About the Series
The Bridgerton series is based upon the book series of the same name by Julia Quinn. I first read these books as a precocious 19-year-old, as my guilty pleasure read. They are the type of books which are fun to read, but without much substance, however, I enjoyed reading them immensely. The type of fantastical true-love, love-conquers-all fluffy romance presented in these books is something that appeals to the dreamer in me. If you enjoy Regency Romance.
Trailer
Uploaded by Netflix
Synopsis
This Synopsis was taken from Netflix.
The eight close-knit siblings of the Bridgerton family look for love and happiness in London high society. Inspired by Julia Quinn’s bestselling novels.
The Review
My Overall Thoughts
Being an avid fan of historical settings; I was put off at first by the liberties that the creators took with both the source material and the historical background. However, it was fun despite that and, in the end, I developed a sort of keen appreciation for this creative direction. Additionally, this is a series in the same vein as Gossip Girl, The Vampire Diaries and others like them (slightly more mature) and I have always liked that kind of a show.
The Best Parts of the Series
Surprisingly, I enjoyed a lot of things about the show, including the setting, the romance, the acting and the plot.
Setting
The whole thing is set in the time of King George (Circa 1800s), in the Regency era (I happen to love Regency romances), however, the actors were cast regardless of their race, though the source material referred to an all-white British cast. There has been a lot of controversy regarding this choice as well as the use of pop songs in the show, but personally, I don’t mind it. As an Asian living in Asia, I don’t have the same cultural hang-ups about race in the first place. Also, the utterly unbelievable nature of the setting helps to (in my opinion) make the series not only more eye-catching, controversial and scandalous, but also more fantasy-like, and dreamy.
The addition of these elements serves to remove the series from the bounds of reality and adds a fanciful effect to the whole thing that was quite missing from the book version which elevates the show to a much more captivating version of the source material. Another thing is, that the juxtaposition of the ultra-old-fashioned society to the modern acting cast is really kind of fascinating: somewhat like seeing a modern person back in time (incidentally: one of my other favourite genres, as shown by my utter fascination with Outlander).
Visuals
God, I loved these; the dresses, the carriages, the ballrooms, the estates (the hot footmen), I enjoyed it all quite a bit.
Romance
I am a fan of reading, watching, and writing romance, I appreciate it, relish it and love to immerse myself in it. The romance in the first season of Bridgerton is strong for the most part, only faltering a little at the end, and I like the various side stories a lot. The romance in the second season has a few objectionable features and the obstacles are kind of silly, but the chemistry between the actors makes up for it.
Things That Were Meh
The progression of the plot, particularly in the first season, where the resolution seemed too easy, as well as the sometimes-campy side characters, can be off-putting.
Plot Progression
I have a lot to say about this. In a romance where the obstacle is as big of a deal as it is in season 1 of Bridgerton, all it takes to change the hero’s mind and make everything all hanky-dory again is just one day of the heroine looking sexy and pouting and earnestly pleading. If the guy was gonna give in so easily, why insist on it in the first place?
The plot needed more pushback, more effort from the heroine, and some sort of catalyst to push the two past the obstacle. (Spoiler: It would have been better if she turned out to be pregnant, they fought each other a lot, then she accidentally lost the baby and he realized how much he loved her and wanted a family with her.)
Campy Side Characters
Of the side characters, the queen was the most aggravating, and annoying of the lot. She was honestly too much, and I quite disliked her.
My Final Thoughts
This series is a lot of fun to watch, with sweep-me-off-my-feet romance and suspenseful side stories as well as a colourful setting.
My rating for this series is 7/10.
Disclaimer:
This review is the Author’s opinion, the author does not claim anything stated here as fact. If you disagree with anything written in this article please do not hesitate to sound of in the comments down below. However, please keep in mind that the author is not liable for any information stated in this post. It is purely opinion.
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