Bridgerton Season 4 is the Diamond of the Series

By Caoimhe McCloskey

WARNING: SPOILERS!

Dearest Gentle Reader,

The time has come again for one of the most anticipated shows to return to our screens, no one has been more excited for it than me. As a long-time fan of Netflix’s hit show, I was curious as to how this latest season would be received, especially considering the critiques from viewers of season three.

Season four of Bridgerton focuses on the second son of the Bridgerton family, Benedict and new character, Sophie. It is adapted from the Julia Quinn novel, An Offer From A Gentlemen and can be described as a Cinderella retelling, where during a masquerade ball, Benedict becomes enamoured with a Lady in Silver, who is actually, Sophie Baek, a maid who has obstacles and secrets of her own.

I think season four has most definitely listened and learnt from the mistakes of seasons past, especially in regards to the balance between the main couple and secondary characters. I never felt that the secondary characters took away from the romantic storyline nor did I miss a reprieve from the main couple to escape to downstairs. A real highlight for me was the newly introduced characters of the Penwood family and various members of the working class. New characters, Posy, Alfie and John the Footman were personal favourites as they brought a light-heartedness to the series cast of character’s while still being nuanced and never simply being narrative tools for the main couple.

The main couple in question, Benedict and Sophie were a wonder to watch. Yerin Ha does an incredible job at bringing Sophie Baek (Sophie Beckett in the books) to life while Luke Thompson once again plays Benedict with the same familiarity fans know and love from seasons past while also stepping into the role of leading man to the same if not more calibre than his predecessors, presenting a very Prince Charming-esque take on the character.

A first for the series was the focus of the working class and servants of the Bridgerton and Penwood household, of which was really refreshing to see an alternative perspective of which we had yet to be fully exposed to in the series. While we have seen lower class characters in the past (Theo Sharpe you are forever missed), we have never seen them in such depth before and never so consistently. In season four, we see not only how they interact with their employers but also with each other, which once again, the new dynamics between characters were once again, refreshing to see.

While I have not read any of the books within the Bridgerton series, I know that where the series differs is the push for diversity. Season four depicts the series’ first lead of East Asian and with that came various adjustments to how the character of Sophie is represented, the biggest change being her name: Sophie Beckett became Sophie Baek. This is not the first time that the series has altered a character’s name in the name of diversity, in season two, Kate Sheffield became Kate Sharma, so it was nice to see that they continued with this. Additionally, the Penwood’s, Araminta Gun and her daughters Rosamund and Posy Li are of Chinese descent and there is a brief scene of them speaking Cantonese. Not only does this further the representation, narratively it also further emphasises the conflict between them and Sophie, who is of Korean descent, specifically.

With all that being said, I did feel that series regular, Eloise was seen to be put into a repetitive hole this season. I noticed that her character arc was somewhat recycled from seasons past: she renounces the marriage mart, constantly proclaims the disadvantages of marriage (and men), criticises those who encourage it then accepts that other characters are allowed have opinions that differ from hers; this pattern was even brought up by other characters! While I have always admired her character, I think the writers are getting into the habit of going in circles with character’s stories unless it is that character’s specific season, they take an ‘if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it approach’. It’s with this that I hope that her season may be next, if to just allow for her character to have some permanent growth.

Standout episodes of the season are one, three, and seven. I think it’s where the storytelling is at its best, actors thrive and costumes shine. Overall, if you want fairytale full of love, loss and occasional laughs then look no further!

★ ★ ★ ★ ⯨