The new Netflix favorite, “Bridgerton,” based on the book series by Julia Quinn, has been held in very high regard by its binging audience since its debut last Christmas.
When people heavily compared the show to the well-known series, “Gossip Girl,” I figured this would be an overly dramatic version of “Downton Abbey,” just with younger people. However, this comparison is extremely spot on, as the show even comes with its very own Julie Andrews narrating “Gossip Girl” figure. With the narration of a mysterious woman (or man, as the original Gossip Girl had shown us that names can be deceiving), the show is centered around the rumors and drama of the upper class of London. In a series of lavish balls and dinners, the bachelors and bachelorettes of high society put themselves on display in order to snag a fiancé by the courting season’s end. If without an engagement, they must wait until the next season, hopefully next time having more luck with better dresses and hairstyles to be the Queen’s “diamond of the first water.”
The show tries to display the irony within itself, as the main goal of nearly every character is to be wed. However, whether it is with the older married couples or even with the newlyweds of the show, the true nature of these marriages are exposed for what they really are. While engagements and courtships are all tea parties and shy smiles, what happens beyond that is far more complex. It makes the audience question why these people have such anxieties to be married as soon as possible, as it’s really for rank rather than love.
The series fixates on Daphne Bridgerton (Phoebe Dynevor) and Simon Basset (Regé-Jean Page) and their iconic, fake love turned forbidden love turned toxic love, turned… anyway, you get it. The couple share a chemistry that they cannot deny no matter what they try telling themselves otherwise.
Dynevor plays Daphne with a lot of naivety and innocence that the character is meant to have, but when that means that the main two facial expressions that she exhibits are a sly smile and a confused furrow of a brow, it gets a bit boring. Daphne is the crown jewel of this season, as coined by Queen Charlotte (Golda Rosheuvel), therefore she is at the top of the market for well-esteemed suitors. However, she’s not like other girls — she’ll snort at a prince’s compliments and she’ll stay in the rain as others cover from it. Honestly, what was that? Was she trying to drink the rainwater with how wide she was keeping her mouth as she looked to the sky? She just was not as charming as the Queen found her to be. The performances of some other actresses in the show were more desirable as they were a bit more complex and captivating, opposing the presence of simple innocence seen by Daphne.
As for Simon, his performance was a bit extra. Most specifically this is seen when he tried to make Daphne back off from him in episode three, saying a series of quite harsh remarks. I get that he knew he would never be the true husband that she’d always wanted, but we all know how this was going to end. By the next episode, he goes back on his words and what to follow was, unfortunately, very predictable. It looks like the second season, presuming there will be one, won’t be focussing on these two main characters anymore as their plot is pretty much resolved, or as it is in the books that the show is based on.
The next main plot line follows that of the Featheringtons, another rich family like the Bridgertons, however, they lack the genuinity that the Bridgertons seem to have. The mother of the bunch, Portia Featherington (Polly Walker), is the Evil Stepmother of “Cinderella” and the mother of Allie in “The Notebook” mixed into one. She’s the antithesis of the Bridgerton mother, Violet Bridgerton (Ruth Gemmel), who, on the other hand, truly cares for what is best for her children. Both actresses of these mothers did a very good job in persuading how we, the audience, had to perceive these families. Portia Featherington’s cruelty really shines through when she’s given the responsibility of Marina Thompson (Ruby Barker). Thompson alike gives a great performance as a humble character who must turn to deceit when she is in a grave situation of having a child out of wedlock. While she must find a husband fast in order to convince him that he is the father when the child is born, in the process she loses the kind character that we first learned her to be. It seemed that when she first entered the picture, she would be a very pure character to contrast her Featherington family. She enters London as the new talk of the town, besting Daphne in that matter. It seemed that the audience would root for her at this point since we feel bad that she’s despised by her family despite her being a good person. However, as the series progressed, the audience is conflicted about whether or not the ends justify the means when she is forced into tricking a good man into marriage.
A favorite duo of the show must be the friendship between Eloise Bridgerton (Claudia Jessie) and Penelope Featherington (Nicola Coughlan), a couple of the youngest ladies in the show. However, what nearly stunned me was the fact that the actresses playing them were actually much older than they appear. Though Coughlan is 34 years old, she convincingly plays a young girl at the age of 17. Jessie also really impressed me in her role as the witty and independent 17 year old Bridgerton sister. Like Coughlan, Jessie is also playing a character much younger than herself (31 years old). She had to play a mature teenager, which could’ve easily given her actual age away, but she was still able to convey youthfulness to her character. The two shared a genuine bond on screen, especially since they were supposed to be a couple of the newest debutantes in society so they understood each other on that level. Their performances bounced off of each other very well when convincing the audience of their age and maturity. What made this relationship more genuine was the fact that they weren’t entirely focused on relationships as the other characters in the show mostly were. Their friendship went through its ups and downs, but at the end of the day they could put differences aside to be there for each other.
The following contains a major spoiler about the season finale, viewer discretion is advised. If you’ve already watched the last episode, then you’ll already know the true identity of Lady Whisteldown and you will not mind reading that the real gossip of this society was, after all, little old Penelope. After episode seven, it seemed that her identity was given away for a moment because of the reveal of Marina Thompson’s pregnancy. Penelope was in love with Marina’s fiancee and if she wasn’t going to tell the truth about her hidden pregnancy to him, then an anonymous writer had to. She appeared clear at first as being Lady Whistledown, but the other possibility of Genevieve Delacroix (Kathryn Drysdale) being the mystery writer threw the audience for a loop in knowing the true identity of the town gossip. It really came full circle to a Cinderella story when they showed Penelope and the other Featherington ladies. The mean mother and the obnoxious two sisters truly made Penelope look like the innocent and good natured Cinderella figure. In the end, she is this mysterious and well sought after woman just like the Disney character was. While there were a few loose ends as to how exactly she was Lady Whistledown — unlike Gossip Girl, she didn’t have very convenient rumor blasts coming through her flip phone — surely the next season will clear these up. We should also expect some clarity with the fate of the Featheringtons. Although they began as cartoonish villainous characters, they actually grew to be more likeable and have a commanding role in the series. Though it isn’t confirmed just yet, fans should look forward to another season because of the absolute craze that the show has gotten itself into.
Chloe Geschwind is an Entertainment Intern for the winter 2021 quarter. She can be reached at cgescwi@uci.edu.
