.

Having Colin and Penelope get together in season 3 is a good way to phase the Featheringtons out. Either have Lady Whistledown become public knowledge or use Penelope's marriage to Colin as an alibi to funnel her profits to her mother and sister. Once the secret is out, I don't really know how important Penelope would be for the show. 

[quarks]

Book Colin = one of my favorite characters in the series.

Show Colin = not so much.

Book Colin gives me some hope that Show Colin will improve. That said, I suspect I'll be watching season three for, well, everyone else - including seeing what happens with the former friendship between Penelope and Eloise.

And the new Francesca.

[DkNNy79]

Ehhh, I won't be so harsh on Colin for being clueless (for being boring....yes) to Penelope's feelings.  I've been in a similar boat with an older and married co-worker.  I had no clue he was interested in me until he took me to lunch and told me.

[katha]

6 hours ago, marina to said:

The problem is that Kate putting everyone else before herself is a core of the character. She was always going to contrast Penelope and Daphne in this way no matter who played her. 

Yes, that is true. But what I am mostly talking about is framing by the show. Kate thinks she has to do everything for her family. But she does it in controlling ways that can do more harm than good. The show calls her on the carpet for this. Lady Danbury points it out and then she basically plays herself by pulling Edwina's attention only to Anthony by trying block him. Hence the temper tantrum at the soiree. And then of course the more grave fallout after the wedding, including "half-sister" and all. When she makes mistakes there are consequences.

We're supposed to think that Daphne assaulting Simon was okay. And yeah, Penelope is always a bit teary before she throws yet another person to the wolves as LW. But I think the fact that we are in her point of view draws sympathy towards her and minimizes the ramifications in the narrative structure.

[TheOtherOne]

Eh, didn't realize that was the one from yesterday.

Edited May 17, 2022 by TheOtherOne

[ouinason]

I don't have a problem with Pen's actions the way some people do.  That is, I don't think it's as much of a betrayal as some other posters might.

That said, I wish they would have let the characters mature a bit more before doing their story.  I am not surprised that they are going ahead with Polin now, if for no other reason than that NC is amazing and capitalizing on how popular Derry Girls is rather than waiting another year is just smart business.

[GaT]

I don't understand how they keep Lady Whistledown around once Penelope & Colin get together. They must have done it in the book, right? I would hate to lose "her", I really enjoy Lady Whistledown.

[bijoux]

 

 

 

[Cetacean]

6 hours ago, GaT said:

I don't understand how they keep Lady Whistledown around once Penelope & Colin get together.

I wondered that as well especially since Eloise knows who Whistledown really is.  She's furious with Pen, it's not as though she has a reason to keep it a secret.

[Scarlett45]

On 5/17/2022 at 3:53 AM, marina to said:

The problem is that Kate putting everyone else before herself is a core of the character. She was always going to contrast Penelope and Daphne in this way no matter who played her. 

I get this, but as @katha alluded to her in own post, when you have a woman of color in the role, it’s very hard to separate that from the “strong POC woman” trope- where women of color hold everything together, sacrifice for their family and never prioritize their own needs (emotional or physical) and this is held up as what’s EXPECTED because of the color of her skin. (I’m not speaking to Bridgerton just media in general)
 

Don’t get me wrong, I LOVED Simone Ashley in this role- she is talented and gorgeous and she brought it all (even when the writing was lacking), but it’s like “oh so this is the role you chose to race bend? Makes sense doesn’t it??”

[truthaboutluv]

10 minutes ago, Scarlett45 said:

but it’s like “oh so this is the role you chose to race bend? Makes sense doesn’t it??”

But that wasn't the first role they chose to race bend. Simon was white in the book series. 

[Scarlett45]

7 minutes ago, truthaboutluv said:

But that wasn't the first role they chose to race bend. Simon was white in the book series. 

Yes I know- but aren’t they race bending principal characters EVERY season? If that’s the case I understood what @katha was saying in her post- regarding Kate’s portrayal vs Daphne/Penelope. 

[Enero]

2 hours ago, Scarlett45 said:

I get this, but as @katha alluded to her in own post, when you have a woman of color in the role, it’s very hard to separate that from the “strong POC woman” trope- where women of color hold everything together, sacrifice for their family and never prioritize their own needs (emotional or physical) and this is held up as what’s EXPECTED because of the color of her skin. (I’m not speaking to Bridgerton just media in general)
 

Don’t get me wrong, I LOVED Simone Ashley in this role- she is talented and gorgeous and she brought it all (even when the writing was lacking), but it’s like “oh so this is the role you chose to race bend? Makes sense doesn’t it??”

I get how some may have this perspective. However, I did not feel this way at all. Though Simone is a woman of color, she's not a black woman, which is who the strong woman sacrificing everything for everyone else stereotype is almost exclusively applied. Same with the angry woman stereotype. It's always been applied to black women, not WOC as a whole.  

 

11 hours ago, GaT said:

I don't understand how they keep Lady Whistledown around once Penelope & Colin get together. They must have done it in the book, right? I would hate to lose "her", I really enjoy Lady Whistledown.

I don't know how things were set up in the book, but I wish they had an invisible narrator as Lady Whistledown, with the audience either never finding out who she is or we didn't find out until the end of the series ala Gossip Girl. 

[katha]

I think that focusing on familial duty so heavily with Kate made sense and I've seen articles that it resonated with viewers with a South Asian background. So that might have been a conscious choice and in fundamentals it worked. What I think doesn't work is the white characters skating on behavior that would have been dragged if committed by a POC, I sometimes suspect on the idea that a white female audience will not care what they do because they can function as self-inserts.

Daphne assaulting Simon without consequences also brings in really unfortunate additional connotations since the show might sometimes act as if race does not matter, but it's not operating in some sort of vacuum. And OTOH you have the Sharmas, where there is at least a tacit acknowledgement that they come from a different cultural background than the London Ton. Same with just assuming goodwill and identification for Penelope.

So to sum up: The writing for Kate is not what I'm criticizing here, I'm criticizing that they don't think they need to do the work for Pen and Daphne when it comes to holding them accountable for faults. Not even the characters realizing stuff themselves, the lenient framing they get in-show. Of course the final judgement on that is already in with Daphne, that was a trainwreck. Jury is still out on Pen, but IMO so far they've been wobbling about what they want to do with the LW stuff and what sorts of ramifications it should have. And IMO the fallout should be pretty drastic and I'm not sure that they will have the guts to go there.

Edited May 18, 2022 by katha

[Scarlett45]

1 hour ago, katha said:

I think that focusing on familial duty so heavily with Kate made sense and I've seen articles that it resonated with viewers with a South Asian background. So that might have been a conscious choice and in fundamentals it worked. What I think doesn't work is the white characters skating on behavior that would have been dragged if committed by a POC, I sometimes suspect on the idea that a white female audience will not care what they do because they can function as self-inserts.

I see what you are saying and you said it more eloquently than I was able to above.

[LilJen]

On 5/12/2022 at 11:04 AM, SonofaBiscuit said:

The actress looks lovely, but meh, I was hoping Francesca would essentially disappear. I would rather use the valuable screen time on characters I'm actually invested in.

There seems to be an entire series of clips featuring Kate and Anthony in their beautiful teal ensembles. I don't know where the one below originally came from, but it reminded of the scene that prompted Edwina's "was I truly that blind" remark:

This is what we will now refer to as the "BOOBS! LILIES!" gif :)

[SonofaBiscuit]

2 hours ago, LilJen said:

This is what we will now refer to as the "BOOBS! LILIES!" gif :)

My thought process: Is he smelling her or admiring the view?? … Why not both!🤣

Edited May 19, 2022 by SonofaBiscuit

[anamika]

As someone who is South Asian and more specifically Indian, I doubt the writing for Kate had anything to do with her Indian background considering how messy it was - from her name (never heard of Kathani) to the different mix of languages she was using to even the pronunciation of Sharma. It's Sharma like Sherpa or circa or purple. Not Shaaarma. There was just so much lazy writing with respect to the Sharmas.

I am ignoring it because I am seeing the world of Bridgerton as a fantasy world where race is not a factor and therefore there is no actual correlation to Kate's Indian heritage. Rather I think Kate's dedication to family is a parallel to Anthony's dedication to his. They are both putting family over their own happiness, they both think they should sacrifice for family when their family really does not expect this from them.

Honestly, I don't have much of an issue with Kate being apologetic because I do think she was wrong in taking away Edwina's agency and making decisions for her rather than telling Edwina the whole truth. I would have loved it if Anthony too had apologized to Edwina.

What's worrying with Penelope is that similar to Daphne and unlike with Kate and even Marina, the narrative either seems to ignore what they did (Daphne) or tries to justify it (Penelope). Penelope's actions being framed as if she had no choice and being sad and crying for throwing Eloise and Marina under the bus is not enough for me.

All the interviews so far after the announcement has focused only on Polin and maybe that's why no one has brought up Lady Whistledown. It will be interesting to see how they tackle it now that Eloise knows. I am sorry, but if they end up writing Eloise apologizing to Pen I will throw things 😂. Plus, I wonder how LW is going to continue into season 4.

I also thought this was a rather poor answer from the new showrunner Jess Brownell

 

Disappointing.

If they made race a non-issue in the fantasy world of Bridgerton, couldn’t they have done the same for sexuality.

It would have been so refreshing for a LGBTQ+ regency romance in the Bridgerton setting where the character’s sexuality is as much of a non-issue as a character’s race. All that secret yearning and near touching of hands, not because they are not straight, but because of a character swearing off love or some such reason typical romance novel reason 😂. I know book fans would dislike it but I really wish Benedict was bi.

One season out of 8 wouldn’t be too much to ask would it? Or maybe have it as a side plot. Such a wasted opportunity.

 

Edited May 19, 2022 by anamika

[Enero]

4 hours ago, anamika said:

I also thought this was a rather poor answer from the new showrunner Jess Brownell

I wasn't aware that Chris Van Dusen was no longer going to be showrunner. I looked it up and Jess Brownell will be showrunner for seasons 3 and 4.  She only wrote one episode this season, there was another episode but she co-wrote that with Van Dusen. She produced a couple of episodes this season too. Also, she looks to have been heavily involved with S1 as an Executive Story Editor and has worked on several other Shonda shows recently and in the past. It'll be interesting to see how she interprets the books.

Quote

I am sorry, but if they end up writing Eloise apologizing to Pen I will throw things 

You best get your pillows, glasses and whatever else you plan to use as throwing objects ready, cause I think that's exactly what's going to happen. Lol. The fact that Penelope cried for two seconds after her fight with Eloise then went straight back to writing the LW column means she still does not care what she has done which means the writers don't really care either. But I imagine the truth will have to come out before she gets with Colin. So perhaps there will be some fall out which will impact their relationship negatively. But I'm expecting whatever consequences she suffers will be minimal.  

[Door County Cherry]

This discussion is great but I think some of it is drifting away from the media.  

If you're discussing a specific season (like Season 2/events in Season 2) you should take it to an episode thread (8 if it's a season-long discussion.)

I also created a new thread for non-spoiler speculation.  I felt that since both characters involved in next season's romance, it might be needed. 

 

[eleanorofaquitaine]

On 5/17/2022 at 12:18 AM, katha said:

The problem with Colin so far has been that they don't write well for him at all. Yeah, he has scenes. But nothing so far has made him interesting or distinct. And yes, perhaps that's also on the actor not elevating the material, but tbh the material he is getting has been such a dud, it's probably difficult to make any of that work.

Penelope: She's well acted and interesting. But agree that this show often has difficulty holding its characters accountable. I don't trust them to come to satisfying terms with the fact that Pen has been deliberately hurting people and ruining lives as LW. They also seemed to think that Daphne assaulting Simon because she wants babies is just hunky dory. They have a bit of a history of not quite understanding what they are putting on screen...

I do think the second season resonating is also tied to the fact that no one pretended in show that Anthony and Kate are perfect. And they themselves are always ready to take responsibility for mistakes. And as a viewer you could have sympathy for these two control freak micromanagers have their lives thrown asunder by each other because the show didn't pretend that they hadn't made a mess of things. I'd even go as far as to say that Kate getting constantly berated or berating herself started to get uncomfortable the longer into the season they went and the clearer it got how little she values herself and that she thinks that she's not entitled to want things of her own.

Contrast that with Penelope and Daphne. I know the show doesn't want to dwell on race as a topic. But I find the difference in presentation contrasting Kate with Daphne and Pen a bit striking.

I don't think Penelope should be held accountable for "deliberately hurting people and ruining lives" because she hasn't been "deliberately" hurting people. In other words, Penelope isn't malicious like Cressida. Certainly she has had to make choices that have hurt people but each time she's done that, she's recognized it, at least to herself.

Anyway, I neither need nor want my heroines and heroes to be perfect. I actually much prefer watching complicated, flawed individuals. That is more interesting to me.

I am not too worried about the focus being on Colin and Penelope. For one thing, IMO dragging it out for another season would do a disservice to the characters. For another, a lot of people found Anthony unlikable after season one but obviously, when the show focused on him, they found ways to make him relatable and someone to root for. I suspect they'll work their same magic on Penelope and Colin.

And I am interested to see what they do with the friends-to-lovers trope. I think that can sometimes be even trickier than enemies-to-lovers but when done well, it can be really fun and satisfying. 

[katha]

See I think that Penelope has been trying to rationalize that she had no choice but to attack Daphne, Marina or Eloise. Or ruin that other modiste's livelihood. But she had other choices, they would just have meant giving up LW or coming up with different ways to protect herself. Every time it was about doing something that did damage to someone else so Penelope could keep on doing what she wanted. It wasn't for their own good at all.

That doesn't make her evil, but it makes her wholly self-absorbed and ruthless and I'd absolutely want some introspection from her why she is doing these things and how much damage she has done in other people's lives. At the moment she seems to think that her position in life entitles her to play judge, jury and executioner as LW. I understand that she feels disempowered in her everyday life and compensates as puppet master with the column. But even then some self-awareness about how she contributes to those dynamics in her own life would be good: For example, yeah her friendship with Eloise is centered on Eloise. But that is both because Eloise is self-absorbed and because Pen has been lying and holding back from Eloise for years.

[Cetacean]

4 hours ago, katha said:

But she had other choices, they would just have meant giving up LW or coming up with different ways to protect herself.

I believe it is for the money.  The Featheringtons were in dire straits and this gave her some income should her family need bailing out although I'm not sure how she would explain in.

  Pen knows she's very unlikely to make a moneyed match;  deep down she has to know that Colin just isn't into her.

[truthaboutluv]

9 hours ago, eleanorofaquitaine said:

For another, a lot of people found Anthony unlikable after season one but obviously, when the show focused on him, they found ways to make him relatable and someone to root for. I suspect they'll work their same magic on Penelope and Colin.

I think the issue some are stressing is that even when Anthony was unlikable, yes, Jonathan Bailey was strong enough of an actor to still make the character interesting and compelling. An interesting and compelling dickwad at times, sure, but compelling all the same. 

The one thing I've seen plenty and I concur, is that we've had two seasons as viewers to be interested in Colin and many simply are not. Even with the Marina storyline that could and should have been a strong moment for him, really ended up being carried more by Marina and Penelope.

The two actresses were the ones that truly delivered the emotional devastation of that whole mess. Colin has honestly, for the most part, kind of just been "there." Someone that exists and takes up space.

So that's what's driving mine and many others' hesitation that the Colin and Penelope relationship can truly carry a season. But of course, the actor may prove the doubters' wrong and he and Nicola might deliver the best season yet. 

Edited May 20, 2022 by truthaboutluv

[eleanorofaquitaine]

I certainly think Nicola Coughlan is strong enough to make the season compelling. And I basically feel about Luke Newton the way I felt about Jonny Bailey - he seems like he can act, let's see what the writers can do. I think that there is a bit of revisionist history now where people are like, "well, I always knew Bailey could handle it" but I remember a lot of grumbling around the idea that Anthony would be the season 2 focus.

[anamika]

I actually enjoyed Pen and Colin in season one and thought they had fun chemistry. For some reason that turned into negative chemistry in season two for me. No idea why. Maybe it just came off that way compared to all the heat that was Kate/Anthony.

I do think better writing for Colin should go a long way in making him a romantic hero. Instead of sending him off to Marina last season, they should have simply spend more time on Pen and Colin being friends. For a friends to lovers trope romance there should at the least be good friendship chemistry and these two are currently even lacking that.

Nicola appeared on the Bridgerton podcast and was critical of Penelope's actions. Looks like the writers will tackle this in the narrative.

Nicola also mentioned how Penelope  has 'Portia’s voice in her ear' and influenced by her family in her behavior. And suddenly Penelope has become more interesting for me. I wouldn't mind if they explore the Pen/Portia relationship.

I have a feeling that season 3 is going to be more Pen's season than Colin's. She has the more interesting and complex story. They really haven't given Colin much story wise.

Edited May 20, 2022 by anamika

[katha]

IMO it was clear in season one that Bailey is a strong and experienced actor who can handle whatever they throw at him. And looking back, some of the stuff they started with him in season one paid off in season two: Trying to escape his duties with his mistress, his tense relationship with Violet, him being the one character who actually apologizes when he screws up. OTOH the writing for him in season one at least had some sort of direction, even if it made him unlikeable.

The writing for Colin is IMO either non-existent or just bad. At current evidence I'm not sure they know how to write for him at all. Yeah, it was all about Pen and Marina, but that was also because Colin was just written as clueless. That has been his one beat far too often. I don't know if the actor can handle more because they never give him anything. Even scenes that are supposedly about him treat him as a nonentity. And IMO that is much more a script than a performance problem.

I've enjoyed the recent Coughlan interviews, though. I concur with her view on Pen and hope that this perception lands on screen next season.

[Harvey]

6 hours ago, truthaboutluv said:

 

The one thing I've seen plenty and I concur, is that we've had two seasons as viewers to be interested in Colin and many simply are not.

They are working on it already

 

[Kirsty]

21 hours ago, eleanorofaquitaine said:

I think that there is a bit of revisionist history now where people are like, "well, I always knew Bailey could handle it" but I remember a lot of grumbling around the idea that Anthony would be the season 2 focus.

I don't. And I'm going to be that asshole who quotes her own post, because in December 2020 before I had finished the first season, I wrote in a post on this forum:

On 12/29/2020 at 9:31 PM, Kirsty said:

I'm very curious to know which main character is the focus of next season. (There better be a next season.) My guess is Anthony. It makes such a difference if you like the actor, doesn't it? And I like the dude playing Anthony. I'm not sure where the opera-singer story is going, though.

No revisionist history on my end. And what I remember from other people's posts in the episode thread for the first season finale was a few comments about how ridiculously good-looking Bailey is.

[katha]

Yeah, what I remember in the first season discussions is several posters saying that the Anthony actor was good and that they just needed to give him proper material and he would shine. It was pretty obvious IMO. Looking back, it was also pretty obvious that they set up his leading man arc already in season one, even though they were hamfisted about various aspects of it.

For me, Colin's position seems much wobblier. And I'm mostly concerned with the writing because IMO they have for two seasons tried to give him material and none of it has worked at all. They seem to have no idea who he is.

[bijoux]

28 minutes ago, Kirsty said:

I don't. And I'm going to be that asshole who quotes her own post, because in December 2020 before I had finished the first season, I wrote in a post on this forum:

No revisionist history on my end. And what I remember from other people's posts in the episode thread for the first season finale was a few comments about how ridiculously good-looking Bailey is.

I just managed to stop myself from doing that yesterday. 😁

[anamika]

I don't know who it was who first said this, but Jonathan Bailey is able to bring to the screen descriptions that romance writers have long used on the page. We now know what it means when someone writes -'His eyes darkened with passion'! It's no wonder he is being compared to romantic heroes from Darcy to Heathcliff.

Bailey also brings an intensity and passion to the character that gives him chemistry with pretty much every other character. There were many folks shipping Anthony/Siera in season one and disappointed that this was a doomed relationship.

Bailey is therefore a tough act to follow and there will unfortunately be comparisons for whomever is the lead next season. Poor Luke Newton. I can't imagine the pressure.

[Trini]

'The Simpsons Spoofs Bridgerton in Season Finale Sneak Peek'

 

[GaT]

16 hours ago, anamika said:

Bailey is therefore a tough act to follow and there will unfortunately be comparisons for whomever is the lead next season. Poor Luke Newton. I can't imagine the pressure.

The pressure/comparisons is going to be the same as what Jonathan Bailey had following Regé-Jean Page after season 1.

[anamika]

7 hours ago, GaT said:

The pressure/comparisons is going to be the same as what Jonathan Bailey had following Regé-Jean Page after season 1.

Taking this to the non-spoiler discussion because I am not sure where to discuss the actors...
 

[andromeda331]

On 5/20/2022 at 6:28 AM, eleanorofaquitaine said:

I certainly think Nicola Coughlan is strong enough to make the season compelling. And I basically feel about Luke Newton the way I felt about Jonny Bailey - he seems like he can act, let's see what the writers can do. I think that there is a bit of revisionist history now where people are like, "well, I always knew Bailey could handle it" but I remember a lot of grumbling around the idea that Anthony would be the season 2 focus.

It's possible. I hated Anthony in season one and I was really shocked that I ended up liking him so much in season two and loved Anthony's and Kate's story. I'm just not sure the writers can pull it off again. I liked Colin in season one even though he was young and very naive but hated him in season two. I don't even know why they went that route with Colin. With Anthony half the fun was seeing his character taken down a peg or several by Kate. 

On 5/20/2022 at 10:49 AM, katha said:

The writing for Colin is IMO either non-existent or just bad. At current evidence I'm not sure they know how to write for him at all. Yeah, it was all about Pen and Marina, but that was also because Colin was just written as clueless. That has been his one beat far too often. I don't know if the actor can handle more because they never give him anything. Even scenes that are supposedly about him treat him as a nonentity. And IMO that is much more a script than a performance problem.

I've enjoyed the recent Coughlan interviews, though. I concur with her view on Pen and hope that this perception lands on screen next season.

That's the problem with Colin. In season one being young and naive made a little sense being the third brother who didn't seem to have been away at a college or went to Greece. I don't know what they were trying to do with Colin. He traveled but came back as green as he was before he left. Maybe even more. I don't understand why he's still so into Marina. It would make sense if he went to see her because he hoped she miserable because what she tried to do to him, that he had questions about if she ever really loved him or even had made peace with it and moved on. But no, Colin seemed like he was hoping to find her miserable so they could somehow still be together. Was he hoping she would run off with him? Become his mistress? Leave Philip and they could marry and live happily ever after. It makes no sense with what happened in season one. They could have done something with that and they picked the one that made no sense. Why when there were so much more interesting options? Or have him find a career or something his travels that peaked his interest. Have him come back matured a bit. Instead they don't do anything else with him until the last episode when suddenly he's figured out Lord F is a fraud. Why not have him suspicious sooner? They could have had the Featheringtons think he was wrong because Lord F was paying the one daughter's dowry. Or suspicious as Lord F and Portia are conspiring to rip off the rest of the ton wondering if he was going to expose them. Or something.

[PatsyandEddie]

'Bridgerton' star Ruby Barker says she's hospitalized due to mental health problems according to CNN news. 
 

Edited May 27, 2022 by PatsyandEddie

[Door County Cherry]

Here's her Instagram statement.  

https://www.instagram.com/p/CeBLu_aDKmm/

[anamika]

Luke Newton posted some BTS of "S2 rehearsals with the bros 🤺" on twitter/instagram.

https://twitter.com/lukenewtonuk/status/1531026197118844928

Adjoa Andoh on Kelly Clarkson said a character from someone's past maybe turning up.

Nicola also compares Penelope to Walter White 😂

Calam Lynch who plays Theo refused to say whether he was or was not coming back in an interview and from his smiles it looks like he maybe returning. Looks like unlike Sienna, Theo may have a larger role....

If the show is determined to do Eloise/Philip, I honestly wouldn't mind if George Crane turned up alive. It's war after all. There's a lot of historical romance out there where dead soldier turns up alive after many years and everyone thought them dead. George comes back and Marina finally gets her happy ending!

Edited June 2, 2022 by anamika

[Trini]

Ha! - the show account answered back:

[shapeshifter]

19 hours ago, anamika said:

on Kelly Clarkson . . .

What a great, uplifting interview!

My favorite bits:

• [CHARITHRA CHANDRAN] . . . favorite scene to shoot from season two was the Haldi scene in episode six . . . 
  
   

  [ADJOA ANDOH] I loved the scene I did with Ruth Gemmell  who plays Lady Violet when we both were just laughing. . . .because I just...  I like laughing and I like laughing with Ruth  and we usually get in trouble for it.  But there was actually a scene written for us 

  [CHARITHRA CHANDRAN]- Colorism has existed  at different times throughout history.  And I think it is particularly pervasive in countries  in Asia and in Africa and south Asia and east Asia  because of, well, one, colonialism, and second, to do with class and caste.  And so, you know, it's a daily struggle  for us 'cause we're never allowed to forget it.  And I always say it feels kind of violent  to me because it comes from within your own community.  And so I just hope that Simone and I being in the show can help dark skinned people of all races  to feel beautiful and to feel seen  and to feel worthy of love.  .

  [ADJOA ANDOH] . . And it's a show that says, "Everybody is just a person.  And sometimes we do great things  and sometimes we do terrible things,  but we are all frail, and we all want to be loved  and we all want to be seen  and we want to be heard, come and watch our show.

And how sweet when Charithra Chandran took Nicola Coughlan's hand when she started to tear up. And, yes, like Kelly Clarkson, I too am a "contagious cryer."🥲

[wanderingstar]

On 5/27/2022 at 11:37 PM, Door County Cherry said:

Here's her Instagram statement.  

https://www.instagram.com/p/CeBLu_aDKmm/

Sending her love and strength and hoping she's ok.